Some councillors at Shire Hall feel left out of the loop. 

Councillor Chris Braney brought a resolution to Council May 26th directing the Mayor and the CAO to be more forthcoming with information from meetings with senior government officials.

The motion included sharing information about funding announcements, and strategic planning notes for formal delegations to Ministers and other senior officials at conferences, including the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) and the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA).

The Hillier representative also called on Council to reaffirm its commitment to the Code of Conduct and the protection of confidential information. Transparency, he noted, is predicated on the professional obligation of every councillor to prevent unauthorized disclosures.

11 of the 13 councillors present were in favour: Braney, Pennell, Prinzen, Grosso, Nieman, Roberts, Engelsdorfer, Hirsch, Branderhorst, Harrison and MacNaughton.

At issue was embargoed information about recent funding announcements. A number of councillors said privately they were disappointed they weren’t notified ahead of major announcements, such as the $44 million provincial pledge for County Road 49 and the $20 million federal investment in the Wellington Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Mayor Ferguson said he felt the resolution was directed at him specifically, and Mr. Braney concurred.

“There have been embargoed releases that should be shared with Council immediately. You have shared them with other people, with staff members, with people in your circle, before you shared them with Council. That is inappropriate,” Councillor Braney stated. 

Yet Mayor Ferguson affirmed that if requested, he has an obligation to maintain confidentiality and will continue to do so to the utmost of his abilities.

“Whether that is Council or whether it is staff or whether it is the CAO, there has been no deviation on my part from maintaining the requests that had been made by, in all cases, upper levels of government,” he explained.

The Mayor added that the municipality is placed at great risk, both reputational and material, if he does not maintain confidentiality when requested.

“I just cannot put the municipality at risk by sharing something that I have been asked not to. 

“It also runs contrary to my own principles and ethics.”

Councillor Bill Roberts supported the motion but added this wasn’t the time to be granular or personal.

“I see this as a good motion. It’s a statement of principle months away from a new Mayor and a new Council, and not one resident in Prince Edward County is unaware that we are in tough times,” he said. “It’s a good thing for an outgoing council to make a statement about. I think it’s a relevant touchstone to protect the leadership of Shire Hall.

“The resolution underscores the critical nature of relations with senior levels of government, potentially for the next four years, which is when there might be another provincial election. It is going to be existential. Believe me,” he added.