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Mid-Campaign Mayoral Candidate Report Card

Our mid-campaign report card examines what the top Mayoral candidates have said about Toronto's six Municipal Election Environmental Priorities. These priorities are endorsed by a growing list of community and environmental organizations across Toronto.

Candidate evaluations are based on remarks and statements made publicly at debates, in the media and on the candidates' websites, as well as on-the-record to us, the Toronto Environmental Alliance. 

We hope this mid-campaign report card will help guide candidates as they develop their environmental platforms. We also hope Torontonians will use this report card to discuss environmental issues with candidates. 

 

Download the report card here [pdf] or read more here.

 

 

 

Comments on Candidates

To read expanded comments on the candidates, including a list of sources click here

Rob Ford – Shows Little Interest

Rob has shown no interest in the environmental priorities. On the rare occasion when he does talk about the environment, it’s clear that he needs to spend more time studying the issues. For example, he confuses streetcars with LRTs and wants subways even where there isn’t enough density to support them. To earn a passing grade, Rob must put some time into understanding that there is more to being Mayor than complaining about Councillors’ expenses or talking about football. Read more...

Joe Pantalone – Progressing Steadily; Needs to Speak Up

Joe is doing well. His knowledge of the environmental priorities is impressive: he understands the importance of public transit and building Transit City, sustainable energy, complete streets and Toronto Hydro’s role in greening the city. However, he can improve his grade by supporting these priorities in an official platform. He is distracted by what others say and needs to focus to get his points across. For Joe to excel he must learn to speak more about the priorities. Read more...

Rocco Rossi – Shows Lack of Understanding

Rocco is unsure about the priorities. While he talks about them, his plans suggests he doesn’t understand them. His focus on subways shows he doesn’t get the environmental importance of the Transit City Plan that will bring transit to all parts of Toronto. He also doesn’t seem to realize that selling Toronto Hydro could jeopardize the City’s Sustainable Energy Strategy. Rocco needs to spend the summer studying the priorities if he hopes to do well. Read more...

George Smitherman – Shows Potential But Needs to Apply Himself

George likes to talk about the environment, but his enthusiasm doesn’t match his work to date. Compared to Transit City and the Toronto Bike Plan, his integrated transportation plan is not as good for the environment: it will take longer to build, reach fewer people and keep bike lanes off main roads. He has also mentioned the possibility of burning garbage, which harms people and the environment. For George to succeed, he needs to match his enthusiasm with solid planning to achieve a better grade. Read more...

Sarah Thomson – Eager Participant; Misses Key Lessons

Sarah is very eager and wants to do well. She acknowledges the need for blue and green bins in apartment buildings, but has no plan to get them there. She supports public transit, but her plan ignores the lessons from the past: subways don’t work in low density neighbourhoods. She also cares about cyclists but doesn’t want to build the routes they need. Sarah, like others, needs to spend the summer reviewing the priorities if she hopes to do well. Read more...

 

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TEAReportCardJuly2010.pdf763.18 KB