Coun. Doug Ford now acting budget chair

The mayor’s brother, Coun. Doug Ford, will serve as the acting budget chair after Coun. Mike Del Grande quit the post earlier this week.

The budget committee voted to reappoint Ford as its vice chair at a meeting Friday morning, and he’ll serve as the acting budget chair until the executive committee appoints a new one in the coming months.

At the end of Friday’s brief committee meeting, Ford quipped: “Do we have a minute of silence for the previous chair? No, I’m only joking.”

He told the committee he has no intentions to permanently fill the budget chair position.

“I’ve always said, right from day one, I’m not chair of anything,” he said. “But I see around the table some good, qualified people … and we’re going to have a great budget year this year.”

Del Grande (Ward 39) resigned as the city’s top number-cruncher hours after council passed the 2013 budget. He had vowed to quit if council added any new spending to his budget. An extra $12 million in spending for firefighters, a student nutrition program and other programs was tacked on to the $9.4-billion operating budget.

But Del Grande said a motion for more transparency in the budget process was the “icing on the cake” in his decision to quit.

The councillor said the decision was based on personal and emotional decisions by council.

“I indicated that [they were coming from] a vindictive point of view – a personal point of view – and they voted 25-20 to do just that and I said well it’s time for me to go,” he said.

When asked about the appointment process for the new budget chair, Coun. Ford said the mayor will bounce some ideas off of the budget committee.

“Rob always believes in teamwork … and then he’ll move on [the budget committee’s] suggestions,” he said.

Del Grande is willing to return to his budget chair post if council asks him back.

“All I know is Mike Del Grande was the best budget chief we’ve ever had,” Coun. Ford said.