GRETZKY: Families left waiting months as failures mount at FRO

QUEEN’S PARK – Ontario NDP Shadow Minister for Children, Community, and Social Services, Lisa Gretzky (Windsor West) says the new Auditor General report shows how badly Ontario families are being let down by the Family Responsibility Office under the Ford government’s watch.

The report found that families are waiting an average of eight months or more for cases to be registered, while widespread delays inconsistent enforcement, unanswered calls, and poor oversight continue across the system. More than 116,000 Ontario families rely on the FRO to enforce child and spousal support payments, yet the report also found that 92 per cent of cases reviewed were not registered within the office’s own four-month target.

“Families are simply trying to keep food on the table, pay rent, and cover basic needs while support payments sit tied up in delays and government failures,” said Gretzky. “People are frustrated, and rightfully so. Families are being left without answers while the Ford government continues to look the other way.”

The AG also found poor oversight across the system, including millions in overpayments being held by the FRO, incomplete records across thousands of files, and cases where large amounts of unpaid support had no enforcement action attached.

“After seven long years of Doug Ford, families are still being badly let down by a system that is supposed to help them,” continued Gretzky. “Ontario families deserve a system that responds quickly, follows through, and actually works when people need it most.”