Government Update

The legislature is due to return August 8 when speaker election, throne speech and the budget will be the order of priorities.

The government’s budget, which went unpassed after it was tabled in April and used as an election platform for the PCs, will be re-tabled in that first week.

In other news, on July 1, a host of new regulations came into effect in Ontario. Doug Ford’s gas tax cut was the most visible of the new initiatives. Some other notable, though not as visible, new policies relate to housing and the environment.

On the housing front, municipal councillors will now have no say in site plan control decisions. That’ll be up to municipal staff, thanks to a change in the Planning Act and the City of Toronto Act. Previously, city councillors were allowed to intervene and take the process out of the hands of staff and request a decision by council. It strikes a blow against NIMBYism, according to one expert.

Queen’s Park Lobby Day – Tuesday, October 18

CCUA will be hosting Queen’s Park Lobby Day on Tuesday, October 18 in partnership with the Ontario Co-Operatives Association and Conseil de la coopération de l’Ontario. We are happy to secure this date as it falls during the beginning of the Canadian Co-operatives Week.

More details will follow in subsequent updates.