Mayors concerned over use of notwithstanding clause

This week's chaos at Queen's Park — following Ontario Premier Doug Ford's decision to use the notwithstanding clause to push through his government's bill cutting the size of Toronto's city council — is resonating in municipalities across the country.

"Today they come for Toronto, tomorrow they come for you," Ajax mayor Steve Parish told The House.

"If this is allowed to pass, what is to stop this government from doing the same thing to my municipality? To London, to Ottawa, to whatever municipality in Ontario and to curtail our rights beyond elections into a lot of fundamental things that we do?"

The notwithstanding clause, officially called Section 33 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, was created as a compromise between federal and provincial levels of government during debates over the constitution in the early 1980s.

It allows premiers or prime ministers to override a judge's ruling on legislation that they determine violates a section of the charter for a five-year period.

Edmonton's mayor Don Iveson, who also serves as the chair of the Big City Mayors Caucus, questions whether Canadians understand just how vulnerable local democracies are. 

"This is a wake up call for everybody  — and time to do something about it," he said.

Mayors across Canada have been in communication ever since Ford announced in July he would be cutting the size of Toronto city council from 47 seats to 25.

"We all agreed this was a fairly bizarre jurisdictional overreach so close to an election," Iveson said.

Iveson added that he hopes all levels of government will collaboratively come to a "political" and "Canadian" consensus.