OTTAWA, ON - The mayors of Canada's biggest cities made a united call today for a new focus from federal political parties on building Canada's future through its cities.
Eighteen mayors from across the country met in Toronto at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM)' Big Cities Summit: Canada's Cities, Canada's Future. The mayors called on federal parties to work with cities to solve the economic challenges Canada currently faces.
"It's time to recognize that cities are the drivers of jobs and the economy," said Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, chair of FCM's Big Cities Mayor's Caucus. "We're telling Canadians, if a political party does not have a serious plan to work with cities, then don't be fooled, they don't have a serious plan for jobs and the economy."
The mayors called for a new era of cooperation between all orders of government, including municipal, provincial and federal to focus on Canada's most pressing challenges: jobs, the economy and our quality of life.
Mayors invited federal parties to work with them to achieve specific goals such as:
- a coordinated focus on cutting commute times, including hard targets.
- sustainable levels of infrastructure investment across all orders of government.
- a long-term plan to make housing more affordable for all Canadians
Leaders in business, labour and economics echoed this call to action. Craig Alexander, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, TD Bank Group, Paul Moist, President Canadian Union of Public Employees, Ailish Campbell, Vice President Policy, Canadian Council of Chief Executives and Don Drummond, Advisory Board Member, Eco-Fiscal Commission of Canada joined the mayors in a discussion that pointed the way to better jobs, a more resilient economy and improved quality of life for all Canadians through our cities.
"In these uncertain times, this not about what cities need, it's about what the country needs," said Mayor Robertson. "Let's strengthen the things Canada can control: proven job creators like transit, infrastructure, and housing."
The Federation of Canadian Municipalities is the national voice of municipal government representing 90 per cent of Canada's municipal population.