Ontario seeking stay of council-cutting decision
The Ontario government will not pursue a new bill to cut Toronto city council nearly in half if the province’s highest court stays a ruling that quashed an earlier version of the legislation, lawyers said Tuesday. In a hearing before the Court of Appeal for Ontario, lawyer Robin Basu said legislators would hold off voting on the new bill if the court grants the province the stay it is seeking. Last week Justice Edward Belobaba ruled that Bill 5, which slashed Toronto’s council to 25 seats from 47, violated freedom of expression rights for candidates and voters. Premier Doug Ford has since reintroduced the bill, now known as Bill 31, and invoked a constitutional provision known as the notwithstanding clause to forge ahead with the council-cutting plan. But the new bill won’t be up for a final vote until Thursday at the earliest, and city staff have said the chances of running a fair election on Oct. 22 shrink with every day of uncertainty that goes by. The government’s lawyers are asking the appeal court to put Belobaba’s ruling on hold at least until after the vote, saying it’s the only way to ensure a fair election. “There is only one path available to assure the (Toronto city) clerk that she is in a position to proceed with an election with integrity and fairness on Oct. 22,” Basu told the court. “It is simply not feasible to prepare for two elections at the same time.” Granting the stay would eliminate any uncertainty, even in the eventuality that the new bill is challenged in court, Basu argued. The province’s stay application, which is being heard before three judges at the Ontario Court of Appeal, could result in Belobaba’s ruling being put on hold until a formal appeal is heard. If the province is successful, city staff would then immediately start planning for an election based on the 25-ward model rather than the 47-ward approach that went back into effect with Belobaba’s decision.