Conservatives delaying FOIs should raise alarms for Ontarians: NDP

QUEEN’S PARK — The Official Opposition NDP has found that the government has changed the online location for submitting FOI requests without notice, and requests are now redirected to a website that says the government “might not be able to respond to requests within the legislated time frames.”

The Ontario NDP issued the following statement in response:

“The Conservatives' suggestion that they will delay FOIs across the board raises alarm bells, but sadly, is hardly surprising. It is absolutely within the playbook of the Ford Conservatives to make shady deals in backrooms, then do whatever they can to dodge public scrutiny.

The more this government goes out of its way to avoid transparency, the clearer it is that they’ve got lots to hide. We saw this with the Greenbelt corruption scandal and with their multiple sole-sourced deals with large companies.

People should be troubled by the Conservatives’ continued efforts to hide what they’re doing from the people of Ontario.”

Under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, 1990, the government must respond to most requests within 30 calendar days.