Fixing the Blue Box recycling program, speeding up archaeological approvals and enforcing existing cannabis laws are among some of the top legislative items the Ford government plans to focus on as MPPs return to Queen’s Park after an extended summer break.
Premier Doug Ford delayed the return of the legislature until Oct. 27 to avoid pulling focus, the government claimed, from the province-wide municipal election campaigns.
While the hiatus allowed the government to avoid scrutiny during question period, opposition parties say a number of issues have built up over the summer and fall, giving political critics plenty of issues to grill the Progressive Conservatives on.
That includes the government’s suspension of the OSAP program for all private career college students, as the province investigates whether a handful of schools defrauded the student aid program.
Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser suggested his party would focus on the government’s handling of the file and its impact on students.
“But it’s your fault. So we’re gonna make you pay. So if we don’t actually get education right from start to finish, it’s gonna make our economy weaker, and Doug Ford doesn’t understand that.”
NDP Leader Marit Stiles said the current state of the economy, along with affordability, would be her party’s top priority.
While Ford and Prime Minister Mark Carney announced an $8.7 billion funding plan to support the steel, auto and critical mineral industries — critics say it only deals with the fallout of Trump’s tariffs, rather than offer a mitigation strategy.
“What’s missing is an action plan and a strategy that meets the moment we are in,” Stiles said on Focus Ontario.
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“When you look at this government returning to the legislature for only five weeks after Doug Ford took a 21 week vacation, it tells me that they don’t have a legislative agenda that’s meeting the moment that we’re in and that’s gonna save a single job.”
Fall economic statement
The centrepiece of the government’s first week back in the legislature will be the Fall Economic Statement, set to be delivered by Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy on Oct. 29.
Bethlenfalvy warned the government will need to increase the size of the deficit, to deal with a sluggish economy, possibly boosting it beyond $13.8 billion that was projected in the 2026-27 budget.
“The slower economy has impacted our deficit, which was $13 billion last year and is projected to be higher this year,” Bethlenfalvy said during a recent speech.
While the finance minister promised the government wouldn’t raise taxes or implement cuts to health care, he said the province would look to shrink spending, while keeping fiscal capacity available for the tariff fight.
Opposition parties, however, say the government hasn’t been spending enough on tariff impacted communities. During a legislative committee, the Ministry of Finance revealed the province had only spent $140 million of its $1 billion protect Ontario fund, leading to criticism.
“The government spent just about as much money on their Protect Ontario commercials as they’ve spent in the Protect Ontario fund,” said Fraser.
“It’s a sad irony. It’s the government that’s eight years in, it’s failing people, it failing workers who’ve lost their jobs.”
Legislation revelations
The Ford government is slated to table an omnibus bill during this session of the legislature that it said will “cut red tape, reduce permitting wait times and give businesses the confidence to invest and create jobs in Ontario.”
The government plans to speed up archaeological assessments that are typically required by municipalities for land development.
Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism Graham McGregor said the process, which can currently take up to 64 months, would be sped up by 80 per cent once the legislation is passed.
The government said it would also try to curtail the illicit cannabis market by giving the Alcohol and Gaming Commission additional powers to conduct inspections, seize illegal products and levy fines.
The most consequential legislative and regulatory changes, however, could involve Ontario’s fraught blue box program.
Environment Minister Todd McCarthy said the province wants to bring more “transparency and accountability” to the system after producers complained of rising costs and surprise fees that, the government acknowledged, could “impact their businesses.”
The legislation would give Queen’s Park the power to regulate the terms of the contract between companies that produce recyclable materials and organizations that oversee the recycling system.
The changes would give producers consistent and fair contract terms and insight into the program’s operations and costs allowing companies to have a better say over the fees they’re required to pay.
Add the blue box junk into the regular trash that’s where it ends up anyways