Integrity commissioner clears Doug Ford after developers attend daughter’s stag and doe | 24CA News

Ontario’s Integrity Commissioner has cleared Premier Doug Ford of wrongdoing after builders, described as “personal friends” of the premier, attended a stag and doe celebration for his daughter’s marriage ceremony.

The revelation comes because the Ford authorities faces questions on whether or not builders got advance discover in regards to the controversial determination to take away lands from the Greenbelt, which the premier denies.

The celebration, nonetheless, may elevate new questions in regards to the ties between Ford and builders and the way that performed into the choice to permit homebuilding on some land beforehand protected by the Greenbelt.

Ivana Yelich, a spokesperson for Premier Ford, referred to as the story “baseless and unsubstantiated inferences and innuendo about the premier and his family” and indicated the federal government took steps to make sure the occasion fell inside moral strains.

“The Integrity Commissioner was engaged and found no wrongdoing.”

Yelich additionally mentioned, “The premier’s daughter and son-in-law are private citizens. Their wedding day and events leading up to it are private and deeply personal and have nothing to do with this government.”

Invitation to a celebration

The invites got here within the type of textual content messages and emails that, sources inform Global News, included a flyer.

Sources say the digital flyer was despatched by folks related to Ford and who beforehand labored for him.

The invitation, the sources say, was to a celebration in early August on the Ford household residence — a sprawling Etobicoke property that has performed host to Ford fests, Progressive Conservative caucus events and a slew of different occasions.

Multiple sources with associations to the Progressive Conservative trigger in Ontario, who say they acquired a type of invites, informed Global News they have been being requested to attend a stag and doe celebration to lift cash for the premier’s daughter, who was set to be married in the summertime of 2022.

The invitation, one supply mentioned, got here with a request to make a donation to the couple of as much as $1,000 and appeared “very dodgy” on the time.

Global News has not independently considered the digital flyers, which have been referenced by a number of, unconnected sources. Inquiries made by Global News to folks mentioned to have despatched the invites weren’t answered.

However, a number of individuals who say they acquired direct invites, raised issues to Global News in regards to the gathering, and shared their discomfort with being invited and with the general optics of the occasion.

Sources inform Global News invitees have been “browbeaten” into shopping for tickets, whereas massive and small lobbying and authorities relations corporations have been requested to buy tickets at $150 every, which meant they have been eligible for numerous door prizes, together with a Vespa scooter.

Some who mentioned they have been invited and who spoke to Global News on the situation of anonymity, expressed discomfort with attending the occasion.

“Normally, you don’t turn down the chance to go to the premier’s house,” one supply mentioned. “[But] it felt dirty.”

Another supply who says they acquired an invite dubbed the celebration as a “pay for play” occasion and questioned the ethics of attending the stag and doe.

“I don’t want to be seen trying to gain influence by paying for his daughter’s wedding,” the supply mentioned.

“Why would I put that at risk?” the supply mentioned of their profession and popularity within the business.

A Thursday evening stag and doe

The occasion on Aug. 11 has been described by Premier Ford as a stag and doe celebration for his daughter.

A stag and doe is mostly a pre-wedding occasion the place video games, raffles and different actions are used to fundraise and assist pay for a pair’s marriage ceremony.

Common actions to lift cash embrace entry tickets, raffles and even public sale occasions.

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“That has been very lucrative,” mentioned one conservative supply of the Aug. 11 occasion.

While Global News was unable to substantiate the visitor record — sources have been reluctant to call any attendees — a number of conservative sources mentioned builders from the Greater Toronto space acquired an invite to attend.

The incontrovertible fact that builders attended was confirmed by Premier Ford in an announcement made to the Integrity Commissioner about “personal friends” who have been visitors.

One supply, who mentioned they have been invited however didn’t attend, mentioned they have been conscious the celebration was a “fundraiser” and knew of builders who have been invited. The supply wouldn’t specify which builders.

A spokesperson for housing minister Steve Clark, who’s going through an ethics investigation over the Greenbelt determination, mentioned “Minister Clark did not attend any such events.”

Race to the Integrity Commissioner

In January, the premier’s workplace acquired an inquiry in regards to the celebration, which appeared to set off a dialog between the premier’s workplace and the integrity commissioner, months after the precise occasion befell.

“Last week, the premier and staff in his office provided information to the integrity commissioner about certain guests who attended the wedding and stag and doe party of the premier’s daughter and son-in-law,” the integrity commissioner’s workplace mentioned in an announcement to Global News on Feb. 2.

“The premier confirmed that those guests, identified as developers, are personal friends.”

In response to follow-up questions, the integrity commissioner’s workplace mentioned its assertion was linked to particular questions.

“This Office is aware that the request for an opinion was linked to questions from a journalist to the premier’s office about certain guests who attended the premier’s daughter’s wedding and may have attended another pre-wedding event,” the spokesperson mentioned. “The opinion was about the individuals who were named in the media inquiry to the premier’s office.”

The info offered to the commissioner would have remained confidential, the commissioner mentioned, however the premier’s workplace waived confidentiality to share key particulars in regards to the occasion and the premier’s defence.

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Integrity Commissioner clears Premier Ford

The Office of J. David Wake informed Global News that his purview below the Members’ Integrity Act associated to an MPP’s public duties resembling collaborating in a choice or vote “or the acceptance of a gift or personal benefit that is connected directly or indirectly with the performance [of] an MPP’s duties.”

The commissioner decided that for the reason that premier mentioned he had “no knowledge of gifts” and that there was “no discussion of government business,” Ford was within the clear.

“The Commissioner issued an opinion that there was nothing to indicate non-compliance with the Members’ Integrity Act related to these events,” the commissioner mentioned in an announcement to Global News.

“The premier had no knowledge of gifts given to his daughter and son-in-law,” the commissioner mentioned. “And that there was no discussion of government business.”

Since 1988, when the integrity commissioner’s workplace was established, workers say it has acquired greater than 9,000 requests for opinions from MPPs. In the final full fiscal 12 months alone, 277 such requests have been made. The spokesperson mentioned it could be “impossible” to find out if the same opinion to the stag and doe occasion had ever been requested or issued.

“I would like to reiterate that the majority of requests are related to the official duties and activities of MPPs,” the spokesperson mentioned. “If a question concerned a friend, it would likely be in connection with an official decision, duty, or activity of the member.”

The spokesperson added, “I am not aware of any of these being similar to the scenario you have described.”

While the premier’s workplace did not reply particular questions from Global News together with questions in regards to the appropriateness of the occasion and the amount of cash raised and from whom, a spokesperson underscored the truth that Ford had been cleared.

The integrity commissioner discovered no wrongdoing, Yelich mentioned in an e mail. She mentioned that Ford’s daughter is a personal citizen and her “wedding day and events leading up to it are private and deeply personal and have nothing to do with this government.”

Integrity commissioner declines Greenbelt criticism

News of the stag and doe comes because the Ford authorities faces fierce criticism, and a sequence of investigations, into its determination to open land in Ontario’s Greenbelt for growth.

Late in 2022, the province introduced plans to take away 7,400 acres of beforehand protected land from the Greenbelt as a part of its technique to hurry up residence building amid Ontario’s housing affordability disaster. In the wake of that call, questions have been raised about whether or not sure builders had prior information of the plan, one thing that Ford and Clark, his housing minister, have denied.

The leaders of Ontario’s Greens, Liberals and NDP put their names to completely different complaints, whereas others, together with the advocacy group Environmental Defence, approached Ontario Provincial Police.

The integrity commissioner accepted a request on Jan. 18 from Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles to look into whether or not Clark broke battle of curiosity and insider info guidelines.

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The province’s auditor normal additionally launched a letter the identical day, accepting a name from the leaders of the Ontario Greens, Liberals and NDP for a “value-for-money audit of the financial and environmental implications relating to the government’s recent decisions affecting the Greenbelt.”

However, the integrity commissioner declined a request from Ontario Green Leader Mike Schreiner to analyze each Ford and Clark. Wake, the integrity commissioner, discovered that there was “insufficient evidence” to analyze the premier himself on questions of whether or not builders got a heads-up earlier than parts of the Greenbelt have been eliminated in December.

In his report back to the Ontario legislature, Wake questioned the conflict-of-interest issues raised by Schreiner and decided he didn’t have sufficient proof to launch a full-scale probe.

“It is entirely possible that someone may have alerted one or more of the owners of the affected lands about the changes to the Greenbelt plan and the decision as to which lands would be selected,” Wake’s report said. “I note that both the premier and the minister denied having done so.”

Wake added that he wasn’t introduced proof that “either the premier or the minister advanced their private interests” by approving the adjustments made to the Greenbelt.

At the time, Cody Welton, a deputy chief of workers to Premier Ford, slammed the criticism from the Green Party as “another baseless opposition complaint against the premier.”