The RCMP is now probing Doug Ford's Greenbelt deals

Plus, Jordan Peterson's court loss and a new COVID variant being watched [The Star] First Up [By Manuela Vega] By Manuela Vega Good morning. Cineplex and other cinemas are offering $4 movie tickets this Sunday — [here’s what you need to know](. Here’s the latest on the Greenbelt scandal, Jordan Peterson’s court battle and a new COVID-19 variant. DON’T MISS Canadian Press/Cole Burston Greenbelt scandal [The RCMP will investigate the Greenbelt land swap as sources say Doug Ford was surprised by his staffer’s resignation]( The branch of the RCMP focusing on corruption and political crimes is investigating the $8.28 billion Greenbelt land swap to determine if a formal criminal investigation will be launched. The OPP referred the case to the Mounties in order “to avoid any potential perceived conflict of interest.” Meanwhile, Conservative sources told the Star that they were caught off-guard by the resignation of Ryan Amato, the former chief of staff to Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark. After all, the premier had personally defended him, saying “the buck stops with me.” [Here’s what the former staffer wrote in his letter of resignation](. - Martin Regg Cohn’s take: [Ford’s Greenbelt scandal demands a bigger resignation than the one we got](. - Another angle: The facts in the Greenbelt scandal so far are appalling. [And they raise more questions](. - Still confused? [The Star’s Queen’s Park bureau chief Robert Benzie is taking reader questions today at noon](. Carlos Osorio/The Star courts [Jordan Peterson has lost his court battle over “degrading” and “unprofessional” tweets]( An Ontario court has ruled against controversial Toronto-based psychologist and author Jordan Peterson, ruling that it is reasonable for the College of Psychologists of Ontario to order him to take remedial training for his “degrading” social media commentary. Peterson has since taken to X (formerly Twitter), where he has millions of followers, to “make every aspect of this public.” [An influx of reactions show where Peterson has support and where he doesn’t](. - Context: The college panel cited a number of public statements as being problematic, including statements on children in poverty, an Ottawa city councillor whose pronouns are they/them and Elliott Page’s gender-affirming surgery. - More: “If you think that you have a right to free speech in Canada you’re delusional,” Peterson wrote on X. - The decision: “Dr. Peterson cannot have it both ways: he cannot speak as a member of a regulated profession without taking responsibility for the risk of harm that flows from him speaking in that trusted capacity,” Justice Paul Schabas wrote on behalf of three judges. Ramon Ferreira/The Star covid-19 [Another new COVID variant has scientists on alert]( Researchers in Canada and abroad are paying close attention to the highly mutated BA.2.86 COVID-19 variant. BA.2.86 has only been reported about a dozen times worldwide as of Wednesday, but those cases are spread among at least five countries. The fact that it has a large number of mutations compared to other Omicron lineages is also cause for concern, Megan Ogilvie reports, although it has not yet been detected in Canada. “We don’t yet have enough evidence this is an alarm. [But it is an early alert,” said a researcher with Canada’s Coronavirus Rapid Response Network](. - Why it matters: Although it is similar to an earlier version of Omicron, BA.2.86 differs from the dominant variants currently circulating, breaking out of the predicted evolutionary pattern. According to the CDC, “the large number of mutations in this variant raises concerns of greater escape from existing immunity from vaccines and previous infections compared with other recent variants.” - Go deeper: [Here’s how Canada’s elderly felt the brunt of the Omicron variant](. WHAT ELSE Despite mounting pressure, Justin Trudeau is [offering no new help for the housing crisis.]( [The OPP have issued an Amber Alert for three-month-old Jazmine Gill-Bissonnette]( Here’s why the contracts Toronto signed to host the 2026 World Cup are [going to be kept secret](. Officials say a jet crash in Russia killed 10 people. [The Wagner chief was on the passenger list](. The TVO strike continues — and [Steve Paikin is warning that the media organization is the last of its kind in Canada](. “No trucks in, no trucks out.” Striking Metro grocery workers have [taken their fight to distribution warehouses](. Torontonians support some new taxes to fix pandemic-ravaged finances. [A poll reveals what they would — and wouldn’t — be OK with](. We can’t afford privatized health care. Instead, [we should ask why Canada continues to fall behind our peers on publicly financed health care](. A Toronto athlete and “amazing human being” has died after a storm during a triathlon. [Here’s what we know](. The loss of its Bell sponsorship doesn’t have to mean the end of the road for TIFF. [The festival has faced hurdles before](. Ring ring! Rogers has launched its 5G networks on the TTC. [Here’s where customers have service](. Auston Matthews has [committed to the Maple Leafs with a four-year contract extension](. POV Canadian Press/Jason Franson [Big Oil got its swagger back — and that’s bad news for all of us.]( CLOSE-UP Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP GREECE: A volunteer carries an icon from a burning monastery as a wildfire spreads in Acharnes, north of Athens, on Wednesday. Greek firefighters were struggling to contain uncontrolled fires throughout the country for a fifth day.  Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_196287). I’ll see you back here tomorrow. If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. [Unsubscribe From This Newsletter]( [Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts]( [View in Browser]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8. 416-367-2000 [PRIVACY POLICY](