Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim says he’s taking a step back as turmoil in the Metro Vancouver Regional District continues over issues of spending and transparency.
Earlier this month, mayors who serve on various boards like the Metro Vancouver Regional District and TransLink are had their salaries called into question.
Some are earning hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, and in certain cases, more than B.C. Premier David Eby.
Eby addressed the lack of transparency during an unrelated news conference last week.
“It is disappointing to be disappointed yet again by Metro Vancouver,” he said.
Eby’s comments came after the regional district confirmed at the end of last year that a review into its spending was being done.
“I do have confidence in the independent governance review that’s underway at Metro Vancouver,” Eby added at the time. “We’ll make sure that the scope includes all aspects of governance.”
Since then, board members held a meeting, looking at where the district can cut costs amid a burgeoning financial crisis within the region. But the meeting was inconclusive.
On Monday, Richmond City Coun. Kash Heed successfully filed a motion, asking his city to prepare an annual, public report on the total compensation received by “Richmond Council members who serve on regional or provincial organizations, including but not limited to EComm911, Municipal Finance Authority, TransLink, and Metro Vancouver.”
On Thursday, Mayor Sim confirmed to 1130 NewsRadio that he would be following Heed’s lead.
“Metro Vancouver’s governance is broken. Moving forward, I will not be attending Metro meetings and supporting a system that lacks accountability,” said Sim.
“Metro Vancouver’s lack of good governance and transparency needs to be addressed. I applaud Councillor Kash Heed’s principled stand in declining his meeting stipend. Metro Vancouver’s costs to taxpayers and Vancouverites are out of control. We need real, meaningful change more than ever.”
Sim did not clarify if he too would decline his meeting stipend.
In response to Sim, Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke says she will push for changes from within the board.
Locke says that despite political differences, abandoning Metro Vancouver isn’t the responsible choice.
Locke says with all of the controversy surrounding the region’s spending, the compensation issue needs to be addressed.
“That’s part of the governance issue that I think we have to address, and we have to address that immediately. And I raised that at the last meeting. I’ve raised that before and I will make sure that we are addressing those issues because I absolutely understand that concern,” Locke said.
—With files from Charlie Carey and Sonia Aslam