10-30-06, 8:55 am
TORONTO - After three years of relatively progressive municipal government, the right-wing has launched an offensive to take over City Hall and the School Board.
Mayor David Miller, elected to clean out the lobbyists and the cronyism connected to former Tory Mayor Mel Lastman, has made some improvements - more modest than many hoped. However, even these are too much for the developers, builders, corporate landlords and financial interests.
Jane Pitfield is backed by these interests, but is increasingly seen as not up to the job. Starting with a call to eliminate unions and contract out municipal jobs, Pitfield has stumbled in public debates - flip-flopping on policy while displaying temper and frustration.
Fortunately for Miller, another right-wing candidate, Stephen LeDrew, was a last minute entry, reflecting divisions in the corporate camp around Pitfield's performance.
While no cake walk is expected, Miller looks like he'll be re-elected. Provincial and federal funding for public transit, social housing, property tax reform and uploading the costs of welfare, health, housing and transit are key issues for Miller, along with waterfront development, the city airport, urban planning, and the problem of disposing of Toronto's garbage.
The new four-year term of office, pushed through by the provincial Liberals, has encouraged more candidates for Council, as well as the School Board, where the honorarium has been raised from $5,000 to $20,000 a year.
The new City of Toronto Act, which gives Council a little more taxing power, carries with it obligations to create a super powered executive body. This 'super-executive' is to make the key decisions over the city's future, while Council acts as the rubber stamp. If Council does not establish the super-executive, the province has the authority to impose it. This 'sleeper issue' needs more debate, as a continuation of the fight for civic democracy and autonomy.
Progressive candidates (and voters) are facing challenges from the right-wing. But Joe Mihevic is also up against former Mayor and civic reformer John Sewell, who played a key role in mobilizing against the Tories' forced amalgamation of Toronto. Sewell's decision to run against Mihevic, who has an excellent record on Council, is a big mistake. Rather than fighting each other, progressives should work out a division of labour so that the right-wing voices on Council are diminished.
The Campaign for Public Education (CPE) has played an excellent role, putting forward virtually a full slate of progressive candidates across the city's 22 school board wards (each school board ward is twice the size of the 44 Council wards). Comprised of parents, progressive trustees, unions, and the public, the CPE operates year round on the basis of progressive education policy and campaigns directed at the provincial government and the School Board. A key issue has been the funding formula brought in by the Tories, which the Liberals promised to fix, but haven't.
Indeed the Liberals, whose leader Dalton McGuinty campaigned to be the 'Education Premier' in 2003, are proceeding as their predecessors did with more cuts to both public and separate schools. Across the province, School Boards have said they cannot balance their budgets with the meagre provincial transfers. The biggest Catholic Boards (Toronto and Peel) have flatly refused to make the cuts and are facing provincial government Trusteeship - exactly what the Harris Tories did four years ago.
The public Toronto District School Board has also resisted the cuts, though as PV went to press the Board was considering a new packaging of the $91 million in cuts that would shift $40 million from the capital budgets to the operating budget, cut a lot of jobs by attrition, substantially increase user fees and could include the sale of assets.
Progressive Trustees Elizabeth Hill, Stan Nemiroff, Irene Atkinson, Chris Bolton, Stephnie Payne, Rick Telfer and others were expected to oppose the newly configured cuts, which change nothing but could give the appearance of a solution to the provincial funding shortfalls.
'These cuts are real, and they can't be made without huge damage to the system and to the day to day education of our students', said Hill, recognized as the leader of the left on the School Board.
Two-time Board Vice-Chair Stan Nemiroff echoed Hill's comments. 'This is smoke and mirrors aimed to help the Liberal government solve the problem of failed promises about fixing the flawed funding formula as they head into a provincial election next year,' said Nemiroff. 'Make no mistake, these cuts are going to hurt kids and the public should know that the Liberals are responsible for it.'
Hill and Nemiroff face major challenges from Liberal and Tory candidates with political machines behind them. both candidates are asking parents, supporters and friends of public education to come out and help as the race enters the final lap.
Volunteers and donations can be sent to Elizabeth Hill at 209 Oakwood Ave, Toronto, M6E 2V3,
From People's Voice
