Municipal Round-Up — August 13: Should Acting Professionally Really Be Optional?
All the news that's fit to tweet
Your regular Rage round-up correspondent, Danielle Paradis, is taking the day off. So you’re stuck with me, dear readers, even though you surely wish you had the trademark Paradis snark rounding up your Twitter diet for the week.
This week, as parents across the province wondered what the hell they’re going to do in September thanks to COVID and all sorts of loopholes in the (thankfully) paused rollback of restrictions, there was a palpable lull in the municipal election outrage machine. Perhaps it’s the spectre of a looming federal election that will begin soon and end before the October 18 municipal vote that lowered the temperature just a touch. Or perhaps we’re in the quiet before the storm. Or maybe it’s just summer.
Whichever it is, let’s get started.
The Municipal Code of Conduct. Okay Stop Laughing. No, Really
Remember all the consequences that municipal politicians who have allegedly broken code of conduct rules face in Alberta? Of course you don’t. While the rules exist, they don’t ever seem to be put into force.
This week, the United Conservative Party government made clear it wants to make these once mandator codes of conduct optional for municipal councils, and says this is to cut so-called red tape.
And — I can’t believe I’m saying this — they may actually have a point.
Some saw the idea through a particularly partisan lens.
Endorsement Season Is Here
If you’ve followed our newsletter for a while you know we’ve looked at and even questioned endorsements in municipal campaigns. This time ‘round we’ve heard who Steve Allan, head of the public inquiry into allegedly anti-Albertan energy campaigns, thinks we should vote in as Calgary’s next mayor.
But Justice Minister Kaycee Madu took a different tack. He offered thoughts on the black community in Alberta and lent his support to candidates in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo. It was a refreshing thing to read.
Speaking of endorsements, and election signs, Elections Canada has fined The Rebel for allegedly carrying out election advertising during the last federal election even though it’s, well, not a political party.
To this (insert massive sigh here) Alberta counters with “hold my beer,” and offers the municipal elections of 2021:
Edmonton Urban Parks
While I can’t offer any takes on Edmonton’s municipal race when it comes to specific candidates (I have a day job and have to stay non-partisan), I can offer a look at what people are saying about things.
This week, Edmonton learned that Ottawa is considering adding the city’s seriously underrated river valley to its urban park network.
Here are some tweets that happened: