Coun. Jan Harder broke code of conduct, integrity commissioner rules
The Integrity Commissioner is recommending long-time councillor Jan Harder be removed from the planning committee for violating the councillor Code of Conduct.
In a report for Council, Robert Marleau concludes Harder violated Section 4 of the code by hiring the daughter of an Ottawa developer to work in her office and her relationship with the developer. Marleau also said Harder violated Section 13 of the Code of Conduct by not disclosing unpaid work from the developer's company between contracts.
Council will vote Wednesday on the recommendations in the Integrity Commissioner's report. Marleau also recommends suspending Harder's pay for 15 days.
The Integrity Commissioner's report says a member of the public filed a formal complaint in April 2020 alleging that coun. Harder violated the Code of Conduct for Members of Council, alleging a "triangular' relationship between Harder, President of the Stirling Group Jack Stirling, and Stirling daughter's, who served as a councillor's assistant in Harder's office.
Harder told the investigation she had known Stirling for 23 years, and considered him a friend and mentor with respect to planning matters.
Stirling's daughter, Alison Clarke, worked in Harder's office from Aug. 14, 2017 to July 20, 2018. The investigator's report said Clarke then worked as a contractor for the Stirling Group, working with Harder's office.
Harder told the investigator, "I always ensured that Alison Stirling not only had no input on applications with which her father Jack was associated, but that she simply didn't see them. Her employment was always made known to the public, and was fully transparent."
The Integrity Commissioner retained the services of an independent investigator to complete the investigation.
Marleau's report said Harder's relationship "tainted the city's planning and development process."
"I have decided that strict sanctions are warranted in this case."
Harder has been a councillor since 1997, and has served as chair of the Planning Committee since 2014.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.