Tory’s attendance improving over years

Holland, a second-term councillor, said she was present for all votes and debates related to her Ward 35 (Scarborough-Southwest) community and with respect to “major issues” before council.

A review of her absences shows she did miss the votes approving the city’s capital and operating budget of almost $11 billion; the King St. pilot; making the Bloor St. bike lanes permanent; advancing the mayor’s “SmartTrack” stations plan and moving ahead with Rail Deck Park.

The Star calculated councillors’ absences by using vote records kept by the city for all council meetings. Council is the only mandatory meeting for all 45 members of council, including Tory.

Not every council vote is recorded, with some votes taken just by a show of hands. A councillor must be at their seat in the council chamber to push a button and be recorded.

Tory’s attendance came in around the council average, with him missing 11.5 per cent of all recorded votes. His absences have steadily decreased from 22.5 per cent in 2015 and 17.6 per cent in 2016.

These attendance records make him more present in the council chamber than his predecessors Ford, at the same point in his term, and former mayor David Miller, in his last two years in office.

The median was Councillor Christin Carmichael Greb with 10.8 per cent.

For the second year in a row, Councillor Gord Perks (Ward 14 Parkdale—High Park) did not miss a single vote. Perks said being the councillor for Ward 14 is a privilege.

“I can’t understand why anyone would want to miss single day of it.”

Councillor Stephen Holyday (Ward 3Etobicoke Centre), who is completing his first term in office, was also present for every vote.

The same is also true for Councillor Frances Nunziata, council’s speaker, whose job it is to run the meetings.