[All] Integrity commissioners: What they can and cannot do

[randybmclean at rogers.com]

Remember when they were called Civil Servants?

 

Randy

 

 

From: all-bounces at gren.ca [mailto:all-bounces at gren.ca] On Behalf Of Norah &
Richard
Sent: September-09-10 10:56 AM
To: all at gren.ca
Subject: Re: [All] Integrity commissioners: What they can and cannot do

 

I strongly endorse this recommendation to extend the powers of Municipal
Integrity Commissioners to be able to review staff conduct when complaints
arise in order to facilitate the ability to review matters and provide the
opportunity for dialogue and/or mediation. Although my community of Guelph
does not have an integrity officer, this could also raise awareness of the
importance of this role for all of our municipalities.   Norah

On 03/09/2010 11:58 AM, Louisette Lanteigne wrote: 


Hi folks

I just got off the phone with the City of Waterloo's new Integrity
Commissioner Gregory Levine. He's a really nice man to speak with.

The powers of the municipal Integrity Commissioner is to review the conduct
of council members so if one behaves inappropriately there can be a measure
of scrutiny to understand and resolve various issues or sanctions if need
be. For example, I filed a complaint regarding a certain council member who
intimidated a public speaker at a Waterloo council meeting a few months
back. The Integrity Commissioner reviewed the matter and asked if I wanted
to take further action to get an investigation happening. I dropped it
because this person isn't running for office again but I told him I wanted
to give him the heads up that issues like this have taken place in council
previously.

It is interesting to note that the Integrity Commissioner does NOT have
powers to review the conduct of municipal STAFF. This is due to the fact
that staff are protected by Labour Unions and that complicates how the
matters are to be addressed. There could, in theory, be measures made at the
COUNCIL level to allocate these extend the powers to the Integrity
Commissioner to allow them to review conduct by staff but to date no
municipality has done that although this is STRONGLY recommended by David
McMullen, the Integrity Commissioner from Toronto as noted in the Bellamy
Commission Report. 

I suggest that GREN consider taking the position to recommend extended the
powers of Municipal Integrity Commissioners to be able to review staff
conduct when complaints arise in order to facilitate the ability to review
matters and provide the opportunity for dialogue and/or mediation. Should
the conduct warrant some form of sanction, the dialogue can than include
union reps if need be. 

If we had such a system in place, the planner at the city level who
authorized work to be done in the West Side Lands, prior to the completion
of the OMB mandated studies, could be reviewed and held accountable. 

Lulu :0)

 
 
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