{"id":2685,"date":"2013-06-19T18:21:44","date_gmt":"2013-06-19T22:21:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=2685"},"modified":"2013-06-27T00:27:05","modified_gmt":"2013-06-27T04:27:05","slug":"code-of-ethics-passes-amid-criticism-over-restrictions-lack-of-punishment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/code-of-ethics-passes-amid-criticism-over-restrictions-lack-of-punishment\/","title":{"rendered":"Code of Ethics passes amid criticism over restrictions, lack of punishment"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Brock Weir<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is an issue that has been simmering on Aurora\u2019s backburner for the entirety of this Council term and a good portion of the last, but Aurora\u2019s Council Code of Conduct was formally replaced with a new Code of Ethics last week.<\/p>\n

The new document, which combines key points from both the old Codes of Conduct and Ethics, was approved 5 \u2013 3 with Councillors Chris Ballard, John Gallo, and Wendy Gaertner voting against the plan. <\/p>\n

A key difference between the Code of Ethics and the Code of Conduct is there are no specific penalties should a Councillor be in contravention of the rules, rules which cover everything from harassment to hospitality.<\/p>\n

This lack of a penalty, which some Councillors previously described as a lack of \u201cteeth\u201d, was once again voiced as one of the reasons the three Councillors voted against the new measures.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no enforcement with a Code of Ethics,\u201d said Councillor Ballard. \u201cThe thinking is the electorate ultimately makes the decision [whether Councillors are ethical or not] and that is quite accurate with who they wish to vote for and who they believe exercised ethical behaviour. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a good sentiment when Town Councils were elected for a one-year or a two-year term. Now we\u2019re in four years. Now a Councillor, if they continue to say things, or write things that damage professional reputations and the reputations of the Town and Council without risk of censor, can do an awful lot of damage over four years. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat is why I was in favour of a Code of Conduct because Councillors could be held more accountable. The Code of Ethics, we don\u2019t sign it and nothing happens.\u201d <\/p>\n

Councillors, however, voted for the new Code as a step forward. Speaking in favour of the motion, Councillor Michael Thompson questioned whether any good came from the Code of Conduct, and its penalties, including a review of Code of Conduct complaints by an appointed Integrity Commissioner.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would like to hear from those members who sat last term what positive effects they had on the behaviour of those who sat around the table,\u201d he said. \u201cThe Code of Conduct does not correct the behaviour of others.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Councillors Evelyn Buck, Gaertner and Gallo, were the three Councillors left standing after the last municipal election who could speak to whether any positives came out of it, Mayor Geoffrey Dawe cut off that trail of thought, arguing it was not relevant to the discussions around the table. <\/p>\n

Councillor Buck, however, spoke earlier in the discussions about some of her reservations surrounding the matter. Of particular concern, she said, was the provision that Councillors communicate the majority decision of Council. She said she felt that would infringe on her right to speak freely on Council\u2019s decisions whether she agreed with them or not. <\/p>\n

\u201cI have no reservations about majority rule,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I do object to [surrendering] my opinion if it is in the minority and protect the rules and attitudes of the majority. Why should I be expected to understand, if I am so utterly opposed to something, why someone else is voting in a particular way \u2013 not only understand it, but convey it to whomever I am speaking to?\u201d<\/p>\n

Mayor Dawe and Councillors such as Councillor Gaertner, disagreed with Councillor Buck\u2019s interpretation of this section, with Councillor Gaertner arguing it is simply there to ensure \u201cRespect for the decision making process.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI think you\u2019re allowed to disagree,\u201d she said. \u201cWhat you\u2019re not allowed to do is trash the decisions of Council because it is all out of respect for the democratic process of Council. That is the way I am reading this section and to me it seems fine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ethics, added Councillor Buck, are a \u201cmatter of conscience\u201d and something to which everyone has a personal definition. What might be considered ethical to some, might be wide of the mark to others. Nevertheless, Councillor Buck voted in favour of the new Code. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is where I find the business of putting into writing certain goals that should be common goals that should be achieved by nine people sitting at the table, [is unreasonable],\u201d she said. \u201cI think it is a sham and I think it is misleading to the community. Furthermore, I don\u2019t think the average person in the Town of Aurora expects any more of any of us other than we will do our best. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe knee-jerk reaction against anyone who would vote against the Code of Ethics is to say, \u2018alright, you\u2019re not in favour of being ethical.\u2019 Not so. I am very much in favour of being ethical, but I don\u2019t see a document being written like a catechism that everyone puts their signature on it creating ethics. It has not been my experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the end of the day, Council decided to go chart a new course with a new set of guidelines which were, essentially, a blast from the ethical past. Nevertheless, some viewed it as a positive step in the right direction.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is not for each of us to stand in judgement of one another,\u201d concluded Councillor Thompson. \u201cI think that is best left up to the residents. If you have not conducted yourself properly during your term of office then the issue of punishment, reprimand and consequences will take up the form of them casting a vote beside someone else\u2019s name. They are going to choose someone who will conduct themselves to the highest standards ethically.\u201d<\/p>\n\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It is an issue that has been simmering on Aurora\u2019s backburner for the entirety of this Council term and a good portion of the last, but Aurora\u2019s Council Code of Conduct was formally replaced with a new Code of Ethics last week.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archive"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3D2k4-Hj","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-17 20:22:03","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2685"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2685\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}