Ontario Premier Doug Ford.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford. Credit: Premier of Ontairo Photography / Flickr Credit: Premier of Ontairo Photography / Flickr

A stench is rising and a big threat is coming from Queen’s Park. Doug Ford’s campaign slogans were “For the People” and “getting it done.” The message being, trust us we will govern in your interest. What has happened is quite the opposite. 

Ford has very clearly been displaying all the characteristics of an authoritarian regime by centralizing and highly concentrating government power.

How far will Ford go in his dismantling of democracy and privatizing public sector assets and services? His thirst for more power and control seems to be his only goal. How far will he go to hide and shield his actions from democratic oversight and transparency? How far will Ford go to shield his wealthy donors from public scrutiny?

Most authoritarians come to power through elections, then slowly brick by brick dismantle democratic oversight and public transparency. This includes calling the media “fake news” as a pretext to silence opposition and restrict the media. Both Ford and his ministers have called media accounts “fake news.” Ford often skips press conferences in favor of his taxpayer paid, Ontario News Now videos. 

Like all other authoritarians Ford is doing everything he can to control the flow of information to operate in secrecy. Like other authoritarian regimes around the world Ford has increasingly operated out of public view. He has much to hide.

Ford just passed Bill 194, which amended the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. This bill removes Ford, his ministers and   all staff from freedom of information requests blocking access to texts, emails and all records.

The most disturbing part of this legislation is that it retroactively makes previous FOI requests null and void, forever hiding records of the Greenbelt land transfer, the Skills Development fund scandals, the Science Center, Ontario Place and more.

This elimination of FOI requests shields Ford, his ministers, staff and what donors Ford is seeing and communicating with. We need to know what Ford is doing and who he is seeing behind closed doors. 

The RCMP investigation into the Greenbelt land transfer looks to have dropped into a black hole. Will it ever be seen again? 

Ford has a pattern of shielding himself and his wealthy donors from accountability. For example, Bill 218, Supporting Ontario’s Recovery Act which shielded private owners of long-term care facilities from being sued for negligence where thousands died during the pandemic from neglect. 

Now Ford has shielded himself from being sued for removing bike lanes where people will likely be injured or killed with Bill 212. 

Eliminating FOI’s, makes Ford’s cash for access scheme even more concerning. In February 2021, Ford doubled the individual donation ceiling. Within a year, more than 70 per cent of Progressive Conservative cash came from cheques over a thousand dollars. 

By November 2022, the now infamous Greenbelt land swap leaked, and assessments on the developers’ holdings jumped eight-to-ten-fold overnight. 

Now, again In November2025 Ford raised the maximum yearly contribution rate from$3,400 to $5,000. 

In Doug Ford’s government, the dominant voices are the GTA land kings. 

Silvio De Gasperi’s TACC Group and Michael Rice’s Rice Group both maxed out donations almost the moment Ford quietly doubled Ontario’s contribution limit, then saw them freshly purchased Greenbelt parcels miraculously rezoned, which created $3.2 billion in value for developers with the stroke of a pen. 

The Cortellucci and Di Poce families did the same dance around Highway 413. Big cheques were given at fund-raisers followed by a provincial route that now cuts straight through their land banks.

Ford’s legislated secrecy along with his cash for access scheme swings the door wide open for corruption.

Without exception, every single bill he has passed since 2018 Ford has dismantled democratic structures and transferred enormous unchecked power to himself and his ministers. 

One of the main areas where Ford is clearly an authoritarian is in his appointments to government.

Like Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Viktor Orban, Ford has installed loyalists in every government agency and tribunal. All these loyalists are either former staffers or former Conservative candidates.

Ford replaced the Ontario Municipal Board with the Ontario Land Tribunal where a lone provincial loyalist has the power to decide on appeals overriding locally elected officials again.   

In every public policy area, regulations protecting the public and the environment, Ford has marginalized as “red tape.” 

Ford has eliminated three offices of the legislature, the Ontario Child advocate, the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario and French language services.  

Ford has now taken over eight school boards and installed loyalists. Ford is bypassing democracy by appointing loyalists to leadership positions on regional municipal governments. 

Authoritarians often base their appeal on law-and-order policies. around the world have they packed, purged and bypassed independent judges to replace them with loyalists, to get favorable rulings. Ford has publicly stated his intention to appoint “like minded judges” with conservative values. To that end Ford has appointed “like minded “loyalists to committees appointed to vet judges and justices of the peace candidates, with the aim of selecting those who are “tough on crime”

Let’s not forget Ford’s authoritarian order to police departments. In 2022 during the pandemic Ford ordered police departments across the province to stop motorists and pedestrians to show ID and ask where they were going. Wisely, every police department. refused to do it. 

Ford has eliminated bike lanes, safe injection sites, low-cost wastewater testing for disease and photo radar from school zones, and now freedom of information, all in the name of public safety and security. On top of that Ford is on a privatization rampage, privatizing water and healthcare, more private hydro and likely the Toronto Transit Commission. 

Ford has given enormous power to corporate landlords to renovict tenants to increase profits with Bill184 and Bill 60. Ford follows the Conservative plan of creating a crisis by cutting and underfunding public services like healthcare and education. Then presents privatization as the solution, while at the same time taking away our democratic power of public input and oversight.

One in three people who are homeless became so through being evicted from their homes. Hospital wait times are long and increasing and emergency rooms have closed. As a result of Ford’s legislation, child poverty which was supposed to be eliminated by the year 2000 has also increased. Food banks cannot keep up with the demand from food insecurity.

Affordability is getting worse by the day and soon necessities like privatized water and electricity will be very expensive.

Ford is dismantling democracy so his multi-billion dollar “protect Ontario” campaign benefits only flow one way up to the top one per cent.

Like most authoritarians Ford is only focused on increasing his power and control. Like Trump, Ford is only “getting it done” for his wealthy friends. 

When you add it all up, the Ford government does not pass the smell test. The stench of a dangerous, corrupt authoritarian government is rising from Queens Park. 

With Ford in power another three years there will be nothing left of democracy in Ontario. The voting structure may still be in place but we will be ruled by wealthy oligarchs and a very expensive, no rules no regulations free market.  

We cannot and must not tolerate Ford’s secret authoritarian government. We need to know what Ford is doing and who he is seeing behind closed doors. In other countries when governments made these authoritarian moves, there were mass protests. Responsibility to protest authoritarian Ford rests with all of us.