Olivia Chow's reported about-face on police funding

Plus, ArriveCan's inflated price tag and Ford walks back wage restraint legislation [Get This Offer]( [The Star] First Up [By Kevin Jiang] By Kevin Jiang Good morning. Here’s the latest on Canada’s ArriveCan failures, council conversations on police funding and Doug Ford backing down on Bill 124. DON’T MISS Canadian Press/Giordano Ciampini federal politics [Ottawa “repeatedly failed” to manage the ArriveCan app]( A new report from auditor general Karen Hogan found the federal government “repeatedly failed” to follow proper practices at every stage of launching their ArriveCan app, which was introduced near the start of the pandemic to log travellers’ proof of vaccination and help them comply with border measures. “It did not deliver the best value for taxpayer dollars spent,” Hogan wrote in her report Monday. The real costs of the tool remain unknown due to poor record keeping, but Hogan’s office estimates a price tag of $59.5 million — far exceeding the $80,000 for the earliest versions of the tool and more than Ottawa’s own accounting, Raisa Patel reports. [Take a closer look at the AG’s findings]( - Miss something? The Globe and Mail first reported in 2022 the ArriveCan app cost $54 million, prompting a series of reviews and studies into the excessive price tag. - Andrew Philips’ take: Leaving aside the suggestions of corruption brought up during the inquiries into ArriveCan’s costs, [it shouldn’t take multiple hearings to pry out basic information about who authorized the spending of millions of taxpayers’ dollars](. David Rider/The Star star exclusive [Olivia Chow has joined council conversations about the police budget]( Mayor Olivia Chow has joined in private city council discussions aimed at approving the full budget increase requested by police, after largely denying their demands in her draft 2024 budget, the Star has learned. Councillors are expected to propose amendments to her budget as soon as Tuesday, sources say. Chow’s plan allotted $1.174 billion for police — $12.6 million short of their requested boost. This sparked an intense lobbying campaign from police, which warned less money to hire officers puts Torontonians’ safety at risk. Now, sources say Chow is poised to back a council motion providing the remaining $12.6 million. [Here’s what you need to know](. - What we know: While it’s true the number of police officers has lagged behind Toronto’s population growth, the police budget has also grown well above the rate of inflation since 1999. The money has mostly gone toward paying officers, [with individual salaries and benefits ballooning 44 per cent above inflation in the last 25 years](. - Another angle: Chow’s approval rating dropped almost 20 per cent in the wake of her announcement of a historic tax increase, polls show, signalling the end of her “honeymoon” phase — [but she still has the approval of 55 per cent of respondents](. Canadian Press/Justin Tang provincial politics [Doug Ford is backing down on his wage restraint legislation]( Premier Doug Ford made a sudden about-face on his controversial Bill 124 — which would cap wage increases for most public sector workers to one per cent annually for three years — just hours after Ontario’s top court upheld a Superior Court ruling that the legislation infringed upon Charter rights. The office of Attorney General Doug Downey said Ontario will not appeal the decision and “will instead take steps to repeal Bill 124 in its entirety in the coming weeks.” His statement promised new regulations will be “urgently” introduced to exempt non-unionized and nonassociated workers from Bill 124 until it is repealed. [Here’s how you might be impacted](. - Context: Bill 124 was originally struck down by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in 2022, [which declared it violated Charter rights to collective bargaining](. - More: [The bill has faced fierce opposition in the years since it was announced]( including from nurses and health professionals, who said it was responsible for an exodus of health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. WHAT ELSE Defence Minister Bill Blair avoided criticizing Donald Trump over his [wild warning about military spending](. China is calling on Israel to [halt its military operations in Gaza as soon as possible to avoid a “humanitarian disaster.”]( Doug Ford’s government is on track for a [$4.5-billion budget deficit this year](. A report shows Toronto ride-hail gig workers [earn just $6.37 an hour after expenses](. A first human death has been recorded. [What is Alaskapox and should we be worried?]( A Toronto jury has [acquitted a man in the first-degree murder of his best friend](. A major construction project starts Sunday in downtown Toronto. [Here’s how it will affect TTC routes](. “Our ultimate Toronto project.” [A massive crystalline skyscraper is coming to the heart of downtown](. [Russia put Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas on a wanted list]( but didn’t specify the charges. The Toronto Public Library is [putting over a million items back into circulation after a ransomware attack](. King Charles wants us to know he’s just fine — [and Kate would like us to mind our own business](. Usher and longtime partner Jenn Goicoechea [married after the Super Bowl](. POV Canadian Press/Cole Burston [Just how shamelessly has Doug Ford ground down Ontario’s colleges and universities? Let me count the ways.]( CLOSE-UP Mohammed Abed/AFP via Getty Images RAFAH: Palestinian children stand in the rubble of a mosque in the Gaza city of Rafah, [following Israeli airstrikes that killed at least 74 Palestininans and led to the rescue of two Israeli hostages](. Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_208797). I’ll see you back here tomorrow. Get unlimited access to the Star 50% off sale: Only $1.20/week for 52 weeks! [Get This Offer]( If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. 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