Organizers of a monthly protest are drawing attention to what they call questionable behavior and actions by Ontario's premier.
Since February, the peaceful "Fighting Doug Ford Protest" has been taking place on the last Saturday of the month, and has now made its way to more than 60 cities.
June's edition is scheduled for Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. outside of Sarnia-Lambton MPP Bob Bailey's office at 805 Christina St. N.
Spokesperson Lorrie Hodgin said there have been numerous controversies surrounding Ford and the public needs to be made aware.
She said Ford makes unilateral decisions without involving people.
"To start off, it was the spa on the waterfront in Toronto. The taxpayers are paying for the parking, which is $140 million, I think," said Hodgin. "He started with the $29 million jet. Because there was so much upset, he reneged on it. But what was not said at the time, only 10 per cent of the airports in Ontario could accommodate that jet. The Billy Bishop Airport is owned by JP Morgan in New York. And of course, they would like it expanded. But it will impact on all the people around it, and the plane's coming in and out because of the noise."
Hodgin said the main goal is to apprise everyone of the issues.
"We recognize too that he has three years left. And if there is enough public protest, obviously things have to change. The classic example just last week was when the Angus Reid poll came out, and he was at 21 per cent. And he sounded so Trump-like by saying, fake, fake. And of course, Angus Reid sent a letter to him saying, oh no, sir, it was real."
She's also concerned about changes to the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, which she said make it more difficult for journalists and the public to get details on certain things.
Documents, emails, text messages, and phone records held directly by the premier's office, cabinet ministers, parliamentary assistants, and their political staff are completely exempt from FOI requests.
The statutory deadline for government institutions to respond to an FOI request was extended from 30 calendar days to 45 business days.
Other issues include healthcare, the sale of LifeLabs to a US enterprise, education cuts, and the Fighting Delays, Building Faster Act (Bill 60).
The sweeping legislation passed in late 2025 amends 16 laws, primarily altering transit, housing, and tenant regulations.
In an email to Sarnia News Today, a Minister of Health spokesperson said OHIP-insured laboratory services remain publicly funded and are completed in Ontario.
"Our government is making record investments in our healthcare system including in laboratory services and expanding the health-care workforce - investments the NDP have continuously voted against," read the email. "Through programs such as the Learn and Stay Grant, which has already supported nearly 3,800 students, we are also growing and strengthening Ontario's pipeline of highly skilled medical laboratory technologists. We will continue to deliver more connected, convenient care in every corner of the province, always ensuring that people are accessing the health care they need with their OHIP card, never their credit card."
The Ministry of Transportation also provided the following statement regarding the Billy Bishop Bridge.
"Our government is supporting the long-term modernization and expansion of Billy Bishop Airport which is a critical and underutilized part of Ontario's transportation infrastructure," read an email. "The economic benefit to Ontario in expanding Billy Bishop Airport is too important to not move forward."
It said the first step in the plan is completing the expropriation of the city’s portion of the land, a process we recently took a critical step toward by passing legislation.
"Once the expropriation is complete, we will continue to work closely with the Toronto Port Authority and the Federal government to advance this critical project. We look forward to working with all partners in the tripartite agreement on the Billy Bishop Airport expansion project that will strengthen our economy, contributing up to $8.5 billion to Canada’s economy every year, create thousands of jobs, and make it easier for millions of travelers and businesses to get around Ontario, North America and beyond."
