Mayor says failure to disclose double double ought to get councillors in trouble
Bartley Kives | CBC News | Posted: February 7, 2018 4:22 PM | Last Updated: February 7, 2018
Brian Bowman amends council code of conduct to remove minimum value for declaring gifts
Mayor Brian Bowman wants every member of council to disclose every gift they receive, even cups of tea or coffee.
On Tuesday, Winnipeg's mayor convinced members of his inner circle to amend a component of city council's new code of conduct to require the disclosure of gifts of any value.
The code of conduct authored by Sherri Walsh, the City of Winnipeg's integrity commissioner, would have required members of council to disclose any gift worth more than $50.
At Tuesday's executive policy committee meeting, the mayor amended this plan to require gifts of any size to be disclosed. The mayor later told reporters this would ensure councillors do not enjoy daily $45 lunches paid for by other parties.
"I think the public is being well served by being more open and transparent," the mayor said.
CBC News then asked the mayor whether it makes sense for members of council to tell the integrity commissioner every time some other party buys them a $1.91 medium double double from Tim Hortons.
"I would not take a double double because I'm lactose intolerant. But look, if you're asking me how low is the threshold, I think it should be zero," Bowman said.
The mayor suggested members of council would take pictures of their gifts and disclose who purchased them.
City council votes on the amended code of conduct on Feb. 22.