Doug Ford makes appearance at plowing match amid Greenbelt controversy

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Brian Gottfried has voted conservative all his life, including for Premier Doug Ford in the last provincial election. But the Ontario government’s decision to open up the Greenbelt to a select group of developers doesn’t sit right with him.

“With our population growing, where’s all the food going to come from if you take all the farmland away?” said Mr. Gottfried, a retired farmer from Alma, Ont., north of Guelph. “It seemed to be that he was supporting the developers … like helping them out.”

His concerns about the future of farmland – and Mr. Ford’s relationship with developers – were echoed Tuesday by many attending the International Plowing Match, an annual agricultural and rural expo held this year in Dufferin County, northwest of Brampton.

The event is a must-do for politicians from all parties, who attend each year to connect with rural and farming communities from across the province.

The Progressive Conservatives’ decision to open up 3,000 hectares of Greenbelt to housing development, later criticized in two scathing reports from the province’s Auditor-General and Integrity Commissioner, has resonated in rural communities bordering the protected lands surrounding the Greater Toronto Area.

The decision to remove 15 sites from the Greenbelt – later changed to 14 – could mean a windfall of $8.3-billion for a handful of developers, the Auditor-General’s report said. It also noted that 83 per cent of the land removed was classified as “prime agricultural land” – the highest quality farmland.

EXPLAINER: The Ontario Greenbelt controversy, Doug Ford’s role and what has happened so far

Mr. Ford has repeatedly said the move is necessary to address the housing crisis, and the government has added more land to the Greenbelt elsewhere. But even the province’s own housing affordability task force said it’s not necessary to build the stated goal of 1.5 million homes over the next decade.

The bulk of the new Greenbelt land is in Erin, Ont. The town’s mayor, Michael Dehn, said those hectares were already protected.

Although he voted for the Progressive Conservatives in the past two elections, he doesn’t support the decision to develop on the Greenbelt after the Premier promised he would not.

“I believe it was done for greed. I don’t believe it was done for the betterment of housing in Ontario,” Mr. Dehn said. “My trust is broken with the province right now, with the Premier.”

In his speech at the opening ceremony, Mr. Ford spoke about the importance of farmers to the province’s food supply, but did not mention housing or the Greenbelt. Several people in the crowd, many affiliated with other political parties, held “Hands off the Greenbelt” signs.

“We’re always going to have the agriculture sector, the food sector’s back, but most importantly, the farmers’ backs – the people that are in there day in, day out, working their backs off, and they’re salt of the earth people,” he said to applause.

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Other party leaders took direct aim at Mr. Ford over the controversy.

NDP Leader Marit Stiles said in her speech that agricultural land is one of the province’s most precious resources. “Those farmlands are at risk. And that’s why your Ontario NDP are working so hard to protect your farmland and your Greenbelt,” she said to cheers.

Interim Liberal Leader John Fraser, meanwhile, spoke about the importance of the plowing match in honouring a way of life.

“We broke a trust to this province that protected agricultural land, that protected our aquifers, that protected habitats. That’s wrong,” he said. “That was a trust that we had for our children. And it’s important that we fight for that.”

Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said that, when the Ontario legislature returns from summer break next week, he hopes all parties agree to protect farmland that produces $50-billion of wealth to the provincial economy. “We have to protect that farmland and the wealth it creates, the food security it provides, the families it feeds.”

Another retired farmer attending the event, Lyle Hendriks, said he believes there may be areas that can be used for housing in the Greenbelt – but he wants farmland left alone. Still, he said, he supports Mr. Ford and believes the Premier will do a proper review of the land as promised.

“I like to think he’s honest,” Mr. Hendriks said. “I think it’s hurt him a bit but hopefully they do the right thing there.”

For Mr. Gottfried’s part, he’s not sure yet whether he’ll support the PCs in the next election.

“It’s a hard job to know who to vote for these days, like, who’s going to be for you, and who isn’t,” he said.