Two city councillors went chin-to-chin Wednesday and appeared on the brink of a physical fight in front of news cameras, during hostilities unusual even for Toronto city hall.

Apologies later restored a semblance of peace, but the fireworks appear almost certain to reignite Thursday morning, when the city ombudsman presents her report that triggered the confrontation.

Councillor Gord Perks (Ward 14, Parkdale-High Park) stormed up to colleague Giorgio Mammoliti (Ward 7, York West) shortly after Mammoliti started to talk to reporters at the back of the council chamber.

Mammoliti was explaining why he voluntarily left his council seat rather than be ejected for refusing to apologize after telling council that Fiona Crean’s report released last week is “politically driven.”

The report says political interference compromised the process for appointing citizens to the boards of city agencies. Without naming him, it described a scene in which Mammoliti verbally lashed staff for pointing out an apparent conflict of interest held by a nominee he favoured.

As Mammoliti started to talk to reporters, Perks, apparently furious that Mammoliti had not actually left the council chamber, shouted: “Shame on you, shame on you. Get out of this chamber. You’re a bully.

“You said you were leaving the chamber, leave the chamber. You’re a bully, you’re trying to destroy the public service in this city, get out of here.”

Mammoliti held his ground, telling Perks: “Don’t touch me. I will defend myself if you touch me. Please get away from my space.”

When Perks again accused Mammoliti of bullying the civil service, Mammoliti snapped: “I think that you are bullying me right now so please stop.”

Perks left with the parting shot: “You are destroying the public service in this city …”

Amid the uproar, council was suspended for about 20 minutes. A city hall security guard hovered nearby, apparently in case the councillors returned.

After the lunch break, Perks, a left-wing firebrand and former Greenpeace campaigner, apologized to council for sparking the confrontation.

Mammoliti, a former NDP MPP who took a hard turn to the political right — and often eagerly defends Mayor Rob Ford — accepted the apology but said Perks has “a track record of anger-management issues.”

Mammoliti told council he still believes the report is politically driven, but he was referring to the motives of the city staff who talked, under oath, to Crean’s investigator, not to those of the ombudsman herself.

“If anybody has misconstrued or has taken that out of context, then I apologize. But I assure that those that have spoken to her that have been political, I will get to the bottom of it,” Mammoliti said.

The ombudsman told council her report is not political; that her mandate is to review actions of city staff, not the mayor or council.

“I do not have jurisdiction over council,” she said, but can point out when “political direction is at odds” with staff responsibilities.

Crean, who was in the council chamber at the time of the confrontation, said she had no doubt Mammoliti was trying to intimidate her “but I'm not intimidated.”

She added she had no reason to disbelieve more than 40 people interviewed for her report. “When you find that five people said this and one person said that, then you make your own assessment of credibility.”

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Ford rejected her findings last week, saying he has “actually cleaned up the process.”

Crean is scheduled to present her report to council at 9:30 a.m. Thursday.

Mafia figures find refuge in Ontario, Italian police warn