Ontario Opposition Parties Ask Auditor General to Investigate Greenbelt Development Deals

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Opposition parties in Ontario are asking the province’s auditor general to investigate land purchases shortly before the Progressive Conservative government’s announcement of a portion of the lands open for development.

Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner filed a complaint with the Integrity Commissioner Nov. 28. NDP MPP Marit Stiles submitted a request to the Auditor General on Nov. 25 requesting an investigation. The Auditor’s office told The Epoch Times that it has not yet decided whether it will investigate.

“The people of Ontario have every right to be suspicious of the timing of the sale of some protected Greenbelt lands that are now open for development, and the ties of these land speculators to the PC party,” Schreiner said in a press release. “I have asked the Integrity Commissioner for an opinion on whether the Members Integrity Act or any parliamentary convention has been breached.”

Developer Michael Rice bought nearly 700 acres for $80 million in the Greenbelt two months before the government announced it was open for development, according to the Toronto Star. The Epoch Times reached out to Rice for comment, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

Housing Minister Steve Clark’s press secretary, Victoria Podbielski, sent a statement to The Epoch Times about this matter. It did not directly address the allegations, but said “Ontario is in a housing supply crisis, and our government is considering every possible option to get more homes built faster.”

The statement said the changes to the Greenbelt would create 50,000 new homes. Those changes include adding about 9,000 acres to the Greenbelt to replace the 7,000 taken for development.

“The fifteen sites that have been identified have to meet very clear criteria that mean houses can be built quickly,” the statement added. Construction must begin in 2025, it said, and developers must obtain approvals to guarantee adequate environmental protection.

During Question Time on Nov. 28, Clark did not “publicly deny providing leaked information to Greenbelt land speculators,” Green Leader Schreiner said. And that “reaffirms the need for this investigation.”

The Epoch Times reached out to MPP Stiles for further comment on his request for an Auditor’s probe, but did not receive a response. The Epoch Times also asked Premier Doug Ford’s office for comment on the allegations, but did not receive an immediate response.