Todd Smith, Ontario education minister and Bay of Quinte MPP, to resign

Ontario Education Minister Todd Smith has announced he will resign from his position to take a job in the private sector.

Smith, who previously served in Premier Doug Ford’s cabinet in the energy, economic development and social services portfolios, was appointed to the high-profile role of education minister only more than two months ago.

“I have spoken to Premier Ford to let him know I am resigning my seat and stepping down from my cabinet duties effective immediately and that I will not be seeking re-election,” a statement posted on X Friday morning said.

“It hasn’t always been easy. The life of a politician is hard and takes its toll. Especially when I was away from home as often as I’ve been over the past 13 years. I couldn’t have asked for a better support system at home.”

Ford thanked Smith for his service in a statement posted just four minutes after Smith’s announcement.

“Todd will always be a friend and I can’t wait to watch his every success as he starts this next chapter of his life,” he wrote.

Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles said in a post on X that Smith was “throwing in the towel” as minister just weeks ahead of the start of the school year.

“Families deserve a government that will invest in schools, reduce class sizes and put students first. Instead, it’s more chaos and uncertainty from a government that always treats kids as an afterthought,” she wrote.

Sources who were not authorized to publicly discuss the issue have told The Canadian Press that Smith was not happy about the move to education in a cabinet shuffle in June, following three years as energy minister.

Ford named Jill Dunlop as the new education minister. She moves to the portfolio after being colleges and universities minister for three years. Nolan Quinn, who was promoted to cabinet a little over two months ago as associate minister of forestry, takes over as minister of colleges and universities.

Kevin Holland will move from the backbenches to become associate minister of forestry and Ford also created a new cabinet position, naming Graham McGregor as associate minister of auto theft and bail reform. That brings the size of his cabinet to 37 people.

“I’m thrilled to recognize Jill, Nolan, Kevin and Graham for their leadership and know they will each work tirelessly to serve the people of Ontario,” Ford said in a statement.

A byelection date to fill Smith’s seat in the legislature wasn’t announced.

Smith was first elected to the Ontario legislature in 2011 as the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPP for Prince Edward-Hastings. He served as the area’s representative until 2018 when he became the MPP for the revised riding of Bay of Quinte, which covers Trenton, Belleville and Prince Edward County.

From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank Todd for his many years of service to our government, our province and our party. He leaves politics with a record that he can be incredibly proud of, including and especially fixing the previous government’s energy policies and… https://t.co/Y313c2O9CX

— Doug Ford (@fordnation) August 16, 2024

After less than 3 months in the job and just weeks before the start of the school year, Ford's Education Minister is throwing in the towel & heading to the private sector.

Families deserve a government that will invest in schools, reduce class sizes and put students first.…

— Marit Stiles (@MaritStiles) August 16, 2024