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Name: Josh Morgan

What position are you running for? Mayor

What do you see as the principal opportunities and obstacles facing London’s economy over the next Council term? What should the City do to support business growth, job creation, entrepreneurship and investment, and how should it work with employers, Western University, Fanshawe College and others to attract and retain the talent London needs?

The biggest obstacle is also our biggest opportunity. Tariffs and trade uncertainty are hitting manufacturing-linked jobs, and industries impacts by tariff and counter tariffs. This, however, has been a unifying and organizing force in several ways. It has brought together all levels of government, businesses, non-profits, entrepreneurs and the public with a focus on resiliency and supporting Canadian jobs and products. We have a new Economic Development Strategy that can focus our collective efforts and allow for better organization and response to changing circumstances. Beyond that, the City should keep expanding shovel-ready industrial land through the Industrial Land Development Strategy, keep incentive programs like the Office-to-Residential Conversion program working, and treat Western University and Fanshawe College as economic partners, not just institutions, formalizing talent-retention pathways that keep more graduates working in London instead of leaving after convocation. We have the ability to be influential regionally and nationally through my chairing the Big City Mayors’ Caucus, to advocate for supports that sit outside municipal jurisdiction but shape our local economy directly.

London now has a new Downtown Plan. Which elements would you prioritize and what results should Londoners expect to see during the next Council term? Please address the downtown business environment, public spaces, housing and office conversions, cultural and civic destinations, safety, transportation and implementation accountability.

Safety is always top priority, however, I would also prioritize the focus on connecting downtown to the river through a new River District, because there is a grassroot component to this and great public spaces support business confidence, and how people feel about being downtown. Alongside that: continuing office-to-residential conversions that are already reducing our office vacancy rate, leaning into our UNESCO City of Music designation as a genuine downtown draw, and treating activation (more people, more often, in well-used public spaces) as a stated goal, not an afterthought. On accountability: the Plan is one of 58 actions tied to the Economic Development Strategy, and starting in 2027 Council gets an annual Economic Development Outcomes Report tracking real indicators. By the end of the next term, Londoners should expect a lower office vacancy rate, more people living downtown, and visible progress on the river connection.

London faces an urgent health and homelessness crisis. Residents, employees and businesses also have concerns about violence, property crime, public disorder and confidence in public spaces. These conditions require related but distinct responses. What actions would you support in each area, and what responsibilities should fall to the City, police, the health system, other orders of government and community partners?

These are related but distinct problems so I would like to be precise about who owns which piece. Homelessness and health: the City’s role is coordinating the system (outreach, hubs, and highly supportive housing) which is why we backed the $25M Health and Homelessness Fund for Change and inspired the province’s supported the HART Hub system. However, addiction treatment and mental health care are provincial health-system responsibilities, and I recently joined unanimously with 29 other Mayors to demand the province does more on treatment and recovery spaces. Violence and property crime are core policing. I funded a significant number of new officers in new divisions to address organized and complex crime while creating a greater presence on the streets. London Police also needs provincial court and bail-system partners doing their part.

What changes would you support to increase housing supply and affordability and create neighbourhoods with access to employment, services, transportation and public amenities?

I’d keep building on what’s working: the 50,000 new homes over 10 years target (10,000 downtown), the renovictions bylaw that made London the third city in Canada to have one, over 3000 new affordable units in the past five years, and incentive programs that stack on top of each other instead of competing. Office-to-Residential conversion, transit-oriented Development, and the Home-Owner Down payment programs are critical incentives. On neighbourhoods, the London Plan’s intensification strategy of growing inward and upward is what puts new housing near existing jobs, transit, and services instead of pushing it to the edges of the city, away from all three. That’s why projects like Legacy Village (8400 units) and transit investment like the East London Link matter together, not separately because housing supply without access to jobs and transit doesn’t actually solve the affordability problem.

London’s cultural facilities, venues and public spaces are essential to the life of the city, and several face age, capacity or funding pressures. What cultural infrastructure should be prioritised during the next Council term, and how should the City decide where to invest?

London’s cultural facilities are part of our economic case, not separate from it. The Downtown Plan explicitly leans on our UNESCO City of Music designation as one of downtown’s defining moves. I think the right way to prioritize investment is by asking three questions: is a facility a genuine downtown or neighbourhood draw; is its state of repair putting programming at risk if we wait; and can City investment unlock matching provincial, federal, or philanthropic dollars rather than the City carrying the cost alone. Not every venue needs the same answer, some need capital repair, some need better public-space connections around them, but our music and festival spaces and economy need to be treated as core infrastructure.

London’s economic success depends on reliable local, regional, national and international connections. How would you improve local transit and service to major employment areas and shift workers, intercity bus and air links, and passenger rail? What should businesses and employees be able to expect in terms of frequency, reliability and access?

Reliability is the actual test. At the transit commission I am supporting an Alternative Service Delivery model that connects industrial areas and new neighbourhoods to the network. The Master Mobility Plan will support all modes of travel to connect people to major employers, hospitals, and educational institutions. I personally supported the advocacy to bring Porter Airlines to London and look forward to their expanded serve to major Canadian cites that will be announced this fall. London’s connections also depend on intercity bus, rail access, levels mostly outside direct City control, which is where I use a regional advocacy approach on both, bringing together Mayors, business partners, and organizations to advocate with one voice for these improvements.

What changes would you make to municipal approvals, regulation, procurement and customer service to make it easier to invest, build and operate a business in London?

Rather than speak about the progress we’ve made, I think we need to undergo a customer-service review to ensure we are providing the services expected with reasonable and fair processes and timelines. What I can point to is that the Office-to-Residential Conversion program is a real example of the City simplifying an approval pathway to get results (CBRE has credited it as a factor in downtown’s first vacancy-rate decline in years). I want that same approach to simplify the process and measuring the result, to be applied more broadly to other areas. On procurement specifically, municipalities operate within real legal limits, since the trade agreements restrict how far local preference can go. Within those limits, faster, more predictable, more transparent City processes are squarely within our control, and that’s where I want the next term focused.

London City Council approved the 2025–2035 ReconciliAction Plan in May 2025, committing the City to 155 actions over ten years. What should the next Council do to translate these commitments into a clear, properly resourced implementation plan developed with Indigenous partners? How would you advance reconciliation through economic development, procurement, planning, cultural investment and municipal services?

The next Council will turn the ReconciliAction Plan into a plan with ownership, funding lines, and dates. Council directed staff to develop an implementation strategy with clear metrics and performance indicators that will be publicly reported on. Our Economic Development Plan already includes a dedicated partnership with Indigenous communities on regional economic development. I worked with Chief Cornelius to hold the first-ever joint meeting of London City Council and Oneida Nation of the Thames Council. We are supporting Indigenous fire-training capacity at the forthcoming Emergency Services Campus. Procurement and planning are where I think work remains.

London’s growth depends on roads, transit, water and wastewater systems, emergency services and community facilities. How would you determine which investments proceed first, pay for growth fairly and maintain competitive property taxes?

The federal and provincial governments have abandoned the grith pays for growth model. They are now funding growth related infrastructure programs though the Development Charge Rebate Program and i strongly believe none of these costs should be shifted to property taxpayers. Core infrastructure that unlocks the most housing and jobs per dollar (like trunk sewers and watermains, transit corridors, and safety-critical replacements) should come first. They are guided by our Multi-Year Budget process rather than one-off annual decisions. Last year I pledged to keep increases under 5%, and I beat that pledge coming in at about 3%. London maintained its Aaa credit rating and avoided or paid down over $80million of debt. Competitive taxes and funded growth aren’t in tension when multi-year planning is disciplined; they only conflict when a city defers hard choices and lets costs pile up for the next Council.

London City Council approved the Climate Emergency Action Plan in 2022. The Plan calls for a 55 per cent reduction in community-wide greenhouse-gas emissions from 2005 levels by 2030. Which elements of the Plan would you prioritise, accelerate or change during the next Council term? How would you ensure that climate action strengthens resilience, affordability and economic competitiveness for residents and businesses?

The recent audit shows that London isn’t on track for the Plan’s 55% by 2030 target, and it named renewed commitment, sustained funding, and provincial electricity-generation changes as what’s needed to close the gap. I agree with that finding. The composition of the provincial electricity grid has slowed our progress as more gas generation has come online. That means advocacy remains a critical part of our approach. My first Multi-Year Budget created the first-ever Climate Emergency Reserve Fund to fund the Plan. I also sit on the national Green Municipal Fund Board, which has directed hundreds of millions of dollars to climate projects in Canadian communities (including London and region). The CEAP’s public reporting will be tied to measurable outcomes rather than activity updates. Climate investment is about long-term affordability, resilience and competitiveness as building retrofits and transit investment lower operating costs for residents and businesses while cutting emissions.

Ontario’s strong-mayor legislation gives the Mayor of London enhanced authority in areas including the municipal budget, senior administration and matters connected to provincial priorities.
If you are a candidate for Mayor: How would you use these powers, when would you choose not to use them, and what standards of transparency and accountability would you apply?

A candidate who understands the legislation will know they have to use some of these powers and responsibilities because a number of the duties are not optional. The powers are new tools that happen to be vested in the Mayor, but can be approached collaboratively and democratically. I have used them to directly involve Council in the hiring of the City Manager and create deeper Council involvement in the budget process and get new ideas before Council faster. Council has also unanimously asked me to use the powers to expedite areas of Council priority. I have never overridden or vetoed any democratic decision of Council. I have also posted all of my Mayoral Decisions I’ve issued publicly on the City’s website for public transparency.

What role should arts, culture and the creative industries play in London’s economic and community development? How should the City support cultural organisations, artists, venues, festivals and creative businesses while ensuring that municipal investment produces lasting public value?

They are a critical part of our Economic Development Strategy. The City supports a number of cultural and creative institutions/organizations through capital and operating grants, open granting programs, and direct investments a number of related Boards and Commissions. We support activations on our streets and in out community facilities and have established offices (like the Music and Film offices) to coordinate and provide leadership in these spaces.

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