When Mayor Cam Guthrie took a trip to Dubai last December, to attend a summit of local governments from throughout the world, he “inadvertently” violated council’s code of conduct against accepting gifts.
That’s the finding of the city’s integrity commissioner, following a review of the matter prompted by Guthrie’s request for clarification following similar findings in other communities.
Guthrie attended the summit as a North American representative for the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM), paid for by Bloomberg Philanthropies.
“It is our opinion that the mayor was not entitled to accept payment or free arrangements for travel, accommodation and meals related to GCoM meetings in accordance with … the code (of conduct),” states the integrity commissioner’s report to council.
“The fact that the mayor is a North American director of GCoM … does not, in our opinion, alter the assessment, analysis or the determination of the matter related to gifts and benefits under the code.”
No penalty against Guthrie was recommended.
The integrity commissioner believes Guthrie accepted the gifts of travel, accommodation and meals in “good faith” in order to further the city’s climate change initiatives.
“We believe that the mayor did (violate the code of conduct) inadvertently not considering that the largesse provided by GCoM would be a personal benefit to him and contrary to the code,” they wrote.
Following Guthrie’s request for a review of the matter, the integrity commissioner’s office received a public complaint about the mayor’s trip.
The mayor also attended a GCoM event in Paris this past July, including a visit to the Summer Olympics. That trip is not mentioned in the integrity commissioner’s report. Guthrie previously told GuelphToday that voyage was also paid for by Bloomberg.
After receiving the integrity commissioner’s report, council unanimously voted to amend the code of conflict to allow for gifts such as the ones received by the mayor regarding the Dubai trip.
The motion allows for “food, lodging, transportation and entertainment provided by third-party organizations for attendance at events which are targeted to a municipal government audience' and, when the total benefit exceeds $300, require reporting in the City Council and Local Boards Gift Disclosure within 30 days.”
