Calgary city councillor sanctioned for golfing during meeting

Coun. Dan McLean has been sanctioned by his colleagues after the City of Calgary's integrity commissioner found he took part in a council meeting while on a golf course this July.

Ellen-Anne O'Donnell, the integrity commissioner, began an investigation into the Ward 13 representative after a city official filed a complaint against him for violating the council code of conduct.

In a report released on Dec. 12, O'Donnell concluded that McLean was not doing city business while he was golfing and his participation in a golf course was not in the city's best interests. 

O'Donnell recommended a "moderate sanction" for McLean, which would include a letter of reprimand from the mayor on behalf of city council, and a letter of apology from McLean. 

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, McLean said he was sorry for his actions that but believes he was singled out, adding that other councillors have joined meetings remotely while participating in other activities. 

"I was at an industry event that went long, so I took the last bit of a public hearing meeting on my phone … I think this is a double standard. I think it's political. I think I'm very critical sometimes of the mayor and council's criticisms and this is maybe a timely distraction."

O'Donnell has been working on the investigation and subsequent report since July, when she first received the complaint. 

McLean added council should be focusing on things other than internal bickering, like affordability and public safety. 

After being presented with the integrity commissioner's report, council voted 13-2 that McLean accept responsibility for his actions and issue a letter of apology to Calgarians within 30 days.

McLean was joined by Coun. Sean Chu in voting against the motion. While he will abide by the sanctions, McLean said his vote was one of protest.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek said that city council "wholeheartedly" supported the recommendations in the integrity commissioner's report. 

"We took those to heart," she said. 

Remote, on a golf cart

In her report, O'Donnell wrote that the individual who filed the complaint against McLean, which led to the sanctions, alleged that McLean's video feed during the council meeting showed two people moving on a golf cart. 

The complainant also alleged that McLean appeared to be distracted during the meeting because he did not respond to roll call and failed to vote on a motion.

Coun. Andre Chabot said that while other council members have indeed joined meetings remotely in the past, the question remains of how focused McLean was on city duties at the time. 

"I don't think he's wrong necessarily, but as far as undivided attention, I guess that was determined, that he wasn't fully engaged in the discussion," said Chabot. 

"I know there's [been] a number of instances in the past [in meetings] where we saw cameras go on momentarily and you could visibly see that the member of council was not necessarily in an office environment, which again begs the question, how do you define remote?"

McLean was previously sanctioned for not wearing a mask at an event he organized at a restaurant in December 2021, violating provincial and municipal health orders. 

He was also fined by Elections Alberta in December 2022 for breaking the Local Authorities Election Act during his successful bid for a seat on city council in 2021. 

Following a lengthy investigation, the agency concluded that McLean had accepted donations from corporations for an event during the 2021 election campaign, which is not permitted under the act. 

At council's Nov. 28 meeting, McLean voted with council to unanimously extend O'Donnell in the job for another term.

However, McLean said he's now lost confidence in the integrity commissioner because of her report, and the recommended sanctions.