Toronto

Toronto is Canada's largest city and the provincial capital of Ontario. Toronto's population is 2,518,772 (Statistics Canada, 2004); that of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) is 5,203,686 (Statistics Canada, 2004). Residents of Toronto are called Torontonians (in French: torontois). The city is part of the Golden Horseshoe region of Ontario--a densely populated region of around 7 million people. Approximately 23% of the Canadian population live within the Golden Horseshoe region, and about one-sixth of all Canadian jobs lie within the city limits.

Government

Torontonians elect representatives to the federal, provincial, and municipal levels of government. 22 Members of Parliament (MPs) representing Toronto sit in the House of Commons in Ottawa, and another 22 Members of Ontario's Provincial Parliament (MPPs) sit in the Legislative Assembly in Queen's Park, located in Toronto. Being Ontario's capital, many provincial offices are located in the city.

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Toronto's local government consists of 44 elected councillors (representing around 55,000 people each), who along with the mayor, make up the Toronto City Council. Toronto elects a new government every three years, in November. The City of Toronto represents the fifth largest municipal government in North America, and has an operating budget of $6.4 billion CDN.

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The current municipal government is rooted in the creation of the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto (known more popularly as "Metro") in 1954. This new regional government, which encompassed the smaller communities of East York, Etobicoke, Forest Hill, Leaside, Long Branch, Mimico, New Toronto, North York, Scarborough, Swansea, Toronto, Weston, and York, was created in light of the need for more coordination of city services. The postwar boom resulted in suburbanization, and it was felt that a coordinated land use planning strategy, as well as shared services, would be more efficient.

Related Topics:
Metropolitan Toronto - 1954 - East York - Etobicoke - Forest Hill - Leaside - Long Branch - Mimico - New Toronto - North York - Scarborough - Swansea - Weston - York

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These thirteen townships, villages, towns, and cities continued to exist independently of the regional government, and continued to provide some local services to their residents. Gradually, the Metro government began taking over management of services that crossed municipal boundaries, most notably highways, water, and public transit.

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On January 1, 1967, several of the smaller municipalities were amalgamated with larger ones, reducing their number to six. Forest Hill and Swansea became part of Toronto; Long Branch, Mimico, and New Toronto joined Etobicoke; Weston merged with York; and Leaside amalgamated with East York.

Related Topics:
January 1 - 1967

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This arrangement lasted until 1998, when the regional level of government was abolished and the six municipalities (Toronto, Etobicoke, North York, East York, York, and Scarborough) were amalgamated into a single municipality or "megacity". Many people criticized this change, which came on top of a massive "downloading" of provincial services to the municipal level, with little to no new revenue available. A plebiscite indicated that a majority of the citizens of Toronto opposed amalgamation, but criticisms were raised about the leading nature of the question asked. In Canada (and Ontario), plebiscites are not legally binding. The Province of Ontario under Premier Mike Harris had the power to ignore the result and did so. Mel Lastman, the long-time mayor of North York before the amalgamation, was the first mayor of the new "megacity" of Toronto.

Related Topics:
1998 - Etobicoke - North York - East York - York - Scarborough - Megacity - Province of Ontario - Mike Harris - Mel Lastman

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Politically, Toronto is a very liberal city by North American standards. It has been described by many experts as even the most liberal city in North America surpassing the liberal bastions of San Francisco and Boston. It is the Stronghold for the Liberal Party both federally and provincially, except in the downtown area where the NDP is strong. The Conservatives have no Toronto members in either the federal or provincial legislatures, and are not even close to the level of support the NDP and the Liberal Party earn in most ridings. While labour unions have considerable influence, they are generally not the catalyst for the liberal nature of Toronto; the high immigrant population and the strength of activist groups are the main reasons. Toronto has been a magnet for progressive, socialist and collectivist immigrants for many years, attracting such diverse immigrants ranging from British Fabians to Eastern European Marxists to US Vietnam War Draft Dodgers. Toronto is the core of support for liberal causes like same-sex marriage and interventionist policies such as gun control in Ontario (and Canada), which puts it at odds sometimes with the rural and suburban areas, and even the rest of Canada (excluding Quebec) which are far more conservative. Toronto also forms the core of support for government intervention policies such as Universal Medicare, Universal Daycare, and Canadian Content and Ownership Laws in the media. Recently, prominent federal politicians including Paul Martin and later Jack Layton (New Democratic Party (NDP) leader and for 20 years a Toronto City Councillor) began promising a "new deal for cities", and large banks began issuing papers on it. As of July 2005, signs point to some degree of awareness towards the problems facing the city by the two senior levels of governments, though willingness to address them remains uncertain.

Related Topics:
North America - Stronghold - Liberal Party - Conservatives - Labour unions - Same-sex marriage - Gun control - Paul Martin - Jack Layton - New Democratic Party - Toronto City Council

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