Ontario education minister Todd Smith resigns for private sector job

TORONTO — Ontario Education Minister Todd Smith resigned his seat and from cabinet Friday to accept a job in the private sector less than three months after being given the education portfolio, prompting Premier Doug Ford to shuffle his cabinet.

Smith has served in cabinet since Ford’s government was first elected in 2018, but spent the longest amount of time in the energy portfolio.

Sources who were not authorized to publicly discuss the issue have told The Canadian Press that Smith was not happy about the move to education in a cabinet shuffle in June, following three years as energy minister.

Ford named Jill Dunlop as the new education minister. She moves to the portfolio after being colleges and universities minister for three years. Nolan Quinn, who was promoted to cabinet a little over two months ago as associate minister of forestry, takes over as minister of colleges and universities.

Kevin Holland will move from the backbenches to become associate minister of forestry and Ford also created a new cabinet position, naming Graham McGregor as associate minister of auto theft and bail reform. That brings the size of his cabinet to 37 people.

Smith’s resignation comes just one day after he announced a long-awaited new funding formula for child-care operators in the national $10-a-day program and an upcoming cut to the fees parents pay.

Smith, a widely liked politician at the legislature who got his start in radio broadcasting, said it was a very difficult decision to leave and he thanks his wife and children for their support over the years he has spent at the legislature.

“It hasn’t always been easy,” he wrote in his statement.

“The life of a politician is hard and takes its toll. Especially when I was away from home as often as I’ve been over the past 13 years. I couldn’t have asked for a better support system at home.”

Ford thanked Smith for his years of public service.

“He leaves politics with a record that he can be incredibly proud of, including and especially fixing the previous government’s energy policies and bringing electricity prices down for hardworking families and businesses,” Ford wrote in a statement.

“Todd will always be a friend and I can’t wait to watch his every success as he starts this next chapter of his life.”

Laryssa Waler, a former director of communications for Ford and founder of Walman Strategies, said Smith is one of the most well-liked people in Ontario politics and his presence will be missed.

“Todd Smith is a very, very personable guy, very kind and it’s not just at Queen’s Park and in the bureaucracy,” she said. “In his local constituency, he was wildly popular.”

Smith’s departure seems to be more about taking advantage of a great new opportunity rather than running away from education, Waler said, noting that contract deals with the teachers were already secured following contentious negotiations with his predecessor, Stephen Lecce.

Liberal energy critic Ted Hsu wished Smith well in a reply to Smith’s departure notice on social media.

“You were a tough opponent to have on the energy file, someone with great communication talent,” he wrote. “Good luck with your next opportunity!”

As energy minister, Smith put a focus on nuclear power as a key way to secure enough electricity generation to meet Ontario’s fast-growing needs, and was slowly but surely easing the province back into bringing more green energy into the system after the Tories cancelled projects in 2018.

However, as part of the efforts to ensure a steady supply of electricity Smith also brought more natural gas generation into the system, increasing greenhouse gas emissions from the sector, a move for which he was heavily criticized by environmental groups.

NDP Leader Marit Stiles said the timing of Smith’s resignation, less than three weeks before the start of the school year, suggests the Progressive Conservatives don’t value the education system.

“People in Ontario deserve a government that treats our children’s education and the system that cares for our littlest ones as valuable, not trivial,” she wrote in a statement.

Smith served as the provincial representative for Bay of Quinte and was first elected when the Progressive Conservatives were in Opposition in 2011.

Born and raised in New Brunswick, Smith studied at Loyalist College in eastern Ontario, then worked in local radio as the voice of Belleville Bulls hockey and later as news director of Quinte Broadcasting.

At the legislature, Smith also served as minister of government and consumer services; minister of economic development, job creation and trade; and minister of children, community and social services.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 16, 2024.

Allison Jones, The Canadian Press