Integrity Commissioners occupy a very important office because, among other things, they are tasked with ensuring that duly elected politicians behave appropriately and adhere to their respective codes of conduct. For example, politicians are prohibited from acting in a conflict of interest or using their position to improperly influence a decision made or to be made by another person. Where the politician acts in a conflict of interest or improperly influences a decision-maker, the Integrity Commissioner has authority to conduct an investigation or inquiry upon receipt of a complaint.
However, as discussed in previous blogs, the complaint process is now too often being used as a weapon to harass politicians and arguably obstruct democracy.
At the provincial level, Premier Ford has been the subject of several Integrity Commissioner complaints, the most recent being set out in Re: The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario (August 20, 2025).
Although Premier Ford has never suggested that the complaints will cause him to not seek re-election, the results of these complaints suggest that they are simply being made to unfairly politically smear the Premier.
In this complaint, Liberal MPP Ted Hsu alleged that Premier Ford and three other members of his government breached sections 2, 3, 4 and 8 of the Members' Integrity Act, 1994 (the "Act") in regard to a decision about a landfill site in Dresden, Ontario (the "Dresden Landfill"). The decision was a part of Bill 5, Unleashing Our Economy Act.
The complainant explained that, in his view, the decisions about the Dresden Landfill "raise serious concerns about whether political donations, lobbying relationships, and insider connections may have unduly...
