Mayor Scott Gillingham will ask City Council to formally request changes to the City of Winnipeg Charter that would give Council better tools to respond when an elected official faces serious criminal charges or convictions.
“Winnipeggers have a right to expect a high standard from the people they elect to public office,” said Gillingham. “We also have to respect the presumption of innocence and the democratic choice of voters. Right now, provincial legislation gives Council very little ability to balance those two principles when serious circumstances arise.”
Under the current City of Winnipeg Charter, a councillor automatically forfeits their seat following conviction for certain criminal offences and in several other narrowly defined circumstances. But Council itself has very few tools to respond when serious circumstances arise before a criminal case has been resolved.
Several members of Council have raised concerns about those limitations and called for changes to the Charter.
“Being charged with an offence is not the same as being convicted, and politicians should never have an unrestricted power to remove another democratically elected representative,” said Gillingham. “But right now, the law gives us almost no middle ground. We need reasonable options that protect public confidence while also protecting due process and the democratic rights of voters.”
Gillingham will ask Council to formally request that the Province undertake a cross-jurisdictional review of how other Canadian municipalities and provinces address these circumstances and amend the City of Winnipeg Charter in three areas:
- Modernize the rules governing criminal convictions, including a review of which serious criminal convictions should automatically disqualify someone from continuing to hold municipal office.
- Create temporary measures for exceptional circumstances while serious criminal charges are before the courts. Those measures could include temporary removal from all committees and boards, mandatory remote participation in Council and committee meetings, or, in the most serious circumstances, administrative leave.
- Review eligibility rules for municipal candidates, including whether there should be additional restrictions or safeguards for individuals facing specified serious criminal charges at the time of an election.
Gillingham said any changes should be carefully defined and include strong safeguards to protect due process and democratic rights. Options for temporary restrictions could include limiting them to specifically defined serious criminal charges, requiring approval by at least two-thirds of all members of Council, and requiring Council to periodically review any restrictions that are imposed.
“This isn't about having politicians decide whether another politician is guilty or innocent. That's the job of the courts,” said Gillingham. “It's about making sure Council has reasonable tools to deal with extraordinary circumstances while that process takes place.”
Gillingham welcomed comments from Premier Wab Kinew this morning that the legislation should be reviewed following the municipal election. Gillingham plans to introduce a notice of motion at September’s Council meeting, allowing the newly elected Council to consider the proposal when it takes office in November.
“I appreciate that the Premier agrees the legislation should be reviewed. By bringing this forward in September, we can put the issue on the table now while leaving the final decision to the new Council in November,” Gillingham explained. "If Council supports it, we can then put a clear request in front of the Province.”