Ontario Premier Doug Ford criticised for $21m private jet purchase
BBC News2 days
Canada: Ontario Premier Buys $21M Private Jet Amid Backlash
Is Ontario's $21M jet a fiscally smart investment or a tone-deaf splurge amid an affordability crisis?
Above: Ontario Premier Doug Ford speaks at the Bombardier Aircraft Assembly Centre in Mississauga, Canada, on Dec. 8, 2025. Image credit: Laura Proctor/Bloomberg/Getty Images
The Spin
Pro-government narrative
Ontario's $21M jet purchase makes fiscal sense — it's a pre-owned aircraft that costs far less than Quebec's $107M fleet or the federal government's $753M jet deal. A province twice the size of Texas demands reliable, secure travel for a premier actively fighting Trump's tariffs. Comparing this to routine government aviation spending makes the outrage look manufactured.
Government-critical narrative
Buying a luxury private jet while Ontarians can't afford groceries is tone-deaf governance at its worst. Every premier since Confederation managed without a dedicated jet, and cheaper charter options already exist. Even the president of Finland flies commercial. This purchase signals a government that's lost touch with the affordability crisis hitting ordinary people across the province.
Metaculus Prediction
Public Figures
Establishment split
CRITICAL
PRO
© 2026 Improve the News Foundation. All rights reserved.Version 6.18.0
© 2026 Improve the News Foundation.
All rights reserved.
Version 6.18.0