What began as a political scandal is now a criminal investigation.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police confirmed Tuesday that it has launched a criminal probe into the Greenbelt changes made by the Ford government, following a referral from the Ontario Provincial Police.
“While we recognize that this investigation is of significant interest to Canadians, the RCMP has a duty to protect the integrity of the investigations that it carries out, in order to ensure that the process leads to a fair and proper outcome," said a spokesperson for the force, in an email statement. "Therefore, no further updates will be provided at this time.”
Premier Doug Ford’s office published a statement in response, promising to “fully cooperate" with the investigation while adding it has “zero tolerance for any wrongdoing."
Controversy around the Ford government’s decision to remove 7,400 acres in 15 different land sites from the Greenbelt was escalated by revelations contained in scathing reports published separately by two of Ontario’s watchdogs.
Each determined that the process leading to land being unprotected for homes to be built was significantly influenced by, and favoured, many of the developers owning the affected properties. Then-auditor general Bonnie Lysyk projected that land-owning developers could make upwards of $8.3 billion, thanks to the increase in the value of their lands.
Last month — amid plummeting public opinion poll numbers, and after the resignations of two cabinet ministers and two senior staffers involved in the scandal — Ford apologized for removing land and promised to reverse the Greenbelt decision.
And now the Mounties are taking a closer look at everything that went down, opening the door to potential criminal charges.
Journalist Charlie Pinkerton of The Trillium was a recent guest on Village Media's Inside the Village podcast, where he broke down the many twists and turns of the Greenbelt scandal, including the developers, the big donors and one weekend getaway in Las Vegas.
You can watch the full episode HERE.
Launched earlier this year by Village Media, The Trillium is a must-read news site devoted to in-depth, insider coverage of politics and policy at the Ontario Legislature.
Passionate and plugged in, our Queen's Park team covers every angle of the Legislative Assembly, delivering the major political headlines of the day while unpacking complex legislative changes and digging deeper into key issues that impact every Ontarian.
If you haven't checked it out already, the site also features one of the best political podcasts around: The Trill. You can listen to every episode HERE, or wherever you find your favourite podcasts.
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