RCMP interviewing witnesses in Ontario Greenbelt land swap scandal: premier's office

The RCMP is interviewing witnesses connected to Ontario’s Greenbelt scandal, Premier Doug Ford’s office confirmed to CTV News Toronto on Friday.

In an email, a spokesperson affirmed that the Ford government has “always said” it would cooperate with the police investigation into the province’s now-scrapped plan to develop parts of the environmentally-sensitive area.

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“That cooperation would include the premier and current or former staff conducting interviews as witnesses, which are currently underway. Any further questions should be directed to the RCMP,” the spokesperson said.

At an unrelated news conference on Friday in Thunder Bay, Ont., Ford said his government has “nothing to hide.”

“Come in, do whatever you have to do. Actually, we’re moving on. But I want full cooperation, they know that. Because there’s nothing to hide there. Let’s get going on it.”

Ontario announced its plans to build at least 50,000 new homes on the protected Greenbelt back in November 2022. Then municipal affairs and housing minister Steve Clark said at the time that the government would need to remove 7,400 acres to do so, but that 9,400 acres would be added elsewhere.

Ford had previously said he would leave the land untouched.

In a scathing report released by then Ontario auditor general Bonnie Lysyk exactly one year ago today, she found that some developers may have received preferential treatment during the process of selecting 14 of the 15 proposed building sites. Lysyk also suggested that the land up for development could have seen an $8.3 billion increase in value.

Lysyk’s value-for-money investigation, as well as a separate investigation by the integrity commissioner, was triggered by media reports that some developers may have been tipped off about the decision to develop the protected land ahead of time.

Later that month, Ontario Provincial Police referred the matter to the RCMP out of a perceived conflict of interest. At that time, the OPP’s anti-rackets division said it had been reviewing complaints related to the scandal since mid-December of the previous year.

The RCMP launched its investigation in October.

Ford had rebuffed calls to reverse the Greenbelt development plans for months, saying it was necessary to meet the province’s goal of building 1.5 million homes by 2031. However, in mid-September, he announced that his government was changing course.

"Our caucus, they shared with me what they have heard in their communities. I want the people of Ontario to know, I’m listening. I made a promise to you that I wouldn't touch the Greenbelt. I broke that promise. And for that, I'm very, very sorry,” Ford told reporters at a news conference at the time.

“I pride myself on keeping our promises. It was a mistake to open the Greenbelt. It was a mistake to establish a process that moved too fast.”

Two cabinet ministers stepped down in the wake of the scandal, including Clark and the former minister of public and business service delivery, Kaleed Rasheed.

Opposition Leader Marit Stiles released a statement on Friday after Ford’s office confirmed that the RCMP had begun interviewing witnesses.

"You deserve a government that tells the truth. That cares about regular people and does right by them. A government that isn't under criminal investigation,” she said.