Questions surrounding Ontario MPP expense claims intensified Tuesday after new reporting indicated that Progressive Conservative caucus members were encouraged to book downtown Toronto hotel rooms at taxpayer expense during weeks when the Legislature sat into the evening.
The report, first published by Global News, adds a new dimension to a controversy that has already led to the resignation of a cabinet minister and prompted renewed scrutiny of legislative expense policies.
According to the report, members of the Ontario PC caucus were advised they could book hotel accommodations whenever late-night sittings were scheduled, despite many representing Greater Toronto Area ridings within commuting distance of Queen’s Park.
The revelation appears to contrast with Premier Doug Ford’s repeated public statements describing the expense claims as “unacceptable” and suggesting they reflected individual decisions rather than an accepted caucus practice.
The controversy first erupted after former Tourism Minister Stan Cho resigned from cabinet following reports that he had claimed approximately $16,000 in taxpayer-funded hotel expenses over a three-year period despite living roughly six kilometres from the Ontario Legislature.
Subsequent reporting expanded the scope of the issue, revealing that three Progressive Conservative MPPs representing Peel Region collectively claimed approximately $50,000 in hotel expenses over two years while attending legislative sessions in Toronto.
Global News has also reported that Cho separately billed his local riding association for thousands of dollars in meals, flights and hotel stays over the same period. Premier Ford declined to say this week whether Cho would remain a member of the Progressive Conservative caucus.
The expense claims have also drawn attention to the role of the Board of Internal Economy, the all-party legislative body responsible for establishing and overseeing expense policies for Ontario’s MPPs.
According to reporting, concerns about the hotel expense rules were first raised before the Board in May 2024. Around that time, some Progressive Conservative members who lived within the Legislature’s 50-kilometre reimbursement radius reportedly began using downtown hotels instead of commuting home after evening sittings.
The issue was raised again before the Board in November 2025 by Education Minister Paul Calandra and Government House Leader Steve Clark, suggesting discussions over the policy had been ongoing well before the controversy became public.
The latest reporting shifts attention from the actions of individual members to the broader administrative and political processes that governed the expense claims.
If caucus members were explicitly informed that hotel stays were permitted under existing rules, attention may increasingly turn to how those rules were interpreted, who authorized the guidance, and whether legislative oversight mechanisms functioned as intended.
While the Board of Internal Economy establishes reimbursement policies, each expense claim must also comply with existing guidelines approved by the Legislature.
The controversy is expected to remain a political issue when Queen’s Park resumes sitting, with opposition parties likely to press the government for greater transparency regarding internal guidance provided to caucus members, the Board’s discussions surrounding the policy, and whether changes to Ontario’s expense rules are warranted to restore public confidence.