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Doug Ford Jan 19 2026

Premier touts support provided to northern communities

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The Premier insists the province’s small communities are being recognized by his government.

Doug Ford addressed municipal leaders attending the Rural Ontario Municipal Association conference in Toronto on Monday, outlining funding and programs that benefit small, rural and northern communities.

Ford adds that no government has invested more in the north than his.

“We think it’s the greatest area to prosper and thrive and grow and attract businesses, no matter if it’s the lumber, no matter if it’s our energy that we’re building or the Ring of Fire and everything else in between,” says Ford.

Ford noted specific investments in roads, housing, and transit.

This includes spending $30 billion over the next 10 years to repair and expand roads, highways and bridges, especially in rural areas.

He says it is necessary to improve safety.

“It’s been very disturbing to hear all the accidents up north,” says Ford.

“I get the calls right to my cell phone, and we’re doing everything we can to twin roads, to put two in one roads, to make it safer, making sure that the roads get plowed and salted as quickly as possible because there’ve been tragedies over the holidays and no one wants that.”

Ford also noted the $70 billion to improve transit services, with $25 million earmarked for small communities.

The province is also making $400 million available to small, rural and northern communities to develop or upgrade infrastructure to add to new housing projects.

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Regional Concerns To Be Presented In Toronto

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Policing, transportation, winter road maintenance, forestry and equal funding across the province will be discussed between municipal leaders and the government starting on Sunday.

Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association President Wendy Landry says they will be pressing the needs of our region at the Rural Ontario Municipal Association conference in Toronto.

“We have to educate the people in the southern part of the province, in that what works for them doesn’t work for areas in the north, one size does not fit all.”

She adds they know the province hears their concerns, noting it’s all about presenting solutions and not whining.

At the three day conference, NOMA plans to make more requests for northern Ontario police funding.

Landry says while the government knows money is needed, the funding still hasn’t come.

“A lot of our municipalities in the NOMA district are seeing an increase in policing costs. And I believe out of the ten top communities that have the highest policing costs in Ontario, six of them are in northwestern Ontario.”

Landry says they’ll be asking officials why money is not coming despite many requests.

Snow plowing concerns in northern Ontario is another concern.

“Our highway maintenance crews are not paid a lot of money to clear our highways. So if you’re offered a job at mine at a much higher wage, why would you take a job clearing highways?”

Landry adds funding is needed to make the job more appealing, considering the hours and hazards of the profession.