After a day of impassioned debate, Toronto councillors voted to oppose Premier Doug Ford’s plan to slash the size of city council, and requested that staff look for ways to take the fight to court.

“(Ford) wants us distracted. He wants us back on our heels, fighting with each other. He wants us to not notice that he’s trying to gut the things that make Toronto great,” said Councillor Gord Perks (Ward 14, Parkdale—High Park), referring to uncertainty surrounding provincial funding for safe injection sites, social housing and public transit.

Ford’s plan — which was formally tabled on Monday at Queen’s Park — would cost, not save, the city money, said Councillor Mary-Margaret McMahon (Ward 32, Beaches—East York).

“This is wrong, just plain wrong,” McMahon said. “The complicated, convoluted nightmare … of unravelling the current election and starting the next election is colossal. Who’s paying for that?”

Monday was the second day councillors debated Ford’s bombshell move to slash the number of city wards to 25 from 47 to match provincial and federal riding boundaries, after the Star first broke the news last Thursday. The city is now grappling with what this means for an October municipal election that is already underway.

With Mayor John Tory’s support but by a small majority of 24-17, council passed a motion to convey to the province its opposition to cutting wards. Council also approved a motion to ask the province to conduct a binding referendum on the issue before the election.

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Council voted to direct city staff to consider whether the 25-ward legislation is valid and constitutional, or whether it may violate the rights of citizens to fair and effective representation. Staff were asked to report back at a special meeting on Aug. 20. Former mayor David Miller is among those who have urged the city to mount a legal challenge to the province’s plan.

At Queen’s Park on Monday, Ford’s Progressive Conservative government tabled legislation outlining the change. Councillors were quick to notice that Toronto is the only city facing a cut under the Better Local Government Act.

Councillor Josh Colle (Ward 15, Eglinton-Lawrence) said the logic of reducing Toronto’s wards to match provincial and federal ridings is flawed. If the province did the same with all municipalities, many would have only one councillor.

“The lack of process stinks,” Colle said. “The process was absent, a really cynical and mean-spirited move that wasn’t well thought out.”

Most councillors didn’t agree with Ford “blindsiding” them, but were divided on what to do about it, with some ready to submit to the legislation.

“The timing was extremely bad but we need to move on, because there’s nothing the city can do,” said Councillor Lucy Troisi (Ward 28, Toronto Centre—Rosedale).

Councillor Frank Di Giorgio (Ward 12, York South—Weston) said the legislation will bring the “chaotic state” of council under control so it can deal with important issues more efficiently and stop wasting city resources.

But Perks argued disagreement in government is part of democracy. “Governments where everyone agrees are called autocracies, one rule,” he said.

Councillor Stephen Holyday (Ward 3, Etobicoke Centre), one of the most vocal supporters of the legislation, said council should follow the province’s lead and focus on helping the city run the election smoothly, rather than pick a fight it isn’t going to win.

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“We tend to do battle with other orders of government, rather than focusing on the matters at hand at council,” Holyday told reporters after the meeting. Earlier in the day, he told councillors he didn’t have a problem asking them to “work a little harder” to accommodate double the number of residents in a 25-ward system.

McMahon took issue with that: “Work harder? I am never home. I got my kids a dog in 2010. That dog doesn’t even know who I am. It’s friendlier with the postman.”

Tory released a statement saying he supports council’s motion that the municipal election for 47 councillors should proceed and that he doesn’t believe in changing the rules “in the middle of the game.”

Mayoral candidate Jennifer Keesmaat released a statement earlier in the day calling Ford’s plan a “startling swipe to democracy” and saying Tory “wasn’t there to stand up and push Toronto forward.”

With files from Jennifer Pagliaro

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