Stuff I Don't Know.

I spend a lot of time writing. Not so much researching. I've noticed a couple of things about the City of Toronto  different to the rest of us.

Council appoints a speaker or  presiding member .The Mayor is not it. Once  I saw the speaker on a news clip. I had the impression  she was perched on a dais.  I don't recall  anyone being  at her side.

The Mayor is  free  to participate in debate. The Mayor has an executive committee. The media refers to it as  "the Mayor's  powerful executive committee'. I thought it was powerful because it had a majority of the Council members and it meant the Mayor had control . Then I saw something else that made me think, that can't be right.

There are forty-four councillors. I believe they appoint  standing committees. They are referred to by the media as  powerful this and  powerful that.

There are community Councils. They are not elected. So how are they constituted? How much power do they have?

Councillors have office budgets. Their offices are not in  City Hall. I guess that's how  millions of  dollars could be overspent on a computer contract  while the computer salesman and  treasury official
were cavorting in the meadow.Nobody was  around the town hall to pick up on the gossip or see for themselves what was  going on.

So. I have a lot of questions about how the City functions I know there's a City of Toronto Act but I have  neither time nor inclination to suss out the details. If anybody out there is familiar with the City's  political structure, I would be glad to hear  about it and spread the word.