The chair of the Metro Vancouver Board says he will ask those on the 40-member panel to reconsider their decision to give themselves a hefty retirement allowance, following widespread criticism from the public.
"I think one of the things about good leadership is listening and, if you have to, change direction," board chair and Port Coquitlam Mayor Greg Moore told CTV News.
"Since the remuneration bylaw passed, we've heard, directly and indirectly, a lot of feedback from our citizens, and I think it's appropriate that we bring it back for reconsideration."
In March, the board voted to give each member a lump sum retirement allowance of 10.2 per cent on top of what they were paid for attending meetings over the years. For current members, the allowance is retroactive to 2007.
The vote was not unanimous, but a vast majority of the 40-member regional panel agreed they deserve the money.
"They're not given any kind of retirement allowance for doing that job," said Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan, who voted in favour of the bonus.
News of the vote quickly sparked public outrage.
Kris Sims, B.C. director of the Canadian Taxpayer's Federation, called the move "jaw-dropping" and "a slap in the face to taxpayers."
"They just voted themselves a leaving bonus at your [taxpayers'] expense that they don't need to pay for at the ballot box," she told CTV last month.
"We have to keep in mind that the Metro [Vancouver] Board is a bonus board they sit on over and above what they're paid to do as a mayor or city councillor."
On Wednesday, Sims said the decision to reconsider was good news for B.C. taxpayers and that it showed the importance of speaking out.
"It's not a full victory, but it's great news so far," she said. "This is evidence that if people are angry by something they hear, if they stand up and they make their voices heard, politicians do have to listen to them."
Corrigan has defended the pension bonus, saying these kinds of incentives are important when it comes to attracting and retaining qualified people in municipal politics.
"If you want good people you've got to be willing to pay," Corrigan said last month, adding that current wages are "not enough to attract people into those jobs who have the levels of competence that are necessary to have good government."
If the retirement package isn't overturned, regular board members will get about $1,100 a year for 2007 through 2017 and about $1,500 for every year after that.
The payout is much larger for the chair and vice chair of the board. Moore, who will not seek re-election in Port Coquitlam, stands to gain $50,000 in when he retires in November.
Despite that, he said he would vote against the bonus once it goes to a second vote, adding that while the allowance is a relatively modest one, his responsibility is to answer to constituents.
"When you look at the actual dollar value and you compare it to anyone that works that has a retirement allowance or pension—or if you look at provincial or federal politician—it's not even close, but I think it's the perception of what it means," he said.
"This time it seems as though—maybe because it was a on a more regional scale—it's brought up a lot more criticism and a lot more concern from our citizens."
With files from CTV Vancouver's Penny Daflos
