Item - 2019.HL11.1

Adoption of Board of Health Recommendation 1a only:

1.  City Council urge the Federal Government to:

a.  prohibit the availability, sale, possession, and use of handguns, assault rifles, semi-automatic military assault weapons, and parts that are used to build firearms in Canada; and

Adoption of Board of Health Recommendation 2e only:

2.  City Council urge the Provincial Government to:

e.  ban the sale of ammunition in the City of Toronto; and

Adoption of the balance of the Item.

Councillor Cressy, rising on a Point of Order, stated that if there are questions that should be directed to Toronto Police Service, perhaps Council should stand down consideration of the Item in order to ensure that Toronto Police Service staff are present, as Council did last month.

Councillor Thompson, rising on a Point of Order, stated that his question should be answered by informed staff members, not necessarily by Toronto Police Service Staff, but that he could stand his question down for a moment and maybe get an answer offline.

That the Board of Health amend Recommendations 1, 2, 4, and 9 so that they now read as follows:

1.  The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to work with the Deputy City Manager, Community and Social Services, to identify, collect, and review disaggregated socio-demographic and race-based data on the impacts of community violence for appropriate action by Toronto Public Health and other City Divisions.

2.  The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to work with the Executive Director, Social Development, Finance and Administration, and community agencies and other voluntary organizations to inform the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan by bringing a public health perspective, informed by health equity, health promotion, anti-racism, trauma-informed care, and adverse childhood experiences, and identifying other relevant issues.

4.  The Board of Health urge the provincial government to adopt Bill 129, An Act to amend the Health Insurance Act and the Health Protection and Promotion Act in respect of addressing gun violence and its impacts, which will increase access to hospital-based violence interventions and affordable trauma-informed mental health supports to individuals exposed to violence, and to amend this Bill to include that trauma-informed mental health supports be located in accessible community settings.

9.  The Board of Health forward this report to the Ontario Anti-Racism Directorate, the Toronto Police Services Board, all Toronto school boards, the Toronto Region Board of Trade, Public Health Ontario, the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, the provincial Ministers of the Solicitor General, the Attorney General, Children, Community and Social Services, Education, Health, and Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, and the federal Ministers of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction, Public Safety Canada and Emergency Preparedness, Health, and Families, Children and Social Development.

That:

1.  The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to implement gun violence and health intervention programs and services within the public health mandate that support the Social Development, Finance and Administration Division, in partnership with community agencies and voluntary organizations.

2.  The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health, in consultation with the Executive Director, Social Development, Finance and Administration, to report on the connections between social inclusion and gun violence and the feasibility of a municipal declaration of "a right to belong".

3.  City Council request the City of Toronto's Confronting Anti-Black Racism Unit to consider this report for their programs and services.

That the Board of Health amend Recommendations 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 so that they now read as follows:

1.  The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health to work with the Deputy City Manager, Community and Social Services, to identify, collect, and review data on the impacts of community violence for appropriate action by Toronto Public Health and other City Divisions and to report to the Board of Health annually.

4.  City CouncilThe Board of Health urge the provincial government to:

a.  restore funding to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Board;

b.  restore funding to the Community Safety and Well-Being Plan;

c.  take actions, particularly within the Ministry of Health's Mental Health and Addictions portfolios, to address the interrelated challenges of substance use and mental health issues, including prevention, treatment, and community support programs; and

d.  adopt Bill 129, An Act to amend the Health Insurance Act and the Health Protection and Promotion Act in respect of addressing gun violence and its impacts, which will increase access to hospital-based violence interventions and affordable trauma-informed mental health supports to individuals exposed to violence.

5.  City CouncilThe Board of Health urge the provincial government to ban the sale of handgun ammunition in the City of Toronto., consistent with its City Council's decision in June 2019 on Item EX6.7, City Powers to Regulate Firearms and Ammunition and Update on Related Initiatives.

6.  City CouncilThe Board of Health urge the federal government to prohibit the availability, sale, possession, and use of handguns, assault rifles, and semi-automatic firearms military assault weapons, and parts that are used to build firearms in Canada.consistent with City Council's decision in June 2019 on Item EX6.7, City Powers to Regulate Firearms and Ammunition and Update on Related Initiatives.

7.  City CouncilThe Board of Health request City Divisions and encourage the provincial and federal governments to use identify and assess criteria for addressing the social determinants of health in applications for projects funded through its National Crime Prevention granting programs/strategiesy, including the federal National Crime Prevention Strategy.

8.  City CouncilThe Board of Health request Statistics Canada to collect representative data on the exposure to community violence at the municipal level through their national surveys, including the Canadian Community Health Survey and the Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth, to enable the analysis of the health and other impacts of community violence.

9.  City CouncilThe Board of Health forward this report to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, the Big City Mayors' Caucus, the Toronto Police Services Board, all Toronto school boards, the Toronto Region Board of Trade, Public Health Ontario, the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, the provincial Ministers of the Solicitor General, the Attorney General, Children, Community and Social Services, Education, Health, and Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, and the federal Ministers of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction, Public Safety Canada and Emergency Preparedness, Health, and Families, Children and Social Development.

That:

1.  City Council consider requiring City Divisions to adjust the "Equity Impact Statements" in their staff reports to reveal a more direct correlation with the "Financial Impact" sections for every recommendation brought before City Council for information and consideration.

2.  City Council request all Toronto school boards to add questions about exposure to community violence in their school climate surveys or to use other research tools to provide baseline data for Toronto Public Health and Social Development, Finance and Administration to support the development of culturally-sensitive programs that deal with the effects of community violence, including counselling programs for unspoken trauma and community trauma stemming from community violence to be delivered by community and social services organizations.

3.  City Council urge the federal government to adequately fund their Initiative to Take Action Against Gun and Gang Violence and to consult with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities' Big City Mayors' Caucus to ensure that there is support for community-level prevention and enforcement efforts.

4.  City Council urge the provincial government to focus and strengthen the strict implementation of laws over gun sales and the inspection of gun dealers and shooting ranges.