Third Ontario cabinet minister resigns as Doug Ford reverses Greenbelt plans

Ontario Premier Doug Ford lost a third cabinet minister in as many weeks Friday, with top performer Monte McNaughton resigning as labour minister to work in the private sector.

McNaughton said it had been the "honour of a lifetime" to be labour minister, but the time was right to leave. The departure, he said, was unrelated to "recent events."

"It is always difficult to know the right time to leave politics," he wrote in a statement. "After much soul searching over the summer months, I have accepted a job in the private sector." 

McNaughton, who has been the provincial representative for Lambton-Kent-Middlesex in southwestern Ontario since 2011, said he will step down from his cabinet post immediately and resign his seat in the days ahead. He will not seek re-election.