Ontario Premier Doug Ford revealed on Wednesday that he had no prior knowledge of his Progressive Conservative Party’s alleged spending on surveilling former Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie in Jamaica in 2023. Reports from The Trillium and POLICORNER detailed that the provincial party supposedly used almost $3,000 in donor and taxpayer funds to conduct surveillance on Crombie while she was in Jamaica shortly after winning the Liberal leadership in December 2023. The surveillance was reportedly carried out during her three-day vacation in Jamaica. Although CBC News has not independently verified the claims made by The Trillium and POLICORNER, the Ontario PC Party released a statement acknowledging that their opposition research work involved a trip to Jamaica in December 2023.
During a news conference, Ford expressed disapproval of the alleged surveillance, stating that he had addressed the issue with the party upon learning about it. He clarified that the expenses were covered by party funds, which are partially sourced from taxpayer money through per-vote subsidies. Ford likened the incident to media coverage during his trips to the U.S., emphasizing the nature of political activities.
When questioned about his lack of awareness regarding the surveillance, Ford attributed his trust in his team to manage expenditures appropriately, particularly during election campaigns. Regarding the future use of such tactics, Ford expressed hope that they would not be repeated, advocating for fair and balanced elections. Crombie refrained from commenting on the allegations but confirmed her vacation in Jamaica post-leadership race, staying at one of the resorts listed in the PC party’s financial statement for 2023.
The NDP and interim Leader of the Ontario Liberals, John Fraser, criticized Ford for the alleged spying, labeling it as “creepy” and an abuse of power. Fraser demanded transparency from Ford in revealing those responsible for the surveillance operation and questioned the misuse of public funds for such activities. The situation has sparked concerns about the extent to which Ford may go to target political opponents and the potential recurrence of similar incidents.