Province Protecting Ontario with the Buy Ontario Act

November 20, 2025

Proposed legislation would prioritize public procurement of Ontario goods and services, helping Ontario tax dollars support Ontario workers

The Ontario government intends to introduce the Buy Ontario Act, 2025, that will, if passed, protect the province’s workers and businesses by prioritizing Ontario goods and services in public procurement. This new legislation and associated measures would be applicable to all public sector organizations, including municipalities, as well as contractors and subcontractors that are helping deliver the province’s more than $220 billion plan to build using Ontario goods and services first. These measures will deliver on the government’s commitment to protect Ontario by ensuring that in the face of U.S. tariffs and economic uncertainty, Ontario tax dollars are going to support Ontario workers and using Ontario products like steel, lumber, cars, trucks and more.

“Ontario workers and business owners’ livelihoods are under attack from President Trump and his tariffs, and they’re counting on us to step up,” said Stephen Crawford, Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement. “Every year, the province spends more than $30 billion procuring goods and services that help serve the people of Ontario. We’re making sure that every possible procurement dollar that can be spent in Ontario is spent in Ontario, so we can protect our workers and build a more competitive, self-reliant and resilient economy.”

The legislation and associated measures being introduced today will help implement a Buy Ontario policy that prioritizes first Ontario and then Canadian goods and services, while still maintaining value for money for Ontario taxpayers and protecting procurement and major infrastructure projects from undue delays.

“Ontario’s more than $220 billion plan to build is the largest infrastructure plan in Canadian history, and we’re spending every dollar of that plan that we can right here in Ontario,” said Todd McCarthy, Acting Minister of Infrastructure. “As we build the transit, highways, hospitals, homes and schools our growing province needs, we’re also helping keep hundreds of thousands of workers on the job in sectors like construction, steelmaking, forestry, agriculture, manufacturing and more.”

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