Ford's fiscal agenda is falling apart..
Totonto's budget chief backs away from Ford's tax agenda
Rob Ford’s promise to hold next year’s residential tax hike at 1.75 per cent is not realistic, says the man he picked to steer his fiscal plan.
Just days after Toronto council stripped Mr. Ford of most of his staff and power, his budget chair, Councillor Frank Di Giorgio, set the stage for the first real test of how the city’s makeshift governance model will function when budget talks begin next week. While Mr. Ford remains mayor, council’s vote Monday has handed most of his authority to deputy mayor Norm Kelly, leaving the city’s budget chair playing go-between.
Even though the budget hike will likely top 2 per cent, Mr. Di Giorgio said he is doing his best to fulfill Mr. Ford’s conservative fiscal plan.
“I think 1.75 [per cent] may be a little too demanding,” Mr. Di Giorgio said Wednesday afternoon as he cooled his heels outside the mayor’s office, hoping to get a meeting. The higher number, he insisted, is not a reflection of the recent controversy surrounding the mayor. Inflation, provincial funding cuts for social housing and a 0.5-per-cent tax increase to fund a Scarborough subway are all contributing to that hike, he said.
As for who will set the tone in the city’s coming budget debate – the weakened mayor or his newly empowered deputy – Mr. Kelly told curious reporters his new role as chair of the city’s executive committee puts him in control. Still, he said, he is hoping for a truce with Mr. Ford, who has declared war over council’s actions.
