LEVY: City funds used to fight Doug Ford

Sue-Ann Levy
May 16, 2019
Torontosun.com

ouncil was doing so well this past Tuesday when they agreed to at least go along with a motion by Cllr. Stephen Holyday to only oppose the proposed cuts to public health this year -- instead of forever.

For there is an argument to be made that the cost-sharing arrangements were imposed by the province, without warning, after the 2019 city budget was finalized -- and that the city will be left scrambling to compensate for the loss in funding.

But then they had to go and also vote 16-10 in favour of using city advertising locations to advise Torontonians of the health impacts of the proposed funding cuts.

I guess that means, as Cllr. Joe Cressy and Medical Officer of Health Eileen De Villa keep insisting, letting residents know (in case they haven’t picked it up on TV or in the radio and print media) that “lives will be at risk.”

It took me until Thursday morning to get a feel from city spokesman Brad Ross where and what will be advertised.

I never did get a feel for the what. But he said the plan at the moment is to use “free” digital bus shelters (to eliminate printing costs,) and the city’s social media channels, which would involve no cost other than staff time.

“We’re still assessing whether we buy ads on Facebook and purchase promoted tweets (as well),” he said, noting the cost for this will be about $2,000.

For one thing, I’ve always had a problem with taxpayer resources being used by one level of government to fight another -- no matter whether municipal, provincial or federal.

In this particular case, the cost of using digital capabilities in bus shelters is not free, as Ross contends.

There are lost opportunity costs of not having the digital signs available for city messages that are truly needed.

And staff time (and no doubt many meetings) will be used to craft those messages.

For example, if De Villa and her fellow doctors at Toronto public health are truly concerned about saving lives, they could be using those digital bus shelters to warn people about the spread of black-legged ticks and Lyme disease in Toronto -- the subject of their press conference Thursday.

I’ve seen and written about the devastating impact of chronic Lyme disease which attacks your entire body -- the result of not recognizing the danger and treating lyme disease in its very early stages.

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There was a small measles outbreak this past week -- both cases related to travel.

Those digital signs would be better used to remind people to have their children vaccinated.

My point is, city advertising space is still propped up by taxpayers and should not be used to promote propaganda.

I don’t suppose councillors see the irony either of using staff resources to engage in advertising and social media campaigns -- and to write endless reports and political speeches too -- complaining about the impact of the cuts.

If there’s staff resources and time available, perhaps Premier Doug Ford and his provincial counterparts are right to want to cut $20-million from Toronto public health administration, as we heard this past week.

Perhaps there are too many high-priced people doing far too little.

As I’ve said before, if councillors and public health officials were smart (and understood the reality of the provincial deficit,) they’d offer to start negotiating instead of spending time in council complaining and creating new ways to bite the hand that feeds them.

We’re all getting pretty sick and tired of the hyperbole.