Douglas Charles Holyday (born 1942) is a politician in
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. He is a former member of the
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...
, representing the riding of
Etobicoke—Lakeshore
Etobicoke—Lakeshore (formerly known as Lakeshore and Toronto—Lakeshore) is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1968.
It covers the southern part of the Etobi ...
for the
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario
The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (french: Parti progressiste-conservateur de l'Ontario), often shortened to the Ontario PC Party or simply the PCs, colloquially known as the Tories, is a centre-right political party in Ontario, Canada ...
before being defeated by
Peter Milczyn
Peter Zygmunt Milczyn (born ) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2014 to 2018 who represented the west Toronto riding of Etobicoke—Lakeshore. He was a member of cabi ...
in the
Ontario general election of 2014.
Prior to his election to the legislature, Holyday was a longtime
Toronto City Council
Toronto City Council is the governing body of the municipal government of Toronto, Ontario. Meeting at Toronto City Hall, it comprises 25 city councillors and the mayor of Toronto. The current term began on November 15, 2022.
Structure
The cur ...
lor and deputy mayor, representing Ward 3 in
Etobicoke Centre, and was the last mayor of the suburban city of
Etobicoke
Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district of, and one of six municipalities amalgamated into, the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west-end, Etobicoke was first settled by Europeans in the 1790s, and the municipalit ...
prior to the
municipal amalgamation of Toronto.
Political career
An insurance broker by profession,
Holyday was first elected to Etobicoke City Council as an alderman in 1982. He was defeated in his bid for the Etobicoke
Board of Control in the
1985 municipal election but returned as an Etobicoke city councillor, representing Ward 6, from, 1988 until 1994 when he was elected Mayor. He also served as a member of the
Metropolitan Toronto
The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was an upper-tier level of municipal government in Ontario, Canada, from 1953 to 1998. It was made up of the old city of Toronto and numerous townships, towns and villages that surrounded Toronto, whic ...
Council from 1994 until 1997.
He was the last
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
of the former city of
Etobicoke
Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district of, and one of six municipalities amalgamated into, the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west-end, Etobicoke was first settled by Europeans in the 1790s, and the municipalit ...
, defeating incumbent
Bruce Sinclair in the
1994 municipal election. After a garbage strike in 1995, Holyday and Etobicoke council tendered the garbage collection contract, and inviting
CUPE
The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE; french: Syndicat canadien de la fonction publique, links=no; french: SCFP, link=, label=none) is a Canadian trade union serving the public sector – although it has in recent years organized workpl ...
and private operations to bid. Holyday noted that "
UPE'sprice was nowhere near what the private sector offered us", and noted that the contractor did the job with 35 employees as opposed to the previous 71. The move saved Etobicoke $1 million annual at the time, with city officials estimating it at $2 million in 2009, plus private contractors had to post a performance bond and commit to a wage rate for the duration of a five-year contract, which protected the city from a strike. In 1996, Etobicoke also bought out its employees' accumulated sick plan, with new employees not eligible for sick day accumulation.
[Tamara Shephard. Etobicoke: No garbage woes for city's west end. Toronto Community News. June 23, 2009. ][Peter Kuitenbrouwer. Private or public? Guess the winner. National Post. June 24, 2009. ]
Etobicoke was the only area in Toronto not affected by the 2009 garbage strike, with the sick day accumulation plan being one of the unresolved issues between the city and CUPE. Holyday also pointed out that 90 per cent of Canadian municipalities contract out garbage collection, with
Oshawa
Oshawa ( , also ; 2021 population 175,383; CMA 415,311) is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of Downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the G ...
being the only GTA municipality where garbage pickup is done by the city.
Etobicoke was amalgamated into Toronto with the
1997 election. With the position of Mayor of Etobicoke abolished, Holyday ran and was elected to the new Toronto City Council representing Ward 4 (Markland Centennial). With redistribution, Holyday was elected to the new Ward 3 in 1999 which he continued to represent until stepping down from council in 2013
One of Toronto council's staunchest
conservatives
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
, he is noted for his
fiscal conservatism
Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., ''An ...
and tendency to oppose public spending measures. For example, in 2008 Holyday proposed that taxpayers' money could be saved if Toronto city councillors reduced their office expenses, kept better track of business mileage, adopted more frugal newsletters, stopped donating to community groups and sports teams in their wards, and had to justify restaurant meals. In addition to his fiscal conservatism, Holyday has also supported conservative policies in other fields. For example, he opposed banning gun clubs in Toronto, as well as a decision by council to ban the Toronto Sportsmen’s Show from the
CNE (council later reversed its decision). He has proposed removing the homeless from
Nathan Phillips Square
Nathan Phillips Square is an urban plaza in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It forms the forecourt to Toronto City Hall, or ''New City Hall'', at the intersection of Queen Street West and Bay Street, and is named for Nathan Phillips, mayor of Toro ...
, and was the only member of council not to vote for a resolution describing homelessness as a national disaster. He once criticized plans to close certain streets in downtown Toronto for a "car-free day", saying that that would have a negative impact on businesses. Holyday also supported reducing the number of councillors, and voted against childcare subsidies. In 2012, Holyday proposed that casino lobbyists be banned from city hall, stating "I think the fairest way to do it is to take that part out of the equation".
Voters gave Holyday a clear majority in the
2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
,
2006
File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
, and
2010 municipal elections, and no serious opponents came forward to challenge him.
Provincial politics
In 1987, Holyday ran for the
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...
as a
Progressive Conservative candidate in the
1987 provincial election, but lost to
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
Linda LeBourdais by over 6,000 votes. He was asked to run for the Tories in the
2003 provincial election, but declined.
In July 2013, Holyday again ran as a Progressive Conservative candidate in the
August 1, 2013 by-election to replace retiring Liberal
Laurel Broten
Laurel C. Broten (born 1967) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. She was a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2003 to 2013, who represented the Toronto riding of Etobicoke—Lakeshore. She served in the cabinets ...
in the riding of
Etobicoke—Lakeshore
Etobicoke—Lakeshore (formerly known as Lakeshore and Toronto—Lakeshore) is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1968.
It covers the southern part of the Etobi ...
. Although he once argued that councillors who run for higher office should immediately resign from council, he instead elected to take a leave of absence without pay. On election day, he won by a 1,600-vote margin over the Ontario Liberal Party's candidate, fellow councillor
Peter Milczyn
Peter Zygmunt Milczyn (born ) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2014 to 2018 who represented the west Toronto riding of Etobicoke—Lakeshore. He was a member of cabi ...
.
On September 10, 2013 PC Leader
Tim Hudak named Holyday as Tory Accountability critic.
He was defeated by
Peter Milczyn
Peter Zygmunt Milczyn (born ) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2014 to 2018 who represented the west Toronto riding of Etobicoke—Lakeshore. He was a member of cabi ...
in the
Ontario general election of 2014.
Personal life
Holyday has lived his entire life in Etobicoke, and was an insurance broker before entering political life.
Doug Holyday Received the
Key to the City
The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...
of
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
on 20 August 2013 from
Mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
Rob Ford
Robert Bruce Ford (May 28, 1969 – March 22, 2016) was a Canadian politician and businessman who served as the 64th mayor of Toronto from 2010 to 2014. Before and after his term as mayor, Ford was a city councillor representing Ward 2 Etobi ...
.
Election results
, align="left" colspan=2,
Progressive Conservative gain from
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
, align="right", Swing
, align="right", -13.23
,
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holyday, Doug
1942 births
Living people
Mayors of Etobicoke
Metropolitan Toronto councillors
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs
Toronto city councillors
21st-century Canadian politicians