Ontario in 'critical time,' must speed up infrastructure projects, Ford says
Government won't skip environmental assessments, premier says
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says the province must focus on accelerating infrastructure projects as it finds itself in a "critical time" against U.S. tariffs.
"We just want to get projects moving forward as quickly as possible," he said at Queen's Park on Wednesday.
"There's no longer time to sit around and wait 10 years as we do an [environmental assessment] and everything else."
His comments come after the government has faced criticism for a proposed bill that would give cabinet power to create "special economic zones" and allow the government to exempt itself from following laws on certain projects.
Ford said people need to keep working in Ontario, "and one way you do it is by building roads and highways and hospitals and schools and bridges."
"That's what we're going to do."
He added the government is "going to make sure that we always do" environment assessments.
"I'm not against it, I'm just against taking five years to get one done," he said.
Critics say the proposed legislation, known as the Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act, is designed to ensure projects such as Ford's idea for a tunnel under Highway 401 and critical mineral mining in northern Ontario get done with little resistance.
Environmentalists have called out the Ford government over the environmental protections the province intends to strip away through the bill, which includes repealing the Endangered Species Act.
The government wants to dramatically narrow the definition of what habitat means and do away with requirements to create a strategy for how to recover at-risk species. With the bill, it also appears to give itself greater power over an independent science-based committee to add and remove species from a protected list.
Premiers congratulated PM on U.S. visit: Ford
The premier spoke following a virtual meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney and all other provincial and territorial leaders in the country.
The meeting, known as a first ministers' meeting, is the first time that Carney has met with all the country's premiers since being elected last week. It also comes after Carney's visit to Washington D.C. on Tuesday, where he met with U.S. President Donald Trump for the first time.
Ford said all the premiers congratulated Carney on his election victory but also the "restraint" the prime minister showed during the meeting with Trump.
"I don't think I'd have the restraint that he had yesterday, to be very frank," Ford said.
Carney has called the White House meeting "constructive" and said he will meet Trump again in person next month at the G7 summit.
Earlier this week, Ford publicly released his list of priority "nation-building projects" in a letter to Carney, which he said the prime minister asked all premiers to prepare. His list included the Highway 401 tunnel proposal.
He said all the premiers "rattled off" their list of projects during Wednesday's meeting but did not provide further details.
Premier says he'll fight against GM cuts
Ford also said he is committed to protecting and supporting auto workers.
He said he's "going to continue fighting" to keep the third shift at the General Motors Oshawa Assembly plant.
General Motors is laying off about 750 workers as it moves from a three-shift to a two-shift operation starting this fall, the president of the union representing workers said last week.
Ford floated the idea of building military vehicles in the plant — an idea he said the union suggested.
"Let's start thinking outside the box," he said.
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With files from The Canadian Press