City books going for review

Brampton Mayor Linda Jeffrey has urged residents to brace themselves for a special in-depth review of the city’s books coming out later this week.
Former provincial auditor Jim McCarter was hired by council last month at Jeffrey’s urging under one of the several accountability measures listed by the new mayor
during her inaugural address last month after taking over the reins from scandal-plagued former mayor Susan Fennell.
“We are going to find out how the city managed its books, and my sense is we are going to hear some news that is going to be difficult to swallow,” Jeffrey told media after meeting with Premier Kathleen Wynne, where she discussed the urgent need for all-day GO Train service to Brampton.
Jeffrey said the previous administration had assured the Brampton public the city’s books were in good shape, but she has discovered that nothing could be further from the truth.
Jeffrey said McCarter, who is being paid $50,000, told her last week that the report was being printed, and “I suspected there is debt, but he also offers a snapshot of where we are and where we could be and some advice on a go-forward basis.”
The investigation into Brampton’s finances is just one of the probes either ongoing or about to be launched. Jeffrey has asked Ontario ombudsman André Marin to conduct a probe of the city’s practices, given that he has new powers to investigate municipalities after the passage of Bill 8 in December.