Doug Ford said he would not…

Doug Ford said he would not develop in the Greenbelt and yet he backtracked on his promise right after the 2022 election without thinking about how Ontarians would feel. We don't want any development in the Greenbelt, no matter the reason. It's meant to be a permanently protected area of green space, farmland, forests, wetlands, and watersheds, all crucial to our survival and well-being. There has been a housing crisis for many years, including the day Doug Ford became Premier in 2018, so why is he making it a priority now and not 4 years ago? The fact that Steve Clark wasn't able to answer 'No' to tipping off developers about the changes to the Greenbelt is very telling that this is not about the housing crisis; it's simply about appealing to developers who want money. That does not benefit Ontarians who are having to pay outrageous amounts to purchase and rent real estate in Ontario. In addition to this, he is not following the recommendations from the Housing Affordability Task Force, who state that: "We need to make better use of land … Greenbelts and other environmentally sensitive areas must be protected, and farms provide food and food security. Relying too heavily on undeveloped land would whittle away too much of the already small share of land devoted to agriculture." They clearly state that Ontario will not solve the housing crisis by paving its way into the Greenbelt. In fact, the Task Force's report said that Ontario hasn’t used the land it has efficiently. As such, there's no need to use land in the Greenbelt. We need to focus on making better use of the developed land we already have.

This careless act is also taking away from the precious natural land that we have left. Nature provides invaluable ecosystem services which ultimately benefit people. The Greenbelt generates $3.2 billion in ecosystem services each year, and the health of the Greenbelt affects the quality of drinking water for more than seven million Canadians. With farmland disappearing at an alarming rate in Southern Ontario - more than 450,000 acres of farmland has been lost since 1991 - a permanently protected Greenbelt is essential to sustain a reliable source of food close to home. We're experiencing a climate crisis at the moment, and what is Ford doing to address it? Absolutely nothing. Rather, he deflects this responsibility to the rest of the world, a very selfish act that he continues to do on a daily basis. He also weakened the Endangered Species Act, showing that he doesn't care about one bit about nature. I'd like to see him explain how we're supposed to have clean drinking water, food, and fresh air without a healthy environment.

In short, the Ford government is focused on short-term, economic gains, rather than the long-term prosperity of Ontario. Building houses in the Greenbelt will not solve the housing crisis and will only ruin the invaluable natural land that Ontarians care deeply about. There's a reason why Dalton McGuinty passed legislation to establish the Greenbelt: he actually listened to what Ontarians wanted and understood the value that it provides. It's time that Ford does the same.