GuelphToday received the following letter to the editor from reader Rosanne Morris on Bill 108 and Bill 23 and a special council meeting held on Tuesday.
I just came from a meeting this morning of a special committee of Guelph city council where I heard well-prepared staff presentations about the implications of Bill 108 and Bill 23 that the government of Ontario is championing.
I heard great alarm from the various city hall staff, explaining to our newly-elected council the broad and radical implications proposed in these Bills. What is most striking to me is that I have always thought that one of the most fundamental beliefs of all Conservatives is the danger of big government. Overreach and centralized bureaucratic/political control are hallmarks of ‘socialism,’ and so a governmental style to be deplored and resisted by any proud, card-carrying conservative.
So…what’s happened over there in Queen’s Park, when we have Doug Ford and his cabal pushing for radical, centralized government over the traditional, more democratic local control over housing and planning within municipalities? I know in so many other ways the world is turning topsy-turvy, but to have a Conservative government, elected with less that 40 per cent of the popular vote of Ontario citizens, make such a dramatic shift, is very confusing to me. Perhaps someone in Mr. Ford’s office could spend a few minutes to explain to me why developers’ priorities are being placed way ahead of what our local Guelph planners and elected officials regard as the more appropriate priorities for the upcoming years.
Thank goodness for Guelph, and for all of Ontario, that Mike Schreiner is at the job calling out a premier who is determined to undermine democratic process at every turn.
Rosanne Morris
