Progressive Conservatives outline plan for northern Ontario

The leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party is promising to move the Ring of Fire mining project forward immediately if elected.

Doug Ford and Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli outlined the party's plan for northern Ontario on Friday.

Ford was voted as the head of the party last weekend, after former leader Patrick Brown stepped down amid sexual misconduct allegations.

Ford is promising to develop infrastructure to access the remote mining area in the James Bay lowlands.

"If I have to hop on that bulldozer myself with Vic on the other one, we're going to start building the roads to get to the mining," he said.

"There's over $60 billion up there. It's going to benefit local people but it's also going to benefit everyone in Ontario."

'We're doers'

Ford says it's a project the Liberal government has ignored for too long.

"The difference between us and the Liberals [is] we don't talk. We're doers," he said.

"So when we get in there, we're going to start doing and stop talking and start creating economic prosperity up in the north. This is comparable to oil sands in Alberta."

Earlier this week, Ford said his party's message resonates more outside of the Toronto-area, including northern Ontario. He said the party will win areas that have "never went PC before." Currently in northern Ontario, there are two MPPs that are Progressive Conservatives.

Ford says he believes people in northern Ontario are ready for a change.

"Give us a chance. I'm going to be crisscrossing the north like you've never seen before," he said.

"We're going to make this the most prosperous region in North America to do business."