The City of London now has an integrity commissioner.
At Tuesday night's meeting, council approved the appointment of Gregory Stewart, a lawyer with the Goderich firm Donnelly Murphy.
His three-year term starts immediately, and he will be paid $250/hr when he is called upon to investigate council conduct.
"This marks an important step forward,” says Mayor Matt Brown. “The integrity commissioner will help us meet our desire to strengthen the relationship between our municipality and the Londoners we serve. It's important that we all be open, transparent and held accountable to our community. I am confident that this position will support council in doing exactly that."
Stewart's responsibilities include investigating complaints and alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct for Members of Council, reviewing that code and making annual reccomendations, serving as an advisor to members of council in matters pertaining to the code of conduct, and providing to council reports on his investigations.
The city says he will work independently from civic administration and report directly to municipal council.
