Mike Crawley
@CBCQueensPark
Followers
59K
Following
346
Media
4K
Statuses
21K
Senior reporter @CBCNews covering Ontario on TV, radio & web. Dad, runner, XC skier, reader, cookie baker. #GoHabsGo Tips: DM or email [email protected]
Toronto
Joined April 2009
NEW: Today, Premier Doug Ford will visit Ontario’s lieutenant governor to trigger the provincial election campaign. Here are all the reasons why calling an election now is politically advantageous to Ford and his @OntarioPCParty #onpoli
16
13
17
My high-school daughter was working in the same room as me in the past couple days so I got to overhear bits of her online @tdsb classes. I was so impressed at the energy coming from the teachers & at how hard they were working to make online learning engaging. #ThankATeacher.
111
524
6K
BREAKING: Not only did all board members of FH Health each donate max permitted amount to @OntarioPCParty within a few days of each other last fall, so did a bunch of their family members and colleagues, the @OntarioNDP has revealed. #onpoli
218
2K
3K
BREAKING: The Ford government has lost another major court case. Ontario Court of Appeal has ruled that campaign spending restrictions targeting unions & other non-party groups infringe voters' Charter right to meaningful participation in the electoral process. #onpoli
124
979
3K
I've received a few messages from people saying my question to Premier Ford today was anywhere from inappropriate to disgusting. I've also heard from lots of people saying the question needed to be asked. Watch, listen, and decide for yourself.
Premier Doug Ford often says his heart breaks for business people struggling in the pandemic. In the past week in Ontario, more than 100 people with COVID-19 have died. @CBCQueensPark asked Ford: “Why aren’t you talking about them?”. Here’s his answer:
1K
314
3K
Vaccine-doubting Ontario doctor tried suing 20+ physicians, journalists & academics. Judge threw out her libel suit. Now she's been ordered to pay $1 million in legal costs. Story by @tomblackwellNP .
247
405
2K
The word "alcohol" or "beer" appears 46 times in the Doug Ford government's first budget. The words "teacher" or "teachers" appears 25 times. #onpoli .
329
2K
2K
NEW: Here’s the list of companies and people who own the land that Premier Doug Ford’s government wants to remove from the Greenbelt. Story by @CBCToronto’s @helloryanjones
228
2K
2K
Family-owned Ontario ice cream-maker @Chapmans_Canada was paying for COVID tests for unvaccinated staff. So to be fair, they decided to reward employees who did get vaxxed with $1/hour raise. The result: anti-vaxxers scream for boycott & harass owners.
398
549
2K
This line in Premier Doug Ford's speech stood out: "This is a pivotal, pivotal moment for our nation. The eyes of the world are upon us right now, and what they are seeing is not who we are. This is not how we try to change things here in Canada. We do it through the ballot box.".
644
243
2K
If Doug Ford lifted every single COVID-19 measure in Ontario today, would the protesters pack up and leave? Their anger is directly focused on the prime minister. At their core, these are more anti-Trudeau-government protests than anti-vaccine-mandate.
544
368
2K
Lake Shore Blvd - 3 lanes opened up for cyclists, runners and newbie rollerbladers like me
69
269
2K
Just last month, when the Ford govt tabled its budget, it said the province was running a $13.5 B *deficit* for 2021-22 (fiscal year that ended in March.).Today we learned the govt actually ran a *surplus* of $2.1B. That's a $15 B difference in a few weeks.
371
991
2K
Premier Doug Ford twice claims NDP leader Andrea Horwath "wasn't here" last night for the debate. Here's a shot from the Legislature camera at 3 a.m. #onpoli
173
763
2K
NEW: Documents reveal Premier Doug Ford met developer Sergio Manchia on removing his land from the Greenbelt. (This despite Ford telling integrity commissioner he had "no recollection" of meeting Manchia or having any conversations with him on Greenbelt)👇.
151
876
2K
My son received his first university acceptance today (engineering at Carleton) and while I am truly happy for him and very proud of him, I am also, officially, old.
125
12
2K
NEW: Ontario's chief electoral officer believes record-low turnout in the 2022 election was partly due to polling showing a huge lead for the @OntarioPCParty. His recommendation: ban reporting on polls for the final 2 weeks of the campaign #onpoli
199
475
2K
After listing off a litany of Ford government’s reversals & backtracks, @CityCynthia asks Municipal Affairs Minister Paul Calandra: “Does your government think before it acts?” #onpoli
134
489
2K
NEW: Five Ontario 'hot spots' getting vaccine priority are actually less hard-hit by #COVID19 than the average neighbourhood. I’ve uncovered this by examining the data on rates of infections, hospitalizations and deaths. #COVID19Ontario
200
930
2K
NEW: @OntLiberal leader Steven Del Duca will call for a return to mandatory masking in essential indoor settings such as schools, grocery stores & pharmacies.
173
337
2K
Closed in Ontario: playgrounds, soccer fields and baseball diamonds. Open in Ontario: workplaces where #COVID19 is spreading.
81
583
2K
NEW: "The federal carbon tax will cost you." declares the sticker that Premier Doug Ford is forcing gas stations to post. The Green Party of Ontario's lookalike sticker declares "Climate change will cost us more." .#onpoli
106
627
2K
Please note: no evidence the security guard was acting on orders from the @OntarioPCParty. I believe he works for @sccniagara Convention Centre. A party official eventually called him off. Two of Premier Ford’s top staff quickly apologized to me, said it shouldn’t have happened.
The CBC's Mike Crawley (@CBCQueensPark) was reporting on the Ontario PC convention when security tried to intervene. That didn't stop Mike, who kept his cool and carried on.
207
534
2K
WATCH: Minister of Long-Term Care @DrFullertonMPP refuses to take a question from reporter @jessiecatherine and walks out of news conference. Recent story by this reporter focused on Fullerton comparing #COVID19 deaths to a bad flu year. #COVID19ontario
517
978
2K
Two years after Premier Doug Ford announced he would require air conditioning in all resident rooms in long-term care, more than 100 LTC homes still don't have AC. Story by @LisaYaxiXing #onpoli #ontltc .
190
901
2K
NEW: Big step in gross negligence lawsuits against long-term care homes over COVID-19. The Ontario Superior Court gives the green light for class actions against six of the biggest for-profit LTC providers, including Chartwell, Extendicare, Revera & Sienna.
75
631
1K
NEW: Hundreds more public buildings in this province - including schools - have the same type of lightweight concrete roof panels that triggered the Ontario Science Centre’s closure. Yet only the Science Centre has been ordered shut down. 👇🏻Full story.👇🏻.
77
797
2K
The families of the 439 people who've died of #COVID19 in Ontario so far this month did not attend the #NoMoreLockdowns rally.
353
338
1K
FACT CHECK: Premier Doug Ford said ICU numbers in past few days exceeded modellers’ worst-case scenarios. That’s not true. Here are @covid19mc forecasts since March. There are *not* more COVID patients in Ontario ICUs than predicted. The government can’t say it wasn’t warned.
86
696
2K
New COVID-19 vaccines are now available in many pharmacies, for everyone age 65+ or ppl with underlying health conditions. You’d be forgiven for not knowing, because there’s been zero publicity by feds or provinces. 👇🏻my item on @CBCTheNational 👇🏻
229
705
1K
NEW: I’ve got up-to-date stats about how many kids are coming to Ontario ERs / getting hospitalized with respiratory illnesses. The numbers over the past week are nearly *triple* the usual for this time of year.
159
786
1K
No more tweets from me for the rest of this week. I’ve booked days off to spend time with my kids on their April Beak. We’ll be outdoors as much as possible. With much gratitude and appreciation for all hospital workers for their courage and hard work at this challenging time.
59
38
1K
NEW: Only 8 new #covid19 cases in Ontario today. That’s the lowest number of new positive tests for days.
93
289
1K
During the news briefing yesterday about the Ontario Place spa lease, the government communications person tried to tell reporters not to ask more questions about trees being chopped down on the site, and @jeffreybgray was having none of it. #onpoli.
A growing number of political comms people seem to need some help with this concept, so here's a crash course: In societies like ours, with a free press, you don't get to tell journalists what questions they are allowed to ask. Ever. Period. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.
33
477
1K
Not a single word in the text of this tweet or its 52-second whiteboard video to indicate that the federal government is actually the source of this $381 million for Ontario schools. #onted #COVID19Ontario.
I joined Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health to announce new and tougher measures to further protect our schools, including expanded testing & an additional $381M in supports. We're committed to following medical advice to safely reopen schools & get kids back to class.
99
658
1K
Further example of what I've been hearing from my sources, that Premier Doug Ford and PM Justin Trudeau have firmly set aside their partisan differences and the provincial and federal governments are working well together in this #COVID19 crisis.
Today’s decision by the federal government to close the border to non-essential travellers is a tough but necessary one. Goods and trade will continue to flow between Ontario and the United States. It’s vitally important we keep our supply chain intact.
50
201
1K
Premier Doug Ford is trying to portray $633 million funding for construction of two new facilities at CAMH as a “great announcement” from his govt. It is, however, old news. The Wynne govt announced it. Construction began fall 2017. #onpoli #BellLetsTalk
96
1K
1K
NEW: Premier Doug Ford's government asked experts to assess the risks Ontario faces from climate change. The report was delivered in January. The government sat on it until August, when it was posted quietly to the web. Here's what it says:
74
801
1K
The Ford government said it inherited a $15 billion deficit from the Wynne government for 2018-19. The final numbers are in, and the deficit was actually $7.4B. #onpoli
228
925
1K
NEW:.What Ontario hospitals pay nurses: up to $50/hr.What Ontario hospitals pay private staffing agencies for a nurse: $100/hr (& up). The auditor general finds hospitals across the province doubled their use of nursing staffing agencies in just 1 year.👇.
134
784
1K
Today, Premier Doug Ford held his first news conference in nearly six weeks. Here's an edited sampling of how some of his answers to reporters' questions tended to wander away from the topic as his response went on. #onpoli
202
583
1K
For 3 years, @CBCToronto has been fighting for public access to Premier Doug Ford's mandate letters to his cabinet ministers. Ontario's top court says the letters should not be kept secret. #onpoli .
55
343
1K
BREAKING: Greenpeace and Ecojustice are suing the Doug Ford government over the cancellation of cap and trade. Court hearing scheduled for Sept. 21. #onpoli
160
563
1K
During a 25-minute news conference, Merrilee Fullerton took no responsibility for what happened in long-term care. She blamed it all mostly on previous governments, but also the health bureaucracy, community spread, and scientists disagreeing about masks & aerosol spread.
270
502
1K
The @OntarioPCParty put out this media advisory about Doug Ford's campaign stops today. When we asked for the locations, so that we could send cameras, we were told: "Today’s events are not open to media." #onpoli
336
784
1K
LOTS of people asking why the Public Health Ontario briefing on #COVID19 projections talked about "slides" in a televised briefing but ***DIDN'T PUT THEM ON THE SCREEN.*** .So I am posting them here publicly for all to see .
130
677
1K
Dads too, premier.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford thanks mothers for working from home, while managing childcare and housework. "To all the moms out there, you're true heroes.". (Meanwhile, I just put my son down for a nap, and am preparing to make homemade pizza dough with my daughter).
48
104
1K
Trying to make sure this story I broke yesterday afternoon doesn't disappear under the radar amid the LCBO strike. The Ford government will *not* bring in a deposit and return system on non-alcoholic drink containers such as pop cans and bottled water.
128
739
1K
BREAKING: The Doug Ford government gets to go all the way to the Supreme Court in its efforts to keep cabinet ministers mandate letters secret. Lower courts have ruled the documents must be made public. @CBCNews has fought for access for nearly 4 years.
232
616
1K
In the space of 30 mins last night, I got calls from my dad (in New Brunswick) and from my son, each informing me they had just tested positive. This morning, my mom is showing symptoms. My parents are 2X boosted and my son is boosted, so hoping all will be well. #CovidIsNotOver.
429
169
1K
NEW: The Ford government says its red-tape reduction measures will save people & businesses $1.2B this year. CBC News obtained a breakdown of how the govt came up with that figure. A big share of the savings goes to developers. ⬇️ Full story ⬇️
188
638
1K
#onpoli Convoy donation scoop here for @QPbriefing: the staffer who donated was communications director for Solicitor General @SylviaJonesMPP, the cabinet minister responsible for policing in Ontario.
Breaking: Senior staffer of solicitor general out of job after donating to ‘Freedom Convoy’ (🔓). via @CharliePinkerto @andy_takagi #onpoli
118
599
1K
NEW: Only 1 of the 140-plus hospitals in Ontario told Premier Doug Ford that it was against a province-wide COVID-19 vaccine mandate for hospital staff, @NatashaCBC_RC discovered through a freedom of information request. #COVID19Ontario.
En octobre, Doug Ford a écrit aux hôpitaux de l'Ontario pour informer sa décision sur la vaccination obligatoire en santé. La mesure a ensuite été écartée et les réponses gardées secrètes. Nous les avons obtenues via la Loi sur l'accès à l'information.
63
506
1K
NEW: The leader of the @OntarioParty Derek Sloan, has had his Twitter account suspended. #onpoli
103
230
1K
The government's own modelling shows building Highway 413 won't solve the GTA's gridlock problem, according to documents obtained through a freedom of information request by @Thetrilliumca. Solid reporting here by @jessiecatherine.
74
608
1K
NEW: Here’s how much the Ford government pays a for-profit clinic to do OHIP-covered surgeries. #onpoli . 👇to read full story👇
89
653
1K
NEW: 337 schools in Ontario reporting absence rates of 30% or higher among staff & students. That's almost 1/10 of the schools for which data is available. (Absences tallied Friday, reported today, the first day Ontario has made this data public.) #onted .
127
540
1K
Hey @TwitterCanada: Why can't Canadians report tweets for having false information, yet @Twitter users in the U.S., Australia, South Korea and other countries can?
46
309
959
“Where is Doug Ford?” asks Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca at a news conference in eastern Ontario in the wake of destruction from the storm 48 hrs ago. Del Duca says he suspended his campaign schedule to meet affected people, while Ford campaigned in Toronto-area ridings. #onpoli
149
339
994
CBC's research librarians are digging through the archives, but have so far been unable to find a record of any Ontario premier in history appointing a relative to cabinet. #onpoli
89
424
985
SCOOP: The Ford government’s decision to shut down 10 supervised drug consumption sites goes against the advice of the province’s own experts. Reviews recommended increasing funding for sites, not closing any. #onpoli
184
563
992
The NDP's Andrea Horwath isn't praising Christine Elliott on her departure from politics: "She made choices, as did Doug Ford, that were the wrong choices, that were bad choices. This Conservative government was cutting in health care before the pandemic." #onpoli .Here's video.
73
197
965
SCOOP: Ontario government lawyers spent 1,672 hours working to keep Doug Ford's mandate letters secret (even before going to Ont Court of Appeal). And now those letters have been leaked. Reporting by @nicolebrockbank @CBCToronto.#onpoli
115
455
964
EXCLUSIVE: .The Ford government announced $100M last September to help Ontario tourism operators recover from the pandemic. None of the money has gone to any businesses yet. #onpoli
102
580
972
How much taxpayer money is @TorontoPolice spending on a podcast?.It took a freedom of information request & many months before the police would provide the answer: $337,000. @CBCToronto story by @johnrieti & @Shawn_Jeffords
97
476
992
“Ford is doing only one event per day, reading his announcements off a teleprompter, and taking only 10 minutes of questions from reporters. It’s a peek-a-boo campaign designed to provide as few opportunities to stumble as possible,” writes @spaikin
81
380
944
Premier Doug Ford’s government copied a developer's exact request (word for word) into Hamilton official plan to force the city to approve a controversial building.#onpoli #hamont .👇story by @Samantha_KB
77
556
942
Also: big shout-out to the true professionalism of videographer Rob @Krbavac whose efforts kept this on the air.
24
58
957
THREAD: Ontario's second wave of #COVID19, in quotes and charts. "We are flattening the curve." Premier Doug Ford, Oct. 6 .(seven-day-average trend of new cases daily = 611) #COVID19Ontario
73
531
928
BREAKING: Ontario's 2 million students will not go back to class in June. "We cannot open schools at this time. I'm just not going to risk it," announces Premier Doug Ford. #COVID19 .
96
342
992
NEW: Peel District School Board declares 292 teachers surplus. Education Min Lisa Thompson calls this "an annual routine . a regular occurrence that school boards undertake." But @PeelSchools officials tell me they haven't declared *any* teachers surplus in past 5 yrs. #onpoli
124
949
927
Premier Doug Ford & his cabinet are criticized in report on Trudeau govt’s use of the Emergencies Act: .“I find the Province of Ontario's reluctance to become fully engaged in such efforts directed at resolving the situation in Ottawa troubling.”.#onpoli
52
262
897
Judge on Ford govt slashing Toronto city council seats: "Passing a law that changes the City’s electoral districts in the middle of its election and undermines the overall fairness of the election is antithetical to the core principles of our democracy."
45
408
874
Premier Doug Ford just claimed the world's biggest firms "stopped investing" in Ontario over the last 15 years. Not sure that's anywhere close to the truth. This, from 2017: .
116
519
903
When @CBCToronto was researching this story about Peel School District's culling of library books, @Sflecce refused to comment. *After* we broke the story yesterday morn, Lecce announced he has written to the board to end this practice immediately. #onpoli.
92
388
884
Back in 2006, when the Dalton McGuinty government redesigned the trillium, MPP @MacLeodLisa slammed the Liberals for having "the audacity to waste taxpayer dollars on rebranding the logo of an institution that will be here long after we are gone." #onpoli .
80
494
879
Premier Ford has not explained why -- if the government was preparing for the second wave of #COVID19 since the summer -- Ontario was not ready to handle the demand for testing that the second wave has brought. #covidontario.
49
307
876
We did the math: the $15 minimum wage puts more money in the worker’s pocket than Doug Ford’s promised tax credit #onpoli
243
753
873
BREAKING: @envirodefence and @ecojustice_ca release a trove of documents that they say show "partisan Minister’s Office staff – not civil service experts – directed changes to municipal Official Plans in ways that favoured select landowners." .#onpoli.
36
465
859
I asked Minister @DrFullertonMPP if she or her government is going to apologize for what happened in long-term care. In her 3-minute+ response to that direct and specific question, she did not apologize. #COVID19Ontario
110
303
855
NEW: Pharmacists say corporate pressure led Shoppers Drug Mart staff to bill unnecessary medication reviews. Ontario pays a pharmacy up to $75 to do a MedsCheck consult over the phone, nearly 2X what a family doctor bills for a patient visit ($38). 👇.
71
591
844
BREAKING: Ontario is changing its public health advice to households. Multiple households to a max of 10 people can now have close contact. The province is calling these "social circles" (but you can call them social bubbles.)
167
551
910
The Ford government "deliberately avoided" consulting the public on environmentally significant decisions over the past year, despite a legal requirement to consult, the @OntarioAuditor reveals in a new report. #onpoli
61
509
841
NEW: Stephen Lecce, one of the highest-profile @OntarioPCParty candidates, apologizes for 2006 fraternity event dubbed a “slave auction.” .@OntarioNDP is calling for Lecce to withdraw his candidacy. #onpoli
201
372
850
Source tells me Ford govt wants to call in OPP to investigate how NDP obtained leaked health documents. While they’re at it, cops could investigate how PCs (when they were in opposition) obtained these Lib govt documents #onpoli.
50
326
814
It seems @RobynBresnahan (host of CBC Radio @OttawaMorning) is getting some flack today for allegedly being too hard on Kathleen Wynne in an interview. She also got flack last week for allegedly being too hard on Doug Ford. That's the sign of a good journalist doing her job well.
52
125
834
Team of researchers from @Sunnybrook @McMasterU & @UofT has isolated the virus that causes #COVID19, an achievement that will help researchers around the world develop better diagnostic testing, treatments and - hopefully - vaccines
18
285
859
Wondering why I didn't cover today's @envirodefence report on moving trucks to the 407 ETR vs building Hwy 413?.It's because I wrote this in March 2022:."How subsidizing trucks to use the 407 could cost Ontario less than building Highway 413".👇to read👇.
29
330
820
“I wouldn’t have spoken out if I hadn’t heard Premier Ford say ‘these private clinics won’t charge you extra.’ That’s not true.” .Reporting by @christinecbc.
She was upsold thousands of dollars in extra services at a private for-profit clinic, and when she started to ask questions, the doctor asked her to leave.
42
480
806
Although people aged 60+ in Toronto can now book an appointment to get a #COVID19 vaccination at a pharmacy, this map of the participating locations reveals a gaping paucity in the city's NW, one of the areas worst-hit by the pandemic. #COVID19Ontario
85
372
813