...especially when the mesage is give me, give me.
Chris Selley: All-nighter didn’t shed any light on budget process
"a parade of angry union bosses, troubled interest groups and alarmed residents"
Lawrence Solomon: KPMG’s timid Toronto cuts
Few taxpayers would notice any diminution of service
By Lawrence Solomon
‘Even if city council votes for a fraction of the several hundred millions of dollars in suggested cuts, the cuts suggested by city-hired consultants KPMG could transform the city,” the Toronto Star warned last week in an article about proposed budget cuts under Toronto Mayor Rob Ford.
Added Gord Perks, a municipal Councillor and Ford critic: “These cuts would change Toronto from a city that is great to live in to a city that no one would want to live in.” Hundreds of Torontonians turned out to City Hall Thursday to plead with Mayor Ford and the rest of city council to spare city services.
In fact, the potential cuts that KPMG laid out are just what you’d expect from a consulting group inspired by accountants: cautious and uninspired. If Mayor Ford adopted most of the cuts, few Toronto taxpayers would notice any diminution of service, some would see an actual improvement in service, and all would benefit from a lower-taxed, more vibrant city. As an added benefit, Torontonians would learn lessons in independence and responsibility.
Many of the KPMG cuts fall into the spoonfeeding category. Does the Toronto municipal government really need to take animals to the pound when owners tire of their pets? Or to run a “toxic taxi” service to pick up paint cans from residents unwilling to dispose of them on their own? Or to send cleanup crews out after neighbours or local businesses have a street party? Or to perform any number of other conveniences — from running an employment agency to providing daycare — that the private sector does more efficiently and at lower cost?
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Passage on an urban graveyard train
Toronto’s business-minded mayor needs to be reminded that there are two sides to a ledger – expenses and revenue
...how many of those making presentations to the Executive Committee suggested raising property taxes, city imposed fees, etc.
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