TORONTO — Ontario Liberal leadership candidates used their first debate Monday night to draw a clear line over whether the next leader needs a seat in the legislature, with sitting MPPs targeting presumed front-runner Navdeep Bains while the party positions itself against a weakened Progressive Conservative government.The 90-minute exchange, moderated by journalist Tina Yazdani and held in a Brampton studio without a live audience, featured the five remaining contenders: former federal cabinet minister Navdeep Bains, Don Valley West MPP Stephanie Bowman, Etobicoke-Lakeshore MPP Lee Fairclough, housing advocate Eric Lombardi, and former political staffer Dylan Marando..Fairclough and Bowman argued that experience without a current seat at Queen’s Park has repeatedly failed the party.“It’s time for serious government in Ontario. Unlike leaders of the last eight years, I have a seat, and I am a sharp contrast to Doug Ford,” Fairclough said. She added that Liberals and others across the province have told her “we can’t keep doing the same thing.” Bowman said an elected leader could hold the premier to account every day and advance measures such as tax cuts directly in the legislature.Bains, widely viewed as the fundraising leader after serving six years as industry minister under Justin Trudeau and later holding senior roles at CIBC and Rogers Communications, pushed back by stressing his electoral record and private-sector experience.“That’s what people are looking for: someone who can take on Doug Ford on his, I would say, abysmal track record when it comes to the economy,” Bains said. He framed his campaign around restoring what he called the “Ontario deal” — hard work once leading to good jobs, affordable homes, reliable health care and dignity in retirement — and claimed more than one million jobs were created during his federal tenure.Lombardi and Marando sided with Bains on the structural question. Marando told the audience ordinary voters care more about results than whether a leader holds a seat, adding: “The milk has soured on Doug Ford, and shortly it’s going to be chunky. So our job is not to oppose, our job is to propose.”.Beyond the seat debate, the candidates aligned in criticizing Premier Doug Ford’s record after nearly a decade in office. They attacked hundreds of millions of dollars in government spending on self-promotional advertisements, more than $200 million on an Ontario Place parking lot, $1 billion on private nursing agencies, and what they labelled “fantasy projects” such as a tunnel under the 401 and a convention centre in Lake Ontario.Fairclough pointed to the premier’s personal spending choices, saying: “Whether it’s Doug Ford’s obsession with being the mayor of Toronto instead of Premier or the investment in a luxury jet, it is just so out of touch with the affordability pressures that people are feeling.”Bains zeroed in on advertising expenditures, stating: “One area where the government should spend less on our self-promotional ads. Hundreds of millions of dollars on promoting themselves and not investing in health care and education. That’s completely unacceptable.”They also criticized the provincial takeover of multiple school boards, conservation authorities and regional chairs as power grabs rather than genuine accountability, and called for reversing cuts to the Ontario Student Assistance Program. .Fairclough, who grew up in rural Bruce County, stressed distinct needs in rural and northern Ontario, including highway twinning on routes such as 11, 17 and 69, support for mining and forestry, and helping municipalities attract workers where unemployment is near zero. Bowman highlighted her accounting and banking background, saying the province needs a leader who understands how business works. Lombardi emphasized that governments create conditions for jobs rather than the jobs themselves and warned against protectionism.The race follows Bonnie Crombie’s resignation in January. Under her leadership the Liberals returned to official party status with 14 seats, though she lost her own race in Mississauga. Previous permanent leaders Steven Del Duca and Crombie both lacked seats during their tenures and lost elections to Ford. Online voting among party members runs from November 9 to 20, with the winner to be announced November 21.The Progressive Conservatives have already begun framing Bains as “Trudeau 2.0.” Ford’s personal approval has hovered near 24% in recent polling amid the $28.9-million private jet purchase-and-resale controversy and hotel expense scandals, giving Liberals their clearest opening in years.You can watch the full debate below:
