Some comments on the changes…

Some comments on the changes to the Greenbelt Act in the context of the overall them of Bill 23.

1 - The amendment to this Act states that "If this proposal is adopted, it would result in the construction of approximately 50,000 or more new homes in the Greater Golden Horseshoe" within the Greenbelt areas. This seems like a very small proportion of the 1.5 million new homes that will be completed overall. It isn't clear to me why the Greenbelt needs to be developed when 1.45 million homes will be added elsewhere. My cynical nature would suggest that this small proportion of new homes was added due to the potential lobbying of developers who may own lands in the Greenbelt rather than any dire need for space within the Greenbelt.

2 - The process for adding to the Greenbelt started in 2021, in ERO 019-3136 (and others, but I did not investigate further). It appears to have been an act of conservation and likely created goodwill among the electorate. However, after the Provincial election in 2022, it has become clear that the intent was never to add lands to the Greenbelt, but to "swap" lands away from the Greater Toronto Area / Golden Horseshoe that appear to be owned by developers. It also appears that the intent was to keep a promise that there would not be a decrease in Greenbelt lands (paraphrasing various articles online). It is this sort of behavior by governments that creates a lack of trust in elected officials. Attempting this land swap before the election would surely have led to defeat, which is why it should not have been done in the first place. If you do something that would have led to your defeat, it is obvious that you shouldn't do it at all.