Susan Stevenson called a campaign platform announcement Wednesday morning behind city hall to propose changes to council oversight, improved access to the Mayor’s office and to scrutinize senior administration. Mayor Josh Morgan responded by blasting Stevenson for doing in on National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. “Today is not a day for political campaign announcements,” Morgan told CTV News. “This day belongs to survivors, their families and Indigenous communities.” During Stevenson’s announcement she says she would not use strong mayor veto in the budget, she would like earlier access to agenda materials and financial information and would like significant spending decisions to go to council. “it’s bringing back the decisions that are made here at council to the elected officials,” said Stevenson. “Right now, many of the decisions are being made by civic administration and coming through for an approval, rather than being presented with the alternatives and being asked to make a decision.” She added she would set up a finance committee to review financials quarterly, bring forward an independent municipal Auditor General and a confidential fraud and waste hotline, and review senior management which could then present a restructuring plan to reduce the size and cost of the top administration while protecting front-line service delivery. “I don’t believe senior administration is being held accountable at all,” said Stevenson. “We’re delegating the authority to make the decisions and then fulfill whatever the projects are without any oversight or report back. In many instances, even when the amounts go up into the hundreds of millions. So that’s an issue. The province took over the hospital and the school board, but they can’t take over council. That’s up to the people to do that. If people want their elected representatives to see the $1.4 billion budget line by line, if they want them to see an oversight and reports back on half $1 billion projects like BRT, then they need to elect a council that’s going to ask for that.”
