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Newsstand: November 13, 2015
The news today: a historically high budget for Toronto's police, Marc Garneau clarifies he is not reopening the Billy Bishop jet debate, and Patrick Brown's leadership race expense filing.
Yesterday, the Toronto Police Services Board voted unanimously to approve police Chief Mark Saunders’ request for a 2.76 per cent budget increase. With this increase, which amounts to $27 million, the TPS budget has hit $1 billion for the first time. This increase comes at a time when Mayor John Tory, who sits on the board, has asked every department in the city to find savings of two per cent for the 2016 budget. Tory told reporters that while he voted for this year’s increase (for reasons unclarified), “we can’t afford to keep the cost going up” each year. The majority of the operating budget goes to salaries and benefits, and 92 per cent of the $254-million increase in budget size between 2006 and now has been due to collective agreement increases (salaries and benefits) for the police union. This historically high budget also comes at a time of heightened scrutiny on police practices and systemic racism within police forces, as well as generally lower crime rates across North America. More than half of all workers in Toronto
What appeared to be federal Transportation Minister Marc Garneau walking back an election pledge not to reopen the debate over jets at Billy Bishop airport yesterday afternoon … wasn’t. Garneau made comments to reporters on Thursday that seemed to contradict the Liberals’ stance on the issue, which upset Toronto city Councillor Mike Layton (Ward 19, Trinity-Spadina), but he later wrote on Twitter that the Liberal government’s position remains the same: the debate will not be reopened. Porter Airlines has been lobbying to gain permission to fly CS-100 jets off the island airport, but if just one of the three parties involved in the existing agreement—the federal government, city, or Toronto port authority—refuse to come to the table, that won’t happen.
Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Patrick Brown spent just over $2 million on his leadership bid, according to filings sent to the party. That includes the $100,000 entry fee and $359,918 tithe to the party, neither of which are covered by the party-imposed spending ceiling of $1,250,000. Party president Richard Ciano said he was confident Brown hasn’t broken any campaign rules and that the filing is in order.