Toronto’s top cop and Coun. Doug Ford came face-to-face Wednesday as city hall’s budget committee heard details about the 2014 police budget.
The meeting took place in the wake of several calls for Ford to recuse himself from the police budget process due to comments he has made criticizing police Chief Bill Blair for his handling of an investigation into the activities of his brother Mayor Rob Ford.
“I think it went pretty good,” Doug Ford told CP24 following the meeting Wednesday afternoon. “We were looking for efficiencies and I think he (Blair) did a pretty good job answering questions as did the chair and the budget chief.”
Ford has previously called for an investigation into Blair for comments he made to reporters about a video that is believed to show the mayor smoking crack cocaine, but on Wednesday he refused to comment on whether he stands behind those remarks.
“I think overall the chief has done a fairly good job,” he said. “Business is business and personal is personal.”
Before the meeting, Blair told reporters the encounter would not be awkward and he denied a claim that the Ford investigation is payback for past police budget cuts.
Later, Blair indicated he is confident politics and the Ford saga will not interfere with the police budget process.
"We're not distracted by this. We'll leave the political things to the politicians," Blair told reporters.
Doug Ford is a member of the seven-person committee but Rob Ford, who has been stripped of several key powers by city council, is not. Rob Ford didn't attend the meeting because he was visiting residents who are fed up with living conditions at a Dawes Road apartment building.
Some councillors have called on the Fords to recuse themselves from the police budget debate amid an investigation that began after reports surfaced last May about a cellphone video that allegedly shows the mayor smoking from a glass pipe.
So far, the investigation into Ford has uncovered allegations of drug and alcohol use, erratic behaviour and associations with alleged gang members or drug dealers.
The allegations have not been proven or tested in court, but Rob Ford has admitted to smoking crack cocaine.
The Ford brothers have had harsh words and accusations for Blair since he publicly confirmed in late October that police have obtained a digital copy of the video, which has not been seen by the public.
The Fords have accused Blair of having a personal vendetta against the mayor, and some councillors are questioning whether the brothers can debate and vote on the police budget without bias.
Since Blair's stunning announcement more than a month ago, the fractured relationship between the Fords and Blair has been a subplot to the mayor’s unfolding scandal.
The allegations surfaced in a court document related to the police investigation into the video.
