New Bill Aims to Protect Against Misconduct by Local Officials

A new private member’s bill is set to address harassment, sexual harassment, and even violent behavior among city council members. This initiative follows nearly two years after Whitby, Ont., councillors faced their own incidents of harassment and inappropriate remarks from colleagues.

Liberal MPP Stephen Blais from Orleans first introduced the bill last year, but it was sidelined due to the election. Now that it has been reintroduced, it’s moving toward a second reading.

This legislation, known as Bill 5, Stopping Harassment and Abuse by Local Leaders Act, aims to ensure municipal politicians and elected board members are held accountable for their actions.

“We’ve encountered serious cases of elected officials harassing, tormenting and abusing their staff, colleagues and residents,” Blais stated.

The bill would allow for investigations into incidents involving council or board members. If deemed serious enough for removal, a judicial review would be conducted according to the MPP.

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“(It) would create a process to remove them from office for violating those policies,” he explained.

“These are actions that should not be permittable in any workplace environment.”

This comes after several instances of abuse within municipal councils.

In Whitby in 2021, municipal councillors went public following an embarrassing hot mic incident during a meeting. At an October council gathering, one councillor allegedly body-shamed his colleague Coun. Rhonda Mulcahy while addressing her during a motion.

2:51 Whitby, Ont. councillor speaks out after inappropriate comment in meeting

During the live-streamed meeting due to the pandemic Coun. Chris Leahy remarked, “Let’s see what big Rhonda has to say.”

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The comment was immediately met with Mulcahy’s response: “Yes, thank you Coun. Leahy, let’s hear what I have to say.”