Mississauga mayor McCallion in conflict of interest, judicial inquiry finds
Posted October 3, 2011 5:42 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
MISSISSAUGA – Mississauga Mayor Hazel McCallion said she will not resign after a judicial inquiry probing conflict-of-interest allegations found, “significant concerns” with her involvement in a failed land deal that would have made her son peter a very rich man.
The inquiry investigating allegations of conflict of interest against McCallion was released, Monday.
The report found she was in a conflict of interest when she promoted a hotel and convention centre land-deal involving a company partly owned by her son, Peter.
The Mayor has claimed she did not know her son had an ownership stake.
“If I had known what I know now through the enquiry, I certainly would not have gotten involved in the process. There’s no question about it,” said McCallion.
She said this was about getting a convention centre, not about making millions for her son.
“I really believe that the citizen of Mississauga have confidence that I’ve always put Mississauga first,” said McCallion.
Former Councillor Carolyn Parrish, who pushed for the inquiry, said she does not buy it.
“She has blurred the lines between family and city and I think her son’s benefit from what she did has been long standing,” said Parrish.
Commissioner J. Douglas Cunningham concluded McCallion should have known her son’s interest extended beyond acting only as a real estate agent.
He also found the mayor knowingly used her public office and her relationship with the landowner to influence them to agree to concessions to gain financially if the deal succeeded.
“A member of council cannot promote the financial interests of family members and must avoid any appearance of impropriety,” said Cunningham.
Here are some highlights from the report:
- The mayor acted in the face of a clear conflict of interest and used her influence of her office in her executive role, not legislative role
- The mayor had an obligation to make further inquires to her son to fully understand the nature of his interests
- The mayor has an obligation to keep council informed on her private interventions on WCD’s behalf
- The mayor’s involvement created uncertainty for the vendors and ultimately led to unnecessary costs.
- The judge doesn’t accept the mayor’s answer that her actions were done for the benefit of Mississauga when her son stood to make millions if deal was concluded.
McCallion will not be facing any sanctions because she was not in conflict of the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act, which is what governs municipal governments.
The Justice found her in conflict of common law principals, and that is why the commissioner wants Act changed.
McCallion said she supports the recommendation to amend the act.
“We have laws to clearly indicate to people as to what they should do or should not do. Now Mayor and members of council should have the same guidelines,” said McCallion.
The inquiry, which took almost two years and is estimated to have cost around $7-million, suggested substantive legislative reforms are necessary at the provincial level.
The report also proposed changes to the Mississauga code of conduct and makes an attempt to define a role for an integrity commissioner in Mississauga.
