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TORONTO — What do conservation authorities, a downtown Toronto parking lot and freedom-of-information requests have in common?
On the face of it, nothing — but provincial legislative changes are coming to all three, and they are jammed into an omnibus budget bill tabled Thursday by Ontario Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy.
The province’s plan for doling out taxpayer money in the coming year also comes with proposed changes to the ticket resale market and retail shopping on holidays.
Proposing such a wide range of changes is an approach that skirts transparency and accountability, opposition party leaders said Friday.
Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser said some of the bigger items should have their own bills in order to get a full debate in the legislature.
He pointed to proposed changes for conservation authorities, which the province wants to consolidate to nine from 36, with a new effort to focus on quicker housing and development approvals in sensitive areas.
He also pointed to the sweeping changes proposed to freedom-of-information laws.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government wants to shield him and cabinet members, along with their offices, from FOI laws, saying the proposed new regime will be similar to most other provinces and will allow for more frank discussions among the senior politicos.
Ford has admitted that part of the rationale for the change is to kill a freedom-of-information request from Global News to obtain his cellphone records. A court recently sided with the news organization’s bid to to gain access.
The proposed law would apply retroactively, likely kiboshing existing freedom-of-information requests, including numerous requests filed by The Canadian Press.
“If you have like five other bills inside it, it’s like you’re avoiding legislative scrutiny,” Fraser said of the omnibus bill. “You’re avoiding openness and transparency.”
New Democrat Leader Marit Stiles said she’s worried about Ford’s government fast-tracking the megabill through the legislative process.
“There’s so much in there that, frankly, I don’t think anybody can understand where the government is going with it,” she said. “There’s so many questions to be asked.”
Ford’s Progressive Conservatives have a history of sitting in the legislature for fewer days a year than previous governments, as well as using their large majority in the house to limit debate and, in several cases, skip the committee stage altogether.
Committee hearings are a process to improve bills and unearth any unintended consequences of legislation. They also allow experts and those directly affected by a proposed law to express their concerns, Stiles said.
“We have a premier who’s mad with power and he doesn’t want anybody, his own government or anybody in the opposition, to tell him what he doesn’t want to hear,” Stiles said.
Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said the province is doing everything in its power to “distract from and hide legislation they know is bad.”
“They have made a habit of shortening the legislative sittings as much as possible then using massive omnibus bills to jam as many things as they can through the legislature as quickly as they can,” Schreiner said.
“These tactics weaken transparency and silence people’s voices because they create chaos and shorten the window for public debate, consultation and feedback.”
Ford’s office did not answer questions about the possibility of fast-tracking the budget bill, but said the government is acting in response to tariffs and economic uncertainty to build the province’s economy.
“This means using every tool we have to streamline processes and cut the unnecessary red tape that has held our economy back, while putting forward bold ideas that will continue to attract investment, lower costs for businesses, create new jobs and keep life affordable for Ontario families,” Ford’s office said.
In addition to bringing on small business tax changes, the budget bill would implement previously announced promises to allow retail shopping on Family Day and Victoria Day and to cap ticket resale prices.
The bill would repeal an old law governing the use of a bus parking lot across the street from the Rogers Centre, where the Toronto Blue Jays play.
Bethlenfalvy was cagey about the province’s plan for the lot, and the budget itself offers little explanation.
“I think there’s a tremendous opportunity there,” Bethlenfalvy said. “So we’re going to create a situation where we can have more options with that piece of land, which is in a prime location of Toronto.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2026.
Allison Jones and Liam Casey, The Canadian Press
