Category / Education / Governing / Health care / Justice / Legacy / Social welfare
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Part One: 1988 Report of the Task Force on Illegal Drug Use in Ontario
In May, 1988, 15-year-old Benji Hayward attended a rock concert in downtown Toronto. While there, he took two LSD “blotters” and a cannabis joint. Throughout the concert, Benji reportedly became hyper and…
February 25, 2026 -
Part Two: From Task Force to Action: Executing Ontario’s Anti‑Drug Strategy
Ontario’s anti‑drug strategy emerged during a moment of intense public concern and political pressure. In the late 1980s, as noted in the previous article by Peggy Sweeney, the province was shaken by…
February 23, 2026 -
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Ontario motorists covered by no-fault insurance
One of the more contentious issues in the 1987 election was the rising cost of automobile insurance. Toward the end of the campaign, the Premier mentioned that he had a plan to…
January 28, 2026 -
Sean Conway on Separate School education in Ontario
Sean Conway served as Minister of Education in the first Peterson government (1985-87), given the task of extending public funding beyond grade 10 to the end of grade 13 to…
December 11, 2025 -
The Ontario Liberal government’s Futures program for employment disadvantaged youth: 1985-1990
The article was jointly written by Barb Sulzenko-Laurie and Philip Dewan In his first 18 months after becoming Leader of the Opposition in February 1982, David Peterson regularly attacked the Tory government…
November 20, 2025 -
National unity and trade in an era of Trump – David Peterson at Queen’s University
On October 1, 2025, the Queen’s Institute of Intergovernmental Relations held its annual Kenneth MacGregor Lecture at the Donald Gordon Conference Centre in Kingston. This year’s Lecture took the form of a…
November 16, 2025 -
Modernizing the Police Services Act
As I enter my 76th year, I am asked to recollect the actions that took place in 1989 and 1990 in my role as Solicitor General culminating in the introduction and passage…
November 13, 2025 -
Making the transition to governing
The seven-week period between the May 2, 1985 provincial election and the swearing-in on June 26 of the first Liberal government in over 42 years was packed with political…
November 6, 2025 -
Polling during the Peterson years – When popularity is not enough
It must be a nice feeling to be Premier of Ontario with the opinion polls reporting that your party enjoys the support of almost 50 percent of the population –…
November 5, 2025
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Recent Posts
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