By Pepper Parr
February 17th, 2025
BURLINGTON, ON
It was a two- hour debate with the four candidates who want to be the next Premier facing off in a debate.
Did anyone win? Marit Stiles put out a release saying she had won. It was clear to me that Doug Ford didn’t win. He didn’t have two – the polls are very much in his favour. Will that lead still be in place on the 27th – few believe it will hold but no one is prepared to talk about just what the electorate will do.
Few see the election as necessary – other than Donald Ford.
Set out below are their closing statements. Before we get to them a few observations. Marit Stiles was very animated. Doug Ford looked like a lumpy donut – he just stuck to his line – you need he because I can take on Donald Trump or words to that effect.
When asked what they would feed to one of the opposing candidate if they were having them over to dinner: Doug Ford said, without a smile: “Macaroni and Cheese”.
Moderator David Common with candidates Bonnie Crombie and Marit Stiles on his left. Fords and Shreiner were on Common’s right.
David Common of CBC’s early morning program in Toronto did say at one point that there was a lot of tension in the room.
Time for the closing statements: That is one uninterrupted minute.
PC Leader Doug Ford,
“Well, folks, we’re going to have a very clear choice in this upcoming election. This is all about leadership. We’ve seen what Donald Trump is going to do in the White House for the next four years, and no matter if he puts a tariff on us today, tomorrow, next month, next year, you know it would devastate our economy.
“There’s one person on that stage that’s going to protect your families, protect jobs and protect businesses and protect communities, and that’s myself.
“We’re going to reinvest into the economy like we did, and we saw over 850,000 jobs. We’re going to diversify trade around the world, which we did. We saw over $70 billion of investment. But I can’t do it without a strong mandate.
“If I get a strong mandate from the people of Ontario, I will work harder than I’ve ever worked. I will fight against Donald Trump like you’ve never seen before. On February 27 I’m asking for your vote, and may God bless the people of Ontario.”
Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie.
“We need a premier that will protect everyone’s job, not just his own, and is who is able to get us a family doctor like they had promised. You know, tonight we talked a lot about some really important issues, no question. And I want to leave you with this, if we want to change our health care system and a family doctor, you need to change the government.
“So today I’m asking you. I’m asking those of you who voted NDP in the last election to vote Liberal, to vote for a government that will fix our health care system and to get you a family doctor, and together, we can change government. Thank you.”
NDP Leader of the Opposition Marit Stiles,
“When times are tough, people look for hope, and for me, I find that hope in the strength of the people that I meet all across the province of Ontario, but after seven long years of Doug Ford and his wasteful scandals and his broken promises, rising costs are really hurting a lot of people in this province, and they are weakening us. He has left us weaker than ever before. A few weeks ago, while he was facing and we were facing the biggest threat that our country has faced in generations. He decided to quit his job.
“Now, most people in Ontario, if you quit your job and then you didn’t show up for work the next day, you wouldn’t expect to be rehired. But Doug thinks that he deserves that. I got to tell you, you don’t have to settle for this. You have the power to change things, and I want to offer you that hope. We can fix our schools. We can build truly affordable, permanently affordable homes, we can hire doctors and fix the health care crisis that these folks have contributed to, and we can bring new leadership and new ideas to Ontario. It’s time for change.”
Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner.
“I want to thank each and every one of you for tuning in tonight. My commitment to you is that I will fight to put you in your community first. I will fight for fairness right now.
“In Doug Ford’s, Ontario, the rich insiders are getting richer and the rest of us are just struggling to get by. You have to ask yourself if it’s any better now than it was seven years ago, and it’s clear when it comes to housing, health care, education, climate action, affordability, the answer is no. What separates greens from every party up here is that we’re running local champions who will be your voice at Queen’s Park, not the leader’s voice in your riding.
“I tell my deputy leaders, Matt Richter, Parry Sound Muskoka and Ashlyn Clancy, Kitchener center, that I’m not your boss. The people of your riding are your boss, and we need more of that in Ontario, and that’s what the Ontario Greens will deliver as we fight for fairness.”
As we wrap ourselves up from this 2025 Ontario leaders debate, I would like to thank all four leaders: PC leader, Doug Ford, Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner, NDP Leader Marit Stiles and Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie who are on this stage with me tonight. Thank you all for those watching and listening, for engaging in your future. Election day just 10 days away, Thursday, February 27 I’m David Common. Thank you very much for watching.
IMO, Ford works for his rich developer donors, not for us. It’s a joke to think he is the supposed fiscally responsible one. Ontario Place, the private spa, the greenbelt fiasco (STILL waiting for the RCMP), inviting developers to his family wedding — cash gifts in hand, the wasteful expense of this early election, the cancelling the beer store contract early to the tune of over $225M, the $200 bribe cheques, his supposed tough talk on Trump when he and his family are in fact Trump supporters (anyone who is at this point a Trump supporter should never be elected, anywhere) … on and on it goes. Meanwhile, he isn’t talking about fixing our healthcare system for ALL, nor about education.
That all being said, the “looking like a lumpy donut” headline needs to go. It wouldn’t be acceptable to say this about any other candidate, nor is it acceptable to say it about Ford.
That was hardly a debate. They all looked weak, in part because of the format and stupid questions being asked. What would you serve for dinner??? There are major issues that need serious attention, and that’s what the moderator thought was important to ask? Crombie was in way in over her head, relying heavily on pre-prepared notes and looking like a deer in headlights the entire time. Stiles did fairly well, seemed confident, although offered nothing of substance. Schreiner, I guess he needs to be invited to these things even though he’s completely irrelevant. Ford of course had a target on him going into this and held his own, but not one of them did well enough to impress. Crombie and Stiles want to start printing money or dig deeper into our pockets for all the bright ideas they have, seemingly unaware that these ideas come at a price tag that somebody actually has to pay for. Schreiner could have been building sand castles in the corner and been just as effective as he was last night. Ford appears to be the only choice right now. He seems to be the only one with an actual plan to keep the economy going to weather the 4 year storm we’re just entering.