Opposition asks integrity commissioner to investigate Ford’s embattled labour minister

Nearly two months after Ontario’s auditor general raised concerns about the Ford government’s Skills Development Fund, the NDP is asking the province’s integrity commissioner to launch an investigation into whether ethics laws were violated.

The government has faced weeks of opposition questions over the $2.5-billion taxpayer-funded program after the value-for-money audit revealed the process of awarding millions in funding was “not fair, transparent or accountable.”

The auditor’s investigation also found that the majority of applications selected were ranked low or medium by the Ministry of Labour and that more than 60 of the lower-scoring applicants were approved after hiring a lobbyist.

“This can create an appearance of real or potential preferential treatment by the Minister’s Office in its selection of applicants to fund,” the auditor determined.

Labour Minister David Piccini, who acknowledged that he personally “picked low-scoring programs,” has faced scrutiny over personal ties with lobbyists representing organizations applying to the program.

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Queen’s Park publication The Trillium reported that Piccini had attended the wedding of a lobbyist whose clients received skills development funding, as well as attending a Toronto Maple Leafs game with the director of a company that went on to receive funding.

Elsewhere, Global News has reported that executives of companies that received skills development funding quickly donated money to the Progressive Conservative Party, and one company that received funds was implicated in a major palliative care supplies shortage.

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Piccini also thanked a major construction-sector union for its support during the 2025 winter election and promised to return the favour by building a tunnel under Highway 401.

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While some critics at Queen’s Park have called the government’s actions a “scheme” and a “circular economy” benefiting those with connections to the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party, the NDP is questioning whether provincial ethics laws have been violated.

In a letter to Integrity Commissioner Cathryn Motherwell, NDP Leader Marit Stiles asked for a formal investigation into Piccini and whether his actions amounted to a conflict of interest and improper use of influence.

“I have reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. David Piccini had a high degree of involvement in the decision on disbursement of Skills Development Fund,” Stiles said in a letter shared with Global News.

“Mr. Piccini’s admission of his personal efforts to prioritize low scoring applicants gives reasonable grounds to believe that this intervention lacked an objective basis, as the objective criteria provided by non-partisan Ministry staff was ignored,” Stiles added.

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“Elected officials have the responsibility to ensure taxpayer dollars are administered impartially and based on merit, not personal ties.”

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View image in full screen NDP Leader and MPP Marit Stiles speaks during Question Period at Queen’s Park in Toronto on Tuesday, May 13, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston

While Piccini has consistently defended the benefits of the fund and the priorities-driven process, the minister also recently tried to offload some of the blame onto civil servants.

“We have a risk assessment process for the Skills Development Fund program, that I developed with the ministry, where the deputy minister is able to deselect an applicant if they feel the risk of the project is too high,” Piccini said on Nov. 18.

Piccini also claimed the non-partisan deputy minister of labour had the “ultimate final say” over which recipient was granted funding.

That’s in direct contradiction to the findings uncovered by the auditor general’s special report, which determined the minister often intervened to overrule civil servants.

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“The Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (Minister’s) Office selected the applications to fund,” the report said.

While the integrity commissioner’s office has received the request for an investigation, it’s not yet known whether the watchdog will launch a probe.

The last major investigation conducted by the commissioner, during the 2023 Greenbelt scandal, led to the resignation of the minister of housing, along with top staff.