Doug Ford

Toronto reporter Fatima Syed explores what is changing in Ontario politics and shares five things you may not know about Ontario's first-ever Green MPP.

Ontario Environment Minister Rod Phillips unveiled a $500 million plan on Thursday that promised to cut the province's carbon pollution in line with Canada's obligations under the Paris climate agreement, but offered few details about how it would actually achieve these reductions.

"I was eight years old and I was at the rally with my T-shirt," said Ontario MPP Amanda Simard in an emotional speech to the legislature. "And now, 20 years later, we're still fighting to preserve the rights that we have gained."

The abrupt closure of a General Motors manufacturing plant in the town of Oshawa, Ontario has renewed concerns about the province's lack of clean economy policies and the possible trickle-down effect the loss of the factory could have. GM has operated in Oshawa for 100 years. 

Following a chorus of outrage over plans to eliminate the office of a French-languages commissionner and cancel plans for a French-language university, Ontario Premier Doug Ford has offered an olive branch to the province's francophones, announcing a new ministry and proposing amendments to controversial legislation.

Social Services Minister Lisa MacLeod introduced the major planks of the new plan on Thursday. It proposes to increase the amount that someone on welfare is allowed to earn before their support payments are clawed back. It also proposes to increase access to employment services, and change rules that determine who qualifies for assistance.

Ontario’s immigration minister attacked the Trudeau government’s policies on border crossers just days after turning down a federal offer to get briefed on the same issue.

While Ontario Proud founder Jim Ballingall hails the power of "digital democracy," he won't reveal his donor sources. His approach is raising red flags among political and digital media experts about a lack of transparency by such third party groups and the potential for circumventing election spending rules by using social media.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford's recent decision to cancel plans for a new French university and slash the French-language commissioner position in the province has outraged Franco-Ontarians, writes Toula Drimonis.

In the wake of Ontario Premier Doug Ford's decision to cancel francophone services in the province, Federal Tourism and Official Languages Minister Mélanie Joly said "I think Mr. Ford needs a history lesson about bilingualism and the linguistic duality of the country. I invite him to look at history books.”

In Toronto, Doug Ford's government was calling on Ottawa to focus on jobs. In Ottawa, representatives from a large trade association were asking why Toronto was killing a popular job-supporting program.

A meeting about expanding trade between Canada's two most populous provinces appeared to be overshadowed by language issues on Monday, with the premiers at odds over support for the French language in Ontario.

Andrew Scheer says he has "expressed his concerns" to Ontario's premier about the cancellation of a planned French-language university — but he has not asked Doug Ford to reverse the decision.

The Ford government should be using Thursday's economic update to unveil its plan to combat climate change in Ontario, rather than resorting to "gimmicks" to criticize the federal plan, the federal intergovernmental affairs minister says.

Mike Schreiner, who became the first Green Ontario legislator after winning the seat for Guelph in the June election, said that "the Ford government is on the wrong side of history and on the wrong side of the electorate" given that a majority of votes cast in that election were for parties (the Liberals, New Democrats, Greens) which included pollution pricing in their platforms.