Dear neighbour,
On Friday, March 13, the Ford government announced sweeping changes to Ontario’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
If passed, the changes would remove records from the Premier’s Office, ministers’ offices, and parliamentary assistants from the scope of freedom-of-information laws. That includes emails, briefing materials, internal communications, and other records. The proposal would also apply retroactively, meaning some existing requests already submitted could be blocked from release.
Freedom of information laws allow journalists, researchers, opposition MPPs, and members of the public to request access to government records. FOI requests are an important tool used to understand how public money is spent. Without them, the public would know less about how government decisions are made. Under these proposed rules, it would have been much harder to uncover the Greenbelt scandal, the Las Vegas trips and massages, or the preferential treatment given to a foreign-owned mega spa at Ontario Place.
Ontario is not the United States, but under the current Conservative government we are witnessing a steady and deliberate dismantling of democratic institutions and practices. The move to shield government records from public access is just one of a whole series of troubling changes.
The government has also taken over elected school boards, interfered in how judges are appointed, eliminated levels of regional government, and introduced strong mayor powers that allow a single mayor to override council. They’ve reduced the number of days we sit in the legislature during the year, are passing legislation without sending bills to committee for public consultation, and have abandoned fixed election dates so elections can be called when it best suits the governing party.
We’re returning to the legislature on March 23. This is the time for us to organize to protect our democracy, our public institutions, and our ability to meaningfully influence our society.
I will be introducing petitions to support my colleague MPP Chris Glover’s bill to establish a Commissioner on Democratic Rights. We will also be strategizing in the coming days on how we should respond to these concerning undemocratic actions. I welcome your input and ideas.
Sincerely,
Jessica Bell
MPP, University-Rosedale
In this newsletter:
- Ontario’s budget will be released next week. Come to our town hall to get our take.
- Come to the Save OSAP rally on March 24
- Latest job numbers show youth unemployment is approaching a boiling point in Ontario
- Financial watchdog report shows affordable housing crisis is getting worse
- TDSB Ward 10 Parent and Caregiver Outreach Event
- Join the Downtown Toronto Seedy Saturday
- 2026 University-Rosedale Voices of Change Challenge: Recap
Ontario’s budget will be released next week. Come to our town hall to get our take.
Budgets reveal a government’s priorities, what they choose to invest in, and what they leave out.
The Ontario government will table its budget on Thursday March 26. What’s in the budget? What’s included? What’s missing? And what are we going to do? I want to know how the budget affects you, what we should advocate for, and how.
Join me for a virtual budget town hall on Monday, March 30 from 6:30–8 PM. I’ll be joined by fellow NDP MPPs to break down what’s in the budget—and what’s missing.
We’ll be asking the key questions:
- Does this budget lower everyday costs like groceries, rent, and transit?
- Does it fix health care and education?
- Does it build housing people can afford?
- Does it create good jobs across Ontario?
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Does this government have a fair plan to pay for it all?
I hope you’ll join us, share your questions, and be part of the conversation. Register here or in the button below.
Come to the Save OSAP rally on March 24
Over the past two weeks, I’ve joined students at rallies and town halls and have seen incredible grassroots organizing around the Ford government's cuts to the Ontario Student Assistance Program (OSAP).
Come September, the maximum share of grant funding available through OSAP will drop from 85% to 25%. The tuition freeze has also been lifted, allowing colleges and universities to increase tuition by up to two per cent per year.
Students are angry and mobilizing. Many have shared how these changes will push them deeper into debt, and some have even told me they are no longer sure they will be able to afford college or university if these cuts go ahead.
On Thursday March 12, I joined Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles along with my fellow MPPs at a town hall with students, campus organizers, unions, and workers to talk about what these changes mean and how we can organize to reverse the changes.
Here’s three things you can do to make college and university more affordable.
1.When the Legislature returns, the Ontario NDP will force a vote to reverse these OSAP cuts. We’ll post that information on social media once the day of the debate and vote is confirmed. We encourage you to come to Queen’s Park on this day.
2.Students and labour allies are also organizing a rally at Queen’s Park on March 24 at 1:30 p.m., led by the Canadian Federation of Students–Ontario, the Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE). Find out more info here or in the button below. If you need fliers please contact our office and we can print them for you.
I'll be there, and I hope you will be too. Bring a friend and stand with students fighting for their future.
3.Download this petition, gather signatures, and return them to our office so we can read out these petitions in the legislature.
Latest job numbers show youth unemployment is approaching a boiling point in Ontario
On Friday, March 13, the latest labour force report was released and it shows troubling signs for Ontario’s economy.
In February alone, Ontario lost 23,500 full-time jobs. Many of the jobs replacing them are part-time positions that simply don’t provide the stability people need.
Youth unemployment is now at 16.3 per cent. When young people are struggling to find work or losing jobs in sectors like hospitality and retail, it’s a warning sign that the economy is not working for the next generation.
We are also seeing job losses in manufacturing, with about 7,500 positions lost last month. At a time when we should be strengthening Ontario’s capacity to build, produce, and innovate, these losses raise serious concerns about the province’s economic direction.
Ontario should be leading the country in job creation. Instead, we are losing jobs in key sectors and more people are struggling to find stable work.
What we need now is a serious plan to strengthen our economy. That means investing in public services and infrastructure — from hospitals to transit — so we can improve services and create thousands of good, stable jobs across the province.
Financial watchdog report shows affordable housing crisis is getting worse
On Wednesday, March 4, the Financial Accountability Office released a report on Ontario’s subsidized housing programs. The report confirms that Ontario’s affordable housing crisis is getting worse.
The FAO projects that the number of households receiving rent-geared-to-income housing or other rent assistance will continue to decline, even as housing costs reach historic highs. Today, more than 331,000 Ontario households qualify for financial assistance to help pay their rent, yet the overwhelming majority will receive none.
No level of government is investing enough in affordable housing, but Doug Ford’s Conservatives are the stingiest by far. Instead of stepping in to address the shortage of affordable homes, the government continues to rely on policies that prioritize the interests of large developers and landlords.
We know this approach will not make housing more affordable.
If we want to fix the housing crisis, we need real rent control and stronger protections against illegal eviction. We also need to start building housing at scale. Our Homes Ontario plan would see government finance, build, and acquire 30,000 permanently affordable non-profit homes every year.
When the legislature returns on March 23, we will continue pushing the government to take the housing crisis seriously and act on solutions that actually make housing more affordable.
TDSB Ward 10 Parent and Caregiver Outreach Event
Parents, caregivers, and school council members are invited to attend a Ward 10 community outreach event with PIAC representatives Mark Unger and Rahel Gittu, and Toronto District School Board Elected Trustee Deborah Williams.
This is an opportunity to connect with other families, share your experiences, and discuss the issues affecting our local schools. Everyone is welcome.
Date: March 25, 2026
Time: 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Location: Rosedale Heights School of the Arts, 711 Bloor Street East (Room 213)
Light refreshments and on-site childcare will be provided. If you have interpretation or accessibility needs, please indicate them on the RSVP form.
Please RSVP here.
I encourage parents and caregivers to attend and share their perspectives on the future of our schools.
Join the Downtown Toronto Seedy Saturday
Scadding Court Community Centre is hosting Downtown Toronto Seedy Saturday on Saturday, March 28 from 10am-2pm.
Visitors can browse vendors selling seeds, plants, and environmentally friendly gardening supplies, take part in a community seed exchange, and explore a gardening book swap and sale.
The event will also include free workshops, activities for families and children, and opportunities to connect with organizations working on food security, urban agriculture, and environmental sustainability.
Participating groups include Urban Harvest Organic Seeds, Gaia Organic Seeds, WWF-Canada, FoodShare Toronto, Not Far From The Tree, LEAF, Seeds of Diversity, the Toronto Plant Market, and the North American Native Plant Society.
Admission is free, with donations welcomed. More details here.
2026 University-Rosedale Voices of Change Challenge: Recap
Our office was proud to host our inaugural 2026 University–Rosedale Voices of Change Challenge over the past two months.
Students from Horizon Alternative, da Vinci, Clinton Street, Huron Street, and King Edward delivered three-minute speeches on provincial issues. The winners received gift certificates to local book stores.
The competition was inspired by Jessica Hartrick, a teacher from Clinton school who previously invited us to take part in a similar student speech competition.
Students did their own research to develop speeches on issues ranging from food insecurity and mental health services to youth social media use and school funding. It was inspiring to hear young people speak so passionately about the future they want to see.
Congratulations to this year’s winners: Jessie in the Grade 5–6 division for a speech on arts education, and Dashiell in the Grade 7–8 division for a speech on pharmacare.
Thank you to our judges, School Board Trustee Deborah Williams, University of Toronto researchers Dr. Elisa Privitera and Dr. Shardul Tiwari, the students, teachers, school principals, parents, and volunteers who helped make this event possible.
We look forward to hosting the Voices of Change Challenge again next year. If you are a teacher interested in having your school participate or have any ideas to make this event better next year, please feel free to reach out at [email protected] or 416–535-7206.