Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles has firmly refused to apologize to Premier Doug Ford following her controversial statement regarding potential criminal consequences for Ford. Stiles made headlines earlier this week during a press conference where she suggested that the Premier could end up in prison due to ongoing allegations related to the Greenbelt scandal.
Stiles addressed reporters on Monday about the Ford government's modifications to Freedom of Information (FOI) laws, which she claims were implemented to obscure "dirty dealings" tied to the Greenbelt controversy. These changes, passed as part of the government’s omnibus budget bill, limit public access to documents associated with Ford and cabinet members, including the Premier's cellphone records.
During her remarks, Stiles stated, "Don't worry about it Doug, because when I'm premier, I'm going to call a public inquiry into all of this and we’re going to get our hands on all of that, and you know what, maybe you won’t get another mandate because you’ll be in prison, Doug," leaving reporters shocked. When a stunned journalist sought clarification by asking, “What?”, Stiles reiterated her point with conviction.
She continued, “I think that when we call a public inquiry... I think a lot of terrible stuff is going to come out. Why is the premier hiding all of this information from the people of Ontario? Why doesn’t he want anyone to know what’s on his phone? Because there’s dirty dealings around the Greenbelt. The RCMP is investigating him, and I would be very surprised if at the end of this, there might very well be charges laid, absolutely.”
In response to Stiles’ bold assertions, Ford labeled her comments as an example of "Trump-style rhetoric" and dismissed her predictions as immature. He stated, "Well, that Trump-style rhetoric is unacceptable as far as I’m concerned. She doesn’t have to apologize, whatever she wants to do, but we aren’t going to lower ourselves to the Trump-style rhetoric that she’s spewing right now.”
When questioned whether he contributes to a combative political atmosphere at Queen's Park, Ford acknowledged the heated exchanges but asserted that Stiles had crossed the line. He remarked, “Inside the legislature words get said. But that one was over the top and yes, we go back and forth, but she stepped over the line.”
Stiles responded to Ford’s criticism by labeling his accusations of being “Trumpian” as “rich” and emphatically stated that she does not owe the Premier an apology. "They are clutching their pearls, when this very government is under RCMP criminal investigation for matters related to the Greenbelt for these dirty deals they made with developers behind closed doors, and they’ve gone so far as to change the laws of this province to protect themselves,” she countered.
In October 2023, the RCMP officially launched an investigation into the Ford government’s decision to release protected Greenbelt lands for development. The government initially faced backlash over this decision and ultimately reversed the controversial plan in September 2023, with Ford describing it as a "mistake." The Greenbelt was established in 2005 to safeguard agricultural and environmentally sensitive lands within the Greater Golden Horseshoe area from being developed.
