Jon Woodward reports on a company owned by an Etobicoke, Ont., dentist who claims to treat ‘the Ford family,’ receiving millions from Ontario’s Skills Fund.
An Etobicoke dentist whose company received millions of dollars in a provincial government grant also has a dental practice that is claiming on its website that it treats “the Ford family.”
Meanwhile, Ontario’s premier says he’s never been there and wasn’t involved in the process to give the company $2 million in a grant from the Skills Development Fund.
The staff of JM Dental didn’t have much to say on Friday about a boast on their website that tells potential patients, “We want you to feel as comfortable and relaxed as the Ford family has during their visits with us.”
It’s not clear which Fords the company is referring to specifically.
The director of JM Dental is John Maggirias, who has donated just over $20,000 to the governing PC Party and its candidates, and could be seen in a photo with Doug Ford posted by the premier’s office.
jm dental An Etobicoke dentist (far right) whose company received millions of dollars in a provincial government grant also has a dental practice that is claiming on its website that it treats “the Ford family.” (Flickr/Premier of Ontario Photography)
Maggirias and Ford could also be seen joking at a fundraiser in a video posted by The Trillium, which first reported JM Dental’s claims.
Another of Maggirias’s companies, Dentacloud, received a $2 million grant in 2024 from the controversial Skills Development Fund.
When asked Thursday about the connections, Ford denied having anything to do with the grant to Dentacloud.
“I don’t get involved in these decisions,” the premier said. “I don’t believe in micromanaging. I like making big decisions… That’s why I have ministers, so I don’t micromanage. I hold everyone accountable, I can tell you that.”
As for whether Maggirias is the Ford family’s dentist, Ford said he would check to see if other members of his family went there.
“I haven’t been there,” he explained. “I’ll have to check if my, Rob’s kids, my brother’s kids, but come on, that’s all I’ve got to say… My dental guy is in Scarborough. He has two offices. He’s downtown too. I’ll ask my whole family if they’ve ever gone to that dentist. Royal Plaza I think.”
Ford’s late brother Rob, the former mayor of Toronto, can be seen in photos from 2013 posted on JM Dental’s website.
‘This isn’t the premier’s personal piggy bank’: Stiles
The connections are something that needs to be taken seriously, said Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles.
“The company talks openly about the Ford family. The premier has been at fundraisers with this dentist,” she said.
“This is a $2.5 billion fund. This isn’t the premier’s personal piggy bank.”
The Skills Development Fund has been the subject of controversy since September, when CTV News first reported a multi-million-dollar grant had gone to a chain of bars and restaurants against the recommendations of non-partisan staff.
In October, Ontario’s Auditor-General reported that more than half the time, grants worth some $750 million were directed to recipients chosen by political staff in a way that was not “transparent, fair or accountable.”
Ontario’s Labour Minister, David Piccini, faces integrity commissioner complaints about his oversight of the fund, which included sending grants to a company whose director he was photographed with at a hockey game before he was the labour minister, and a complaint about Piccini going to the wedding of that company’s lobbyist this fall.
In September, Dentacloud’s chief operating officer, Edward Kwan, told CTV News it accepted Skills Development Fund money to help address the labour shortages faced by dental clinics in Ontario.
Kwan said the money led to training 349 people, which then led to over 70 hires.
“Dentacloud was positioning the recipients to have the specialized skills that are necessary for success in the dental workplace,” Kwan said.
Kwan didn’t respond to a message about the post. CTV News visited JM Dental to ask a question but was told to leave.
Personal testimonials rare for dental practices in Ontario
Personal testimonials don’t often appear on dentist websites in Ontario. When we asked legal experts why, they referred us to advertising rules that govern the profession.
Even if dentists get patient consent to share their medical information, other rules forbid advertising from “testimonials or any statement that can only be verified by a person’s personal feelings or views.”
Kyle Hamilton, the CEO of The Dental Marketing Company, said the guiding principle of the rules is that everything said in the advertising is factual.
“I would guide my clients away from making a statement like this,” he said. “The first question is, ‘Who’s saying that? Who is making that claim?’”
A spokesperson for Ontario’s dental regulator, the Royal Ontario College of Dental Surgeons, said it couldn’t confirm or deny whether it’s received a complaint about JM Dental.
As of Friday, the premier’s office didn’t say whether any of Ford’s family members had said they received treatment there.