On The Ledge

In this edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast.Keith Leslie, John Wright and Dave Trafford pick through the entrails of the suprise cabinet shuffle and Premier Ford's decision to recess the legislature for more than four months.Do they only serve to set the stage for an election call in the Spring of 2025?Is Stephen Lecces dancing a happy dance?And did Steve Clark sound like Scooby Doo when he was welcomed back from the wilderness as the PC's House Leader?

In this week's edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast - Keith Leslie, John Wright and Dave Trafford weigh in on the 34 felony convictions for Donald Trump before turning to the games at Queen's Park.The Premier was commenting on the recent shooting at a Jewish school in Toronto and, in so doing, seemingly took aim at immigrants for the violence."Enough is enough," said Ford. "You're bringing your problems from everywhere else in the world, you're bringing it to Ontario. and you're going after other Canadians, as the Prime Minister said, unacceptable. I got an idea. Before you plan on moving to Canada, don't come to Canada if you're going to start terrorizing neighbourhoods."At worst, Ford is being accused of "othering" immigrants. At best, the premier was ill prepared to answer an obvious question from the media.Then there is the matter of the push to accerate beer and wine sales in grocery stores and convenience stores. That means breaking the contract with the Brewers Retail to the tune of $225 million. But it appears that's only part of the cost. All in, the price to eliminate the Beer Store could land somewhere north of a billion dollars!

In this week's edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast:It was a classic Friday Dump! The Friday afternoon before a long holiday weekend, the Ford government announces its intention to use an enhanced ministerial zoning order to cut the City of Toronto out of the planning process for Ontario Place.Also, the Ontario government 's defence of its third party ad restriction get a rough ride in front of the Supreme Court of Canada.The province also lost in the Court of Appeal this week. The panel upheld the right to strike for TTC workers. Why doesn't Ford just invoke the Notwithstanding Clause, reinstating the TTC as an essential service and save the GTA the grief of a transit shut down?Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie attempts to muscle her way into the headlines by calling on the RCMP to provide an update on the Greenbelt investigation.And, how much mileage can the Premier get out of re-announcing plans to expand beer and liquor sales and how much will it cost for the province to buy its way out of its contract with Brewers Retail to accelerate the plan?

Ugly shirt season has begun! It's the Victoria Day Weekend edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast!Keith Leslie, John Wright and Dave Trafford pay tribute to David Rider for his 14-plus years of service as the Toronto City Hall Bureau Chief for the Toronto Star. David's moving on to take on the role of Senior Political Reporter in the GTA! Well done!!Also, we dig in on some of the head scratching stories to come out of Queen's Park this past week, Including:The staffing crisis in healthcare, particularly the need for nurses and personal support workers, is a significant concern. And why did the Health Ministry stiff Colin D'Mello's FOI request for the staffing stats but gave them up to Canadian Press without an argument?? (Could it be Ford Nation just doesn't like the Global News QP Bureau Chief? FOR THE RECORD: We love the guy!!)The province should take the initiative and provide better support and resources, including healthcare and mental health services, for veterans and their families.AND...the Solicitor General has done NOTHING in response to 57 recommendations from a coroner's inquest into the death of Soleiman Faquiri. He died while in 2016 while he was in custody at the Central East Correctional Centre. The coroner ruled his death was a homicide.

In this edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast:So many QUESTIONS!The pollsters are at odds over what's weighing on the Ontario Liberals. Is it the lack lustre performance of the Trudeau government? Is it Ford Nation's ability to frame and define OLP leader Bonnie Crombie as the "Queen of the Carbon Tax"? Or is it simply an electorate that just isn't paying ANY attention to the minutiae of the daily grind at Queen's Park?Do the latest email revelations connecting the Greenbelt scandal to another Ford staffer move the needle on Doug Ford's approvals?There are more signs the Toronto Polic Service is facing an intergrity crisis. The Stacy Clarke case lays bear several layers of systemic issues that are reputational problems for Toronto cops.And the Health Minister says there's no need to worry about the family doctor shortage when 2 million Ontarians DON'T have a GP!

In this edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast:We pick through the entrails of two by-election wins for the Progressive Conservatives.Two things are clear:There's no "call for change" at Queen's Park. Are we on the verge if the next Big Blue Machine era of politics in Ontario?If Bonnie Crombie couldn't muster enough attention, support or money to win the race in Milton, what does that say for the future of the Ontario Liberal Party?Oh ya,,,,Go LEAFS!

In this week's edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast:We remember the legendary broadcaster Bob Cole and then dig in on the latest stories coming out of Queen's Park including:The Ford Nation reversal of the week.The fallout from the NOT GUILTY verdict in the trial of Umar Zumeer - accused of murdering Toronto police Det-Constable Jeffery Northrup.And would the premier seriously consider calling an early election?

In this week's edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast:Happy 3rd birthday to Story Studio Network!Doug Ford goes on an operatic RANT about gas price hikes and manages to lay it all at the feet of Justin Trudeau and Bonnie Crombie!All four provincial party leaders want the Speaker to reverse his refusal to allow the keffiyeh to be worn in the legislature. The housing file keeps getting more and more complicated and that's driving up the cost of home building.Vic Fideli doubles down on government insistence that the addition of Long Term Care beds qualify as "new home" builds.The Transportation Minister may need whiplash therapy. He was forced to make a fast and strenuous about face mere hours after announcing service reductions on the Metrolinx UP Express!It's hard to imagine we don't have a gambling problem in Ontario when we learn 1.3 million Ontarians bet $63 billion online in fiscal 2023-24.

In this week's edition of On the Ledge - your Ontario politic podcast:We're joined by Tim Hudak, CEO at the Ontario Real Estate Association, tp talk about the housing initiatives annoucned at Queen's Park and in Ottawa this week.Tim says there've been some positive steps taken, such as increasing the amortization period and providing assistance for modular homes and apartment construction.However, he also highlights the gaps and the need for more bold and comprehensive solutions.The discussion touches on topics like the role of municipalities, the impact of land transfer tax, the importance of leveling the playing field for first-time homebuyers, and the need for a balanced approach to housing and employment lands.the competing announcements has everyone "talking housing" but will they do enough for help meet the housing goals by 2031?

In this episode of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast:It's been a busy "media week" for Doug Ford - making almost daily annoucements about government spending plans one week after the 2024 budget was tabled at Queen's Park.But announcements aside, the PCs are spending a good deal of time and political capital defining Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie as the Carbon Tax Queen and re-defining Premier Ford as a guy who listens to the people when his government "gets it wrong" versus a leader who has spent two years of this mandate flip-flopping on key plans and policies of his government.As noted in last week's show, the Ontario government has commited to historically record spending in the latest budget - beating the record spending promises tabled in 2023. Doug Ford's government has commited to more than $420 billion in spending over the last two budgets. The question is, how has that record spending improved life for Ontarians?