Comment 399 – comments and feedback

John Tory, Mayor of Toronto

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October 27, 2022

Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission for Ontario
PO Box 37018 Southdale
London, Ontario.
N6E 3T3
ON@redecoupage-federal-redistribution.ca

Dear Chair, Honourable Justice Lynne C. Leitch,

I am writing to voice my strong opposition to the proposed electoral district boundary changes in the City of Toronto. Specifically, I oppose the proposal that will reduce the number of ridings in the City from 25 to 24, resulting in one less riding and political representative in Scarborough.

Scarborough was named as early as 1793 and had settlers shortly thereafter. Scarborough was officially incorporated as a township in 1850 which included the establishment of a local municipal government and Council. Like its neighbours, this town would see exponential growth in the years following World War II. Fast forward to 1998, the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was amalgamated and the six municipalities in the region: East York, North York, Scarborough, York, Etobicoke, and Toronto all became one City of Toronto.

The boundaries of Scarborough would be significantly changed by the Commission's proposal. Parts of north west Scarborough would be included in North York. This would be unprecedented and would seriously impact the vast history of these areas. Although the City is amalgamated, many residents continue to reference their respective former municipalities as their home. Many provincial and federal systems, identification cards, registrations also use the former municipalities as the location as opposed to Toronto. Identifying as a resident of Scarborough means a lot more to people than you might know, sometimes even more so than identifying with the City of Toronto itself.

Toronto is the largest and one of the fastest growing municipalities in the country and the continent. Scarborough, in particular, has been a place where many immigrants, especially racialized immigrants, have chosen to settle. You will see from the business, restaurants, religious establishments, and schools, that Scarborough has an extremely diverse population.

We should not be decreasing the federal political representation of the residents of the City of Toronto or Scarborough. I understand the decision is being made because areas outside of the city are growing at a faster rate. However, I disagree with using percentage growth rates versus actual numbers. Toronto's population has grown by over 62,000 in the last 5 years.

I especially oppose taking away a representative from Scarborough. For years and years the residents of Scarborough have voiced that they feel unfairly treated and overlooked by governments, and this decision would just reaffirm the idea in many people's minds. The proposed boundaries would unnecessarily break up communities. The identities of these residents would be affected. Businesses, property values, health care networks, neighbourhood associations and more would be impacted by these new boundaries. The historic boundaries of these former separate municipalities would no longer be respected.

I am strongly advocating that this proposal be withdrawn and that the Commission revert to the original boundaries and number of ridings in Scarborough and in the City of Toronto as a whole which currently exist today.

Sincerely,

John Tory
Mayor of Toronto