Schreiner Sounds Alarm: Bill 5's "Unprecedented Power Grab" Threatens Ontario's Environment, Democracy
Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner warns against "authoritarian" powers granted by Bill 5, detailing risks to the Ring of Fire and the rule of law.
HALTON HILLS, ON – The Ontario Government recently passed Bill 5, known as the "Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025," which has drawn significant criticism from opposition parties, First Nations' leaders, and environmental advocates across the Province. Green Party of Ontario Leader Mike Schreiner has been particularly vocal in his opposition, attending numerous rallies and demonstrations across Southern Ontario, including Halton Hills, and characterizing the Bill as an "extraordinary and unprecedented power grab by the Premier."
Bill 5, which aims to streamline development by establishing Special Economic Zones, passed on June 4, 2025, in a vote of 71-44, primarily due to the Conservative Government's majority. These zones would allow the government to exempt projects from existing provincial or municipal laws, a power the government argues will streamline development. However, critics, including Schreiner, contend that it could override environmental regulations, noise bylaws, and even labour and health and safety laws. Its passage has also been met with heavy opposition from First Nations communities, who believe the Bill violates their treaty rights.
During the Halton Hills Climate Action Rally on June 7, 2025, Greg Noakes interviewed MPP Mike Schreiner to gather his thoughts on Bill 5, now that it has passed.
Greg Noakes: "Bill 5 introduces Special Economic Zones where laws can be bypassed. How concerned are you for the precedent that this sets for the future of environmental oversight and protection in Ontario?"
Mike Schreiner: "I'm deeply concerned, not only for protecting the environment, but also Indigenous rights and just even our democracy, that this is an extraordinary and unprecedented power grab by the Premier that enables him to have the power to hand select companies or projects and then decide which laws do or don't apply to them. And that's the kind of actions you see in authoritarian regimes, not in a democracy like ours."
The Ring of Fire: A High-Stakes Test Case
Premier Doug Ford has indicated his intention to quickly designate the ecologically sensitive Ring of Fire region in Northern Ontario as a Special Economic Zone to accelerate its development for critical mineral extraction. The Ring of Fire is a remote region located in the James Bay Lowlands. It is rich in minerals and is also home to the Peatlands, which are among North America's largest carbon sinks and play a critical role in regulating the global climate. However, the development of this area presents significant environmental challenges and raises complex issues related to treaty rights and the traditional territories of various First Nations communities.
Schreiner detailed the Green Party's concerns regarding this accelerated approach:
Greg Noakes: "Premier Ford has stated that his intention is to designate the Ring of Fire as a Special Economic Zone under the newly passed Bill 5, and is also aiming to fast track its development. From the Green Party's perspective, what's the most significant environmental risk to this accelerated development, as well as the potential damage to our relationship with First Nations?"
Mike Schreiner: "Well, if the Premier is not going to fulfill his constitutional duty to consult with First Nations, it's going to delay any developments from happening. And so I think he's actually undermining his own objective by not fulfilling the Province's duty to consult. And when it comes to environmental protections, the Peatlands is the largest carbon sink in North America. And it's like, it would be like, you know, plowing up the Amazon. And so we need to make sure that when we do have development in the Peatlands, that it's done in a way that we don't release more climate pollution, then we save from the critical minerals that will go into electric vehicles and renewable energy projects, not to mention, too, it's like, you know, especially for First Nations like Grassy Narrows, just south of the Ring of Fire. And you know, they're dealing with the fact that their water has been poisoned with mercury my entire lifetime. You know, and so you can see why it is so important to have Indigenous people providing free, informed prior consent, because of generations of toxic poisoning many of those First Nations have experienced due to developments that didn't take environmental protection seriously, and didn't show proper respect to First Nations."
Holding the Government Accountable: Lessons from Bill 23
MPP Schreiner provided a reminder of the fight against Bill 23, which would have opened the Greenbelt to development, had it not been for the continued pressure put on the Ford Government. The development of the Greenbelt sparked widespread public outrage and ultimately led to a government reversal.
Greg Noakes: "With the passing of Bill 5, how does the Green Party now plan to hold the Doug Ford government accountable?"
Mike Schreiner: "Yeah, well, we're gonna keep attending rallies, getting petitions signed, mobilizing with Indigenous folks, environmentalists, farmers, civil libertarians and others, who are gonna continue to push to kill Bill 5. We know that when Bill 23 passed to open the Greenbelt for development, it was a year of people power putting pressure on the Ford government that finally got them to backtrack. We're gonna do the same with Bill 5."
Greg Noakes: "You mentioned during your speech that now's obviously the time for action. What do you think the most crucial actions that you believe citizens and groups like Georgetown's Climate Action Group here can take to effectively oppose these Bills moving forward."
Mike Schreiner: "Yeah, well, I think one holding rallies, like the rally that's happening today, supporting Indigenous First Nations, environmental organization, civil libertarian organizations, who are going to be organizing rallies, but also filing court challenges to this and and saying, you know, kill this Bill so we can actually have development done in a proper, responsible way. You're even having mining companies raising concerns around Bill 5, because the rule of law is necessary in order to confidently be able to make investment in development projects. So if people are concerned about economic development, and you know, I understand why people are in the face of Trump tariff threat, Ford is actually going to make it worse by attacking and undermining the rule of law and violating the constitutional duty to consult First Nations."
Economic Concerns and Broader Reach of SEZs
Schreiner highlighted economic instability and the rule of law as potential deterrents to investment, contradicting the Ford Government's stated goal. He cited Glencore, one of the world's largest mining companies, which has publicly voiced concerns about proceeding with investments due to how Bill 5 might undermine legal certainty.
Greg Noakes: "Do you believe that developers may be hesitant now to invest in the new Special Economic Zones, in the Ring of Fire, given the First Nations' concerns?"
Mike Schreiner: "Absolutely. I mean, Glencore, one of the largest mining companies in the world, has publicly stated that they have concerns about proceeding with investments because the way in which Bill 5 undermines the rule of law, and so I'm thinking of a company as big as Glencore is expressing these concerns. There's going to be a number of other smaller mining companies that are going to have similar concerns. The Premier might actually be, and is likely, slowing down economic development.
Also, just worry about, like, you know, are they gonna declare the route of Highway 413, a Special Economic Zone. Are they gonna declare this stupid, ridiculous tunnel under the 401, a Special Economic Zone? I'm thinking of the farmers that are fighting the expropriation of their lands, and Wilmot Township, is Premier going to declare that a Special Economic Zone? So this isn't just limited to the Ring of Fire. I mean, that's bad enough in and out, but the Premier can apply these Special Economic Zones anywhere in the Province. Which gives them just such unprecedented and extraordinary power that we've never seen a Premier have in the history of our Province."
Local Impact in Halton Hills
Locally, the implications of Bill 5 are already being considered. Conservative MPP Joseph Racinsky (Wellington-Halton Hills) said in an emailed statement that the Glen Williams Bridge redevelopment in Halton Hills could be a candidate for streamlining under Bill 5, indicating its potential to speed up municipal projects.
Greg Noakes: "I did receive a statement from the local MPP here, Conservative MPP, Joseph Racinsky, he highlighted specific examples here in Halton Hills, such as the Glen Williams Bridge redevelopment would potentially be a potential candidate here for Bill 5. Do you have any comment on that?"
Mike Schreiner: "So we have laws in place of how to do responsible development, and so for the Premier to suggest that we're going to declare a bridge project a Special Economic Zone where laws don't have to apply. Think about that without the workers who are building that bridge, our worker health and safety law is going to apply to them. Think about how it could affect waterways here, is Premier going to like, just say there's no environmental protections, like the list goes on and on and on, I think it's very dangerous. We've been able to have responsible and prosperous economic development in Ontario with the government by having governments obey the law, for the Premier or the local MPP to suggest that, you know, we need to create lawless zones to have economic development, I think is very frightening and very dangerous for democracy."
A Message for Activists: "Keep Putting Pressure"
As the interview concluded, Schreiner offered a direct message to local activists and those across Ontario who continue to oppose the Bill. Noting Premier Ford’s history of backtracking.
Greg Noakes: "Lastly, what message do you have for local activists here today and across Ontario, just now that Bill 5 is passed, and we might be covering on a few things we've already touched on, but just a message for the everyone that's kind of still in the fight for against Bill 5, Bill 6, and I believe Bill 17?"
Mike Schreiner: "I'd say, you know, keep putting pressure on the government. The one thing I will say about Premier Ford, if enough pressure is put on him, he does backtrack. He has a history of backtracking on a number of things, Greenbelt being one of them. But, you know, violating the constitutional rights of educational workers being another one. There's other examples. And so I would say, you know, keep putting pressure on this government to do the right thing. Stop attacking Indigenous rights, environmental protection, labor laws and democratic oversight."
The Government's Stated Rationale: Economic Competitiveness.
Although Bill 5 has faced significant opposition from various groups, the Ontario government maintains that the legislation is crucial for the province's economic future and global competitiveness.
In a statement provided at the request of Greg Noakes for the Halton Hills Climate Action rally, Joseph Racinsky, the Conservative MPP for Wellington-Halton Hills, emphasized the urgent need for legislation like Bill 5:
"In light of tariffs from the United States and growing economic uncertainty, it has never been more important for Ontario to remain competitive in the global race to attract and maintain job-creating investments. We are facing a once-in-a-generation crisis and the competition to land investments is going to be unlike anything we have ever seen before. If projects are going to take ten years to get shovels in the ground because of redundant regulatory and approval processes, Ontario will lose out on billions of dollars of new investment to other jurisdictions. With Bill 5, we are going to cut unnecessary red tape; speed up the permitting and approval process; and make it easier for companies to get shovels in the ground so that they can create more good-paying jobs across the province."
The Ontario Government maintains that legislation like Bill 5 is necessary for economic prosperity, but it remains unclear whether the government will be able to attract investment amid the uncertainty created by these ‘unprecedented’ powers.
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