The RCMP said Wednesday it has received a referral from provincial police in Ontario to “investigate irregularities” in the Ford government’s controversial Greenbelt land swap.
The confirmation came shortly after the OPP released a statement saying that to “avoid any potential perceived conflict of interest” the force had asked the Mounties to decide whether an investigation is warranted.
The OPP said in January that its Anti Rackets Branch was working to determine if evidence provided in multiple formal complaints about the Greenbelt land swap supported an investigation.
As recently as Aug. 9, the day Ontario’s auditor general released an explosive report on how thousands of hectares of Greenbelt land were opened for housing development, the OPP said that work was still ongoing.
Ryan Amato, former chief of staff to Housing Minister Steve Clark, oversaw a process that was heavily influenced by a small group of politically-connected developers who had direct access to him, the auditor general said.
The report said Amato — not non-partisan public servants — selected 14 of the 15 sites that were ultimately removed from the Greenbelt and the majority were chosen after suggestions from developers who lobbied him personally through encounters at an industry event or in emails sent by their lawyers.
The original article contains 435 words, the summary contains 196 words. Saved 55%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
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The RCMP said Wednesday it has received a referral from provincial police in Ontario to “investigate irregularities” in the Ford government’s controversial Greenbelt land swap.
The confirmation came shortly after the OPP released a statement saying that to “avoid any potential perceived conflict of interest” the force had asked the Mounties to decide whether an investigation is warranted.
The OPP said in January that its Anti Rackets Branch was working to determine if evidence provided in multiple formal complaints about the Greenbelt land swap supported an investigation.
As recently as Aug. 9, the day Ontario’s auditor general released an explosive report on how thousands of hectares of Greenbelt land were opened for housing development, the OPP said that work was still ongoing.
Ryan Amato, former chief of staff to Housing Minister Steve Clark, oversaw a process that was heavily influenced by a small group of politically-connected developers who had direct access to him, the auditor general said.
The report said Amato — not non-partisan public servants — selected 14 of the 15 sites that were ultimately removed from the Greenbelt and the majority were chosen after suggestions from developers who lobbied him personally through encounters at an industry event or in emails sent by their lawyers.
The original article contains 435 words, the summary contains 196 words. Saved 55%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!