A London city councillor has violated the city's code of conduct.
A complaint to the integrity commissioner filed by Mayor Ed Holder has resulted in recommended repercussions for councillor Michael van Holst, according to a report filed by Integrity Commissioner Greg Stewart.
van Holst created a religion, which he said provided him an exemption from council's vaccination policy in the fall of 2021. Stewart found that van Holst doesn't actually believe in the creed. van Holst also, on several occasions, spoke out publicly against the policy, which Stewart said undermined council policy and is a violation of the code of conduct.
"Members shall accurately and adequately communicate the decisions of the Council, even if they disagree with Council’s decision such that the respect for the decision–making process of Council is fostered," is one of the portion of the code of conduct that Stewart cited in his findings.
He also noted that section 8.1 says "Members shall adhere to such by-laws, policies and procedures adopted by Council that are applicable to them."
The report was part of a council agenda posted to the city's website on Friday afternoon.
Stewart wrote the following in his conclusion:
"In this particular case I have no bases to determine or conclude that Councillor van Holst does not hold a sincere belief in his “Order of Freedom”. As stated, he is free to hold those beliefs. However, his conduct with respect to the policy of Council failed to uphold that policy or encourage public respect for it. It appears that once these issues became public and were called into question, he no longer publicly criticized the policy.
However, there is no indication that he has retracted his statements or apologized for his conduct when it began to attract public concern. Conduct of this nature by a sitting Member of Council should not be allowed to stand without comment or note. Accordingly, I recommend to Council that a formal reprimand be issued by Council with respect to the conduct of Councillor van Holst."
In Stewart's report, he outlined several possible penalties for van Holst;
"(a) A reprimand; or (b) Suspension of the remuneration paid to the Member in respect of his/her services as a Member of Council for a period of up to ninety (90) days.
The Integrity Commissioner may also recommend that Municipal Council impose one of the following sanctions: (a) A written or verbal apology; (b) Return of property or reimbursement of its value or of monies spent; (c) Removal from membership of a committee; and (d) Removal as a Chair of a committee."
Stewart did not specifically recommend any of those possible consequences for van Holst.
van Holst is the first London politician to be found in violation of the code of conduct since 2016, when then-Mayor Matt Brown and then-Deputy Mayor Maureen Cassidy admitted to having an extramarital affair.
He's represented Ward 1 since 2014.