Civic questions and criticisms
And a fresh face at Finance
ABOVE THE FOLD
It’s shaping up to be a busy day in Ontario politics. Let’s get to it.
The big show: Premier DOUG FORD is front and centre this afternoon alongside his Housing Minister PAUL CALANDRA and Toronto Mayor OLIVIA CHOW.
What the government wants to talk about: Officially, the trio will provide an update on the city’s progress toward its housing targets. Unofficially, you might hear some more BONNIE CROMBIE bashing as the Tories have been criticizing the new Liberal leader and ex-Mississauga mayor’s less-than-stellar record on housing starts.
Spoiler alert: Toronto is hitting its mark and then some. Per the government’s housing tracker — which compares annual new home construction starts in municipalities against the PCs ambitious goal of 1.5 million homes by 2031 — there were 30,516 housing starts in 2023. That’s 146 per cent over and above the target of 20,900 starts.
The ol’ switcheroo: It means Toronto is in line for bonus cash via the Building Faster Fund — a …