Catherine Fife
@CFifeKW
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Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Waterloo Ontario (2012/14/18/22) | Ontario NDP Candidate for Re-election 2025
Waterloo, Ontario
Joined February 2011
Shocking to hear the Finance Minister failed to consider the $225M price tag to accelerate beer & wine into corner stores. Millions of taxpayer dollars at the expense of ON’s healthcare, education system & infrastructure. This is the definition of fiscal irresponsibility. #onpoli
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I’m trying to prevent a mum and her children from being evicted from a damn campsite. This guy doesn’t get it. You can’t work without shelter or a home. You need an address. Wish he had stayed in the sticker business. #onpoli.
Here's the video of the Premier telling healthy people in encampments and who are homeless to 'get off their A-S-S and start working' #onpoli
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When the Red Cross is called into a children's hospital to address a crisis. it is worth noting that Ford under spent by 900 million in health care 2022. Red Cross workers are ussually called in for disaster relief. #onpoli . via @torontostar.
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Doug Ford: “You will never have to use your credit card to pay for your health care needs”. #onpoli @NickelBelt.
Toronto General Hospital just contacted me to let me know some of the medically necessary testing that I’m scheduled to have is no longer covered by OHIP and I must pay out of pocket on the day of testing to have it completed😭. THANK YOU @fordnation for healthcare privatizing
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Just a friendly reminder that Ford only kept 37% of his election promises. - he didn't reduce income tax by 20%.- he didn't end hallway medicine (made it worse).- he didn't cut your hydro bill by 12% (increased by 4.3%).- he didn't fix the Autism program .#Polimeter #onpoli
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More important story is at the top of the front page…let’s stay focused. #onpoli #RepealBill23 #Greenbelt #Housing
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Privacy concerns have been flooding in around the #StaplesScandal - given the directive to “monetize Service Ontario interactions”. I would say these concerns are valid. Alongside a “sole-sourced” contract for Staples. The deal stinks. #onpoli.
@CFifeKW Grave concerns about the security of our very personal information.
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A PC MPP cautioned me on my questions yesterday (honestly) and reminded me that my mom was watching. I let him know that she ALSO wants answers. “The government may not want to give the answers but the people of Ontario want me to ask the questions" #GreenbeltScandal #OnPoli
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I wish the Sunday Scrum would reference the fact that @fordnation underspent in healthcare (almost 1 Billion/last year). They created the crises in health care with #Bill124 and under-utilization of surgical facilities. #onpoli #CBCNN @RosieBarton @CBCNews
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NEW - Premier Ford won’t comment to releasing a fully costed platform when I ask him. Seems to suggest his budget of last March stands in its place.
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Can’t pay nurses what they deserve but can siphon off (even more) of your tax dollars to private clinics. #onpoli.
During a press conference this week, Ontario Premier Doug Ford pitched private surgeries as a solution to Ontario’s health care crisis. Some procedures Ford singled out are offered by Ontario PC donors that lobbied Ford’s government. #onpoli #onthealth.
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“I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again —once more, with feeling. Ford should resign. So should Clark. And any self-respecting PC MPP ought to demand they both go. Supporting a government so obviously corrupt is morally reprehensible. It’s dirty, filthy gutter stuff.”#onpoli.
The Greenbelt report proves it: The Ford government is corrupt. - By @David_Moscrop.
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Of all the issues facing Ontario, including the closure of 1199 ERs last year. Banning bike lanes and breaking booze contracts are Ford’s priorities? #onpoli.
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Ford said, "Life is better in Ontario than 6 years ago." For whom? Under Ford, rent control has been removed, there's chaos at the LTB, provincial housing starts have plummeted, and the Govt's own numbers confirm 234,000 Ontarians are homeless. #Housing #GreenbeltScandal #OnPoli
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✔️ “If you rob a bank and you get caught, you don’t get to keep the loot. This government MUST, immediately recall the legislature to reinstitute the protections to these lands that were removed from the Greenbelt. That is the first step in taking responsibility.”.#onpoli 👇.
Can you do anything you want with land in Ontario? No, you cannot. We have rules and regulations enshrined in The Planning Act that govern how we use land. Why? Because there is a broad public interest in land use. It affects every aspect of our lives. Whether we have a home
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The Wilmot land grab is not how democracy works. Kicking farmers off their land is un-Canadian. it is not the Waterloo way. It is downright disrespectful to farmers #FightForFarmland #onpoli
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If you can get past the patronizing tone… “OPTIONS” exist if you have money… “Choices” exist if you have money. #onpoli.
"I wouldn't call it upselling. I would call it patient options," said Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones when asked about the risk of patients being persuaded to spend money at for-profit clinics.
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Ford’s cabinet is almost as large as PM Trudeau’s, despite serving less than half the population. When @fordnation took office, 20 staffers in the premier’s office made more than $100,000/year… That number is now up to 48. And what do we have to show for it? #onpoli
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This government's decision to underspend on healthcare when children's hospitals are asking for $370 million dollars to address a funding gap & backlog in children's surgeries is morally reprehensible, isn't fiscally prudent & will cost our health care system more money. #onpoli
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"In Waterloo last year, a judge ruled that evicting those living in homeless encampments would be a violation of their Charter rights if no shelter spaces are available.". The courts have historically upheld Charter Rights. Doug Ford wants to override the courts. #onpoli.
#Breaking: Doug Ford preparing to override courts, give police and municipalities enhanced legislative powers to 'dismantle' homeless encampments.
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Blaming Ministry Officials for this Service Ontario fiasco is cowardly. This backroom deal was never about improving services or saving money. #onpoli.
“By the way the officials dealt with this, none of us dealt with this” . The Premier now tells me when asked about ServiceOntario questions. It’s the first time we’ve seen the government try and put distance between it and the story. Seemingly putting blame on ministry officials.
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A simple question – how many ppl are employed in the Office of the Premier? The numbers don’t add up. there are millions of unaccounted dollars in spending by the Premier’s office. Ontarians deserve transparency in how their taxpayer dollars are spent #onpoli
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Today is March 31st. This used to be a significant date in Ontario. Budget Day. Failure to table a budget came with fines for the Premier & Finance Minister. But they changed the law to avoid accountability. Choosing partisan ambition over Ontario. Consistently. #onpoli.
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So much for @Fordnation’s “tough on crime” blathering…. “More than 580 criminal cases in Ontario were stayed for unreasonable delay… Of those cases stayed, 145 were sexual assaults.”. #OnPoli #LydiasLaw
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International Women’s Day is Friday. It is common Parliamentary protocol to allow female MPPs to speak to this important day. The independent members (Lib/Greens) just asked for permission to speak tomorrow. They were just denied by the Ford Govt. Can’t make it up. #onpoli.
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Paid. Sick. Days. You took them away. Stop blaming everyone else. reinstate & fund:.Paid. Sick. Days. #onpoli.
Without health and safety, we don't have an economy, it's as simple as that. If you're showing symptoms, don't go to work. Go get tested immediately. Let’s all do our part to flatten the curve by following public health guidelines and limiting your contact with others.
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Is this the new era in politics? The people we are elected to serve are not 'entitled' to know the Premier's Agenda? Are people okay with this secrecy as Ford undermines our democracy and sells off our public assets? #onpoli.
NEW: Premier Doug Ford has given his cabinet ministers new mandate letters, but the Premier’s Office says those contents will remain confidential. #onpoli.
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One of the reasons Doug delayed our return. He's not a big fan of accountability. Or democracy. #onpoli.
Premier is ducking all questions on the RCMP investigation into the Greenbelt scandal. In his stead, backbencher Will Bouma is taking the questions. NDP Leader @MaritStiles is chiding Doug Ford for dodging and weaving. #onpoli
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By invoking the notwithstanding clause, Doug Ford and his government are admitting that their bill, forcing a one-sided contract on education workers, violates the Charter Rights of Canadians. And they just don't care.
BREAKING: the Ford government will invoke the notwithstanding clause in order to impose a new contract on CUPE. This is the 3rd time the government has used this measure. #onpoli.
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I wrote to Minister Lecce today to amplify concerns my office is hearing from concerned parents about the removal of HEPA units from schools. It is well worth the investment to ensure students & education workers are learning and working as safely as possible.#onpoli
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Excellent questions @cbchh tonight…thank you. Greenbelt land-grab was never about housing ✔️.Why didn’t you know this “process” was so flawed? ✔️.Will you resign? ✔️ . Disrespectful answers that insult the people of Ontario. #friendswithbenefits #onpoli
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Ontario orders Waterloo to sprawl into farmland: Ordering regions like @RegionWaterloo to REDUCE density & remove farmland. No appeals. No comprehensive analysis on our aquifer. Undermining years of progressive planning & democracy. Hellish. #onpoli.
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It’s getting difficult to keep track of the lies… #onpoli 👇.
Doug Ford promises to offer 1600 sq ft homes with finished basements, paved driveways, and fenced-in backyards for $500,000 or less. (We can only assume it will be white picket fences.). 📸 Sep 8, 2023. #cdnpoli #onpoli #Kitchener #FordFest
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Ford hasn't taken questions for 6 weeks. Then he shows up with this garbage. Shows his complete disrespect for Ontario. Seriously, take the time to read his "answers". #onpoli.
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
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Today the official opposition pushed back on the PC narrative that they "invested in health care & education". With a 2.1 Billion Dollar surplus - there is no reason @FordNation can't #RepealBill124 & pay nurses & educators what they deserve. Budgets are about choices. #onpoli
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Ontario can’t afford Doug Ford…. "The overpayment for these minor things is egregious," said the chief of surgery at a large Ontario hospital. "It doesn't look like great value for money." .#onpoli #FollowTheMoney #Priorities
NEW: Here’s how much the Ford government pays a for-profit clinic to do OHIP-covered surgeries. #onpoli . 👇to read full story👇
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Ontario’s Budget Officer has found that the Ford government failed to spend $7.2 billion of its budget last year, including $1.7 billion unspent on health as ERs are closing and surgery waitlists are growing #onpoli #MindenMatters #FollowTheMoney
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“a developer approached the farmers offering to pay $58,000-an-acre because he heard the land would be rezoned to industrial, this is exactly why the RCMP is investigating Doug Ford right now,” . Call it Greenbelt 2.0 or Farmgate. the community deserves answers. #onpoli.
The Region of Waterloo and Wilmot Township have a lot of explaining to do. #RegionofWaterloo #WilmotTownship #governmentsecrets #NDA #farmlandloss #landassembly #expropriation.
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The @OntarioAuditor is in “her lane”. Someone has to account for how bad it’s getting in Ontario… #onpoli.
"The Auditor General has to stay in her lane." Premier Ford on the "sting operation" the AG initiated at casinos to detect money laundering. (police weren't happy).Ford says she needs to focus on finding value for money. #onpoli.
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ON farmers deserve respect. Ford & Co. are funding the ROW land assembly of 770 acres of Class 1 Farmland in Wilmot Township for industrial use. This farmland will be lost w/o ANY public consultation. Wilmot farmers are NOT willing hosts. #FightForFarmland #NoFarmsNoFood #onpoli
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No transparency. No financial case. Instead a true gift from Ford to a US company funded by Ontario taxpayers. I've never witnessed a more disgraceful scrum, and that is saying a lot. Must watch. #onpoli.
NEW - Here is the full, unedited scrum my fellow reporters and I had with Minister @ToddJMcCarthy today. He was unable to tell taxpayers where purported cost savings are coming from, or why the deal was was sole-sourced. Watch -
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“The Premier was not using his government-issued phone for at least a full week in November 2022, raising concerns that he is using a personal phone intentionally to avoid accountability through the Freedom of Information process,” .#onpoli #GreenbeltScandal.
NEW: Ontario’s Integrity commissioner is being asked to expand his Greenbelt probe to include communications on Doug Ford’s personal cell phone. #onpoli.
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Former Toronto Mayor John Sewell interrupts delegations on the controversial #Bill23 because he and others (like @AMOpolicy) we’re denied an opportunity to speak. I’ve never seen anything like this at Queen’s Park #onpoli
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The head of fundraising for the PC Party of Ontario sold tickets directly to developers for a fundraiser to benefit members of the Ford Family. This isn’t over. Ontario has many legitimate questions. #onpoli #GreenbeltScandal #FollowTheMoney.
Ontario’s integrity commissioner says it's "interesting" that a developer who bought tickets for Premier Doug Ford’s daughter’s stag and doe purchased them from Tony Miele, the chair of the fundraising arm of the @OntarioPCParty.#onpoli
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ICYMI The Wilmot Farmland grab made the front page of the Globe last week. Class 1 Farmland should be farmed. Not bulldozed. They shouldn’t have to fight the government to do so…. #FightForFarmland #onpoli 🚜.
From today’s front page: In Wilmot, Ont., the race for industrial megasites meets farmers’ fury #onpoli
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The Premier’s office was directly involved in hiring Mr. Amato for Mr. Clark’s Chief of Staff. Someone with no experience or training. We heard in Committee that this is not normal. Note: Legal counsel was present. #GreenbeltGrab #onpoli
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Cash stash: Ontario’s Budget Office found that the government is sitting on piles of unspent contingency funds: $8.5 billion this year and a projected $44 billion over the next six years. “Typically, contingency funds run a billion dollars a year. #onpoli.
The week that was in #onpoli: Ford fights inquiry summons, new housing measures, and questions about a very large stash of government cash. — by @DanielKitts
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I asked a very simple question of the Minister. “Was it concerning that a company the Ford govt collaborated with had to pay $700 million in fines for unethical business conduct?” .The people of Ontario deserve answers, and the Minister refuses to provide them #onpoli
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Today was emotional. It is challenging to deal with a government that demonstrates such disdain for survivors of sexual violence. They will not silence women in Ontario’s Legislature. They will not silence Lydia. This is our promise to women in Ontario. #onpoli.
NDP MPP Catherine Fife in tears after planned debate on her bill for accountability on court delays for sexual assault victims is shut down. Gov House Leader Paul Calandra accuses NDP of a show, says PCs speeding up bill's move to a committee studying intimate partner violence
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Imagine a government essentially giving away a treasured public place…and signing over all negotiating power. The Ontario Place/Therme “deal” is right up there with the 407 Lease orchestrated by the PC Harris Govt. Pure incompetence or intentional transfer of wealth? #onpoli.
Top 3 concerns with the Ontario Place lease: arbitration schedule D, parking provisions, tenant permissions for development @CFifeKW @normsworld @chrisgloverndp @TDotResident @corruptario
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👆👇 Question Period would be very interesting tomorrow if Ford hadn’t shut us down until October 21rst! #FollowTheMoney 🧐 #onpoli.
Sheila found the Ford government rerouted the project to a path that offered the poorest performance for commuters, the fewest expected riders and lowest travel time savings — but runs through land owned by companies led by developer Angelo De Gasperis.
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The Therme deal will join Highway 407 as one of the worst deals in the history of this province. When will the Minister of Infrastructure resign for her role in this corrupt Ontario Place deal that was driven by an opaque process with preferential treatment? #ONpoli
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I am outraged to hear that yet another sexual assault case has been dismissed due to court delays in Ontario. Survivors deserve justice & accountability. This is exactly why we need Lydia’s Law. If the defendant is “sad,” just imagine how the survivors must feel. #ONpoli.
#Breaking: Sexual assault charge against megachurch pastor Bruxy Cavey dismissed over delays
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Guess who’s currently registered to lobby @fordnation on Walmart’s behalf?. Why, it’s the Premier’s former war-room director. Now it makes more sense that big box stores are getting preferential treatment.
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The Wilmot farmland assembly has become “Ground Zero” for farmers across Ontario. In the 1st Question Period in 5 months, I asked the Premier about their involvement. Ford’s schemes & scandals continue to fail Ontarians. No answers, again. #FightForFarmland #OnPoli @OntarioFarms
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“It’s now clear that (Doug) Ford and (Sylvia) Jones have always known that Bill 124 was contributing to the staffing crisis in our hospitals,” Ontario NDP health critic France Gélinas.#onpoli #RepealBill124 @NickelBelt.
The Ford government is facing furious criticism after internal documents, obtained by Global News, acknowledged that low wages and Bill 124 have had a negative impact on Ontario’s ability to retain nurses in the province’s health care sector. #onpoli.
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The Premier thinks I need a lesson on “marketing & sales”. I think he needs a lesson on how to govern with integrity. These expensive Super-Bowl commercials (which are inaccurate) shouldn’t be a budget priority. People deserve to know the full-price tag… 🏈 #onpoli.
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Ontario, stop buying what Doug Ford is selling 🎪 . “With Ford’s Tories at the helm, Ontario’s unemployment rate of 7.1 per cent is far higher than in most other provinces, notably neighbouring Quebec (5.7 per cent) and Manitoba (5.8 per cent).”. #onpoli #FollowTheMoney.
Doug Ford says job creation is Job One. But the numbers don’t add up. In fact, the unemployment rate is way up. Today's column.
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Now we know why they passed legislation to protect them from legal action. #onpoli.
NEW: The auditor general says the Ford government failed to take account of all costs in its claim that moving the Ontario Science Centre to Ontario Place would save taxpayer money. 👇to read story👇#onpoli .
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Ford is not delivering on the priorities of Ontarians. Bragging about a costly fantasy tunnel while affordable housing is stalled & 2.5M people are without a family doctor. #Priorities #onpoli
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"Days after Greenbelt developer Shakir Rehmatullah attended Doug Ford’s daughter’s wedding, ministry staffers were tasked with researching a proposal that would allow Rehmatullah’s Greenbelt property in Nobelton to be developed, deeming it a 'priority project." #onpoli #Greenbelt.
NDP releases thousands of pages of government documents revealing new details in Greenbelt scheme. #ONpoli.
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Getting to Toronto via public transit from Kitchener-Waterloo should never take 4+hrs (or 3hrs) 👀 When will KW get a direct train on the weekend to the GTA? Asking for commuters/students/ patients/family & 1 MPP #onpoli @C_Mulroney @GOtransitKT @Metrolinx @GOtransit
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No one believes Amato acted alone…all roads lead to the Premier. “The legislative watchdogs exposed a flawed process in which Clark’s chief of staff, Ryan Amato, personally selected the properties chosen to be removed from the Greenbelt after meetings with developers.” #onpoli.
It could be a Blue Monday for Premier Doug Ford’s @OntarioPCParty with new documents set to be released on the Greenbelt scandal. #onpoli .
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Chair Karen Redman told @CTVKitchener Doug Ford blocked @RegionWaterloo from being transparent about the Wilmot land assembly. This week, Ford told #FightForFarmland “I don’t know why all the secrecy was going on. I couldn’t figure it out.” 👖🔥.#OnPoli
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If you're wondering why the budget is so high. so many of your tax dollars are going to private health care interests & shareholders. Never has Ontario spent so much, and delivered so little. #onpoli.
Nothing to see here. just Extendicare praising the Ford Government for helping to keep them in business. all the while they're facing a class-action lawsuit for gross negligence.
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They are not "throwing everything" at the health care system. The FAO reported that Ford under-spent by $900 million in health care this year. PC govt has a 3.5 BILLION $ contingency fund of unallocated cash on its books. #onpoli.
“From what we’ve heard from the chief medical officer, it’s kind of levelling off here in Toronto“ Says Premier Ford when asked about overcrowding in hospitals “We’re throwing everything we can at the healthcare system“.
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Ezra Street. Many thanks to the front-line officers, paramedics, by-law & university personnel. 👍 @DaveJaworsky
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770+ acres of the best farmland in Ontario…for industrial use?. “Why has the Grand River Conservation Authority not had any input in this planning?”. And “why has there been no public engagement or even discussion about this particular location?” . Unprecedented in WR #onpoli.
Landowners in Wilmot Township ‘distraught and devastated’ but fighting to keep prime farmland.
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.@Harryslaststand always provides some much needed inspiration. Great piece via @CBCTheNational .Sending positive energy to the ICU in Belleville!.
Thousands are showing support for Harry Leslie Smith, a Second World War veteran and tireless refugee advocate, as the 95-year-old receives treatment in hospital in Belleville, Ont. #ICYMI
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The lost revenue for Ontario should be concerning to…you know, the Finance & Treasury Board Ministers. Ontario currently has a projected $9.8 billion deficit plus projected Gross Debt for 2024-25 of $462 Billion. And we pay $13.9B in Interest on that Debt 👀 #onpoli #cdnpoli.
NEW: LCBO employees are concerned about the drop in revenue the crown agency will face as the Ford government widens access to beer and wine and what it means for the future. #onpoli
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Municipalities cutting services because of less provincial funding. Homelessness going up in WR. 2.5m Ontarians without a family Dr. Sexual violence survivors denied justice due to court backlogs. Meanwhile, Ford bribes voters with their own money.
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“I know we have a few mayors that don’t want to play in the sandbox, one being Mayor Crombie, and I don’t know what her issue is. stop the whining and complaining that I hear” @fordnation . This guy keeps telling women what to do. it's damn irritating. #onpoli #RepealBill23.
John Tory backs fellow GTA mayor, Bonnie Crombie, in raising concerns around Doug Ford's new provincial housing legislation. #Bill23 #onpoli #TOpoli .
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Interesting. Highway 413. No design. No budget. No real timeline. “Ontarians may well find that they suffer the environmental and financial costs of this poorly planned and rushed project without any benefits.” #onpoli.
A summertime scoop from me! The Ontario government says it’s starting to build Highway 413 next year. But its final design for the project isn’t done, and an internal document shows it has no timeline for finalizing it or finishing the build, which will take over a decade.
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Woman is sexually assaulted at work. HRTO’s backlog kept her waiting for 6 years. But Ford can break a contract and fast-track beer for a steep price…some messed up priorities. #onpoli.
Ford has mismanaged the Human Rights Tribunal (HRTO) so badly that survivors are giving up on it as a tool for justice. The HRTO's backlog is growing despite dropping applications. Ontarians deserve a government that can fix ALL Tribunals. #ONpoli
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The Ford government's heavy-handed and secretive farmland grab in Wilmot has brought people together from across Waterloo region to #FightForFarmland. #OneDayLongerOneDayStronger #ONpoli
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Farmers understand Ford:. "For this government, it is developers first and farmers, eaters, and the house poor last.". “Let them eat concrete”: Ontario’s farmers are fed up with the Greenbelt giveaways #onpoli @NFUOntario .#GreenbeltGrab.via @torontostar.
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What kind of government fast-tracks booze (at a huge cost) when the people we are elected serve, are hurting? #onpoli
Doug Ford, Peter Bethlenfalvy and Sylvia Jones no concern bankrupting public hospitals with historical investments for-profit surgeries. Knee arthroscopy (meniscus repair) at Don Mills for-profit surgical unit $4,037 vs $1,273 to $1,692 public hospital.
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