New controversy surrounding the fate of Toronto's green belt

This land operation, highlighted by two independent reports, has already caused the resignation of the province's Housing Minister, Steve Clark, on Monday.

“There will be a fundamental review,” declared Doug Ford, the Ontario Prime Minister, stressing that areas recently opened to urbanization as well as “the 700 to 800 lands” long coveted by developers and municipalities would be examined. .

He acknowledged that the process “could and should have been better.”

Last year, the Ford government provoked an outcry by removing 3.000 hectares of the protected area surrounding the greater Toronto area to build 50.000 housing units and contribute to the goal of creating 1,5 million in the province. by 2031.

A report from Ontario's Auditor General released last month called the land selection process "biased" and "favorable to certain developers." Another from the integrity commissioner concluded that the housing minister had failed by failing to oversee the land selection process.

Both reports also noted that Mr. Clark's former chief of staff steered the process by favoring certain developers.

The opposition and environmental groups are calling on the province to reverse course and restore protected status to the land in question.

From the rocky cliffs of Niagara to the agricultural plains of the west, the 810.000 hectares of green belt take the shape of a horseshoe around Toronto. These agricultural lands, among the most fertile in eastern Canada, have been protected since 2005.