Latest news with #OntarioNDP


CTV News
7 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Marit Stiles on All in For Ontario Tour
Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles is spending much of the summer away from Queen's Park, hitting the road for an All in For Ontario Tour.


Global News
06-06-2025
- Health
- Global News
Ford government again refuses to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic
The Ford government has again struck down a call to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic in Ontario on the same day it restarted a committee studying the topic, saying it is still serious about addressing gender-based violence. Last year, the government backed an opposition bill that would have declared intimate partner violence an epidemic, but instead of passing it into law, it sent it to a committee tasked with hearing from survivors and advocates in the space. Those committee hearings ran through last summer and saw almost 90 experts and witnesses. Its findings were set to be reported back to the legislature in February before an early election call ended its work and stopped it in its tracks. Before rising for the summer on Thursday, Progressive Conservative House Leader Steve Clark moved a motion to restart the committee where it had left off. The move was agreed. Story continues below advertisement Immediately after, the Ontario NDP repeated its call for unanimous consent to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic. Some shouts of 'No' came from the government side of the house, blocking it from passing. 'This government has heard loud and clear from survivors and their families, law enforcement and 100 municipalities that they must immediately declare intimate partner violence an epidemic,' Ontario NDP MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam said in a statement Thursday. 'Today's refusal again ignores those calls and puts survivors at risk. The house will rise for the summer, and today the Ford government chose to deny survivors the immediate resources they need to escape or recover from violence.' Global News requested an interview with Associate Minister of Women's Social and Economic Opportunity Charmaine Williams on the subject. Her office responded to the request but did not agree to set one up. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy She has previously said she did not want to 'rush' the declaration of an epidemic. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services listed a number of gender-based violence initiatives Ontario has either launched or signed up for. 'Ontario is addressing gender-based violence by enhancing cross-sector collaboration, increasing safety for women and children, and improving supports for survivors, their families, and perpetrators of gender-based violence,' they said. Story continues below advertisement 'That is why we are investing more than $1.4 billion over the course of Ontario's four-year action plan to end gender-based violence.' In addition to the programs and funding initiatives they listed off, they said the committee would 'continue its work' studying the issue. 'We look forward to working with all levels of government as well as sector stakeholders and Indigenous partners as we continue to build an Ontario that is free of gender-based violence and full of opportunity for all,' the spokesperson concluded On the same day that the Ford government rejected a unanimous consent motion to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic, the New Brunswick government allowed one to pass. The Atlantic province passed the motion after discussions with labour leaders, among others. The union Unifor said, in a statement, that the move was a welcome step. 'The accepted motion signals the government's growing understanding, shared by the labour movement, community partners and frontline service providers, of the overwhelming need for funding, education and supports for those experiencing, fleeing and recovering from violence,' Unifor wrote. The government in Nova Scotia has taken the same step. 1:26 New Brunswick recognizes gender-based violence as an epidemic Back in Ontario, the province has been resisting the same call for some time. Story continues below advertisement In 2023, the province rejected calls from an inquest into the deaths of three women at the hands of their former partner to formally declare intimate partner violence an epidemic. The jury at a coroner's inquest into the 2015 deaths of Nathalie Warmerdam, Carol Culleton and Anastasia Kuzyk in Renfrew County recommended declaring the epidemic. The province said at the time it would not declare intimate partner violence an epidemic because it was not an infectious or communicable disease. –with files from The Canadian Press


Global News
04-06-2025
- Business
- Global News
Ford says blockades ‘wouldn't be very wise' as government moves to pass Bill 5
Ontario Premier Doug Ford says First Nations groups who blockade critical infrastructure will be 'dealt with appropriately' as tensions peak over his controversial mining legislation, with expectations it could pass today. Among other changes, Bill 5, or the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, will create so-called special economic zones where a range of laws, ranging from municipal approvals to environmental rules or even labour law, won't apply. The proposed law has sparked protests from First Nations leaders at Queen's Park who fear it will infringe upon their rights. They have threatened that if the bill passes, more protests will follow, including the possible blockade of highways, railways and mines. On Wednesday, Ford addressed the potential for protests if his legislation passes and warned Indigenous leaders not to disrupt infrastructure around the province. 'You can't break the law, simple as that,' the premier said. 'If any of us were to go stand and block the highway — they need to move on or they'll be dealt with appropriately. They cannot just break the law, and I don't think the people of Ontario would be there supporting them.' Story continues below advertisement He added the protests 'wouldn't be very wise.' 1:46 First Nations members protest Ontario mining bill at Queen's Park In the face of some of the backlash from First Nations groups, the government introduced a number of amendments to parts of the legislation, including a change to the law's preamble. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The proposed legislation has had an increasingly bumpy ride toward being passed into law, despite the Progressive Conservatives' significant majority at Queen's Park. When Bill 5 made its way to committee last week, the Ontario NDP and Liberals banded together to filibuster proceedings and force an extra day of committee hearings on the legislation. That day came on Tuesday when the Liberals tabled 4,000 amendments to the law in an attempt to block the government from making its own changes to the bill. They partly succeeded, with only 14 of the province's 26 amendments passed. Story continues below advertisement The move was designed to force the province to hit pause, rather than pass its law without the amendments it pledged to show it was listening to concerns. On Wednesday, however, Ford blamed the Liberals for 'playing politics' and appeared to indicate he would pass the bill without all the changes. 'It's a shame that they want to play politics and try and run out the clock and now allow us to put in amendments, but what I can assure you, with Indigenous communities across Ontario, we're going to have (a) duty to consult, we're going to respect treaty rights,' Ford said. The Progressive Conservatives have fast-tracked parts of Bill 5 with a motion to allow it to pass its third and final reading with only one hour of debate. That should allow MPPs to pass the bill into law sometime on Wednesday or Thursday. 8:17 First Nation leader says Bill 5 will spark protests, blockade of Hwy. 400 Opposition politicians, as they've tried to slow the legislation, have warned that its special economic zones will create 'no-law' areas, suggesting they could be used for a variety of projects. Story continues below advertisement Ford himself appeared to indicate last week that he would eventually designate Highway 401 and nuclear power plants as special economic zones where laws can be sidestepped in order to speed up construction. 'We're down to the final hours before the government intends to impose a vote on Bill 5 and pass this law,' Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles said on Wednesday morning. 'This bill should not be going to a vote, there has not been proper consultation. The idea, as the premier says all the time, you are going to consult after the fact just doesn't cut it.' The NDP, Liberals and Greens are all calling on Ford to abandon the bill entirely.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ontario NDP, Liberals successfully stall Bill 5 after filibustering until midnight Thursday
Bill 5 was successfully stalled in committee after Ontario NDP and Liberal MPPs filibustered from around 4 p.m. on Wednesday until midnight Thursday. The filibuster has blocked the controversial bill from going into its third and final reading, as the committee process will now continue into next week, Ontario NDP said in a statement on X just after midnight on Thursday. The MPPs "used every committee tool to delay progress [on] Ford's attempt to rush through this legislation without proper consultation," the statement said. Bill 5 would create so-called "special economic zones" where the government can exempt companies or projects from complying with provincial laws or regulations. It would also replace the province's endangered species act, replacing it with an new law that critics say waters down protections. The bill has been criticized by First Nations, environmentalists and legal advocates, who have said the proposed law would gut environmental protections for wildlife and infringe on treaty rights. Leader of the Official Opposition Marit Stiles participated in Wednesday's filibuster. She addressed Ontario Premier Doug Ford directly in a post on X around 12:20 a.m. Thursday. "Your government now has the time and opportunity to do the right thing: Scrap Bill 5. Let's go back to the drawing board, and do this right," the post read. Monday is the earliest the committee process can continue, Liberal MPP Ted Hsu said in a video on X around 1 a.m. Thursday. A spokesperson for the premier's office did not directly address the filibuster in an email Thursday morning. "The Premier's and Ministers' comments yesterday stand as response on matter related to Bill 5," spokesperson Hannah Jensen wrote. WATCH | Ontario First Nations leaders say communities will take a stand if bill passes: After question period at Queen's Park on Wednesday, Energy and Mining Minister Stephen Lecce said the government brought forward the bill "in good faith" after hearing concerns from Ontarians about delays for mining projects. He said the government is committing to responsible resource development and policy, while upholding its duty to consult with First Nations under Treaty 9. "We think we can do both, we think we found that balance but we understand we've got to keep listening," Lecce said on Wednesday. Speaking at Queen's Park on Wednesday evening, Ontario NDP MPP Sol Mamakwa said the MPPs would debate the 40 clauses in the amendment, line-by-line, during the filibuster. "We cannot stop the bill, but we can certainly slow down the processes that are there," Mamakwa said. The government attempted a motion to continue Wednesday's committee meeting until 9 a.m. on Thursday, but that motion failed, a spokesperson for the Ontario NDP said. During the filibuster, Stiles said the government initially scheduled the committee to sit until 12 a.m. Thursday, which she said "is bad enough," before attempting to extend it into the morning. "While the rest of us are in agreement that we should move this committee to daytime hours, the government is making sure that this committee is taking place under the cover of darkness," she said, speaking around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday. The Ford government put forward amendments to the bill on Wednesday in response to criticism, including that the government will also create "Indigenous led economic zones." But opposition leaders say the government hasn't defined what this means. The government also introduced what are known as duty to consult provisions. "Regulations under this Act shall be made in a manner consistent with the recognition and affirmation of existing Aboriginal and treaty rights in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, including the duty to consult," the proposed amendment reads, according to an email from the premier's office Wednesday. But First Nations leaders in Ontario say the government already failed in its duty to consult. They want the province to start over and involve First Nations in drafting a new bill.


Global News
29-05-2025
- Business
- Global News
Opposition parties successfully delay Ford government's Bill 5 by filibustering
A rare moment of unity among Ontario's opposition parties frustrated the Ford government's attempts to pass its controversial mining legislation — which would create special economic zones where laws do not apply — in the early moments of Thursday morning. The province is in the midst of passing Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, which it hopes will speed up mining projects and will also make major changes to the laws governing protected species. The creation of special economic zones is the part of the legislation which has led to the most backlash — with critics calling it a 'power grab.' On Wednesday, as Bill 5 was subject to a clause-by-clause analysis at a legislative committee, opposition parties united to employ a series of stall, delay and filibuster tactics to try and stop the government from passing the legislation before the spring session ends next week. Story continues below advertisement The Ontario NDP worked to stack the list of speakers on committee to try to speak for as long as its members could and repeatedly requested breaks. The Liberals tabled the largest number of amendments to the bill. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The parties were aiming to run the clock for as long as possible at the committee hearings to stop the bill from leaving the committee process, where it would return for a final vote and debate before being passed. Despite a last-minute government motion to have the committee study Bill 5 overnight, sitting until 9 a.m. the next morning, the opposition parties succeeded and proceedings wrapped at midnight. NDP and Liberal MPPs accused the government of trying to hold its committee 'under the cover of darkness' to push through the bill. The committee is now not likely to meet again until Monday, which would further delay the legislation from returning for debate and its final reading. MPPs are scheduled to rise for the summer next Thursday, although the government can extend the sitting if it chooses. House Leader Steve Clark said he was still sure the government could rise on time and pass the legislation. 'I'm confident that we can move forward with the priority government bills in this session,' he said. Story continues below advertisement 'I am confident that I can use the existing calendar to drive the government's agenda before the end of next week.'