
By Lincoln DePradine
The Ontario government, which has accused the federal Liberal Party administration of creating a “mess’’ with the criminal bail system, is promising to maintain a “tough on crime’’ approach in the province.
“You’re going to see us continue to make sure we’re building capacity at the Ontario Police College, (and) where we’re getting boots on the ground and police in your neighbourhood to make sure your residents are safe,” cabinet minister and Conservative MPP for Brampton North, Graham McGregor, told reporters representing ethnic media including The Caribbean Camera.
Premier Doug Ford, in a cabinet shuffle last month, appointed McGregor as the new associate minister of Auto Theft and Bail Reform as part of the ministry of the solicitor general.

“With these changes, our government remains focused on rebuilding Ontario’s economy and protecting public safety as we deliver better jobs and bigger paycheques for workers in every part of the province,” Ford said.
In May, The Ford government — in a crackdown on auto theft — announced plans to introduce legislation that, if passed, would suspend driver’s licenses for people convicted of the crime.
Under the proposed legislation, thieves convicted of motor vehicle theft under the provincial criminal code would face a 10-year licence suspension for a first offence; a 15-year licence suspension for a second offence; and, a lifetime licence suspension for a third offence.
According to government data, a vehicle is stolen in Ontario every 14 minutes, with Toronto experiencing a 78 percent increase in violent carjackings since 2021.
The federal mandatory minimum prison sentence for a third auto theft offence is six months.
McGregor, in response to journalists’ questions, called for “strong action’’ on bailing from the feds and “stiffer controls at our borders. We know about 85 percent of guns that are on our streets in the GTA comes over the American border”.
What’ needed is “action from the federal government,” McGregor emphasized. “The status quo isn’t working; we need criminal code changes. This is a problem the federal government could solve quickly, if they wanted to.”
McGregor described carjackers as “scumbags”, saying the rise in violent auto theft by “armed thugs” is troubling and tackling it is a “high priority” of the Tories.
“We really need to crackdown, frankly, on these scumbags that are stealing cars in our neighbourhoods,” said McGregor, a 31-year-old rookie MPP.
McGregor outlined current and ongoing provincial government crime-fighting measures, including the recruitment of more police officers; and providing “tools and resources’’ — such as helicopters and automatic licence plate readers — to allow law enforcers “to do their jobs effectively”.
Additional steps are being taken “to keep communities safe and hold offenders accountable”, said McGregor.
“I intend to continue to do all I can to keep your community safe and keep cars in driveways where they belong,” he pledged.
The government’s plans include appointing 25 new “tough-on-crime judges that we feel will prioritize public safety”, McGregor said.
The judges’ appointments will be designed “to process cases in a timely manner; that we are able to have our justice system meet the demands of our growing community, particularly looking at high-demand areas”; and to ensure “justice is served in a reasonable and timely manner”, McGregor explained.
“Along with the 25 judicial appointments that we’re making, we’re also going to be hiring 190 more court staff. These are people like crown attorneys, note-takers and all the admin staff that are vital to having a functioning and thriving justice system.”