Category: Canadian Politics

Mayor Ford’s troubles a lesson for all Canadian mayors

Canadian Politics / Collingwood / Municipal PoliticsLeave a comment

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On days like this, Toronto Mayor Rob Ford must be banging his head against the wall. This week he – and indeed every Canadian mayor – was reminded that a mayor’s powers are limited to a single vote. That point was driven home when Councillor Joe Mihevc asked for a legal opinion on Ford’s unilateral decision to kill the Transit City plan, in December 2010, without consulting council. Mihevc also claimed Ford did not have the authority to sign a memorandum of understanding with the province to spend money from the Transit City project to put the proposed Eglinton LRT … click below for more ↓

The return of measles a threat to us all

Canadian Politics / Science & TechnologyOne Comment

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Here’s a scary fact: measles seems to be returning to the West. There has been a rise in the number of outbreaks in the last few years, including in Canada: Quebec and recently in London, Ontario. According to the Middlesex-London Health Unit, there have been recent outbreaks of both measles and mumps in many countries, including, “US states (including New York), United Kingdom, New Zealand, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, France, Serbia, Macedonia, Turkey, Peru, Guatemala, Congo, Zambia, Bangladesh and India.” So why are these diseases coming back? It seems it’s not because science has failed us. It’s not because the diseases … click below for more ↓

Politically Speaking: new book on media relations

Canadian Politics / Collingwood / Municipal Politics / Personal ReminiscencesLeave a comment

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I am pleased and proud to announce that my first of two books for Municipal World has been published. Politically Speaking is a guide to media relations for municipal politicians and municipal staff. Of course the advice and strategies I suggest are applicable to other levels of government as well. My goal was to provide some basic guidelines on how to deal with the media, but also to encourage municipalities to create proper communications policies. There is a video interview about the book here: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJxskjgJwv4] My next book is similar, about social media and municipal use (politicians and staff). It was a bit … click below for more ↓

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