Ontario’s progressive conservative leader Doug Ford said he will speed up approval of a mineral-rich fire project on Saturday, when he visited northern Ontario on the final weekend of his local election campaign. I emphasized the promise.
Speaking in Thunder Bay, Ford pointed to a key mineral mined as Ontario’s “ace” in the face of possible US tariffs.
“To protect Ontario, we will drive critical minerals out of the ground and process them into factory floors across the northern and provinces to deliver them to the best possible leverage on the global stage. It needs to,” he said.
Ford is a state jurisdiction for a re-elected progressive conservative government to help Ottawa “unleash the huge economic potential” of the fire ring, “unlocking the huge economic potential” of the fire ring. He said it would urge “unnecessary federal barriers and deficits” to be removed from the major projects below.
He also pledged on Saturday to put money into two programs aimed at boosting Indigenous people’s participation in projects in several sectors, including mining.
Another $70 million will be sent to the Aboriginal Participating Fund. It will be used to train Indigenous workers to benefit directly from critical mineral developments, he said.
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The progressive conservative leader has also announced $3 billion in new money towards a program aimed at supporting First Nations Equity participation, which was charged three times more than the existing loan guarantee program.
His government has made Ring of Fire mining an important priority to build an end-to-end electric vehicle manufacturing chain in Ontario.
Ford called for elections more than a year earlier, saying that a strong mandate would be needed to protect Ontario’s economy and address the next four years of US President Donald Trump. He traveled to Washington twice during his campaign.
Leaders of other major political parties said no elections were necessary given Ford already had a majority and supported stimulus packages in response to the possibility of US tariffs.
Ford was scheduled to visit Iroquoi Falls and Timmins on Saturday.
Party leaders incited statewide on Saturday as the campaign entered its final stretch before Thursday’s vote.
Green Party leader Mike Schleiner has announced several proposals aimed at young people in Ontario.
Liberal leader Bonnie Chrome voted forward in Mississauga on Saturday, with plans to take part in several Toronto Ridings during the day.
NDP leader Marit Styles was scheduled to stop in Toronto and Kingston before holding an evening rally in Ottawa.
Liberals and NDP will release their full platform within a week until Election Day on Friday, with progressive conservatives set to release theirs on Monday.
The Greens released their platform on February 12th.
