The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday, Dec. 16, edition that when Ontario Premier Doug Ford last week talked about his plan to let corner stores sell beer and wine, reporters wanted to know why his 2018 promise had taken so long to enact. The Globe's Marcus Gee writes that Mr. Ford said he was handcuffed by a deal his Liberal predecessor struck with the brewers and the liquor board that allowed beer and wine in some grocery stores but locked in many of the absurd rules that have governed booze sales in Ontario for decades. Mr. Gee says Mr. Ford made the right move. Mr. Gee notes, however, that Mr. Ford has left the two behemoths of alcohol sales standing. The Beer Store will continue to run its more than 400 beer-only outlets till at least 2033. The Liquor Control Board of Ontario will keep its monopoly on spirits. Mr. Gee says keeping the Beer Store in place in this new environment is bizarre. He says it is hard to justify the continued existence of the LCBO, too. He adds that there is no reason for the provincial government to be in the alcohol-retailing business. This would have been a perfect time to blow up the whole rotten edifice of alcohol retailing in Ontario.