Mississauga mayors call to level the playing field gets unanimous support at Peel council

Mississauga's mayor wants to 'level the playing field' for small businesses.

Mayor Bonnie Crombie's original motion at Peel Regional council called for the province to limit big box stores to essential items only while small businesses are shuttered by regional lockdowns.

Council debated the motion for three hours yesterday, making amendments that would not put those limitations on the larger stores.

However, Crombie says council unanimously passed a motion that will call on the provincial government to immediately look at ways to address the inequity.

In a statement Crombie writes, "Although the original wording of the motion was amended, I'm pleased that the intent remained - supportingsmall businesses. What's most important to me is that we had consensus and presented a united front in defense of our small business community."

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business is calling on Toronto Mayor John Tory to put forward a similar push.

Toronto and Peel remain in the 'grey' lockdown portion of the province's tiered COVID-19 restriction system.

Under those measures, many small businesses are closed for in-person shopping, but curbside pick-up options remain.

My statement on the motion unanimously passed by @regionofpeel Council asking the Province to level the playing field for small retailers. While it doesn’t limit big box stores from selling non-essential items, it’s a strong message that we need more help for small businesses. pic.twitter.com/FykhgYm9K1

— Bonnie Crombie (@BonnieCrombie) November 27, 2020