FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 10, 2023
“The recent report of the Auditor General of Ontario about housing development has raised a number of questions about May’s Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Government of Yukon and the Government of Ontario. The Ontario report was critical of access certain developers had to political staff influencing decisions and had concerning findings related to the role that apparently played in the outcome.
“On May 2, 2023, the Government of Yukon announced that they had entered into an MOU with Ontario to increase collaboration on housing development. The MOU said that ‘Ontario has significant public and private experience in promoting housing development,’ and that ‘Yukon is seeking ways to increase housing supply and attract investment capital and build expertise.’ The Government of Yukon’s official statement on May 2 also suggests that Premier Pillai met with a number of business leaders to discuss investment opportunities during his visit to Toronto.
“As such, there are a number of questions that Premier Pillai needs to answer:
- Which business leaders did he meet with in Toronto to discuss housing investment opportunities in Yukon?
- How were these businesses chosen? Were meetings on an invitation-only basis?
- Were any of the businesses that the Premier met with identified in the recent Auditor General of Ontario report?
“The MOU specifically commits that ‘Yukon will host a familiarization tour or trade mission for housing developers and professionals to explore opportunities in the territory.’ This raises the following questions:
- How much money is budgeted and how much has been spent on this commitment?
- Which housing developers will be invited to the Yukon to explore investment opportunities? How will they be chosen?
- Is there a public process for giving companies a chance to participate, or will it be an invitation-only tour?
- Are any of the housing developers identified in the Auditor General of Ontario’s report invited on the familiarization tour?
“We hope the premier can provide answers to these questions for Yukoners.”
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