Last week, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing in the Ontario government, Steve Clark, presented a bill granting additional powers to the mayors of major cities in the province.

With this "strong mayors" system, the Progressive Conservative government led by Doug Ford intends to accelerate the process of building new housing.

Doug Ford said he wants to establish a "strong mayors" system for both Toronto and Ottawa and is considering the possibility of extending these additional powers to other cities.

Toronto is the capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada, and Ottawa, located in Ontario, is the federal capital of Canada.

Ford's government said in last week's speech yesterday that the "strong mayors" system allows municipalities to shorten the timelines for planning new housing projects, unify procedures, and remove barriers that hinder the increase of the housing supply.

The Throne Speech constitutes the government's agenda, and based on it, it is subject to a confidence vote in the Legislative Assembly.

In this proposed "strong mayors" system, the support of two-thirds of the city council members would be required to overturn a bill proposed by the mayor, according to details previously provided by Ford.

In response to this announcement, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said he does not see a need for additional powers.

Watson believes that the current system provides a balance of power between mayors and city councils. "Weak mayors are those who want more powers," confirmed the Ottawa mayor.

In a press interview earlier last week, Watson said Toronto is a much larger city than Ottawa and there may be reasons to implement such a system there, adding that he does not think Ottawa needs this system, affirming, "I have never thought about it."

Watson explained that a system like the one proposed by Ford "marginalizes" the roles and responsibilities of city council members, noting that he managed to pass 98% of votes during his three terms as mayor by working with the members.

It is noted that Doug Ford did not reveal a desire to introduce a "strong mayors" system during his last election campaign.

Ford won a second consecutive majority government in the general election held on June 2.