TORONTO — April 30, 2025 — The Greenbelt Email Scandal has officially earned the Doug Ford government an unwelcome honour: the 2024 Code of Silence Award for Outstanding Achievement in Government Secrecy. This national award, presented by the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) and its partners, recognizes governments that go out of their way to keep the public in the dark.
At the centre of the controversy is the Ford government’s ongoing failure to ensure staff do not use personal email accounts to conduct official public business, a move that critics say undermines transparency and violates Ontario’s Freedom of Information (FOI) laws.
Greenbelt Email Scandal: What Happened?
The Greenbelt Email Scandal broke in November 2024, when The Toronto Star revealed that a senior Ontario staffer involved in the Greenbelt land swap refused to disclose emails believed to have been sent from a private email account. These emails may have included communications with lobbyists and developers interested in profiting from the development of protected Greenbelt lands.
Ontario Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk had already flagged this practice in her August 2023 report, stating that government business conducted outside official channels — particularly on personal devices or accounts — was not only inappropriate but also threatened the integrity of public access to information.
“Communication between lobbyists and political staff using their personal email accounts also creates the perception of preferential access and treatment,” Lysyk warned.
The staffer at the centre of the scandal ultimately resigned, but the damage to public trust remains.
Why the Secrecy Matters
According to James L. Turk, director of the Centre for Free Expression at Toronto Metropolitan University, using personal accounts for public matters violates the public’s right to know.
“This all undermines public rights to information under Ontario freedom of information legislation,” said Turk. “The government’s claim that it has no ‘legal mechanism’ to recover these emails is a convenient excuse that keeps key records hidden.”
These missing emails could potentially shed light on decision-making around the controversial Greenbelt land swaps — a hot-button issue that has dogged the Ford government for over a year.
Saskatchewan Also Called Out
In addition to the Greenbelt Email Scandal, the 2024 Code of Silence jury also gave a dishonourable mention to 13 Saskatchewan ministries for refusing to release records in a machine-readable format, despite a ruling by the province’s Information Commissioner. The records were requested by The Globe and Mail as part of its Secret Canada project.
The Saskatchewan government responded by stating that it had met its obligations and has no plans to amend access-to-information laws.
About the Code of Silence Awards
The Code of Silence Awards are a yearly spotlight on government secrecy in Canada. They are presented by the CAJ, CFE, and CJFE to expose how public institutions conceal information that citizens have a right to access.
In 2023, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston received the award for failing to follow through on commitments to strengthen the role of the province’s privacy commissioner.
Winners are selected in four categories: provincial, municipal, federal, and law enforcement/publicly funded agencies. The 2024 municipal winner will be announced on May 14.
