Council narrowly approves up to $120K for security on their private homes
Calgary City council has narrowly passed a motion that will allow each sitting member of council to be reimbursed up to $8,000 to purchase and professionally install security systems for their private residence.
The motion also allows for council to be reimbursed $100 monthly for monitoring that system.
This comes as Mayor Jyoti Gondek and Ward 9 councillor Gina-Carlo Carra were recently visited by anti-mandate protestors this month.
The motion was brought forward by administration and city manager David Duckworth on Tuesday.
Duckworth told council that more protests are expected in the future and could ‘get worse.’
Council were at odds with one another over the debate with seven councillors voting against the motion. The mayor had the deciding vote.
Councillor Dan McLean and others who voted against the motion believe this is the job council signed up for when running for public office, and that security expenses should be paid for by each member, and not with taxpayers money.
One political scientist believes this is money well spent by council.
“I think it’s a sign of the times, I think a number of city councillors, by this vote have indicated that they are frightened,” said Keith Brownsey, political scientist with Mount Royal University.
“If you have children, you’ve got a private life that is sacrosanct. You don’t go near that as a protester. You just don’t.”
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation believe council should not be making compensation decisions.
“What councillors and politicians shouldn’t be doing is making these knee jerk reactions in whatever is happening in the news of the day,” said Alberta director Kevin Lacey.
“Politicians shouldn’t be voting themselves their own expenses and benefits. That should be done by a citizens committee at an arms length.”
The motion also sees administration incorporate future expenses through this program between 2023-2026.
Councillors Chu, Sharp, Chabot, Dhaliwal, Wong, Wyness and McLean all voted against the motion.
Several councillors have said they will not opt to use any of the money for their home.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.