The Top Line
It has been a very busy six months for Premier Ford’s Government. Firstly, they went to the polls some 16 months early on the premise that they needed a mandate to address and oppose the pending U.S. trade tariffs. It was politically opportunistic, and the Government prevailed with its third majority government. The next election is now scheduled for June 2029.
The Election took place on February 27th, and the new Cabinet was sworn in on March 19th.
Premier Ford adopted the position of “Captain Canada”, filling the void in the federal leadership until Mark Carney was elected and subsequently became Prime Minister. When the Ontario Legislature was recalled, there were many major challenges to combat. These included protecting businesses that are subject to the new tariffs and protecting workers from the looming threat of unemployment due to economic uncertainty.
Forming a New Cabinet
A new Cabinet was formed to tackle major concerns facing Ontario. Key Ministers who have been by the Premier’s side returned once again to the Cabinet table and many maintained their old Ministries. This would imply that a significant Cabinet shuffle might be on the horizon for the summer. The key Ministers include:
- The Honourable Peter Bethlenfalvy, Minister of Finance
- The Honourable Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade
- The Honourable Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health
- The Honourable Stephen Lecce, Minister of Energy and Mines
- The Honourable Rob Flack, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing
- The Honourable Paul Calandra, Minister of Education
Throne Speech
The Throne Speech was delivered on April 15th and outlined the Government’s priorities for the next session. Key areas focused on the pending tariff threat from the United States. It stressed the need to protect Ontarians in light of this uncertainty and has fostered a Buy Ontario and Buy Canada mindset that is likely to gain momentum.
Key themes in the Throne Speech included:
- Protecting Ontario from economic uncertainty
- Unleashing the province’s economic potential
- Building critical infrastructure
- Keeping costs down for families
- Strengthening public services and community safety
Other key themes included filling the gaps in the workforce and healthcare; 58,000 new long-term care beds; first responder staffing shortages; and, getting tough on crime.
The Budget
The Budget was introduced on May 15th and provided detail and substance to the Throne Speech. As expected, key themes included boosting Ontario’s economy, a main focus for the Premier since he was elected to office in 2018, and focusing on the tariff threats by offering relief and support for workers and businesses.
Other major themes included investment in energy, infrastructure ($200 billion over 10 years) and a number of ambitious projects. These include a traffic tunnel under Highway 401 across the top of Toronto and finally building road access to the Ring of Fire. Bill 5 passed this week, should allow the Government to fast-track this process.
Housing, cost-of-living relief, and access to more health-care providers were also included. For more information, please refer to TSA’s analysis from May 15 at Ontario Budget 2025 – A Plan to Protect Ontario – TSA
What This Means to You
Ontarians are interested in seeing how the Premier will protect Ontarians and local industries against the U.S tariffs, the most recent being the doubling of the tariff to 50% on steel and aluminum entering the U.S.
Key to the discussions on tariffs will be the leadership of newly elected Prime Minister Mark Carney, but following the First Minister’s meeting in Saskatoon on June 3, this appears to be in a good place. There is clearly a united front to protect Canada against these unexplained tariffs and a joint need to breakdown inter-provincial trade barriers.
Today, the Legislature ended its Spring session and announced that it will not return until October 20th – a six-week delay. The Premier also announced that he will be travelling across Canada and the U.S. to deal with tariffs and oil and gas access through needed pipelines.
MPPs will now be back in their ridings, driving the Made in Ontario solution to their home constituencies.
It is likely the Premier will have to continue to face these challenges throughout the summer and into the fall when the Legislature resumes. There is no sign that the tariff threat is ending anytime soon – if anything, President Trump is doubling down on the tariff threats and continuing to mock Canadian sovereignty with threats of being the 51st State.
The Premier will have to defend Ontario industries and workers that make Ontario the driving force of Canada that it is. He has already taken this step by formally inviting all of Canada’s Premiers to meet July 21 – July 23 in Huntsville, Ontario. Stakeholders have a lot of questions. The Government will have to work out how best to deal with these.
