Candidate would give Vernon louder voice on provincial issues

Sep 22, 2022 | 11:47 AM

One of the candidates seeking the mayor’s chair in Vernon this fall has outlined his plan to give Vernon a bigger voice in efforts to lobby for changes at the provincial level.

Scott Anderson, a current city councillor, issued a news release today (Sept. 22), saying many of the problems the city faces are not within their jurisdiction to fix.

“In the case of crime, we can enforce bylaws, but little more. Drug policy, affordable housing, the courts, doctors, health, police, even the highways through downtown, are all under senior government jurisdiction. That’s why it frustrates people when they look to local politicians to fix things, but they can’t,” Anderson, a current city councillor stated.

Anderson, who is up against incumbent Victor Cumming and Erik Olesen in the Oct. 15th election, added that despite the jurisdictional challenges, municipalities can use political pressure to make change at the provincial level.

“It doesn’t really matter which problem we’re trying to bring attention to because leveraging the position of mayor to make council’s voice heard can make change at senior government. It doesn’t have to be oppositional, and in fact it’s better not to be oppositional, but we’ve seen it work in those rare instances that mayors use the platform that way.”

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If elected, Anderson is willing to work with his council colleagues under the ‘weak mayoral system’ Vernon uses. In a weak-mayor system, the mayor has no formal authority outside the council; the mayor cannot directly appoint or remove officials, and lacks veto power over council votes.

“Unlike the executive powers of a mayor in a city like New York, with which the mayor can veto council resolutions and, by which, the mayor holds significant power over administration, in the weak system, mayors have no more real power than any other councillor. He or she is just one vote amongst seven for the purpose of voting, no more and no less,” Anderson said.

The mayoral hopeful, who is also a local business owner, said many inexperienced mayors come into the job thinking they’ll have executive power.

“And when they find out how it really works, they spend the next four years trying to figure out how to be a mayor.”

Anderson believes the mayor and council members have to work together to achieve success under this system.

“Leadership means different things to different people. But in my opinion in this case, it means getting to ‘yes’ on important issues, and that means compromise, as well as trying to maintain a collegial council chamber in which every voice is heard,” said Anderson. “For example, if I’m elected I’ve asked Councillor Fehr to co-sponsor a joint motion asking the province to expedite addiction and mental health treatment…something everyone on council can agree on. I’ll be looking for those areas where most or all councillors can agree because that’s the only way we’re going to get things done.”

Anderson said mayors also have to perform ceremonial duties and work with regional partners, but he would also push to form more provincial alliances

“One of the good things about the weak mayoral system is that a fourth opportunity exists that few mayors ever discover and fewer still use, and that’s to leverage the mayor’s chair to form alliances across the province similar to what the Council of BC Urban Mayors has done,” said Anderson. “This amplifies our collective municipal voices and if enough municipal voices are heard, the province pays attention.”

Anderson, a former leader of the BC Conservative Party, points to the BC Urban Mayor’s Caucus as an example of an effective lobby group, and he would look into if Vernon could be included. If not, however, he said a mayor can use their platform even without collective action

The two-term councillor went on to say that any mayor in a weak mayoral system must have permission from council to speak for the city, but he is confident he can work with anyone on Vernon’s current council, and with anyone new, assuming they’re willing to engage in a reasonable spirit of compromise.

“The current council works extremely well together, despite differing opinions and world views. This 2018-2022 term has been characterized by a lack of toxicity and a collegial atmosphere amongst councillors, and right now we have a seasoned powerhouse of a council in my opinion. All we’ve been lacking is leadership, and as mayor I’ll work with each and every one of the councillors.”

Vernon Matters invites Vernon’s two other mayoral candidates to offer their comments on what Anderson has said, or to provide more details on their platforms in news releases.

by Pete McIntyre

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