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Absolute power
Beware of government in a hurry. When provincial politicos become impatient with the pace of their accomplishments, it is the small, the fragile and the outof- sight who tend to get whacked.
When Queen’s Park is in a rush, it doesn’t often pause to consider the impact on rural communities like Prince Edward County. Think amalgamation of local government in 1998. Or the forced amalgamation of our hospital shortly afterward. Industrial wind turbines. Each grand ambition created massive turmoil and disruption in this community. It spurred fights that filled town halls, filled buses to Queen’s Park and generated protests and broad-based anxiety. Years later, it is much easier to point to the harm caused by these big ideas than to discern the benefits.
Queen’s Park officials are fond of pointing out that municipalities are creatures of the province. Some governments take it to mean they can do whatever they want. Dump roads upon them. Tell them to make the roads better. Then, turn off the funding tap. Same for fire services. Ambulance services. Waterworks. Docks. Parks. The pattern is well-worn.
Waterworks and planning officials barely pay any heed to local councils any longer—they know their masters are in Queen’s Park. Local governments may pay their salaries, and property taxpayers fund their plants, but the rules are written in Toronto. Compliance is directed in Toronto. And should Council disagree, a provincial tribunal is standing by to overrule them.
Last week, Doug Ford quietly amplified the humiliation of councils across the province.
The province announced it was extending strong mayor powers to Prince Edward County and 168 other communities. With the stroke of a pen, the mayor’s power will be elevated and council powers will be diminished.
Effective May 1, strong mayor powers will give the mayor the authority to hire and fire senior staff members, to override Council decisions and to control budget decisions. The mayor can push through legislation with just one-third of council support. It’s a lot.
Doug Ford is in a hurry to see more homes built. So local democracy must be sacrificed. It didn’t work in 47 other communities, but who really believes in democracy anymore? Is anyone really going to push back against the slow-motion smothering of local government?
Just last week Councillor Bill Roberts lamented the decline of liberal democracy in the world as he advocated a question to be posed on the election ballot next year.
The world needs to see active forms of democracy,” opined Roberts.
It was not likely lost on the council member that Doug Ford was about to stomp all over that idea. Yet stomp he did. Squirting out from under his heel came 169 little kingdoms.
The problems are obvious. Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Taking municipal decision-making away from the elected council and putting it in one person’s hands is fraught with danger. Likely inevitable.
Among the blindingly obvious risks: The rich and powerful have means of gaining access to the head of council that the average resident does not. Access to a lone decision-maker is suddenly extremely valuable. The temptations greater.
It is bad. It is undemocratic and it is dangerous to vest so much power in one person. But it’s not the biggest problem with Doug Ford’s announcement.
Arguments can be made that a mayor should wield modestly greater sway than their council colleagues. The mayor in Prince Edward County is the only council member elected by all eligible voters across all wards.
Currently, the mayor has just one vote. His opinion has the same weight as every other council member. It can be difficult to forge a consensus among 14 members. It is easy to imagine circumstances where a mayor’s veto, or threat of veto, might guide decision- making in a more effective way. There are arguments for granting the mayor extra tools, and we should entertain them. In a debate. In an election.
There is no argument, however, for upending the existing arrangement—for stomping upon democracy— midway through the term. Nobody voted for this. No one voted to give the mayor such sweeping power. Furthermore, no one asked residents if they wanted this.
It is unlikely the province will back down. After all, throwing cats among council pigeons is sport for Queen’s Park mandarins. Does it really matter that 169 communities have been thrown off balance?
But Steve Ferguson can do something. He can choose to defer enacting the power bestowed on him until the next election. It’s his choice now.
As for Doug Ford, he should treat his creatures better than this.
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