Cheers, jeers and early election fears

And fresh Greenbelt dirt 2.0

ABOVE THE FOLD

Cheers and jeers are flowing after the Premier’s boozy announcement — but the juicy stuff is in what DOUG FORD isn’t saying. Meanwhile, another watchdog is probing the Greenbelt drama. And the newest MPPs at the Park make their debut.

IT’S NOT A ‘NO’ — Ford is dousing gasoline on rumours of an early election.

Asked at his Friday presser if he was speeding up the timeline to liberalize alcohol sales because he’s gearing up for an early vote, Ford said no — but when asked twice more, he wouldn’t commit to the current legislated election date of June 4, 2026.

A wild theory and timeline: As regular readers will know by now, my sources have been saying that the PCs aren’t likely to go to the polls until they’ve made tangible progress on key projects, including the Ontario Line, Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass, a balanced budget — and of course, liberalized booze sales.

While there’s still a long ways to go for many of those pledges (and timelines for highways and transit…