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4 - Orono Weekly Times Wednesday, November 18, 2009 Council adopts code of conduct Councillors moved to adopt a code of conduct for council members on Monday, but not before dealing with some of their own respect issues. Members of council are not getting the dignity and respect they deserve on the council floor, according to Courtice Councillor Mary Novak. Novak, along with the majority of Clarington councillors, took issue with the way Mayor Jim Abernethy introduced his Code of Conduct at Monday's Committee meeting. "I can't support something I haven't read and haven't looked at," Novak stated. "Council is very concerned that you waited until we got into this section of the agenda to hurriedly have this passed out to members of council," Deputy Mayor Charlie Trim stated. The section of the agenda Novak referred to was the Code of Conduct for Council Members, Municipal CAO, Frank Wu was instructed to provide. As the Employee Code of Conduct contained specific references in some places to members of council, Clarington CAO Frank Wu was instructed last month to isolate these clauses and create a stand-alone Code of Conduct for council members. A report containing that Code was included in Monday's Committee meeting agenda. Mayor Jim Abernethy removed himself from the Chair just prior to the section of the agenda Monday dealing with the Code of Conduct, so he could introduce his own version of a Code. He had a copy of this Code distributed to each council member, which he proceeded to read aloud. After it was clarified through questions to the Deputy Clerk that Abernethy was following proper procedure, he was permitted to finish reading this code. "This simply adds meat and bones on the report provided to us by our CAO," Abernethy said following the introduction of his code. He explained that his Code was taken entirely from a book entitled Municipal Ethics Regimes written by Gregory Levine. "I don't understand why this is such a contentious issue with some members of council," Abernethy stated. He explained that a code of conduct is something council members should be embracing. "It is nothing we should be afraid of," he stated. When Abernethy introduced a motion to table his code for two weeks until the next Committee meeting, allowing members "a bit of time to consume" his code, only councillor Willie Woo supported him. Committee members then moved to adopt the Code put together by Wu. Included in the eight items identified in their newly adopted Code of Conduct, council members shall not breach the public trust or misappropriate public funds and/or resources, use municipal property for activities not associated with the discharge of official duties, or benefit from the use of information relating to the affairs of the municipality. The onus is on each individual member of council to comply with the Code. Final adoption of the Code of Conduct for Council Members will take place at next week's council meeting. Are you in an abusive relationship? Call Bethesda House 905-623-6050 or 1-800-338-3397 (For women with or without children.)