Mayoral candidates in brief
As mayoral elections approach, The Innis Herald has compiled the thoughts of candidates John Tory and Jennifer Keesmaat on issues of housing, transit, security, and more.
| Issues | John Tory | Jennifer Keesmaat |
| City officials should be able to evict people from social housing if they are convicted of a serious crime. | Strongly disagree
The Mayor believes criminals who are evicted from Toronto Community Housing shouldn’t be rehoused to keep communities safe. — Statement provided directly by candidate On April 26 2017, John Tory voted Yes to agenda item EX24.30, a motion to “Request provincial approval to allow TCH to permanently evict tenants”. — Provided by Council Scorecard, a project of the Urban Policy Lab |
Somewhat agree
Evicting someone because of a criminal record and putting them on the streets can do more harm than good. Rather, we need to keep them housed and ensure there are supports and services in place to keep them and the people around them safe. — Statement provided directly by candidate |
| How much should the City of Toronto spend to make repairs to city-owned social housing? |
About the same as now The City has paid their fair share of Toronto Community Housing repairs and the Mayor has said it’s time the federal and provincial governments come to the table. The federal government has allocated money through the National Housing Strategy. — Statement provided directly by candidate On July 12 2016, John Tory voted Yes to agenda item EX16.37 (M2c), a motion to “Consider budget cuts that would impact quality of life for TCHC residents”. —Provided by Council Scorecard, a project of the Urban Policy Lab On July 04 2017, John Tory voted Yes to agenda item EX26.2 (M1,1), a motion to “Direct TCHC to ensure no additional units close in 2018 or 2019”. —Provided by Council Scorecard, a project of the Urban Policy Lab On May 25 2017, John Tory voted Yes to agenda item EX25.18 (M3a), a motion to “Do not exempt anti-poverty, housing programs from 2018 budget freeze”. —Provided by Council Scorecard, a project of the Urban Policy Lab |
Somewhat more
We can’t allow more units to close due to disrepair, and we need to fix and open the hundreds of units that have been closed, but federal and provincial governments need to pay their fair share of the cost of social housing. — Statement provided directly by candidate |
|
Permanent residents who do not have Canadian citizenship should be eligible to vote in Toronto elections. |
Strongly disagree
The Mayor believes citizenship brings with it privileges and responsibilities and he has long advocated keeping voting as one of those privileges. — Statement provided directly by candidate |
Strongly agree
As well, we believe that we should find more ways for people in Toronto to be engaged in the decisions made in their city. That’s why I’ve proposed expanding community councils and participatory budgeting. — Statement provided directly by candidate |
| How many officers should Toronto have on its police force? |
Somewhat more The Mayor believes in a multi-prong approach to keeping Toronto safe that includes hiring more police officers, toughening bail and gun laws, and investing in community programs. — Statement provided directly by candidate On July 24 2018, John Tory voted Yes to agenda item CC44.14 (M3d), a motion to “Request Police Services Board to immediately hire 100 new officers”. —Provided by Council Scorecard, a project of the Urban Policy Lab |
About the same as now
I have a plan to transform Toronto’s Police Service to a neighbourhood-centred apporach, where officers are working with community agencies and residents to develop customized neighbourhood strategies to prevent and reduce crime. Police staffing will be dictated by the needs of those strategies. — Statement provided directly by candidate |
| Toronto should install more surveillance systems in public spaces. |
Somewhat agree The Mayor believes giving our police officers more technology like cameras in crime-heavy hot spots could help curb gun violence. — Statement provided directly by candidate On July 24 2018, John Tory voted Yes to agenda item CC44.14 (M1,2), a motion to “Authorize $2.6 million for “ShotSpotter” technology that detects gunshots and more surveillance cameras”. —Provided by Council Scorecard, a project of the Urban Policy Lab |
Somewhat disagree
My community safety plan is focused putting police on the streets in our neighbourhoods and collaborating with local residents to develop public safety strategies that make sense for each community. — Statement provided directly by candidate |
| The eastern section of the Gardiner Expressway should be replaced with a boulevard. |
Strongly disagree The Mayor believes in keeping the Gardiner up with the hybrid approach. It is the best way to keep our city, our people and our economy moving. It is the best option for us to continue the development of the waterfront as well as unlock billions of dollars of development and thousands of jobs. — Statement provided directly by candidate On June 11 2015, John Tory voted Yes to agenda item PW4.1 (M1c, 1), a motion to “Identify the “hybrid option” as council’s preference for the Gardiner east of Jarvis”. —Provided by Council Scorecard, a project of the Urban Policy Lab |
Strongly agree
Transforming the eastern section of the Gardiner will not only save us millions, but allow us to create better access to the Waterfront and revitalize that part of the city. — Statement provided directly by candidate |
Photo courtesy of the City of Toronto.