The following article appeared in the March 22 edition of the Guelph Mercury:
Veteran city councillor Maggie Laidlaw has apologized to her colleagues after she was caught on television uttering a derogatory remark about a fellow councillor.
Laidlaw on Sunday responded to an email sent by Mayor Karen Farbridge to the rest of council on March 4; one day after councillors passed the 2011 budget following two evenings of sometimes-heated deliberations.
Farbridge said Monday she sent the email after hearing from citizens they were upset about a council member calling a colleague a vulgar name during the televised deliberations.
“While your microphone might be off, your comments, either mouthed or spoken, can be understood by viewers,” Farbridge wrote. “This not only reflects badly on the individual but on council as a whole.
“There will always be times when we do not agree with the perspective or vote of one of our colleagues. I would ask that we not make derogatory comments about our colleagues whether the microphone is on or not.”
Coun. Ian Findlay posted the mayor’s email, along with Laidlaw’s response, on his popular blog Sunday.
In her response, Laidlaw wrote she had been out of the country for 10 days “and wasn’t aware until I returned today that there was an issue involving me, related to budget night.”
The councillor wrote she was “unexpectedly ‘on camera’ when I mouthed a somewhat derogatory expression in a brief moment’s discussion with Coun. (June) Hofland.
“I had not expected to be on camera at the time, as someone else was addressing an issue and I would have expected the camera to be on that person,” Laidlaw wrote. “Nevertheless, the expression was certainly inappropriate for council chambers, regardless of whether it was actually stated or just ‘mouthed,’ and I apologize to my council colleagues, and to the mayor, for any embarrassment this has caused.”
On Monday, Farbridge said she considered the issue concluded, noting Laidlaw has apologized for language used “in what she felt was a private conversation, but obviously wasn’t private.”
At least one avid council-watcher isn’t prepared to let the issue go so easily.
“The council chamber is more than a place where people gather,” said Craig Chamberlain, who challenged Laidlaw and Hofland for a Ward 3 seat in last October’s election. “It’s a symbol of democracy and it requires a certain decorum.”
Laidlaw could not be reached for comment Monday.
But the caught-on-tape comment was just one issue stirring up controversy for the councillor since budget night.
Laidlaw has also attracted a lot of heat for revealing during the deliberations she had used Google’s online Street View feature to look at the homes of some constituents who had emailed asking that she keep taxes down, suggesting she disregarded the wishes of those who appeared to be well-off.
In a subsequent letter to the editor, Laidlaw wrote she is “tired of pussy-footing around people who are, selfishly, only interested in themselves” and that she has “grown somewhat cynical about the human race’s ability to show empathy.”
On Monday, Farbridge said while she would not use the Google feature for such purpose, it is up to individual council members to decide how to “provide context” for some of the feedback they receive from the community.
The mayor said she is more concerned about “generalizing what’s in the hearts and minds of people” based on the results of such online research.
But Farbridge said there will always be residents who do not feel their views or opinions were given enough weight in the political process, noting while she tries to consider all views “at the end of the day I have to make a decision and I try to make a decision based on what’s best for the community as a whole.”
Chamberlain said he was troubled by Laidlaw’s admission she puts little weight on the views of some residents.
“There is an expectation on the part of the electorate to feel represented by their councillor,” he said. “This whole thing suggests to me (Laidlaw) might not be an effective political representative right now.”