The former leaders of the OLG in Toronto reunite at Postmedia Network Canada Corporation, a holding company that owns Postmedia Network. Postmedia Network is one of the largest media organizations in the country, and owns multiple newspapers, including the National Post.
Paul Godfrey is President and CEO of Postmedia, and was also Chairman of the OLG until parting ways with the Ontario government last May. Postmedia confirmed that Rod Phillips will serve as the new Chairman of the Board, who was up until two weeks ago, President and CEO of the OLG.
Phillips resigned from his post on January 22, but gave no official reason for his resignation beyond a yearning to seek opportunities in the private sector. His reunion with Godfrey at Postmedia suggests the two men were very close at the OLG, and will collaborate once again in the private sector without the involvement of the Ontario government.
Phillips and Godfrey were among the primary architects of the OLG gambling modernization strategy, which was based around developing privatized casinos in Toronto, Ottawa, and other Ontario communities. The plan was endorsed by the previous government administration of Dalton McGuinty, but his successor Kathleen Wynne is less supportive of the gambling sector.
The casino plans themselves also ran off course. The Toronto casino proposal was overwhelmingly defeated by the municipal government that had final approval on the matter, and proposals in other Ontario communities have faced stiffer opposition then the OLG initially forecast.
One exception is the Ottawa casino proposal, which was endorsed by both Phillips and Godfrey before they left the OLG. Unlike in Toronto, the casino proposal was supported by the majority of councilors in the city. The OLG has also announced plans to field applications to find a manager of the Ottawa casino later this year.
