TORONTO

“Don’t get on the field without expecting to get hit,” Councillor Doug Ford warned Councillor Jaye Robinson Friday.

Ford rolled out the tough talk during a tense face-off with Robinson at the civic appointments committee meeting.

Robinson — who Ford branded “the king of false accusations” — had been asking for Mayor Rob Ford’s brother to apologize to her for falsely claiming her absence due to illness caused the cancellation of the committee’s June 5 meeting.

In response to questions raised by Robinson, city staff confirmed that meeting went ahead, even though Ford said in several media interviews it was cancelled. Days after those remarks, Mayor Ford fired Robinson from his executive committee.

Rather than apologize to Robinson, Ford fired back at her.

“False accusations? You’re the king of false accusations,” Ford told her. “Don’t think you can dish it out and not take it — you’re famous for that.”

Ford asked committee chairman Councillor Frances Nunziata to demand Robinson retract her comments.

“Her comments going out in front of the media all the time just attacking people,” Ford said. “Don’t dish it out if you can’t take it. Don’t get on the field without expecting to get hit — remember that.”

Robinson thanked Ford for his “sage advice” and again asked him to say he was sorry.

“Not gonna happen,” Ford said. “She can stand in front of the media and start apologizing for her false accusations.”

Robinson said she’d “take other measures” — hinting at a possible code of conduct complaint to the integrity commissioner.

“Go to the integrity commissioner then,” Ford said.

Describing Councillor Ford’s latest remarks as “locker room comments,” Robinson said she wouldn’t let him intimidate her but she felt he was trying to do that.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate, I think it is unfortunate and I think it takes civic politics to a base level,” she said. “It feels like there is constant inappropriate behaviour, particularly from Councillor Ford. These kinds of comments really reduce what we’re doing here at City Hall and we want to get back to civility.”

As for Ford crowning her the “king of false accusations,” Robinson said that was “the pot calling the kettle black.”

After the meeting, Ford wouldn’t weigh in on Robinson’s claim she felt he was trying to bully her.

Before she was dumped from the executive committee, Robinson had been highly critical of Mayor Ford’s ongoing handling of drug allegations and had been calling for him to temporarily step aside.

Robinson denied Councillor Ford’s claim she had made “nasty comments.”

She believes he’s mad she voiced concerns about him speaking on the mayor’s behalf at times.

“Doug Ford is not the mayor, he is not the deputy mayor, he does not sit on executive and he continues to be the spokesperson for the mayor,” she said. “That’s something I hear about on a continual basis, that people like to hear from the mayor and not Doug Ford.”