Ontario’s Integrity Commissioner is recommending that Housing Minister Steve Clark be reprimanded for his role in the province’s contentious Greenbelt land swap, calling it a “rushed and flawed process” marred by a “lack of oversight.”
In a report issued Wednesday, David Wake said Clark failed to properly oversee the process that led to protected Greenbelt lands being selected for housing development, "leading to the private interests of certain developers being furthered improperly.
Further below, a response from the Ford government (basically, a “talk to the hand”):
Ford’s office issued a statement Wednesday afternoon after the report’s release that did not address the call for a reprimand. Instead, it said Clark would remain in his role.
“Minister Clark will continue to work towards delivering on our promise to build at least 1.5 million homes and ensure public trust and confidence is maintained every step of the way,” the statement reads.
“We’ve acknowledged areas where we need to improve; the Integrity Commissioner reiterated that today, and we’ll continue to work to strengthen the process moving forward.”
Didn’t (at least) one of the developers go to Ford’s daughter’s wedding? That’s a bad look. At least.
They did. And there are cordial photos from donor parties with Ford and some of them as well.