More than two months after resigning as Ontario’s housing minister, Steve Clark has returned to Queen’s Park as a backbench MPP.
Clark resigned after a bruising summer defending the Ford government’s Greenbelt scandal after watchdog reports that found the process was rushed, flawed and to the benefit of a few developers.
After resigning his post as Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing on Sept. 4 — a role he had held since 2018 — Clark returned to his riding of Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes.
“The last two months have been really good,” he told reporters Wednesday after returning to Queen’s Park.
“I’ve really got to reconnect with my riding… I got back to basics in my riding in terms of opening up files, calling constituents, emailing people.”
He made his first return to the legislature Tuesday for the swearing-in of Ontario’s new lieutenant governor.
Clark said he is back in the legislature now and looking to participate again with local priorities.
“I did what I felt was the right thing by resigning as a member of cabinet and my hope is to focus on my riding,” he said.
Clark was housing minister when the Ford government announced a Greenbelt land swap deal to allow development on 7,400 acres of protected land.
The policy, which has since been reversed, benefitted a few developers who saw their land increase in value by more than $8 billion, Ontario’s auditor general said.
The RCMP has launched an investigation into Greenbelt land swap, though Clark said he has not been contacted yet.
“I look forward to working with them and answering their questions,” he said.