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Premier Doug Ford speaking to reporters in Guelph. (Photo: Steve Cornwell / The Trillium)
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.
This story is a collaboration between POLICORNER and The Trillium.
Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party is standing by the decision to send an opposition researcher to surveil then-Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie while she was on vacation in Jamaica.
“The Ontario PC party, like other political parties, conducts opposition research,” the party said in a statement Thursday evening, responding for the first time to questions about the opposition research mission revealed by POLICORNER and The Trillium earlier this morning. “In this instance, that work included travel to Jamaica in December 2023.”
Ford, questioned about the Jamaica operation at a press conference earlier today, directed reporters to the party, but justified the decision, saying that “it’s politics” and “stuff happens during elections.”
“I just found out yesterday, and I’ve talked to the party about it,” said Ford, adding that he doesn’t “approve of it.”
Asked about his responsibility for the actions of the party he leads, Ford said he does not watch every dollar spent during an election campaign and emphasized that it was $3,000 of party money — not government money — that had been spent on the Jamaican resorts.
However, the surveillance mission took place between election years, and party coffers are subsidized by taxpayer funds.
“I wouldn’t do it, but again, things happen,” Ford said, and then claimed the media had followed him to the United States.
Asked if something like the Jamaican surveillance mission could happen again with the next Liberal leader, Ford replied, “I hope not.”
“Let's just have fair and balanced elections. Stuff happens during the elections,” he added.
A spokesperson for the premier had previously said Ford “had no knowledge of this matter” and that “anyone involved no longer works for the government or for the party.”
Liberal leader John Fraser is not convinced. “It’s not politics as usual,” Fraser, who took over as interim leader when Crombie quit in January, said in a post-press conference interview. “Either he’s the head of the party, or he’s not — and if you’re the head of the party, you take responsibility”
“Anything goes with Doug Ford. They feel like they can do anything they want and there are no consequences,” added Fraser. “That’s the kind of person leading this province. I think it’s totally wrong, what he did, and for him to just go, ‘No big deal.’ I don’t believe him.”
NDP leader Marit Stiles said “it defies belief” that Ford didn’t have authority over the Jamaican opposition research mission, and she’s convinced it was “his choice to use money and power and influence to intimidate and follow his political opponents.”
“And it's not just people like me, who are elected to office,” said Stiles. “There are a lot of people out there who have stood up to Doug Ford — you know, education workers, health-care workers, whistleblowers. Do they have to be worried too that they're on his list?”
Still, Stiles said she’ll be looking over her shoulder.
“But I'm not intimidated by him or by any of his staff or MPPs,” she said. “I will continue to do what I need to do to call him out.”
Crombie arrived in Jamaica on Dec. 8, 2023, and checked into Ocean Eden Bay, an adults-only, all-inclusive resort on the island’s northern coast, according to a separate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The PC party’s 2023 financial statement shows it paid $1,000.05 to the same resort that year. The expense was listed under “Other — Office & Administration.” No other details about the expense are included in the return the party filed with Elections Ontario.
The money came, in part, from taxpayers. Major political parties in Ontario operate thanks largely to funding from their supporters, who receive tax credits for their political donations, and a taxpayer-funded per-vote subsidy. That subsidy accounted for nearly half of the Tories’ total income in 2023.
On Dec. 11, 2023 — the day Crombie returned to Toronto — Cody Welton, who was Ford’s deputy chief of staff, responsible for issues management, media relations and legislative affairs until January, posted an emoji of the Jamaican flag on X. The post has since been deleted.
Welton did not respond to questions about whether his post was related to Crombie’s trip or whether he was involved in the effort.
The party’s records show it spent another $1,971.67 at a second Jamaican resort, the Royalton Negril Hotel. It is unclear what that expense was for or how, if at all, it figured into the operation.
Political parties conduct opposition research to gather information about their political opponents. Oftentimes, the goal is to find information that could be damaging.
When Crombie won the Liberal leadership, the Tories sought to cast her as wealthy and out of touch, attacking her lifestyle. “She doesn’t get the concerns of everyday people,” the party stated the day of her victory, pointing to her “fancy cars” and “vacations at her home in the Hamptons.”
The PC party also unleashed a barrage of campaign-style advertisements about Crombie, characterizing her as an “expensive” elitist.
— With files from Steve Cornwell, Jack Hauen and Jessica Smith Cross.