The Prime Minister Doug Ford will hold a press conference this Thursday afternoon, one day after a second minister in the government was forced to resign following the controversy over the removal of land in the greenbelt.

Khaleed Rashid, Ontario's Minister of Public and Business Services, resigned from his ministerial position and the party conference of the Communist Party on Wednesday after records revealed conflicting accounts of a trip to Las Vegas that was investigated as part of the Integrity Commissioner's investigation into greenbelt land deals.

According to the Integrity Commissioner, Rashid and Amin Masoudi, the chief secretary to the then-Prime Minister, said they took a trip to Las Vegas in December 2019 and "exchanged pleasantries" with developer Shakir Rahmatullah in the lobby of a hotel.

The former minister confirmed that he is a friend of the developer, whose company FLATO Development was listed as the owner of two sites that were removed from the greenbelt, but he said he was not aware that Shakir would be in the area at that time.

Records now show that the minister actually made the trip in February 2020, and several hotel staff also confirmed to CTV News that the three individuals received massages at the same time.

The minister's office said the trip was originally scheduled for December 2019 but was postponed due to scheduling conflicts. They stated that the original date was mistakenly shared with the Integrity Commissioner.

Rashid stated that he resigned to avoid being distracted from "the important work of the government" and added that he looks forward to "taking the necessary steps" to clear his name.

The Prime Minister's office said that if the Integrity Commissioner clears Rashid, he will be "given the opportunity to return to the party caucus, and he will sit as an independent until then."

Rashid is the second minister to resign from Ford's government following the greenbelt scandal. Ontario's Housing Minister Steve Clark resigned earlier this month after the Ontario Integrity Commissioner found that he violated ethical rules in his role overseeing land removals in the greenbelt.

Ford, who is in Niagara Falls for a conference members' meeting, is expected to speak to reporters at 3 PM.