TORONTO — A pricey Progressive Conservative fundraising gala where attendees can rub shoulders with key members of government doesn't constitute cash-for-access, Premier Doug Ford said ahead of the event in Toronto on Wednesday. "I'm going up to Muskoka on Friday for a $25 dinner, a spaghetti dinner, to talk to the real people," Ford said. Ford government changed fundraising rulesThe dinner comes after Ford's government changed fundraising rules to allow the premier and cabinet ministers to attend such events, something the previous Liberal regime banned in 2017. The Liberals had altered party fundraising rules to ban corporate and union donations and bar legislators from attending fundraisers. The New Democrats raised over $30,000, the Ontario Liberal Party raised $20,000, and the Green Party raised over $13,000.

Source: Huffington Post February 27, 2019 22:52 UTC