GUELPH – Mike Schreiner, released the following statement in response to news that the public consultation on the government’s Greenbelt plan showed that there was broad opposition to opening up the protected land for development.
“The Premier’s decision to ignore the results of the public consultations proves he doesn’t care what the people of Ontario think – as long as land speculators and pro-sprawl developers can cash in, nothing else matters.
More than 27,000 submissions from across the political spectrum overwhelmingly oppose the government’s plan to pave over the Greenbelt.
The Premier is ignoring the thousands of people who take to the streets every weekend in dozens of protests across the province – all demanding that the Premier keep his promise and keep his hands off our Greenbelt.
And maybe even worse than dismissing this opposition, the Premier and Housing Minister Clark continue to mislead Ontarians by claiming that the Greenbelt must be sacrificed in the name of building much needed housing.
Over and over again that has been shown to be untrue. Lack of land is not the cause of the housing crisis.
Nothing – not the facts or overwhelming public opposition – will stand in the way of this government’s determination to see its land speculator friends turn their millions into billions while destroying a priceless public asset for current and future generations.
But I, like thousands of Ontarians, will not give up the fight to protect the Greenbelt.”