Welcome to the Inside Ontario blog. Every Monday this blog will provide you with the top stories about the changing face of Ontario.

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On September 17, the Liberals retained the St. Paul’s riding in the by-election to replace Michael Bryant. The by-election was portrayed as a referendum on the HST (not to mention the recent spate of government scandals). After the polls closed, Steve Paikin noted “it's steady as she goes in midtown Toronto,” Jim Coyle wondered just how bad things would need to be for the Liberals to lose this very safe seat, and Chris Selley wondered if PC candidate Sue-Anne Levy ever had a chance at victory.

So does this result mean Ontarians (in St. Paul’s at least) support the HST? Before the polls even opened, Adam Radwanski argued that the St. Paul’s by-election would not be a referendum on the HST due to a lack of public awareness of the proposed tax reform.

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As the MPPs returned to Queen’s Park after the summer recess, both opposition parties filed a complaint with the Speaker over comments made during Question Period by Minister of Health and Long Term Care David Caplan and Premier Dalton McGuinty on eHealth. The Government had claimed

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) had been hired to investigate the alleged improper spending at eHealth. Later the government announced that the PWC review had been cancelled, so the Auditor General could investigate the matter without duplicating work. During the summer recess, the NDP had used Freedom of Information Requests to find that no contract with PWC had ever been signed.

Thanks to the Question Period Archive, which is part of TVO’s Civics 101 microsite, you can see footage of these comments being made during Question Period here, here, here, and here.

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In a move that could spell bad news for Northwestern Ontarians, Greyhound buses announced they would cease Northwestern Ontario operations within 90 days. Without Greyhound, Northwestern Ontarians who cannot afford a vehicle may have few transportation options, since there is a lack of public transportation infastructure between cities in Northwestern Ontario. Although, the federal government believes other carriers maybe interested in taking over the Greyhound routes.

The Thunder Bay News Watch details the positions of municipal, provincial, and federal governments on if $15 million of public money should be paid to keep Greyhound’s Northwestern Ontario passenger and freight service running.

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Private lawyers throughout Ontario are boycotting legal aid cases involving serious violent offenses. The Financial Post reports that lawyers working in the legal aid system receive a maximum pay of $96/hour, while lawyers from outside the system are paid up to $162/hour for legal advice. Without the legal aid system low-income Ontarians may not be able to access adequate representation in the courts.

This Waterloo Record article reports that so far the provincial government has been unable to negotiate end this dispute.

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On Saturday, the Canada/US border at Cornwall was closed by police for five hours because of a dispute with members of the Akwesasne Mohawk Reserve on Cornwall Island over alleged unreported border crossings by members of that community. This summer protests by members of the Akwesasne Mohawk Reserve had closed this crossing for 42 days as the result of Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers being issued firearms (CBSA agents stationed on the island had previously been unarmed). In order to reopen the crossing, the CBSA moved their checkpoint off of Cornwall Island to a temporary location in the City of Cornwall on July 13.

As this map shows, Cornwall Island (where some members of the Akwesasne Mohawk Reserve live) is entirely in Canadian territory between the Canadian and American mainlands. Residents of Cornwall Island who return to Canada from the United States are required to drive to the City of Cornwall and report to the temporary check point. This latest dispute was caused by the CBSA fining members of the Akwesasne Mohawk Reserve for not reporting to the temporary check point. You can find press releases from the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne on Saturday’s incident and on the reopening of the border crossing in July.