Fedeli defends Ford on Greenbelt scandal

Vic Fedeli, Nipissing's MPP and the province's minister of economic development and trade came to the defence of his boss Friday morning. 

Fedeli was on hand at Canadore College's Commerce Court Campus doling out funding for a new multi-use sports complex. 

See related: Ford reverses Greenbelt land removal, apologizes

However, the line of questioning from the media was focused on a recent change of heart from the premier, leading Ford to reverse his party's Greenbelt land removal plan and to apologize for making a mistake. 

"We had a good caucus meeting for one day and a good cabinet meeting the next day, and I will say the one thing about the premier that you can always rely on is that he listens to the people and he heard loud and clear that the people didn't want the Greenbelt touched," said Fedeli during a media scrum Friday morning. 

See also: Fedeli supports government Greenbelt sell-off

"He said, he made a mistake with it. He apologized, which you rarely ever see from politicians. But Premier Ford, you just know everything comes from his heart, he apologized and he said we are moving on.

And: Fedeli on Greenbelt: ‘We need 1.5 million houses built

"We've got to build a million and a half homes and we'll look for other ways to do it. He said he said his motivations were right. But doing the right thing isn't always the right thing to do," continued Fedeli. 

Ford's Greenbelt reversal came after the government lost two cabinet ministers, two senior staffers, and untold points in the polls. 

He also promised once again to not touch the protected area — the same pledge he broke in 2018 that led to his government’s biggest scandal to date. 

See: A chronology of key events following Ontario's decision to develop Greenbelt lands

The controversy around the removal of 7,400 acres from the Greenbelt last year has been the predominant issue in Ontario politics since almost immediately after the government first revealed its plans last Nov. 4.

Ford didn’t budge on the Greenbelt changes up until Thursday — with his government planning to launch a review of the entirety of the protected area as well. The government had planned for 50,000 homes to be built on the former Greenbelt lands. It’s working towards a goal of having 1.5 million homes built by 2031, a target its Housing Affordability Task Force set for it in early 2022.