The housing minister’s chief of staff who was at the centre of the Ontario government’s controversial Greenbelt land removal has resigned. Premier Doug Ford’s office said yesterday that Ryan Amato’s resignation was accepted “effective immediately”.
Amato’s resignation comes almost two weeks after Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk’s report noted that the removal of land from Ontario’s Greenbelt in December was unnecessary and influenced by a small number of real estate developers with access to him.
Both Premier Doug Ford and Housing Minister Steve Clark claimed they were unaware that Amato’s Greenbelt land removal for the construction of 50,000 homes was influenced by the developers.
Ford said he was only briefed on the sites the day before cabinet approved the changes, while Clark said he learned of the plan the week prior.
The Auditor General’s report stated that Amato selected 14 of the 15 sites that were removed from the Greenbelt, majority of which were suggested by developers who lobbied him personally through encounters at an industry event or emails sent by their lawyers.
Opposition leaders are now calling for Minister Clark to also resign or for Premier Ford to fire him.
“There is no way on God’s green Earth that Minister Clark’s Chief of Staff acted without the Minister’s full knowledge or direction,” Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser said in a statement. “Ministers make decisions; their Chiefs of Staff implement them.”
Ontario Liberals are also wnt the provincial government to freeze all development on the lands involved in the Greenbelt Giveaway.
Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles has said that the auditor general’s report was very clear that “this staffer obviously didn’t act independently”.
Meanwhile the RCMP is assessing whether or not to investigate the Ford government’s controversial Greenbelt land swap after a referral from the Ontario Provincial Police.
“I am pleased to hear that the RCMP will begin an investigation into the corrupt process that saw a few wealthy, well-connected land speculators cash in $8.3 billion on the backs of everyday Ontarians,” said Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Shreiner.
