Toronto Star · The Globe and Mail
John Lorinc
Publishing · On our record since 2013
Where this writer stands
Housing8 pieces
Public supply and demand controlsMarket supply and deregulation
“governments at all levels, including Ottawa, should get into the business of buying up these kinds of apartments, removing them from the speculative market and putting them in the hands of co-ops, affordable housing providers and land trusts in perpetuity.” Read the piece
Federalism4 pieces
Ottawa leadsProvinces lead
“what if Queen's Park and its provincial counterparts enacted laws that took the fiscal shackles off local government, enabling municipalities to plan, finance and build the things their residents really need?” Read the piece
Climate3 pieces
Faster fossil phase-downSlower phase-down, production first
“the loss of TGS marks a catastrophic missed opportunity to provide dwellings that are sustainable, resilient and less expensive to maintain.” Read the piece
Energy2 pieces
Restrict new oil and gasExpand production and export
“Instead of building new gas plants, as is happening in Alberta, Ontario energy policy-makers should be requiring data centre developers to use renewables and electricity storage to provide the necessary power, not gas.” Read the piece
Immigration2 pieces
Higher permanent intakeLower intake
“Federal policymakers can't just focus on repairing the nuts and bolts of our immigration system. They also need to acknowledge the immigration culture war raging all around us, and then find positive ways of responding to it that go well beyond the promotion of falling migration levels and restrictions on newcomers.” Read the piece
Labour1 piece
Stronger unions and standardsMore flexibility for employers
“The next year, it invoked it to prevent a public sector union from challenging the constitutionality of back-to-work legislation.” Read the piece
Trade1 piece
Diversify away from one partnerDeeper continental integration
“By tariffing imports — as is the case with Canadian-made auto-parts, or indeed any manufactured product made from many other smaller objects and raw materials — the Trump administration is creating economic shock-waves that ripple across borders by erecting trade barriers, which then backfire on U.S. consumers who end up paying the protectionist levies imposed by their government.” Read the piece
Fiscal policy1 piece
Higher taxes and public spendingLower taxes and tighter spending
“Canada's unexpected exposure to the instability in the U.S. shines a harsh light on Ottawa's anticipated funding reductions, especially given that Carney has identified attracting the "best talent in the world" as one of his seven key priorities.” Read the piece
Only opinion columns and editorials are scored. Each piece is read twice by a language model, which records the author's own stance on a policy topic only where the piece argues one, with a quote that must appear in the piece. An author's position on a topic is the average of their pieces, weighted by the model's confidence. News reporting is listed but never scored.
Recent work
- John Lorinc: Toronto’s mayor and city councillors must de-escalate tensions over this distant conflictOpinion · Toronto Star · Nov 1, 2026
- John Lorinc: Bike lanes may seem to be a local Toronto issue, but here’s why they’re important to the nationOpinion · Toronto Star · Oct 17, 2026
- John Lorinc: Even as they say ‘slow down,’ tech giants are arguing for self-regulation. Why should we trust them?Opinion · Toronto Star · Sep 19, 2026
- John Lorinc: What happened when a dominatrix and a cyclist met up in courtOpinion · Toronto Star · Sep 3, 2026
- John Lorinc: Why these East end voters might be sputtering at the cynicism of it allOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 26, 2026
- John Lorinc: Call it democracy: the raised voice of voters is causing politicians on both sides of the border to rethink these projectsOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 16, 2026
- John Lorinc: The homes of the future will be built in factories. The U.S. is accepting that more quickly than we areOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 2, 2026
- John Lorinc: Donald Trump’s tariff on hockey sticks has exposed one thing: he’s talented at own goalsOpinion · Toronto Star · Jul 24, 2026
- John Lorinc: Is relocating to the U.S. really a good move for a Canadian business?Opinion · Toronto Star · Jul 15, 2026
- John Lorinc: Mark Carney’s government is set to buy thousands of condos. We should let themOpinion · Toronto Star · Jun 29, 2026
- John Lorinc: Very little is left of Toronto’s climate plan thanks to Doug Ford. So what can we do about it?Opinion · Toronto Star · Jun 23, 2026
- John Lorinc: Pete Hoekstra is helping Trump troll Ottawa. It’s time we put a stop to itOpinion · Toronto Star · Jun 3, 2026
- John Lorinc: Doug Ford is scooping control of this essential service. What’s behind it?Opinion · Toronto Star · Jun 1, 2026
- John Lorinc: Diplomats serve an important role. Here’s why it’s time to declare this U.S. emissary persona non grataOpinion · Toronto Star · May 29, 2026
- John Lorinc: Why does it take so long for the City of Toronto to get things done? First, they need to admit there’s a problemOpinion · Toronto Star · May 16, 2026
- John Lorinc: A pedestrianized Yonge is a great idea. This is how Toronto keeps getting in its own wayOpinion · Toronto Star · Apr 30, 2026
- John Lorinc: Mark Carney’s numbers are big. But shouldn’t the cities and provinces be ponying up?Opinion · Toronto Star · Apr 12, 2026
- John Lorinc: Provincial governments are acting like schoolyard bullies. It’s time for voters to take a standOpinion · Toronto Star · Apr 1, 2026
- John Lorinc: Toronto has promised fantastical new buildings — will they really live up to their glowing renderings?Opinion · Toronto Star · Mar 30, 2026
- John Lorinc: Doug Ford is making a sharp turn away from the centrist, national profile he built. What’s he up to?Opinion · Toronto Star · Mar 23, 2026
- John Lorinc: This is what Doug Ford understands about the outsized influence of the Toronto Islanders — and why he’s attacking themOpinion · Toronto Star · Mar 15, 2026
- John Lorinc: This is what Doug Ford understands about the outsized influence of the Toronto Islanders - and why he’s attacking themOpinion · Toronto Star · Mar 14, 2026
- John Lorinc: Underneath the shiny renderings of Doug Ford’s Ontario Place is an idea worth taking seriouslyOpinion · Toronto Star · Mar 3, 2026
- John Lorinc: Toronto needs a signature cultural institution on the lakeshoreOpinion · Toronto Star · Mar 2, 2026
- John Lorinc: This is the real crisis of Canadian immigrationOpinion · Toronto Star · Feb 23, 2026
- John Lorinc: Let’s get together and build housing we could really use. Here’s howOpinion · Toronto Star · Feb 9, 2026
- John Lorinc: Here’s what I learned from a 10-day Toronto hospital stayOpinion · Toronto Star · Jan 24, 2026
- John Lorinc: I had a ten-day stay in my local hospital. I saw life, death and a reflection of the city outsideOpinion · Toronto Star · Jan 23, 2026
- John Lorinc: Toronto needs some new ideas for old icons. I have a few.Opinion · Toronto Star · Jan 15, 2026
- John Lorinc: This is the floor crossing Canada needsOpinion · Toronto Star · Dec 18, 2025
- John Lorinc: Pity the retail workers: The canned Christmas music loop isn’t making us jollyOpinion · Toronto Star · Dec 6, 2025
- John Lorinc: The Ford government owes us straight answers on Exhibition PlaceOpinion · Toronto Star · Nov 24, 2025
- John Lorinc: Rent pricing algorithms are sparking lawsuits in the U.S. So why are they still allowed in Canada?Opinion · Toronto Star · Nov 20, 2025
- John Lorinc: Rent pricing algorithms are sparking lawsuits in the U.S. So why are they still allowed in Canada?Opinion · Toronto Star · Nov 19, 2025
- John Lorinc: There is a homebuilding incentive that works. So why did Carney leave it out of the budget?Opinion · Toronto Star · Nov 11, 2025
- John Lorinc: How Canadian researchers became collateral damage in Trump’s war on scienceOpinion · Toronto Star · Nov 1, 2025
- John Lorinc: The post-COVID death of Toronto was greatly exaggerated. Here’s why good planning was at the coreOpinion · Toronto Star · Oct 18, 2025
- John Lorinc: We’ve arrived at arguably the best moment to invest in affordable housing in over a generation. Will we seize it?Opinion · Toronto Star · Oct 1, 2025
- John Lorinc: Plans to cut mail delivery means we’ll all have community mailboxes. But where will we put them?Opinion · Toronto Star · Oct 1, 2025
- John Lorinc: The TTC wants more riders? It needs to give them what they really wantOpinion · Toronto Star · Sep 15, 2025
- John Lorinc: Doug Ford is getting distracted by just how humungous his dream tunnel would be. We’ve seen this brand of delusion beforeOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 13, 2025
- John Lorinc: We should all be demanding to find out what’s driving Doug Ford’s tunnel dreamsOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 7, 2025
- John Lorinc: A glaring hole in the city’s new landlord rating system creates a two-tiered system for rentersOpinion · Toronto Star · Aug 2, 2025
- John Lorinc: Our shoebox condo market is finally crumbling. Mark Carney should be the least surprised of all of us. Now he needs correct the errors of the pastOpinion · Toronto Star · Jul 24, 2025
- John Lorinc: How to make a shlep to Downsview Park appealing? A good first impression would helpOpinion · Toronto Star · Jul 18, 2025
- John Lorinc: How to make a shlep to Downsview Park appealing? A good first impression would helpOpinion · Toronto Star · Jul 17, 2025
- John Lorinc: How many more transit projects will Ontario fumble before Doug Ford orders an inquiry?Opinion · Toronto Star · Jul 3, 2025
- John Lorinc: Mark Carney has a plan for Canada’s energy sector, but our economy needs more than pipelines and hydro to thriveOpinion · Toronto Star · Jun 29, 2025
- John Lorinc: Doug Ford’s Highway 401 tunnel is technically doable. So what’s the down side?Opinion · Toronto Star · May 26, 2025
- John Lorinc: Doug Ford’s Highway 401 tunnel is technically doable. But there are vastly better alternativesOpinion · Toronto Star · May 25, 2025
- John Lorinc: Here is one thing Doug Ford could do tomorrow to ease gridlock in the GTA and it involves Highway 407Opinion · Toronto Star · May 15, 2025
- John Lorinc: Will Mark Carney respect facts? These are the tell-tale signsOpinion · Toronto Star · May 13, 2025
- John Lorinc: Will Mark Carney respect true facts? Depends how he approaches funding science and dataOpinion · Toronto Star · May 12, 2025
- John Lorinc: The killing of planned fourplexes in Etobicoke lays bare a hard truth about Toronto: Our barriers to building are like our soil — hard as clayOpinion · Toronto Star · May 10, 2025
- John Lorinc: If Carney wins, should he call an election, or try to keep governing? There’s a third option he should considerOpinion · Toronto Star · Mar 4, 2025
- John Lorinc: There’s a weird and illogical hole in what the city will fix when you call 311Opinion · Toronto Star · Feb 16, 2025
- John Lorinc: Donald Trump has created a golden opportunity for CanadaOpinion · Toronto Star · Feb 9, 2025
- John Lorinc: Seven years were the difference between normal life and hell for my grandparents. Let’s not forget how quickly societies can succumb to humanity’s worst impulsesOpinion · Toronto Star · Jan 27, 2025
- John Lorinc: Even if Pierre Poilievre wins the next election, this is who will really set the agendaOpinion · Toronto Star · Jan 14, 2025
- John Lorinc: Will we get electoral reform? Not likely, but these changes would make a big differenceOpinion · Toronto Star · Jan 11, 2025