Local MPPs are literally toeing the party line on the Greenbelt report, released this week by Ontario Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk.
Attorney General and Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte MPP Doug Downey, Barrie-Innisfil MPP Andrea Khanjin, Simcoe North MPP and Colleges and Universities Minister Jill Dunlop and Brian Saunderson, Simcoe-Grey MPP, all Conservatives, were each asked by BarrieToday for their reaction to the Greenbelt report’s conclusions and recommendations.
“I think the report speaks for itself,” Saunderson said in a phone interview. “As the premier (Doug Ford) and the (housing) minister (Steve Clark) have said, I think mistakes were made in the process.
“We have adopted 14 of the 15 recommendations and we will implement those, but it doesn’t change the nature of the housing crisis and we’re committed to building 1.5 million homes and that’s a very pressing crisis, I think one that will have humanitarian impacts if it doesn’t get done, so we’re going to move forward and we’re going to make changes to the process based on those recommendations,” he said.
Lysyk’s report provided 15 recommendations to the province, including a call for the "re-evaluation of (the) 2022 decision to change the Greenbelt boundaries." Ford’s government has agreed to implement 14 of the recommendations, but rejected Lysyk's advice to review the boundary decision.
The province says Ontario’s Greenbelt protects farmland, communities, forests, wetlands and watersheds – while preserving cultural heritage and supporting recreation and tourism in Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe.
The report says the province's decision to open up the protected Greenbelt to housing construction favoured "certain developers" with ties to the housing minister (Steve Clark), and failed to consider the potential consequences of the move.
Lysyk said the Ontario government "proceeded with little input from experts," and did not weigh the environmental, agricultural and financial risks and impacts of the 2022 decision to remove some lands from the Greenbelt for development while adding others.
Downey, Khanjin and Dunlop all answered BarrieToday’s question in statements.
“As the premier made clear, we are dedicated to enacting 14 out of the 15 recommendations brought forward by the auditor general,” Downey said. “We are also facing unprecedented growth across the province, and the government is fully committed to our goal of building at least 1.5 million homes.”
“As the premier and minister stated yesterday, we are enacting 14 of the 15 recommendations put forward in the report,” Khanjin said.
“At the same time, we won’t deny 50,000 families a chance at home ownership. At a time when Ontario is experiencing unprecedented growth, it’s never been more important to deliver on our commitment to build at least 1.5 million homes.”
“As mentioned in the report yesterday (Wednesday), the premier and Minister Clark are enacting 14 of the 15 recommendations,” said Dunlop. “Delivering on our commitment to building at least 1.5 million homes is more important than ever. We won’t ignore 50,000 families with an opportunity for home ownership when Ontario is experiencing unparalleled growth.”
The Ontario government says it’s committed to having 1.5 million new homes built during the next decade. Bill 23, the More Homes Built Faster Act of 2022, is part of a long-term strategy to increase housing supply and provide attainable housing options for Ontarians and their families, the province says.
Barrie city council, for example, has endorsed a pledge with a target of 23,000 new homes built by 2031, in addition to what’s already planned.
Saunderson said he agreed with only implementing 14 of Lysyk’s recommendations.
Saunderson said Thursday he’s hearing feedback to Lysyk’s report.
“I think it’s starting, I think people are listening and reacting to the news and the report and that’s certainly understandable,” he said, “and as we move forward, we’ll be working together with our constituents to get those homes built and to do it in the best possible way.”
- With files by The Canadian Press
