Watchdogs bare teeth (sort of)

P3 problems

ABOVE THE FOLD

GREENBELT BOMBSHELL — A lobbyist and former top aide to Premier DOUG FORD repeatedly broke the law when trying to get his clients’ lands removed from the Greenbelt — and critics are taking the opportunity to demand tougher penalties.

According to Ontario’s ethics watchdog, NICO FIDANI-DIKER “failed to comply with the Lobbyists Registration Act” by not registering after lobbying a pair of unnamed “public office holders” about removing the protected lands.

Big no-no’s: Fidani-Diker “knowingly” placed two public office holders in a position of “real or potential conflict of interest” by offering them tickets to a Leafs hockey game. He also failed “to provide particulars to identify the regulation change he was seeking on behalf of another client,” which in one case turned out to be a Minister’s Zoning Order — something the government can use to override local planning decisions in the name of development.

Fidani-Diker says he was just setting up his company at the time and…