Kelowna mayoral candidate promises lobbyist registry, integrity commissioner

With Kelowna mayoral candidates focused mainly on issues like crime, homelessness and housing affordability, the word integrity doesn’t appear on any of the platforms they’ve posted on their websites.

In what he calls a part of his “transparency and accountability” platform, the main challenger Tom Dyas says if elected mayor he will hire an “integrity commissioner” and create of lobbyist registry.

“Kelowna requires an independent officer to ensure that, when there are complaints regarding the action of public office holders made, that there is an independent commissioner to review the complaints fairly,” Dyas said in a news release issued today, Sept. 27.

“Kelowna is no longer a small town. It’s time we modernize our systems to ensure that city hall has the transparency and accountability that residents expect from their decision-makers.”

The lobbyist registry would include developers, residents groups or “anyone seeking to influence government decision- making,” the release states. The registry would be open to public viewing.

“Residents often feel as though decisions are made well-before they ever reach council meetings,” Dyas wrote. “Creating a lobbyist registry will provide the public with information on how many times any individual(s) met with local government officials to influence their decision-making — it’s time to clear the air at city hall.”

Surrey is the only B.C. city with a lobbyist registry, Dyas said, noting such registries exist on the provincial and federal levels.

Vancouver is the only B.C. city with an integrity commissioner, he said.

"The idea of an integrity commissioner is not new and something city council has supported for a very long time but it has not been implemented by the provincial government," Mayor Colin Basran responded by text message to iNFONews.ca.

He included a link to a 2016 resolution from the city to the Union of B.C. Municipalities calling on the provincial government to pass enabling legislation to allow local governments to appoint integrity commissioners. The government has yet to pass such legislation.

Basran's text did not include any reference to a lobbyist registry.

The first mayoralty debate of the campaign begins at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow, Sept. 28, at Okanagan College. All the tickets have been snapped up for that event but it will be live streamed on YouTube here.

Municipal election day is Oct. 15.

READ MORE: What can a local politician actually do about crime?

 – This article was updated at 11:30 a.m. on Sept. 28, 2022 to add comments from Mayor Basran.

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