Latest news with #SocialSharingOntario
CBC
28-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Ontario looking to fast-track judicial appointments, add more judges to courts
Social Sharing Ontario is set to introduce legislation this week that would speed up judicial appointments, add more judges to the Ontario Court of Justice and create new prosecution teams, the government announced Monday. The changes include a new pool-based recommendation process for judicial positions that would seek to streamline appointments and require a committee to consider criteria set by the attorney general, the Progressive Conservative government said. Attorney General Doug Downey said the province will also allocate 17 more judges to the lower courts to keep up with a growing number of complex cases and backlog of criminal cases. "These changes will support our goal of providing swift access to justice for victims of crime and help them avoid the grief and anxiety that come with delays," Downey said at a news conference Monday morning, adding that the province would also introduce a new cybercrime and cryptocurrency prosecution team. Last year, Premier Doug Ford faced criticism for his government's appointment of two former staffers to its judicial appointments committee, and he defended the move by saying the Progressive Conservatives were elected to appoint "like-minded people" as judges. Ford suggested at the time that judges and justices of the peace are too lenient on criminals and are letting people out on bail too frequently, so he wanted tougher judges to be appointed. "Every single appointment I can to find tough judges, tough [justices of the peace] to keep guys in jail ... I'm going to do it," Ford said in February 2024. "So, that's part of democracy. You voted a party in." Legislation part of 'tough on crime' approach: Downey The appointment committee — made up of three judges, three lawyers and seven members of the public — reviews applications and conducts interviews for prospective Ontario court judges, then sends a ranked list of its recommendations to the attorney general, who appoints someone from that list. Downey said the new legislation is part of the government's goal to get "tough on crime" and keep violent, repeat offenders behind bars. Monday's announcement came as Canadians head to the polls to elect a new federal government. Downey claimed "revolving door bail policies" from Ottawa have led to violent crimes in the province. "With the federal election today, we hope whoever wins heeds our calls for tough-on-crime action that puts an end to these policies," Downey said. He added the province is "laser-focused" on getting justice for victims and their families. "If you commit a crime in Ontario, we will do everything in our power to find you, prosecute you and put you behind bars," said Downey.
CBC
10-04-2025
- Health
- CBC
Ontario seeking primary care teams for 300,000 patients in plan to match people with doctors
Social Sharing Ontario is looking for up to 80 new or expanded primary care teams to serve 300,000 patients, as it plans to build a system that automatically attaches people to a family doctor or nurse practitioner team based on their postal code. Health Minister Sylvia Jones says the province is launching a call for proposals on Thursday, with $213 million attached to create or expand the 80 teams as part of a $1.8-billion announcement she made on the eve of the provincial election. Jones and former federal Liberal health minister Jane Philpott, who the Progressive Conservative government has tapped to be the head of a provincial primary care action team, announced in January that Ontario would spend that money over the next few years to give all Ontarians access to primary care by 2029. The government plans to achieve that by creating a system that automatically connects people to a primary care team based on postal code, and this call for proposals is targeted to the postal codes that have the highest number of people without a primary care provider. Jones says the 80 new or expanded primary care teams will be expected to pull from the Health Care Connect waitlist to fill their rosters. She says today's announcement builds on a previous one from early 2024, when 78 new or expanded primary care teams were announced. "What's exciting is we've already seen some of those teams are completely operational and actually exceeding their commitment to matching patients who are looking for primary care clinicians," Jones said in an interview. "[This] announcement really builds on that. Up to 80 teams is what we hope to be able to approve, frankly, by summer and again, if the February announcement is any indication, they're ready, and they're ready to get started, and they're ready to hire and to take on those patients." 2.5 million Ontarians don't have family doctor: association Jones and Philpott's plan would connect two million more people to primary care, which they say would fulfil the goal of attaching everyone to a family doctor or nurse practitioner. The Ontario Medical Association says there are 2.5 million Ontarians without a family doctor right now and the number is expected to rise to 4.4 million in a year, but Jones cites data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information, which says that 90 per cent of Ontarians have a regular health-care provider. This plan would cover that last 10 per cent, she says. WATCH | Over 1,000 people lined up to try to get a family doctor in Walkerton, Ont., in January: Hundreds wait in the snow to get a family doctor in rural Ontario 3 months ago Duration 2:03 The primary care teams would include a family doctor or nurse practitioner, and other health-care professionals such as nurses, physician assistants, social workers and dietitians. Operating models include family health teams, community health centres, nurse practitioner-led clinics, and Indigenous primary health-care organizations. The list of 125 postal codes where the need is highest is just the start of the location-based plan, Philpott said. "There are needs everywhere, but in some cases, the numbers of people who don't have access to primary care are higher than in other areas," she said. "We all wish that we could fill these gaps overnight, but it's going to take a little bit of time, and so with these very significant investments that the government is making, we wanted to make sure that, as we start to roll it out, that it goes to the places where there are very high numbers of unattached." Ontario is also putting an additional $22 million toward helping existing primary care teams meet rising costs for their facilities and supplies, and $37 million in Ontario Health Teams. The government expects to do a second call for proposals in September.
CBC
02-04-2025
- Business
- CBC
Ontario to spend $35M to help rebuild Shaw Festival's Royal George Theatre
Social Sharing Ontario will spend $35 million to help the Shaw Festival rebuild the Royal George Theatre. Tourism Minister Stan Cho says the funding will be used to build a larger, more modern theatre as the province looks to beef up the economy in Niagara-on-the-Lake and the surrounding region. The province says the theatre's construction will create 550 jobs and once built, the venue will have 20 per cent more seating as well as new rehearsal and work spaces. The Royal George Theatre will close permanently later this year and the rebuild is expected to be completed in 2029. Cho hopes the bigger venue will help drive more tourists to the area and keep them there longer. Cho has grand visions to turn the Niagara region into "Las Vegas of the north" with an international airport, more hotels, mass transit expansion and a new amusement park. In a news release, he said the "Shaw Festival is a cultural icon for Ontario and for Canada, and is just one of the many great reasons to visit Niagara-on-the-Lake and the broader Niagara Region throughout the year."
CBC
28-03-2025
- Automotive
- CBC
'Embarassing and frustrating,' but having the 'Worst Road in Ontario' can help northern towns land funding
Social Sharing Ontario drivers are once again voting on which roads are the worst in the province. CAA has run the campaign for over 20 years and several roads in the north have "won" in the past, but it's been a while, with southern streets dominating the top 10 in the last few years. Teresa Di Felice, assistant vice-president of government and community relations for CAA, says drivers in some parts of the province are more used to rough roads than others. "I think sometimes there is a difference between municipalities and what people accept as the norm, versus what they want to have attention paid to," she said. Nominations are open until April 18 and after the contenders— which these days are also nominated because of poor conditions on sidewalks and bike lanes— are analyzed by experts, the 2025 list should be out in June. Di Felice says CAA is proud of how the Worst Roads campaign has drawn attention to the issue of crumbling infrastructure and keeps track of which roads end up being repaired after being listed. "The challenge that municipalities have is there is a backlog of road repairs and it can be difficult for municipalities to schedule major repairs on the property tax base. Which is why we also advocate with senior levels of government," she said, adding that the Ontario government recently announced plans to create a "pothole fund" to help small municipalities with repairs. Brenda Reid, the mayor of the Township of Assiginack on Manitoulin Island, is skeptical, however. "It's really, really hard to get help for roads. It's just something that the provincial government has decided that municipalities have to take care of their own roads," she said. "So, hopefully we'll never be on that list again." Back in 2006, Cardwell Street, a short rural road in Assiginack running between the village of Manitowaning and the Indigenous community of Wikwemikong was voted worst in Ontario. In an interview with CBC radio at the time, riding along the bumpy washboard road, then Mayor Leslie Fields described the potholes on Cardwell as "fairly deep and fairly could burry a raccoon in it and not see'em." "It's embarrassing at the same time it's very frustrating that we couldn't get the provincial government to listen to us," said Reid, who sat on town council back in 2006. "To keep that thing in pavement it was very difficult at the time." But she said they did use the worst road title to land provincial funding to fix up Cardwell and now more than a decade later, says it is still a relatively smooth ride. In 2015, Timmins Mayor Steve Black encouraged citizens to vote for Algonquin Boulevard, which ended up winning the title and in the years to come, has gone through a multi-million-dollar facelift, largely fuelled by provincial funding.
CBC
11-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Cyclists seek injunction as Ontario bike lane removal work could start this month
Social Sharing Ontario won't begin removing bike lanes in Toronto until March 20 at the earliest — but a group of cyclists is applying for an injunction to prevent the work until their legal challenge against the plan has its day in court. The group, led by Cycle Toronto, launched a legal challenge against the province's plan to remove bike lanes on Bloor Street, Yonge Street and University Avenue in Toronto. The challenge will be heard in April, but the group wants to ensure that infrastructure isn't removed between late March and the April hearing. A hearing for the injunction that could do that is happening Tuesday at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in downtown Toronto. The group's lawyers say lawyers from the province informed them no steps to remove the bike lanes would come before March 20, something a spokesperson for the ministry of transportation confirmed. The March 20 date was first reported in The Trillium. "This won't help address traffic, and we know it'll make our roads more dangerous for people and make it so that fewer people will choose to ride a bike," said Michael Longfield, executive director of Cycle Toronto. The province fast-tracked Bill 212 in the fall, arguing that the bike lane removals are needed to reduce congestion in Toronto. Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria said the city's approach to installing bike lanes was "failed" and described the bike lane removal as "freeing up some of Toronto's most important roads," in a January news release. WATCH | Do only 1.2%of Torontonians really commute by bike? StatsCan data says no: Do only 1.2% of Torontonians really commute by bike? StatsCan data says no 4 months ago Duration 2:54 Research from cities around the world suggests that adding bike lanes to streets doesn't actually add to congestion, though adding more roads for motor vehicles does. Bruce Ryder, a professor at York University's Osgoode Hall Law School, said the applicants have a strong case for an interim injunction on the grounds of the initial application's argument that people's safety could be put at risk. "The balance of convenience in terms of the status quo favours them," said Ryder, who's not involved in the challenge. "In other words, it's better to leave the bike lanes in place for the time being until the case is fully argued," he said. Full legal challenge to be heard in April The legal challenge that will be heard in April states that the government's reasoning for removing bike lanes is arbitrary, alleging Premier Doug Ford and Minister Sarkaria have not shown evidence to support their characterizations of the lanes. It also argues the removal is a violation of section seven of the Charter and Rights of Freedoms, saying the removal deprives cyclists of life and security of the person. The city has said ripping up the lanes would cost about $48 million — a figure Ford has publicly disputed — while increasing driver travel time during construction and having a minimal impact once completed. Sarkaria has frequently said 1.2 per cent of people in Toronto commute by bike, though census data shows that number is higher in several areas where bike lanes actually exist. Though in Etobicoke-Lakeshore, where the debate around bike lanes has been perhaps most intense, statistics line up with Sarkaria's messaging. "Removing these bike lanes makes sense for our community and it cannot be done soon enough," the area's former MPP Christine Hogarth said in a January news release. Hogarth was defeated by Liberal Lee Fairclough in the February election. Legal experts say challenge has merits When it comes to the legal challenge that will be heard in earnest in April, some in the legal field feel Cycle Toronto's arguments have merits. David Schneiderman, a professor of law at the University of Toronto who's not involved in the legal challenge, said the challenge's argument has some merits when it comes to the argument that the decision to remove bike lanes is not being done with sufficient evidence that it will reduce congestion. WATCH | Toronto's mayor critical of bike lane removal: Mayor Chow calls Ontario's plan to remove bike lanes 'arbitrary' 4 months ago Duration 1:26 The Ontario government is planning to remove three sections of bike lanes in Toronto. At a news conference on Friday, Mayor Olivia Chow emphasized there have been several studies done in recent years that support the existing bike lanes. "That would be of interest to a judge, and a judge would say, 'show me the money,'" Schneiderman said. "[Courts] don't like governments behaving arbitrarily without any evidence just because they don't like something or someone." Ryder, from Osgoode Hall, said while the interim injunction has a good chance, the hearing for the challenge itself will be more difficult. "It will be the claimant's burden to establish that the government is putting their lives at risk. And it will also be the claimant's burden to establish that they're not doing so for a good reason or a sufficiently strong reason," he said.
