Kingston councillor proposes motion to condemn MPP Randy Hillier’s COVID-19 actions

Kingston city council will be next on the list of municipalities voting on whether or not to condemn area MPP Randy Hillier for his stance on COVID-19.

Local city councillor Bridget Doherty has proposed a motion to be considered during next week’s city council meeting that would ask Premier Doug Ford to refer what she called “Hillier’s unethical and harmful behaviour” to the Ontario Integrity Commissioner for investigation.

The motion would also ask Ford to impose any sanctions or take any action available against the independent MPP for Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston. Doherty said she believes such action is a matter of public safety, due to Hillier’s recent rallies organized as part of his No More Lockdowns group.

“They actually travel from community to community spreading misinformation. So I think it is really important to stay on top of that. It’s also really harmful. We’re trying to keep everybody safe, and he is not helping people stay safe,” she said in an interview Friday.

After similar motions were passed in first South Frontenac, then Central Frontenac, Perth and Smiths Falls, Doherty felt it was time for Kingston council to have their voices heard as well.

Hillier represents a small portion of the Kingston community north of Highway 401.

“Mr. Hillier is an elected official. He is supposed to be leading people, and ensure that residents have clear information,” she said.

Just on Thursday, Hillier was charged for hosting a large gathering in Kemptville to protest the province’s COVID-19 lockdown measures.

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The same day, Hillier said in a Facebook post he has wracked up eight court summons representing 12 offences so far, some of which were for organizing rallies in Peterborough, Aylmer and Toronto.

Hillier has yet to respond to a request for comment on this matter, but in his Facebook post Thursday, he said he plans to fight all of his charges in court.

Hillier was already kicked out of the Progressive Conservative caucus before the pandemic began, and as it stands now, only an election can remove him from office. Still, Doherty said she hopes the premier will take the calls from local councils into consideration.

— With files from Global News’ Alexandra Mazur