If you’re lucky, then you will only ever hear from the integrity commissioner once a year when he or she delivers their annual report. But if your city council is dysfunctional, and unable to work together cordially or in good faith, then the integrity commissioner is your best friend.
This week on the podcast, we talk to the City of Guelph's Integrity Commissioner, Robert Swayze. He's acted in that capacity for the last relatively boring 11 years. In fact, this year’s report had only three items: a complaint about staff that Swayze can’t investigate, a complaint about a councillor's fence that Swayze also has no jurisdiction over, and a complaint about a council debate that Swayze ruled was "spirited" but not an incident of bullying as reported.
But the course of an integrity commissioner's life sometimes doesn't run as smooth.
It starts with the Code of Conduct, which you can read about here. It lays out the expectations for councillors and members of local boards to make sure they “charge their duties in a manner that recognizes a fundamental commitment to the wellbeing of the community and regard for the integrity of the Corporation.” When that doesn't happen, it's time to call the integrity commissioner.
So there's a lot of ground to cover. Swayze will talk about the limits of his jurisdiction, and what he can and cannot investigate. He also talks about his process, what he does when he receives a complaint, and what informs his judgment. Also, is a busy integrity commissioner a sign of a council in peril, and are the people and the media getting enough information about what goes on behind closed doors at council? Finally, Swayze will give you some insight into what it looks like when other city councils aren’t as dull as Guelph's.
So let's talk about how we keep City Council up to code on this week's edition of the Guelph Politicast!
If you should happen to have a complaint about City Council and a potential violation of the Code of Conduct, you can get all the details about how to file the complaint at the City’s website here.
The host for the Guelph Politicast is Podbean. Find more episodes of the Politicast here.
Remember that the Politicast Podbean channel is also the host for podcast versions of Open Sources Guelph. The previous Thursday’s episode of Open Sources will be posted on Mondays.
Open Sources Guelph #388 - August 18, 2022
End Credits #REPEAT - August 17, 2022
GUELPH POLITICAST #Repeat - Hey, Remember the Freedom Convoy?
Open Sources Guelph #REPEAT - August 11, 2022
End Credits #260 - August 10, 2022 (Trainwreck/X)
GUELPH POLITICAST #336 – Story Time
Open Sources Guelph #REPEAT - August 4, 2022
End Credits #259 - August 3, 2022 (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On)
GUELPH POLITICAST #335 - The Year at Council So Far...
Open Sources Guelph #387 - July 28, 2022
End Credits #258 - July 27, 2022 (Nope)
GUELPH POLITICAST #334 - Moving the Needle Downtown
Open Sources Guelph #386 - July 21, 2022
End Credits #257 - July 20, 2022 (Thor: Love & Thunder)
GUELPH POLITICAST #333 - The View from Brampton
Open Sources Guelph #385 - July 14, 2022
End Credits #256 - July 13, 2022 (The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent)
GUELPH POLITICAST #332 - Rookies No More!
Open Sources Guelph #384 - July 7, 2022
End Credits #255 - July 6, 2022 (Elvis)
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