Ontario Premier Doug Ford expressed surprise on Wednesday upon learning that his Progressive Conservative Party had reportedly spent funds to conduct surveillance on former Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie during her trip to Jamaica in 2023. A report by The Trillium and POLICORNER revealed that the party allegedly used nearly $3,000 from donors and taxpayers to monitor Crombie at two luxury resorts in Jamaica shortly after she won the Liberal leadership in December 2023.
While CBC News has not verified these claims independently, the Ontario PC Party acknowledged conducting opposition research, which included the trip to Jamaica. Ford distanced himself from the alleged surveillance, stating that he disapproved of such actions and had addressed the matter with the party upon learning about it.
Regarding the expenses incurred, Ford clarified that they were covered by party funds, which partly consist of taxpayer money through per-vote subsidies. He compared the situation to media coverage of his trips to the U.S., suggesting that such occurrences are common in politics.
Bonnie Crombie refrained from commenting directly on the allegations but confirmed her vacation in Jamaica in December 2023, staying at one of the resorts mentioned in the PC party’s financial statement. The statement, obtained by CBC News from the NDP, detailed expenditures at the Ocean Eden Bay and Royalton Negril Hotel, lacking specific information on the purpose or duration of the spending at the latter.
Opposition leaders, including NDP Leader Marit Stiles and interim Ontario Liberal Leader John Fraser, condemned the alleged surveillance as unethical and an abuse of power. Stiles criticized Ford for downplaying the incident and called for accountability within the party, emphasizing that such actions have no place in politics. Fraser demanded transparency from Ford regarding the individuals involved in the surveillance operation and raised concerns about the misuse of public funds for targeting political opponents.