London's mayor will sit on the library board. Small problem: its members don't want him

Kate Dubinski · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 04, 2025 2:35 PM EST | Last Updated: March 4

London Mayor Josh Morgan was appointed to the committee that oversees the operations and fund of the London Public Library, but there's a hitch: the room committee doesn't truly privation him. 

Last week, Morgan was appointed by a metropolis committee to the room committee aft Ward 3 Coun. Peter Cuddy was kicked disconnected for missing 3 meetings successful a row.

On Tuesday afternoon, councillors voted to uphold that appointment. 

But successful a missive to metropolis councillors, the caput of the room committee said he'd alternatively that Morgan stay away. 

"We judge it would beryllium successful the champion involvement of the room to debar immoderate perceived struggle of involvement that could originate from appointing the politician to the room committee and that a assembly subordinate whitethorn beryllium amended suited," Brian Gibson wrote to metropolis councillors successful a missive distributed to politicians precocious Monday. 

It's an contented that doesn't usually get overmuch airtime: making appointments to section boards, which oversee the operations of services specified arsenic the library, constabulary service, oregon transit — the breadstuff and food of municipalities. Some, including the room board, necessitate astatine slightest 1 metropolis assembly subordinate to beryllium connected the board. 

Having 1 subordinate with much powerfulness than others sitting connected the committee would beryllium problematic, Gibson said successful his letter.

"We are acrophobic that a committee subordinate that holds beardown politician powers volition person outsized power implicit immoderate treatment by the committee concerning budget," helium wrote. 

'There's perfectly nary conflict,' politician says

But there's thing stopping the politician from sitting connected the room board, metropolis staffers told councillors during Tuesday's meeting.

Morgan took contented with immoderate who suggested helium couldn't beryllium connected some assembly and the room committee and see some organizations' interests equally. 

"There's perfectly nary conflict. There is nary mode that I would spell to a committee and bring up immoderate beardown politician powers. I would bring a batch of cognition and context." 

Before helium was mayor, Morgan sat connected the room committee for 8 years, 3 arsenic its chair. 

During the multi-year budget, the room did not get each the wealth it wanted. During that process, immoderate councillors pushed for room officials to travel up with a amended program for managing room branches, immoderate of which request repairs. 

Last week, Morgan told CTV News helium wants to look astatine including branches successful aboriginal lodging developments oregon public-private partnerships with developers. He tin marque specified proposals much easy if helium sits connected the room committee and tin enactment successful in-camera meetings that sermon onshore purchases and sales, helium said. 

Call to regenerate 'failing aged room locations'

Posting a transcript of that quality report, Ward 2 Coun. Shawn Lewis took a swipe astatine the room and however it's being managed, penning successful a societal media station that it was asking for a 20 per cent fund summation "to hole leaking roofs and different gathering issues, arsenic good arsenic wanting to grow programs (probably not wherever you should beryllium focused erstwhile the extortion is leaking." 

Lewis said Morgan should measurement up to "fix this section challenge," including "maybe replacing failing aged room locations with locations successful caller buildings nearby, portion having lodging a supra a room determination could marque immoderate sense." 

In the letter, written connected behalf of the board, Gibson called Lewis's station "disrespectful to the committee members who unpaid their clip and bring a precocious grade of professionalism to their decision-making." 

Lewis told CBC News that Gibson's petition to not person the politician articulation the committee is "not founded successful reality." 

"It's assembly that chooses, not the board. They chose to make a vacancy. I don't cognize what is going connected implicit determination but I'm not peculiarly happy...The precedence needs to beryllium connected leaky roofs, not expanding programming." 

Tuesday's ballot to name Morgan passed 9-6. Gibson, speaking aft the appointment, said helium looks guardant to moving with the mayor. "We haven't had a sitting politician connected the room committee successful arsenic agelong arsenic I tin remember," helium said.