Populist leader Doug Ford has been sworn in as Ontario’s new premier, ending 15 years of Liberal rule in Canada’s most populous province.
Doug is the brother of the late Toronto mayor Rob Ford, who made headlines in 2013 when he admitted to smoking crack cocaine.
The 53-year-old businessman with very little political experience was sworn in at a public open-air event on the front steps of Ontario’s Legislative Assembly on Friday.
Populist leader Doug Ford, 53, was sworn in as Ontario’s new premier in Toronto on Friday
The appointment marks the end of 15 years of Liberal rule in Canada’s most populous province
Doug, left, is the brother of the late Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, right, who made headlines in 2013 when he admitted to smoking crack cocaine. The two are pictured at a press conference after Rob made the admission
Doug, a former city councilor, was his brother’s most aggressive defender amidst revelations of Rob’s illegal drug use during his tenure as mayor of Canada’s largest city from 2010 to 2014.
Doug himself was also accused of having involvement with illegal drugs around the time that his brother’s scandal reached its peak in 2013.
The Globe and Mail newspaper reported that Doug had sold hashish for several years in the 1980s. He denied the allegations.
In March the Progressive Conservative party elected Doug as its leader.
Doug, now the 26th premier of Ontario, and his the party swept to power in the province’s parliamentary elections earlier this month with a vow to cut personal and corporate taxes.
Doug had also centered his campaign around a promise to scrap Ontario’s cap-and-trade system, which is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He echoed that promise on Friday.
Ditching cap-and-trade is expected to ease the burden of businesses in the short-term, analysts have said.
During his speech after the ceremony, Doug underlined a campaign promise to scrap Ontario’s cap-and-trade system, which is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions
Canada’s Progressive Conservative party elected Doug as its leader in March
Doug has also said he will initiate a full audit of government spending.
With about a third of Canada’s population of 36million, Ontario is the country’s economic engine and home to its biggest city, Toronto.
It has one of the largest sub-sovereign debts in the world, at nearly C$350billion ($272billion) in March.
Relatively high power and labor costs have made it difficult for the province to win new investment.
‘We will protect good jobs in Ontario … we will protect our agriculture, manufacturing and resource industries,’ Ford said in Friday’s speech.
He also vowed to ‘open Ontario for business’ and ‘open Ontario for investment and trade’.
Also present at the swearing-in ceremony were Rob Ford’s late widow, Renata, and her son Dougie. Renata filed a lawsuit against her husband’s brothers earlier this month
Rob and Renata had been married for 16 years. They are pictured sharing a kiss in 2014
The Ford family made headlines earlier this month after Rob’s widow filed a lawsuit against her late husband’s brothers, Doug and Randy, accusing them mismanaging Rob’s estate and the family business.
According to the suit, Doug has prevented Renata and her children from collecting on Rob’s $200,000 life insurance policy that he and his brother Randy Ford ‘improperly retained and withheld.’
Doug denied any wrongdoing, saying in a statement to the Toronto Star that the claims against him and Deco Labels, the family company, are ‘false’.
He also accused his sister-in-law and her lawyers of trying to shake him down for money.
Renata Ford’s mother-in-law, Diane, also released a statement to the paper defending her family against what she called ‘false and baseless allegations’.
‘As a family, our one goal is to ensure Rob’s children are cared for and their financial futures are secure,’ she said.
‘Renata has serious struggles with addiction, and our hope is that she will accept help for the sake of herself and my grandchildren.’
Doug was his brother’s fiercest defender amidst the drug allegations. Pictured: Rob in 2013