Doug Ford steals page from Stephen Harper on control
For all his populist talk about being “For the People,” Doug Ford is proving in his very first days in office as Ontario premier that he’s really all about seizing power and control for himself.
Indeed, in a series of revealing moves, Ford has shown he intends to copy the controversial path taken by former prime minister Stephen Harper by placing total control over all aspects of his government — from staff appointments to media contacts — in his own central office.
So far, Ford has decreed that his office will appoint chiefs of staff for all cabinet ministers, will hire top aides such as legislative affairs assistants and press secretaries for ministers, will provide no daily schedule of his meetings and will censor access by cabinet ministers, backbench MPPs and government employees to journalists.
These are all moves that could ultimately infuriate top ministers in Ford’s new cabinet and frustrate public servants trying to carry out their normal duties, just as happened in Ottawa during Harper’s contentious term in power. Ford’s drive to ensure complete “command and control” is held by a small group within his own office follows the practice he installed during the election. At that time, many Conservative candidates were ordered not to attend all-party debates and to refuse all media interviews until approved by the central campaign office, which rarely happened.
Clearly, Ford doesn’t care if his actions upset his own party members. As he told one candidate during the election, he feels he owes nothing to anyone because he won the Tory leadership on his own and without any help from the Tory party establishment.
During the Ontario election, Ford’s campaign team was stacked with former Harper staff heavyweights, including campaign manager Kory Teneycke, communications director Melissa Lantsman and field operations director Fred DeLorey.
Jenni Byrne, another former Harperite who also worked on the campaign, is Ford’s new principal secretary. She will oversee the strict approach on central control. It’s a role that apparently suits her. As Harper’s deputy chief of staff, Byrne helped enforce the culture of fear that permeated the Harper government. In 2015, the Globe and Mail branded her as “Harper’s enforcer” and described her as “the most powerful woman in Ottawa.”
In Ottawa, Harper implemented a tough communications regime that muzzled scientists, blocked bureaucrats from organizing or speaking at public events and often barred elected Tory MPs from speaking to journalists.
Even veteran cabinet ministers had to suffer the humiliation of having to get approval from a 20-something press assistant selected by Harper’s office before they could speak to a reporter about a policy issue in their own area of responsibility.
The same pattern could be happening at Queen’s Park.
As constituted now, chiefs of staff will be selected to be the eyes and ears for the premier’s office. Their first loyalty will be to the central office — not the ministers they serve.
Will Finance Minister Vic Fedeli, who served as interim party leader earlier this year after Patrick Brown resigned suddenly, be saddled with a chief of staff he doesn’t trust? Will Health Minister Christine Elliott be forced to accept a chief of staff with little background in her key portfolio? That just can’t work. Also, Ford has abandoned the traditional practice of releasing the premier’s daily schedule of public appearances. On the surface it seems like a small thing, but it’s a sign that Ford, despite his rhetoric, isn’t serious about being transparent and accountable with the public.
In addition, Ford is continuing his election strategy of stiff-arming most journalists, refusing virtually all interviews and failing to hold a postinauguration press conference, instead speaking only to Ford Nation Live, the Tories’ own private online news outlet.
Ontarians should be wary of Ford’s obvious love for central control. He promised voters a new era of openness and honesty. What we are seeing, though, is the creation of a system that will allow Ford’s well-known bully-boy attitudes to flourish, which could be bad for many in this province.
Ford loyalists have described his first days in office as promising. Because of these actions, I’d call them discouraging.
Bob Hepburn is a politics columnist based in Toronto. Follow him on Twitter: @BobHepburn