Young Doug Ford

Saturday January 28, 2023

January 28, 2023

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday January 28, 2023

Developers who bought Ontario Greenbelt land linked to Ford government

YDF Merch

Since Ontario Premier Doug Ford was first elected four years ago, developers have paid tens of millions of dollars for a number of properties that include protected lands the province is now proposing to carve out of the Greenbelt.

Among those properties is a substantial piece of land lying largely in the Greenbelt that sold for $80-million in September, just weeks before the government revealed its new plan.

During the 2018 election campaign, Mr. Ford promised not to touch the Greenbelt – a vast arc of farmland, forests and wetlands across Southern Ontario. The pledge followed public uproar over a video that showed him saying he would allow housing development on a “big chunk” of the protected area. Again, in late 2020, he made a similar promise.

May 3, 2018

The Ford government reversed itself in November, announcing plans to remove 7,400 acres from the Greenbelt for the construction of at least 50,000 new homes. At the same time, land elsewhere would be added to the Greenbelt that, the government says, would result in a net increase of 2,000 acres.

The proposal to open up the Greenbelt to development has sparked protest from environmentalists, agriculture advocates and land-use experts, who argue that swapping one piece for another may be ineffective, because land has different environmental values, and that this also paves the way for other developers to push for their properties to be removed from the Greenbelt.

The proposed carve-outs of 15 areas of land include at least nine properties that were bought by developers for $10-million or more – transactions that topped $300-million in total – since the Progressive Conservatives took office in 2018, property records show.

November 23, 2022

At least four developers who bought the properties the government is now proposing to remove from the Greenbelt have either donated to the PC Party, hired conservative lobbyists, or both.

The government defended the decision to open up parcels of Greenbelt land to development but did not address questions related to the developers.

Among the sales in the Greenbelt parcels up for potential development, the most recent occurred in mid-September, about six weeks before the government’s announcement.

On Sept. 15, a company controlled by developer Michael Rice bought the 280-hectare property in the Township of King for $80-million. The real estate agent who sold the property promoted it as a “prime land-banking opportunity,” referring to the practice of holding undeveloped land for future opportunities.

The property had previously traded hands in 2000 – before the Greenbelt protections were put in place – for about $9.3-million.

October 27, 2011

Mr. Rice’s development company, Rice Group, hired Frank Klees, a former Ontario PC cabinet minister, between 2019-20 to lobby the government “on the economic development opportunities represented by a number of the client’s emerging projects,” the lobbyist registry says. The contract predated Mr. Rice’s purchase of the land in King Township. Mr. Klees did not return an e-mail seeking comment.

In addition, provincial records also show that a person with the name Michael Rice has donated more than $10,500 to the PC Party since 2018. This individual also donated money to the Liberals in 2018. As well, three donors with the same names as Rice Group executives have given the PC Party thousands of dollars since 2018.

Mr. Rice did not respond to e-mails requesting comment. (The Globe and Mail) 

From sketch to finish, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro …

 

Saturday December 24, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday December 24, 2022

Angry about Doug Ford or inflation? You’re not alone, ‘rage index’ poll finds

Series: Young Doug Ford

Inflation is fuelling anger among Canadians even though gasoline prices have dropped and most are not worried about their personal finances, a new poll suggests.

Pollara Strategic Insights’ monthly “rage index” survey found people were even more angry about rising prices than they were during the summer.

“People are not in a good mood as the year comes to a close,” Dan Arnold, chief strategy officer at Pollara, said in an interview.

“They’re more upset now about inflation (than in previous rage index polls) and it could be because these things build over time,” said Arnold, noting prices at the gas pumps have actually plunged in recent months.

“It could also be that more people are going out to restaurants and bars for holiday parties and are buying gifts so maybe they are feeling the pinch more than before — that’s probably driving it,” he said.

The firm surveyed 3,834 people across the country from Dec. 8 until last Thursday.

It is an online panel poll, but for comparison purposes, a random sample of this size would have a margin of error of plus or minus 1.6 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The survey found 60 per cent have negative feelings about the economy — with 10 per cent happy and about 31 per cent neutral — but when it came to personal finances, responses were less pessimistic.

Here in Ontario, those surveyed expressed anger toward Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives for opening up the Greenbelt of environmentally sensitive land to housing development.

Some 62 per cent said they were angry about the surprise move — which allows 7,400 acres to be developed in exchange for all 9,400 acres of farm fields and wetlands elsewhere — while just eight per cent were happy and 30 per cent neutral.

December 10, 2022

“The Greenbelt move is damaging for him; his negatives appear to be on the rise,” Arnold said of Ford, whose party was re-elected June 2 with an expanded majority.

“One-third of Tory voters (33 per cent) are angry about it,” he said, adding only 19 per cent of PC voters approved.

Among self-identified New Democrats, 90 per cent disapproved of building on the Greenbelt, while 69 per cent of Liberal voters panned the scheme.

June 16, 2021

Ford was also criticized for his abandoned plan to use the Constitution’s “notwithstanding clause” to impose a contract on unionized education workers earlier this fall.

The poll suggests that invocation was a provocation with 61 per cent angry about it and 15 per cent happy and 25 per cent neutral.

“There was a lot of anger over this,” said Arnold, pointing out that 26 per cent of Tories were angry, although 37 per cent were happy.

Three-quarters of NDP voters — 76 per cent — were angry with the overriding of workers’ Charter rights with only one per cent happy; 72 per cent of Liberals were angry and eight per cent were happy. (The Toronto Star) 

From sketch to finish, in 30 seconds, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro … These sped up clips are posted to encourage others to be creative, to take advantage of the technology many of us already have and to use it to produce satire. Comfort the afflicted. Afflict the comforted.

This clip shows the concept to sketch process. An uncoloured rough will be sent to an editor for approval. It shows the subject matter, the characters and setting, whatever text is in mind – in other words the general gist of what will be served up to readers the next morning. When accepted, you’ll note the sketch fades to a light grey and will serve as a guide on a new layer where lines will be refined and details added:

 

The second part involves colouring, patterning, shading and highlighting to create a three dimensional effect. This is when the cartoon takes on life: 

 

There are many many bells and whistles through the Procreate app that remain elusive to me but can potentially add more effects. It’s a never ending journey to discover new capabilities to look forward to in the coming years of cartooning.

Saturday November 19, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday November 19, 2022

Ford’s retreat notwithstanding, the fight over charter rights is far from over

June 16, 2021

The events in Ontario over the last week offer only limited solace to those who worry that politicians are increasingly unafraid to use the notwithstanding clause to override judicial rulings on the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

But in a way, the system worked. Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s government made questionable use of the notwithstanding clause, the public and civil society rose up to say it was unacceptable, and Ford felt compelled to back down.

If the ultimate limit on the notwithstanding clause is “political accountability,” this was an example of the democratic system working more or less as it should.

Fear of a negative public response was supposed to deter governments from using the notwithstanding clause. But Ford already had threatened to use it in 2018 (when he reorganized Toronto’s city council) and he went through with using it in 2021 (to override a court decision on political financing) without suffering much political damage.

November 4, 2022

So Ford had reasons to assume he could use the clause again without too much trouble.

But the premier and his advisers seem to have discounted at least two factors.

First, the preemptive use of the clause in Ontario, at the expense of organized labour, created an opportune moment for Trudeau to take a loud stand.

Second, while Ford framed his fight in terms of keeping schools open — a message that theoretically should have resonated with Ontario families — it turned out that the workers and the union involved had a lot of allies.

Polling quickly showed public opinion running against Ford. Reporting over the weekend suggested that a number of unions were banding together, with plans for a provincewide general strike.

Ford’s position was untenable and he had to abandon both his back-to-work legislation and its use of the notwithstanding clause.

The result may be that the words “notwithstanding clause” become tainted, much the way “prorogation” was poisoned after 2009. That could help re-establish some of the political accountability over the clause’s use that has been lacking in recent years.

But Ford’s retreat can’t be seen as the end of the conversation. (CBC News)

 

Saturday October 8, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday October 8, 2022

Even with rising food costs, many Canadians find Thanksgiving meal traditions tough to break

Young Doug Ford: The Series

A recent online Angus Reid survey of 1,244 Canadians that found of those who celebrate Thanksgiving, more than two-thirds will be eating the same food they usually do, even with inflation pushing up the cost of everything from turkey to potatoes. 

Statistics Canada reported on Sept. 20 that inflation is up nearly 11 per cent across all retail food items. One of the main drivers is still supply-chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, complicated by labour shortages. Another factor is Russia’s war in Ukraine, which has driven up commodity prices.

But some traditions are hard to break.

“The majority of Canadians are sticking to traditions. If they plan to host, they probably will have a turkey,” said Sylvain Charlebois, director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University in Halifax, which had partnered with Angus Reid for the survey. It was conducted in September with a margin of error of +/- 3.1 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

Pandemic Thanksgiving

Still, about about one-quarter of Canadians will make some meal adjustments, the survey found. Sylvain noted that lower-income households, which earn less than $50,000 a year, are almost certainly making changes due to higher food prices.

Charlebois said the per-kilogram price of turkey has increased about 16 per cent from this time last year. Potatoes are 22 per cent more expensive. Bacon, ham and chicken cost about 10 per cent more.

“People may decide to opt for a smaller bird. They may decide to perhaps go for a cheaper protein source like chicken or ham,” he said. “Perhaps people will just go for another side instead of potatoes.”

“They’ll plan ahead and they’ll try to stretch their dollar,” Charlebois said.

At a Winnipeg Food Fair, customer Jerry Brown says he’s still after the traditional bird.

September 29, 2022

“It’s only once a year or twice if you count Christmas. Nice to have a turkey,” he said.

Others are cutting back, like Ciara Maffiola, who said, “I’m not buying a whole turkey. I’m just buying a small turkey breast.”

Food Fair owner Munther Zeid said he’s noticed most people are not spending less, but they are spending differently. For instance, instead of serving a large turkey plus a ham or roast, some are opting for smaller versions of each.

“I’ve never seen increases like this in all my life. I’ve been in this business working with my dad since I was a kid. I basically started part-time in 1983 and I’ve never seen what we’re seeing right now,” he said. (CBC) 

From sketch to finish, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro …

 

Tuesday August 9, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday August 9, 2022

Ontario legislature session begins as Doug Ford’s government pushes ahead with new mandate

Young Doug Ford: The Series

Opposition parties and critics are calling on the Ontario government to provide more relief to tackle rising inflation while also expediting solutions for hospital staffing woes when the legislature returns and the provincial budget is tabled this week.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government will again table its 2022-23 budget on Tuesday, originally introduced in April and put to the test as a main plank of the PC platform during the June election.

After being re-elected, Mr. Ford said the budget would remain largely intact with the addition of a 5-per-cent increase to Ontario Disability Support Program rates that the party campaigned on, as well as a pledge to tie future annual increases to inflation. The budget promises $4-billion in additional spending for highways and roads and $10-billion for hospital infrastructure over 10 years.

August 3, 2022

But with the cost of living on the rise, inflation surging over 8 per cent and hospitals facing significant staffing shortages, critics say more measures need to be introduced to provide support for Ontarians.

Official Opposition NDP interim leader Peter Tabuns said Friday his party is calling for a new budget that increases spending for health care and education, as well as raises wages for public-sector workers. Mr. Tabuns said this would mean repealing Bill 124, introduced by the government in 2019, capping public-sector wage increases at 1 per cent for a three-year contract period. (The Globe & Mail)