London’s integrity commissioner has found that London Coun. Michael van Holst violated four different areas of the city’s code of conduct for his views and action concerning the city’s vaccination policy and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report has been added to next week’s council meeting agenda.
Commissioner Gregory Stewart started an investigation in October 2021, when London Mayor Ed Holder filed a formal complaint after van Holst spoke at an anti-COVID-19 vaccine mandate rally.
Holder condemned van Holst’s actions during a media briefing, saying van Holst was “openly and visibly defying and undermining council policy by virtue of his participation.”
Described by Holder as “anti-vax nonsense,” the rally held on Oct. 16, 2021, saw hundreds gather in front of the bandshell at Victoria Park and was organized by Chris (Sky) Saccoccia, who gained fame during the pandemic for speaking out against health protocols related to COVID-19.
The report from the integrity commissioner said he had received multiple complaints regarding van Holst’s views of the city’s vaccination policy, so he was combining them into one report.
In October 2021, city council voted to approve a policy requiring all members of city council, including the mayor, either provide proof of full vaccination against COVID-19 by Oct. 20 or provide a medical or Ontario Human Rights Code reason for not being vaccinated by that same date.
At the time, van Holst was the only councillor opposed to the policy, and Stewart said van Holst tried to find ways around the policy and encouraged members of the public to do the same.
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“Under the Code of Conduct, he is required to uphold the letter and spirit of the By-law and policy to communicate the decisions of council in a manner to foster respect for council’s decision making, even if he disagrees with that decision; to adhere to policies and procedures of council. In this case, he has failed to do so. By that conduct, he has failed to conduct himself in a manner that promotes public confidence in council,” Stewart wrote in his report.
London’s integrity commissioner’s investigation found that van Holst violated sections 2.4, 2.5, 2.6 and 8.1 of the city’s code of conduct.
“(The code of conduct) is a very important document because it governs the way that we behave and act as municipal councillors. So an integrity commissioner investigation into violations of the code of conduct is a very serious matter,” acting mayor Josh Morgan told Global News.
“Although these violations do relate to our vaccination policy, it’s certainly the nature of them are not adhering to council policy, and in a democratic society, it is the majority of council, whether you vote for or against, to decide the policies of the organization on behalf of Londoners.”
When asked about the results of the report, van Holst has declined to comment on the matter, saying he “will be reserving those for council.”
In October 2021, van Holst told Global News that he attended the event in order to promote his creed, the Order of Freedom.
The councillor launched the creed in late September 2021 and previously told Global News that he did so to prevent what he views as “government overreach.”
The commissioner’s reports said van Holst created his “creed” to oppose the vaccine policy, which violates Section 8.1 of the code of conduct requiring councils to adhere to bylaws, policies and procedures adopted by council.
“In order to avoid adherence to the policy, he has developed a creed and urged the public to join the creed in order to provide themselves with an exemption to vaccine requirement policies. His belief that the Order of Freedom does this does not make it so. It also does not justify his stated conduct in developing the Order of Freedom as a means of providing an exemption publicly urging others to do so,” the report said.
The code of conduct of councillors, along with details on the integrity commissioner’s role, can be found in its entirety on the City of London’s website.
Penalties are set out in the Municipal Act and may include a verbal or written apology, a reprimand or a suspension of pay for up to 90 days.
The integrity commissioner recommends penalties, along with all findings from investigating the complaint, in a report to city council, which then has to grant final approval before any penalties are implemented.
In his report, the integrity commissioner recommends that councillors formally reprimand van Holst.
Councillors will discuss the report and its finds during their meeting Tuesday afternoon.
When asked if there would be a decision on when there would be a decision on how to reprimand van Holst, Morgan said he expects them to deal with the matter swiftly.
“I expect that we will be able to deal with this at the municipal council meeting and will not require any further time.”
Morgan is serving as acting mayor while Holder recovers from a medical procedure.
— with files from Global News’ Andrew Graham
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