Ontario Premier Doug Ford criticized Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Environment Minister Steven Guillbealt during a radio show interview in Toronto.
While speaking to John Oakley on his AM 640 radio talk show, Ford questioned if Trudeau was really the one running the country or if it was instead Guilbeault, whom Ford called “an extremist.”
“Sometimes I sit back and wonder, who’s running the country, Justin Trudeau or Guilbeault? And right now I don’t know who’s running the country,” said Ford.
The comments were out of character for Ford, who has had a relatively cozy relationship with the federal Liberals over the past several years.
The Ontario premier has even praised Trudeau’s government for the investments it has made into sectors like healthcare and the auto industry.
However, the two governments have been butting heads more recently over a new route the province wants to see built along Highway 413 between Milton and Vaughan.
The road project was frozen in 2021 by the Trudeau government under the Impact Assessment Act but the provincial government may be able to overturn the decision, according to Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey.
“The federal government’s response to the Supreme Court’s opinion has created unnecessary confusion,” said Downey last fall.
“This is not acceptable. We all know that Ontario is growing at a remarkable speed and we have a duty to ensure that our historic work building new infrastructure and services can move forward without delay.”
Ford’s most recent comments are in response to Guillbeault’s suggestion that the federal government would not be building new roads in the future, which he would later say was the result of not enough funding for “large projects.”
“We have programs to fund roads, but we have said — and maybe I should have been more specific in the past — is that we don’t have funds for large projects like the trosième lien,” Guilbeault told Global News, referring to a highway tunnel that connects Quebec City to Levis.
However, Ford took issue with Guilbeault’s comments about funding going forward.
“That Minister Guilbeault, the federal environmental minister, I couldn’t believe what he said the other day,” said Ford on Oakley’s radio show.
“They’re no longer going to fund building roads or highways. And I’m thinking, ‘What are we doing? Are we going to be riding on horseback or bicycles or whatever?’”
He went on to criticize the Trudeau government’s plan to phase out gas-powered vehicles by 2030, suggesting the government would be better off to let the market take the lead when it comes to policy.
“You have to let the market dictate, we’re moving at a rapid pace because the market’s dictating,” said Ford. “It’s going to be up to the auto sector. I spoke to all the large CEOs of the large auto manufacturers and they aren’t going to be ready by 2035.”
While Ford expressed his frustrations with the current federal government, he would not comment nor endorse the opposition, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
“It’s up to him to win the election, I’m staying out of it,” said Ford. “I’m not getting involved in the federal election, I have my hands full here in Ontario.”
