Sutcliffe Can’t Get Fiscal Story Right: WHOPPER WATCH
“The city’s finances are in good shape, as the city operated efficiently while finding savings amounting to a $153 million. That surplus saved every household in Ottawa $400.”
Mayor Mark Sutcliffe as translated by CTV Ottawa
Okay, first we have a fiscal crisis, now we don’t.
Can the temporary operators of the people of Ottawa’s city hall get their story straight.
So why exactly are we looking for “fairness” from the federal and provincial governments when, apparently, we don’t need the money? Or do we?
What kind of snake oil are we being sold here?
Numbers in the hundreds of millions of dollars are being thrown around like nickels by Sutcliffe and city hall.
Here’s what we know for sure … perhaps.
First, Sutcliffe said the city’s fiscal situation is a mess. Then he threw around figures in the same statement that wildly conflicted.
Now, the city’s money situation is just fine.
Pity the taxpayer who is trying to make sense of this. The city’s statements and figures defy analysis.
But the bigger question is … do the tall foreheads and politicians at city hall understand the city’s fiscal situation?
Let’s face it. Every major project this city has undertaken in recent and not-so-recent years has been botched.
If the city is playing to form, it has botched the budget as well.
So here are the two alternatives given Sutcliffe’s statement above.
- The city doesn’t have a clue about what it’s fiscal situation is, or …
- We’re being sold a load of fertilizer about a financial crisis.
Neither alternative is good.
Couldn’t we just have an adult talk about this?
Or perhaps if we had that adult talk, maybe we might discover the fiscal truth behind this real or imagined crisis.
Whatever the alternative, the city looks confused and incompetent because it probably is.
Ken Gray
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This mayor has no clue what he did or what he’s doing. I don’t think he can count two plus two and get the total of four. I saw him on TV a few times this weekend and it was like he was begging for money. It looked like he was going to cry. Then he was trying to compare what other cities received from the Federal Government and wants the same. Maybe some of those cities are smaller than Ottawa and receive more, or maybe some cities are larger and receive less. I have no idea what each city receives from the government, but for our so-called mayor to come on TV and almost cry about this is ridiculous, he sounds like a cry baby wanting his way. He should be ashamed of himself, begging for money.
Annette,
He should be ashamed of himself, period.
I’m getting into the budget docs tonight, but when they say “savings”, it does not mean actually money saved. “Savings” can mean money to be borrowed that was not spent or projects deferred (thinking of the $22M Tunnel to Nowhere from the Crazy Horse to Dymon Storage across Terry Fox Rd). I remember a few years back at a physical budget meeting, I challenged the City Financial rep that was there about a line item which was being accounted for under Accounts Receivable and it was the increase in Gas Tax promised years ago by Kathleen Wynne in the election she lost! They were literally keeping on the books an election promise from the losing party! Alan Hubley was there and he was shocked and asked for clarification from the city staff who admitted it was still there and mumbled some reason. You cannot trust their financial statements, but I will go searching for that missing $500M of e-bus infrastructure that HAS to be someplace. Ottawa could NOT have successfully budgeted $250M for infrastructure and Montreal, for a similar system, budgeted $756M. I am guessing it may be hidden in the OC Transpo budget? Wish me good luck in my hunt!