Isaac Callan

Thanks to the LCBO's FOI office for choosing not to redact this lovely stock image of cocktails in their U.S. alcohol briefing for the government.

All the other info? That could somehow harm Ontario's economy if released. #Onpoli

Toronto convention centre could be piece of Ontario Place puzzle, Ford hints | Globalnews.ca The premier has hinted he would like to rebuild Toronto's convention centre near Ontario Place, perhaps on the grounds of Exhibition Place.

NEW: Premier Doug Ford is hinting that his idea for a brand new Toronto convention centre will be located near Ontario Place, promising an announcement once he has coordinated with other levels of government. #OnPoli
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Final plans taking shape as Toronto’s 1st FIFA World Cup match approaches - Toronto | Globalnews.ca With 100 days to go until its first FIFA World Cup game, Toronto is focused on the needs for transit and services for tens of thousands of soccer fans.

NEW: It's just 100 days away.

Canada's World Cup opener versus maybe Italy is closing in. City will release it's traffic plan this month. Expect parking restrictions, construction pauses and potential highway ramp closures. #ToPoli globalnews.ca/news/1171356...

Moving metrics: How the Ford government pulled back reporting its successes and failures | Globalnews.ca Targets, such as opening dates for transit lines and GHG emissions, have been removed from scrutiny, while a housing tracker set up a few years ago displays data from 2024.

You can read our full story on how the government's transparency and reporting appear to have evolved here 👇
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Ford government stops reports summarizing child welfare network deaths | Globalnews.ca The government said the 'information continues to be tracked in real time,' but appears to have ended reports summarizing trends and broader patterns.

From 2020, government staff created data roll ups summarizing the total number of deaths associated with the care network.

In 2024 (after we started reporting on them) those reports stopped. The government claims the process hasn't changed. #onpoli globalnews.ca/news/1169038...

Ford government sitting on housing start data for months, internal docs suggest | Globalnews.ca For the past two years, the Ford government has set targets for new homes in towns and cities around Ontario, promising them extra cash if they meet those goals.

After setting a goal of 1.5M homes by 2031, the government changed the definition of housing to include LTC beds, student dorms.

It set up a tracker to show its progress. And then stopped updating it regularly, sitting on the info for months. #OnPoli
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'Why hide the data?': Hallway health-care metric to be 'retired' Metric not included in latest Ontario Health annual report, with one emergency physician calling it ‘utter malpractice’ to not release the data publicly

Annual reports from Ontario Health used to track the number of patients treated in hallways. Then, the agency said it would "retire" the tracking measure from future reports. #onpoli

First reported by The Trillium #Onpoli
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Ontario Line opening date uncertain, construction to be finished in ‘early 2030s’ | Globalnews.ca The Ford government has broken ground on four stations and an elevated guideway for its signature Ontario Line subway, which could be finished sometime in the early 2030s.

Once upon a time, Metrolinx listed opening dates for its projects. Finch West LRT was due in 2023, Hurontario LRT in 2024.

Neither project hit those dates, and now the Ontario Line will be finished sometime in the "early 2030s" #OnPoli
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Ford government scrapping its own emissions targets and reporting requirements | Globalnews.ca Buried in the Fall Economic Statement on Thursday was the news that the government would be repealing sections of existing legislation.

Last year, as it looked like it would not be able to hit its emissions targets, the Ford government passed legislation to eliminate them. It is no longer required to set targets or track progress toward them. #Onpoli
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📈📊: Ontario appears to have pulled back on sharing data. That's an idea we put to the premier's office, which told us:

"To imply the government has reduced or removed process measures is factually incorrect and misleading to your readers.”

Here are the examples #OnPoli

Ring of Fire roads to be complete by 2031, ahead of schedule: Ford | Globalnews.ca Premier Doug Ford said construction will begin in June and finish several years ahead of schedule, though the province had never said when it had hoped to complete road.

Construction on the roads to the Ring of Fire in northern Ontario should start this year and be completed by 2031, the province announced Monday about a project that has divided several First Nations. #OnPoli
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Ontario Premier Doug Ford names new chief of staff | Globalnews.ca A statement issued by the premier's office confirmed that principal secretary Travis Kann will take on the top job, with current chief Patrick Sackville set to step aside.

NEW: Ontario Premier Doug Ford has shuffled his top team of advisors, naming a new chief of staff in his office before the return of the legislature. #ONPoli
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Ontario teacher, education worker unions call for contract talks to start early | Globalnews.ca Contracts for Ontario's teachers and education workers expire this summer and their union leaders are calling on the education minister to start the bargaining process early.

Contracts for Ontario’s teachers and education workers expire at the end of this summer and their union leaders are calling on the education minister to start the bargaining process early. #OnPoli
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Ontario, N.S. sign agreement to sell alcohol across provincial borders | Globalnews.ca The new deal flows from a broader framework agreed to by several provinces last year to try to reduce or do away with internal Canadian trade barriers altogether.

NEW: Ontario and Nova Scotia have signed an agreement that will let residents in both provinces buy alcohol directly from local producers in either jurisdiction. #onpoli
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Doug Ford doesn’t ‘need’ Bill 5 powers anymore to develop Ring of Fire | Globalnews.ca The provincial government rushed its Bill 5 through the legislature last year to give itself the power to declare special economic zones.

NEW: Ontario Premier Doug Ford says a piece of legislation written to bypass municipal and provincial laws that sparked days of protests isn’t needed after all to bring more mining to northern Ontario. #OnPoli
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Ontario’s 2018 infrastructure minister told to sell or donate ‘inefficiently used properties’ | Globalnews.ca Ford's 2018 mandate letter directed the Minister of Infrastructure to scrutinize Ontario’s real estate portfolio and consider which properties could be put on the market for sale.

As I understand it, the long-term plan has always been for Infrastructure Ontario to own/run all Crown land, including that which is held by agencies. Parts of it were in the 2018 mandate letter, but essentially, it is about centralizing government land.
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Moving metrics: How the Ford government pulled back reporting its successes and failures | Globalnews.ca Targets, such as opening dates for transit lines and GHG emissions, have been removed from scrutiny, while a housing tracker set up a few years ago displays data from 2024.

NEW: Who's counting anyway?

A series of tracking measures that were once regularly updated and relatively easy to access are disappearing in Ontario.

Government denies it's deliberate, critics say it makes it harder to hold to account. #OnPoli
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Eglinton Crosstown LRT hits 98% of in-service target during opening weeks - Toronto | Globalnews.ca The Eglinton Crosstown LRT has enjoyed a smoother launch than the Finch West LRT, which saw service drop to 88 per cent one week, suffering in freezing temperatures.

NEW: Almost three weeks after the launch of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, initial data suggest the long-awaited line has enjoyed a substantially smoother opening than the Finch West LRT did in December. #Onpoli #Topoli
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Geoffrey Hinton, known as the 'godfather of AI', unconvinced by Premier Doug Ford's decision to move the Ontario Science Centre. #OnPoli

Premier wants to see ‘gold mine’ airport in downtown Toronto expanded for jets | Globalnews.ca Doug Ford said he'd seen polling to support expanding the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport to include a bigger runway for larger jet engines.

NEW: After unveiling the latest renderings for Ontario Place and blasting the Metro Toronto Convention Centre as “one of the worst” in the world, Premier Doug Ford appears to be turning his efforts to the city’s downtown airport. #Onpoli
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Ford government spends further $1.7M advertising its plans for Ontario Place | Globalnews.ca The campaign ran during the second half of 2025. It follows a previous set of commercials budgeted at $2 million and designed to combat 'negative sentiment' about Ontario Place.

NEW: A recent provincial advertising campaign to “let people know” about the redevelopment of Ontario Place cost more than $1.7 million, money one critic says the Ford government is “flushing down the drain.” #Onpoli
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Ford says Toronto has ‘one of the worst’ convention centres in the world, teases rebuild - Toronto | Globalnews.ca Doug Ford complained Toronto currently has 'one of the worst convention centres anywhere in the world' and hinted he wanted to overhaul and potentially expand it.

NEW: A new legacy project?

Doug Ford unveiled the designs for the science centre today. While he was doing that, he talked about how Toronto has one of the "worst" convention centres in the world, suggesting he may want to rebuild it. #Onpoli #Topoli
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Doug Ford says the Don Mills/Eglinton location for the Ontario Science Centre was "terrible" and that it was a "decrepit, old, "dumpy" building #OnPoli
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Ford government awards $1B contract for new Ontario Science Centre | Globalnews.ca The province urgently shuttered the Ontario Science Centre at Don Mills and Eglinton to move it south to the waterfront, claiming the move was necessary because of its roof.

NEW: Province has awarded the contract to design and build a relocated science centre at Ontario Place, says could be open “as early” as 2029.

Premier with a shout-out to those defending old science centre, saying he "thinks the world" of them. #OnPoli
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Ford government awards $1B contract for new Ontario Science Centre | Globalnews.ca The province urgently shuttered the Ontario Science Centre at Don Mills and Eglinton to move it south to the waterfront, claiming the move was necessary because of its roof.

NEW: Province has awarded the contract to design and build a relocated science centre at Ontario Place, says could be open “as early” as 2029.

Premier with a shout-out to those defending old science centre, saying he "thinks the world" of them. #OnPoli
globalnews.ca/news/1170801...

Crown Royal bottling plant in Ontario town shuts down 2 days early | Globalnews.ca Plans to close the facility in Amherstburg, Ont., were first announced in the summer by Diageo, the international drinks maker behind the Canadian whisky.

NEW: The union representing workers at a Crown Royal bottling facility in southwestern Ontario says it has been shuttered two days earlier than planned, potentially marking the end of a lengthy tug-of-war over the plant’s future. #Onpoli
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The aggregate roll-ups show anonymized trends meaning we can report on overall outcomes/deaths. Individual reports on deaths would likely be withheld for (very reasonable) privacy concerns.

On this case more specifically, a report we knew existed no longer does. Makes it harder to request similar

Ford government stops reports summarizing child welfare network deaths | Globalnews.ca The government said the 'information continues to be tracked in real time,' but appears to have ended reports summarizing trends and broader patterns.

The question it still hasn't answered, though, is why the aggregate roll-ups only lasted for four years and why it decided to discontinue them.

If they were useful in 2022, why weren't they informative in 2025? #Onpoli
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Since we published our story, the government sent another statement saying it "100% tracks and reports data on tragic deaths" and that "detailed reporting is preferable to aggregated roll-ups because it allows for specific actions that prevent tragedies from occurring again."

We asked the government why it had stopped producing the aggregate reports, which showed the trends and had allowed us to report on deaths associated with the child welfare network. This is what we asked, and what they said #OnPoli