The Ford government tabled new legislation that would give the Mayors of Ottawa and Toronto unprecedented new powers with a American-style ‘Strong Mayor’ model.
The bill allows the Mayor to veto bylaws passed by council that would impede “provincial priorities” as defined by the provincial government. The government maintains this bill is about making it easier to build housing, but the Bill includes no references to housing, nor any of the measures recommended by its own Task Force on housing. I spoke up about how this bill undermines local democracy, and what our community wants to see done to build more affordable housing. Watch my remarks here.