Critics are once again slamming the provincial government's plan to build a luxury spa on the former site of Ontario Place — this time over allegations that the company set to run the multi-billion-dollar project misrepresented itself and exaggerated its experience in order to secure the deal. Those claims are part of a New York Times story published Wednesday, which expands on concerns outlined in a provincial auditor general's report from late last year that Therme had falsely represented itself as operating more spas in Europe than it actually was and was losing money at the time it was pitching its vision for the prime lakefront property. At Queen's Park Wednesday, Liberal MPP John Fraser said the story was "stunning" — as it showed a company with one small spa, a million dollars in equity, and an "interconnected web of shell companies." "Yet somehow they convinced the premier that they had a global track record. It didn't just stretch the truth, it led the premier down the garden path — and Infrastructure Ontario signed right off on it," Fraser said. "So why did the premier greenlight a 95-year-deal with a company that inflated its portfolio and couldn't pass a basic financial sniff test?" WATCH | What the AG report on Ontario Place found: Ontario Place redevelopment not 'fair, transparent or accountable,' auditor general finds Duration 4:49 According to the province’s auditor general, the process for selecting new tenants for Ontario Place wasn't transparent or fair. CBC’s Lorenda Reddekopp breaks down some of the key findings from the scathing section of the annual report. In response, Minister of Infrastructure Kinga Surma said that Therme passed the financial test conducted by Infrastructure Ontario, which she called a "world-renowned, arms-length agency." Pressed in further questions, Surma repeatedly pivoted to talking about the number of jobs that would be created both through construction and operation of the spa. Surma also said the province has "done this dance already," when it comes to questioning the project, mentioning audits and a recent review. In a report from last December, the province's auditor general found that the cost of the redevelopment of Ontario Place had ballooned by more than $1.8 billion, and the process for selecting new tenants for the property wasn't transparent or fair. Fraser asked Wednesday if Premier Doug Ford would throw out this deal, like he did when he cut ties with Elon Musk's Starlink, or when the province backed away from its redevelopment plans for The Greenbelt. "No, we will not," Surma responded, again lauding Infrastructure Ontario's credentials. Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner, however, called on the province to do exactly that, in addition to exploring a "made in Ontario solution" for the space. "The people of Ontario want to access Ontario Place as a public space — not some privatized space for … a foreign-owned company that's barely solvent," he said.