Kamloops mayor refuses to heed council's call to resign

Now to Kamloops, where the city’s mayor is refusing to resign. It follows the release of a scathing report by a provincially appointed municipal advisor. Let’s bring in our Kamloops reporter Marcella Bernardo for more on this. So, Marcella, thanks for joining us. First, take us through what exactly is in this report. Well, hi, Tanya. There are basically 23 recommendations that were made by the former mayor of Abbotsford, Henry Braun. 10 of them require action from Mayor Reed Hammer Jackson, and they include the mayor essentially improving his behavior. By being more open to constructive criticism and admitting to making mistakes, improving how he communicates with council staff and the public, seeking feedback, and letting go of all the stuff that happened before he got elected, the other five recommendations for him fall under a category labeled Expertise and Context. He needs to improve his understanding of official documents, he has to respect confidential agreements and protocols, and he should engage in conflict resolution training. Moving forward, Braun wants the mayor to focus on shared objectives, including the city strategic plan. His leadership also needs to be more proactive than reactive. Now, what about the mayor himself? How’s he responding to this report? Well, I did have a chance to talk to him yesterday and he said he needs some time to actually review what this report says because it was given to them in a closed meeting yesterday and then right after that it was released to the public. So he is essentially saying that he thinks this is going to end up in court and that if if City Council tries to get rid of him, he welcomes the challenge to go before a judge and have all the information that he thinks that hasn’t been contained in the report released publicly. Well, this has been a story that’s been percolating some time you’ve been following it. And I know what you’ll continue to. So thank you so much for your update today. We appreciate it. You’re welcome. That’s our Marcella Bernardo, Ian Kamloops.