Liberals dodge shedding light on secret highway panel

TorontoSun.com
Sept. 14, 2016
By Anthony Furey

So much for a fresh start to governing in Ontario.

Only two days after the Liberals’ new throne speech, Kathleen Wynne’s government dodged questions in the legislature on Wednesday about a secret panel they convened to decide the future of the GTA West Highway.

“Will the premier report what happened to her commitment to transparency and tell those left in the dark just who she’s designated to determine the future of their highway?” Michael Harris, the Ontario PC transportation critic, asked the government.

In August, the Sun revealed the Liberals had created an unprecedented secret panel of advisers who would determine the future of the Highway 413 project that would stretch across the northwestern part of the GTA.

Both Harris and NDP critic Wayne Gates have been calling on the government to reveal the names on the list. The Liberals have so far refused to address the issue.

“I made an ironclad commitment about the fact that we will not only provide (impacted municipalities) with the opportunity for additional consultation, but we will try to clarify what’s taking place with this just as soon as we possible can,” Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca said in response to Harris’s question.

The highway has been in the works for a decade. Stakeholders range from businesses who see it as a boon for their local economy to environmental activists opposed to it.

“This is a public project involving billions of public dollars. Continued secrecy only fuels further questions: Who selected them and why, and have they ever paid for access to the minister?” Harris continued.

In August, Gates issued a statement stating that without the public knowing the names of the people on the panel, the Liberals have created a de facto loophole around the lobbyist registry, as people with an interest in the project could potentially be on the panel advising the minister.

A government spokesman at the time told the Sun the panel would remain secret “in order to protect the integrity of the review” - a response the opposition doesn’t buy.