During the brief remarks, Ford quipped, “Thank God we don’t have the media. No answers, no questions — we’re good to go,” before ending the news‑conference‑style briefing, which had no journalists present.

Ford’s office later explained that holding the announcement without media was “standard practice for stakeholders,” although it did not identify who those stakeholders were.

The media‑free format is not new for the Ford government. Similar closed‑door events were used in April for a workers‑memorial announcement, for the Bradford Bypass groundbreaking, for a ceremony at North York General Hospital, and for the announcement of a new Eglinton Crosstown West LRT station.

Opposition leaders pushed back. Liberal interim leader John Fraser called the practice a deliberate attempt to avoid scrutiny, while NDP leader Marit Stiles described it as anti‑democratic and an effort to escape accountability.

The debate therefore centers on two competing explanations: the government says the format serves specific stakeholder groups, whereas opposition parties argue that excluding the press limits public oversight.