NDP call on Ford, Carney to release secret Billy Bishop plan

QUEEN’S PARK — Ontario NDP MPP Chris Glover (Spadina—Fort York) and Shadow Finance Minister Jessica Bell (University—Rosedale) say the secrecy from the Ford government, the Toronto Port Authority (TPA), and the federal government surrounding the proposed Billy Bishop expansion must come to an end.

The Toronto Star reported today that Mayor Olivia Chow has accused the TPA of hiding early plans for the expansion, after refusing to sign a non-disclosure agreement.

“Before Doug Ford passed Bill 110, the airport was managed through a tripartite agreement with the federal government, the Toronto Port Authority, and the City of Toronto,” said Glover. “The Toronto Port Authority has admitted that they were having secret backroom meetings with the provincial and federal governments that excluded the city, even though, at the time, the city was the signatory to the tripartite agreement.

“That the Ford and Carney governments and Toronto Port Authority are continuing to exclude the city from their backroom discussions should raise suspicions about what they are planning. That the Toronto Port Authority asked Mayor Chow to sign a non-disclosure agreement shows just how underhanded this scheme is.

"The only one asking for the expansion is JP Morgan, the American Wall Street bank that owns the terminal and would make money from every additional passenger at the airport. We need the Prime Minister to step in and shut this scheme down now.”

“Toronto shouldn’t lose its waterfront for a plan that people haven’t even seen,” said Bell. “The Premier, the Prime Minister and the Toronto Port Authority need to quit the secrecy and share the Billy Bishop scheme so we can have a full understanding of what’s at stake.”