Before You Vote: Important Facts to Know About the Incumbents You May Be Considering

Several residents have asked me about gifts accepted by members of Council. I looked into it, and when Councillor Robinson pointed out an error in my first version of this story, I went back to the source documents. Here is what they show.

What the complaint alleged

In June 2023, a Pickering resident filed a complaint with the City's Integrity Commissioner against Mayor Kevin Ashe and Councillors Lisa Robinson, Linda Cook, Mara Nagy and Shaheen Butt. The complaint alleged that, in March 2023, the four councillors received gifts over the Code of Conduct limit, in tickets to Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto Raptors games “courtesy of business donors.”

The amounts alleged in the complaint were $3,350 for Councillor Robinson, including Leafs and Raptors tickets and a Premier's gala, and $600 each for Councillors Cook, Nagy and Butt. These were allegations. The Integrity Commissioner did not confirm the individual amounts.

What the Code of Conduct says

Pickering's Code of Conduct says a member of Council shall not accept a gift worth more than $500, or more than $500 in total from any single source over 12 months. Some events are exempt, such as charity fundraisers and events attended in an official capacity. Any gift over $200 must be disclosed to the City Clerk within 30 days.

The Code also gives Council real remedies when the rules are broken. A member can be directed to return a gift, repay its value, or forfeit it to the City.

What the Integrity Commissioner found

The Integrity Commissioner, Principles Integrity, closed the complaint in a letter dated August 23, 2023. It found that “some members of Council have accepted gifts which did exceed, albeit only nominally in some cases, the values set out in the Code provision,” and that “one member in particular appeared to have been acting on erroneous advice that led them to circumvent proper reporting.” The letter does not name which members.

The Commissioner found that filing a disclosure statement after the 30-day deadline was a “technical breach” that did not warrant an investigation and public report. On the gifts themselves, the Commissioner chose training over investigation, pointing to a Council training session held on June 26, 2023, and closed the file with “no further action.” None of the Code's remedies, such as returning or repaying gifts, were applied.

To be fair to those involved, the Commissioner noted that members expressed regret, and some offered to donate to charity the amount by which their gifts went over the limit.

“Entertainment-based influence and relationship building have no place in lobbying the public sector.”

From a Toronto Lobbyist Registrar report quoted in the Integrity Commissioner's 2023 training for Pickering Council.

What the 2023 disclosure records show

The figures below are the 2023 totals for gifts and benefits disclosed by each member of Council, as cited by Councillor Robinson from the City's disclosure statements. They are totals for the whole year, from all sources. A large total doesn't on its own mean a member broke the rules, because the limit applies per source and some events are exempt.

• Mayor Kevin Ashe: at least $3,300
• Councillor Lisa Robinson: $2,750
• Councillor David Pickles: $2,000.41
• Councillors Shaheen Butt, Linda Cook and Mara Nagy: $1,600 each
• Councillor Maurice Brenner: $1,500

Councillor Robinson's response

Councillor Robinson says she has declared no gifts or benefits for 2024, 2025 or 2026 to date, and that she tried to bring forward a motion to stop the Mayor, Councillors and City staff from receiving gifts and benefits, but no one would second it. If that's right, credit to her. It's the right idea, and I would have seconded it.

Why it matters

In 2023, Pickering's Mayor and Council disclosed more than $14,000 in gifts and benefits. The Mayor topped the list. When the Integrity Commissioner found that gifts went over the limit, the result was training and no further action. A rule with no consequences isn't much of a rule.

Gifts and campaign donations are two different things, but they raise the same question: who has our elected officials' ear? As I set out in my earlier report, Buyer Beware, several incumbents also said they would accept campaign donations from people in the development industry.

What I'll do as Mayor

• Ban gifts, tickets and hospitality from anyone with business before the City, including applicants, lobbyists and contractors.
• Publish every member's gifts and disclosures in one plain-language, searchable place on the City's website, kept up to date.
• Use the remedies the Code already has, so gifts over the limit are returned or repaid.
• Bring forward a review of the Integrity Commissioner process so decisions are independent, timely and consistent, with public reasons.
• Take zero developer donations myself, as I have throughout this campaign.

Check the record yourself

The City's Integrity Commissioner page lists Code of Conduct reports and links to Council members' gift and benefit disclosure statements. The Clerk's Office can provide individual statements on request.

My full plan for transparency at City Hall: shaunrickardformayor.ca/platform

Sources

• Principles Integrity, Integrity Commissioner for the City of Pickering, letter closing the 2023 gifts complaint, August 23, 2023
• City of Pickering, Integrity Commissioner and disclosure statements
• INdurham, “Gifts given to Pickering Councillors in March deemed not enough for investigation,” August 2023
• Shaun Rickard for Mayor, “Buyer Beware: Developer Campaign Donations”