RE: Bill 257- Schedule 3 –…

RE: Bill 257- Schedule 3 – The Planning Act – MZOs and Provincial Policy Statements (PPS)

Dear Minister Clark,

We are concerned, disappointed, and angry that you have introduced legislation that amends the Planning Act to provide that Ministerial Zoning Orders (MZOs) are not required and are deemed to never have been required to be consistent with Provincial Policy Statements (PPS) issued under subsection 3 (1); that is, except for such orders that apply to land in the Greenbelt Area.

This legislation, sneaked in as part of an omnibus bill dealing with unrelated matters, is unjust, authoritarian, and undemocratic. It curtails the municipal planning process and facilitates non-compliance with the Provincial Policy Statements. Worse, it is applied retroactively, apparently to attempt to avoid the Provincial Government being held to account in current and future court challenges.

We request that you abandon this legislation immediately. It fails to meet the standards of democratic governance which the residents of Ontario expect and deserve from their Government.