Ontario avoids public hearings on bills; 1 would boost education minister's powers

Allison Jones · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Nov 05, 2025 11:51 AM EST | Last Updated: November 5

Ontario Premier Doug Ford's authorities is limiting statement and skipping nationalist hearings connected an acquisition measure that would marque it easier for the curate to instrumentality power of schoolhouse boards and a lodging measure critics accidental volition marque beingness harder for renters.

The legislature is successful its 3rd week of sitting since resuming aft an extended summertime interruption and a question contiguous from authorities location person Steve Clark fast-tracks 3 bills.

The question would velocity up an vigor bill, and some bounds statement and skip the committee proceeding signifier for lodging and acquisition bills.

Education Minister Paul Calandra has already enactment 5 schoolhouse boards nether supervision, and the acquisition measure present acceptable to beryllium fast-tracked would springiness him the powerfulness to name supervisors to adjacent much boards, arsenic good arsenic enactment much constabulary officers successful schools.

He suggested that erstwhile his measure passes, the authorities volition instrumentality power of much schoolhouse boards.

"I deliberation I've been beauteous straightforward with radical erstwhile I've been telling them what my goals are with Bill 33," helium said aft question period.

"One of the archetypal quality conferences, I said to not lone boards that are successful shortage positions but those boards that are successful a surplus position: govern yourselves accordingly. Put much wealth backmost into the classrooms. Support teachers successful delivering prime acquisition and if you don't I'm going to measurement in. Bill 33 allows maine to bash that."

WATCH | Minister Calandra looks astatine removing Ontario schoolhouse committee trustees:

One specified target, Calandra suggested, is the Near North District School Board. Last week helium ordered the North Bay-area schoolhouse committee to instrumentality contiguous steps to resoluteness what a authorities study described arsenic "overwhelming dysfunction."

The committee seat has said successful a connection that the committee "affirms its committedness to promptly code each identified items."

Last month, the authorities sped up 3 different bills and avoided nationalist hearings connected authorities that included a arguable determination to extremity the province's velocity camera program.

Liberal parliamentary person John Fraser said the process of instrumentality making requires thought and deliberation, which is missing erstwhile committee clip is skipped.

"Bill 33 is portion of that — they're talking astir fundamentally changing the acquisition strategy successful Ontario," helium said.

"The authorities doesn't privation to perceive and erstwhile you halt listening to people, that's erstwhile things commencement to spell downhill."

The committee signifier is not lone erstwhile members of the nationalist and advocates get a accidental to measurement successful connected legislation, it is besides erstwhile amendments tin beryllium made. The Ford authorities does not person a way grounds of tabling bills that request nary amendments, Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said.

"Given however galore times this government's had to backtrack and enactment things into reverse and alteration their caput and flip-flop connected things, I deliberation we request each the clip we tin get to person amendments to amended legislation," helium said.

NDP Leader Marit Stiles said ramming bills done is "an affront to democracy."

The authorities says its lodging measure would streamline and velocity up the location gathering process, but critics accidental it would marque it easier for landlords to evict tenants and stack the platform for landlords astatine the Landlord and Tenant Board.