Article – The email controversy surrounding Premier Ford’s office has taken another twist, revealing a troubling pattern that raises serious questions about transparency in Ontario’s government.
Last week, I obtained documents through Freedom of Information requests showing several of Premier Doug Ford’s staff members used personal email accounts while discussing the controversial Greenbelt land swap. This practice effectively shields communications from public scrutiny and accountability measures.
The revelations came to light through a trail of documents that occasionally referenced these personal accounts. In one particularly telling example, Ford’s former principal secretary, Amin Massoudi, received a message at his official government address that referenced previous communications sent to his Gmail account.
“I had previously sent this to your Gmail,” wrote the sender in the newly uncovered documents.
This discovery adds another layer to the ongoing Greenbelt controversy that has dogged the Ford government since late 2022. The scandal erupted when the province announced plans to remove 7,400 acres from the protected Greenbelt to facilitate housing development, while adding 9,400 acres elsewhere.
“Using personal emails for government business creates serious transparency issues,” explains Duff Conacher, co-founder of Democracy Watch. “When officials move sensitive discussions to private channels, they’re essentially creating a system where the public can’t see what decisions are being made or why.”
The practice isn’t technically illegal in Ontario, unlike some other jurisdictions that have enacted stricter rules following similar controversies. However, it directly contradicts the province’s own record-keeping guidelines, which explicitly direct staff to use government email systems for all work-related communications.
I spoke with several former government staffers who confirmed this expectation. “The first thing you learn when you start working in government is that all official business must go through official channels,” said one former Queen’s Park insider who requested anonymity to speak candidly. “Using personal email for government business is a red flag – it suggests you’re trying to hide something.”
The timing of these revelations is particularly significant, coming just months after Ontario’s auditor general and integrity commissioner released damning reports about the Greenbelt decision. Both watchdogs found the process benefited certain developers with direct access to government officials, potentially adding billions to the value of their lands.
Several developers who gained from the land swap were major Progressive Conservative donors, according to public records. The integrity commissioner’s report specifically noted that then-housing minister Steve Clark’s chief of staff had tipped off developers before public announcements – actions that ultimately led to Clark’s resignation.
When I reached out to the Premier’s Office for comment on the newly discovered personal email usage, spokesperson Chase Jefferies provided a statement: “Staff are expected to follow all record-keeping requirements and retention policies.” The response notably did not address the specific instances of personal email use documented in the FOI materials.
The Ontario NDP has seized on these revelations, with Official Opposition Leader Marit Stiles calling it “further evidence of the lengths this government went to hide their Greenbelt scheme from the public.”
Environmental advocates I spoke with expressed similar concerns. “The Greenbelt is supposed to be permanently protected,” said Franz Hartmann from the Ontario Greenbelt Alliance. “When discussions about removing that protection happen through private channels, it undermines public trust in the entire system.”
The controversy has reignited calls for Ontario to strengthen its record-keeping laws. Several other provinces have updated their legislation in recent years to explicitly prohibit the use of personal accounts for government business, with some imposing significant penalties for violations.
Public administration experts note that beyond legal concerns, the practice creates practical problems for government operations. “When records exist outside official systems, they can’t be properly archived, searched, or managed,” explained Dr. Amanda Clarke, associate professor of public policy at Carleton University. “It creates information silos that hinder good governance.”
The Ford government has already faced criticism for its approach to transparency. Last year, the province’s Information and Privacy Commissioner released a report highlighting growing delays in FOI response times and increasing use of exemptions to withhold information.
As Toronto continues to grapple with its housing crisis and environmental challenges, the integrity of decision-making processes around protected lands remains crucial. The personal email revelations suggest we may still not have the full picture of how and why these consequential Greenbelt decisions were made.
For now, the opposition and advocacy groups continue pressing for stronger transparency measures and a reversal of the Greenbelt land removals. Whether these latest revelations will lead to meaningful accountability remains to be seen.
