Cabinet Vehicle Caught Speeding at Stunt-Driving Levels Repeatedly — But No Public Consequences
A vehicle assigned to an Ontario cabinet minister was repeatedly recorded driving at stunt-driving speeds over the past three years — hitting as high as 162 km/h — and the Ford government quietly accepted assurances from the driver that it “would never happen again.”
Newly released data obtained by Global News through freedom-of-information requests show that a cabinet-assigned vehicle crossed the legal stunt-driving threshold of 150 km/h at least 12 times since 2023. Under Ontario law, driving at or above that speed is considered stunt driving, carrying significant penalties including fines, automatic licence suspensions, and vehicle impoundments.
The records do not identify which ministry the vehicle belonged to or who was behind the wheel. However, Premier Doug Ford’s office suggested the same individual was responsible for all incidents — and that the person remains employed by the government.
“We expect all government vehicles, operated by staff and/or Ministers, to be driven in a manner that respects traffic laws and road safety,” the premier’s office said in a statement. “These expectations have been reinforced with the individual and we have been assured that it will never happen again.” When pressed on the identity of the driver and their role, the office declined to elaborate, stating only, “The statement stands as response.”
According to provincial records, the vehicle repeatedly tripped internal speed notifications within short time spans, suggesting sustained excessive speeds during single trips.
The first recorded incident took place on December 13, 2023. At 6:25 a.m., the vehicle was clocked at 153 km/h. Five minutes later, it was recorded again at 151 km/h. Just a couple of hours later, at 9:18 a.m., it hit 162 km/h in a 100-km/h zone. Several more incidents occurred on December 14 and 23, with speeds ranging from 151 to 159 km/h. On January 6, 2024, the vehicle exceeded 150 km/h four times in just over two hours.
The notifications are part of the government’s internal vehicle monitoring system and are not formal police tickets. Currently, there is no automatic process to notify the premier’s or ministers’ offices when a government vehicle triggers a stunt-driving alert. The premier’s office did not say whether it planned to implement such a system.
The revelations come as the Ford government continues to position itself as tough on high-speed driving. In 2021, the government strengthened stunt-driving penalties, increasing first-offence licence suspensions from seven to 30 days and doubling vehicle impoundment periods from seven to 14 days. Convicted drivers face escalating licence suspensions up to a lifetime ban after multiple convictions.
Liberal MPP Rob Cerjanec said the lack of consequences for the staffer undermines the government’s stance on road safety. “If you’re doing that in the course of your work, you should be punished for that — period, hard stop,” he said. “One hundred and sixty on the highway? Come on, who’s doing that?”
NDP Leader Marit Stiles noted that ministerial vehicles have already racked up more than 20 automated speed-camera tickets over the past three years, including one incident of going 70 km/h in a 40 zone. “This is why we have tools like that — that’s why they exist,” Stiles said. “Hopefully, when whoever — a minister or a driver or one of us — happens to unfortunately speed through a zone and gets a ticket, maybe it’ll be the last time we do it.”
Despite the tough public rhetoric, the Ford government appears to have quietly accepted an apology from the staffer responsible, closing the matter with little public explanation.