A commentary by the vice-chair of Grumpy Taxpayer$ of Greater Victoria, a citizens’ advocacy group for municipal taxpayers.
Since the idea of a governance review began several years ago, a deliberate tactic of deny, delay and defer by the majority of the outgoing Victoria council unfortunately brought taxpayers no closer to improving how the municipality is managed.
All but one member of the old council has left on their own volition, in that case a veteran councillor finishing far down in the polls. So this historic sea change brings with it a wonderful opportunity to seize the day, exercise some courage and restore our faith in the governance process.
The outgoing administration in one of its last acts voted to refer the decision on the landmark MNP Governance Review Report to a committee-of-the-whole meeting of the new council in January 2023.
It should be their first order of business.
The delays in dealing with the MNP Governance Review Report — the most important report to come out of city hall in several administrations — and its 30 recommendations comes as no surprise.
It was highly critical of the outgoing council only months prior to the fall election. A failed attempt to discredit the findings by criticizing the methodology went nowhere. The public has acknowledged those failing publicly and at the polling booth.
At this point, a timeline is instructive.
The City of Victoria’s 2018-2022 Strategic Plan included a “high-level priority item” of Good Governance and Civic Engagement, along with a 2021 action to complete a governance review. The last review was done a decade ago.
Finally, in October 2020, a motion passed to proceed with the initiative and set terms of reference, a budget, public consultation, workshops and so on. But for some reason, after months of consultation and discussion, the report deadline was set just a few months prior to the fall election.
Sure, the pandemic didn’t help matters, but look at the purposeful delays.
Council received the Governance Review Report about two weeks before the council meeting on July 27, according to MNP. While council voted to accept the report, they then deferred it seven weeks to the committee-of-the-whole meeting Sept. 7. There was then a further postponement to Sept. 29.
The damning review of the city governance structures and processes by business consultants MNP made 30 recommendations on how the City of Victoria could become more efficient, effective and inclusive.
Recommendations include adopting a code of conduct, appointing an integrity commissioner, developing a policy on council’s role in matters beyond core responsibilities, and increasing transparency about the City Family. It suggested greater focus on the strategic plan and managing agendas better.
A Sept. 29 motion for staff to provide advice and options for the new council on the MNP recommendations was defeated 4-4. The deciding vote was former Coun. Sharmarke Dubow, who was absent, having curiously left the meeting prematurely. It was then tabled again, this time to the new committee-of-the-whole in January 2023.
Not all mayoralty or council candidates even know about the landmark Governance Review Report and its important recommendations. It has lessons for all the new councils around the South Island.
It’s troubling that the election platform of the mayor-elect has no reference to improving governance in the City of Victoria. Despite the significance of the MNP report, no related press release was ever issued nor the review itself even posted to the document section of the city website.
The findings of the report demand that the new city council and its new leader begin fundamental changes to how the city is governed. But it remains to be seen if they will take this high-level analysis to heart and act on the concerns of residents.
This newspaper ran a recent opinion piece on the top 10 challenges ahead for your municipal government by Kirk Lapointe, publisher and editor-in-chief of Business in Vancouver and vice-president, editorial, of Glacier Media, which points to everything from inflation to the pandemic as shared priorities and challenges going forward.
A greater and more important challenge, though, is the failed governance structure (not to mention dated underlying municipal legislation and a disinterested provincial government). It will continue to stifle and hamstring any progress dealing with these issues.
The findings of this highly credible independent source confirm our concerns about local government during these past seven years. Council is urged to set aside their ideological leanings and embrace the Governance Review Report, press reset and carry on.
Send voters a clear and reassuring message that something has been learned after the past few years, and that the new council will do business differently.
