Waterloo regional council reverses decision on lifetime benefits
Waterloo regional council has scrapped a plan that would have given councillors health benefits for life.
On Tuesday, councillors voted unanimously to rescind the decision made by the previous council last month.
The Nov. 8 vote, which passed 9-7, would have seen retired councillors aged 55 years and older receive benefits completely paid for by the region until death. Councillors would have been eligible after serving a single term.
The decision was followed by public backlash and a promise from the new council to undo the decision.
Along with reversing the decision Tuesday, council also agreed to follow the traditional process and have a citizen advisory committee recommend a compensation package.
Coun. Michael Harris brought the motion. After initially voting in favour of the program, he now says it was a mistake, and it’s time to move on.
"We want to get the best and brightest people coming to the table, but let’s leave that to the citizens panel to come back and have at look at it. Politicians should not be setting their own wage. We take recommendations from the citizen committee which this council has now asked to be done," he said.
Council also agreed that when they do get around to figuring out the benefits package for councillors, the lifetime plan paid entirely by the region approved last month will be off the table.
On Monday, seven councillors who voted in favour of the plan released a statement saying they regret the way the situation unfolded and it was not their intention to discuss it so close to the end of term.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.