Matthew Holmes, executive vice-president and chief of public policy at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, spoke about what an interim agreement could mean for businesses, what Ottawa should be looking for at the negotiating table, and why the longer-term goal remains the renewal of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).

The proposal is among the Ontario Big City Mayors’ latest asks as municipalities push senior levels of government for a broader response to homelessness, addiction and mental health crises playing out in communities across the province.

There is another dimension to the debate: the province has significant constitutional authority over municipalities and has shown an increasing willingness to exercise it. But as municipal leaders gathered in Ottawa this week for the Association of Municipalities of Ontario’s (AMO) annual conference, there was little indication the Ford government is ready to embrace the kind of structural change they are seeking.

The mayors are asking the province to open the door to considering what OBCM calls a “compassionate care and intervention model.” OBCM Chair and Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed Ward said the caucus unanimously agreed it wants the province to undertake a review of the legislation governing involuntary admission and consent to treatment - without prescribing what the outcome of that review should be.

At the time, the two governments also committed to setting aside funding for municipalities that do not impose development charges, saying these communities still face significant infrastructure costs despite choosing not to use DCs as a source of revenue.

While bail itself falls primarily under federal criminal law, provinces administer much of the justice system, including bail hearings, prosecutions and the enforcement of court orders. Premier Doug Ford’s government has repeatedly called on Ottawa to further tighten federal bail laws, especially for people accused of violent crimes and repeat offenders.