Toronto needs a new deal with Ontario. And it deserves a better deal. At a time when municipalities across Canada are facing greater financial needs, Premier Ford has been using Toronto as his whipping boy. This new deal requires the recognition by the province that Toronto is not just a creature of the province but a partner. And if it cannot negotiate an effective deal with the province, it can seek recourse through the courts and from the federal government.
To put it simply, Toronto had been bullied and mistreated by the province long enough. It is time to stand up to the bullying. The Ford government simply cannot be allowed to bankrupt Toronto because of the relationships Mr. Ford failed to bridge when he was on Toronto council. With more than 20 per cent of the province’s voters living in Toronto, they will have their weight felt if the province will not give them a fair shake in financing their city’s needs.
It is wrong for the city to be constantly going ‘cap-in-hand’ to the senior levels of government and waiting to see what they will be given. That is not how the system is expected to work. The province cannot be allowed to throttle the city’s ability to finance its responsibilities and so cavalierly download more costs.
And Mr. Ford’s extension of the so-called super mayor power to Toronto is nothing but a sham. They are only extended on the condition that any use is approved by the premier. These are not super-mayor powers. These are powers only available to use with the premier’s permission and only applicable as long as the mayor is willing to kiss the premier’s bare behind in the middle of Nathan Phillips Square.
In no other major country in the world are cities treated in this manner. Throughout world history it has most often been the cities that ultimately brought peace, order and good government to their respective nations.
What Mr. Ford fails to recognize is that the province is responsible for the proper management of the cities. And there is nothing more urgent than making affordable housing available—particularly in Toronto.
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Copyright 2023 © Peter Lowry
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