October 19th, 2026
Good morning, London. I’m Matt Brown and this is Buckle Up, sponsored by the Hamilton Road BIA.
It’s Monday, October 19th and this is your weekly update about all things London brought to you by London Ontario Online News, that’s The Loon for short. If you’ve listened before, you know that every Monday morning, I co-host this program with a member from our team or a special guest, giving you the information you need to prepare for the week ahead.
Listen to this week’s Episode:
Paul Hubert is our special guest co-host this week. Of course you know Paul as the recently retired Executive Director of Pathways Skill Development Paul served as London’s Ward 8 councillor for 3 terms of council and during his last term of council, from 2014 to 2018, he served as Deputy Mayor, too. These days Paul is the founder and lead consultant over at Delta Leadership Consulting.
On this episode Paul and I discuss:
The guest column, “Strong Mayor Powers: Where do we draw the line?”, that Paul wrote for The Loon which was published yesterday.
How Josh Morgan has used strong mayor powers effectively and unsuccessfully.
How Susan Steveson and Kirsten Krose suggest how, if elected, they might use strong mayor powers.
Links to examples of how Josh Morgan has used strong mayor powers in the past & how Susan Stevenson and Kirsten Krose could use them if they were elected.
Josh Morgan
Examples of how Morgan used strong mayor powers effectively:
Daryl Newcombe, CTV News: Mayor Morgan won’t flex strong mayor powers to hire London’s next city. manager.
Andrew Lupton, CBC London: London mayor pushes for temporary emergency homeless shelter before winter.
Examples of how Morgan used them unsuccessfully:
Ben Harrietha, 980 CFPL Turning parking lots into housing.
Daryl Newcombe, CTV News: Mayor abandons home buyer incentive announced in State of the City Address, seeks options council might support.
Susan Stevenson
How Stevenson suggests she might used strong mayor powers:
Jack Moulton, London Free Press: Does London need a leader who will lean into strong mayor powers?
Kirsten Krose
How Krose suggests she might used strong mayor powers:
Jack Moulton, London Free Press: London mayoral rivals spar over taxes, construction and strong mayor powers.\
3 of the many mayoral debates:
Christine Taleski, Rogers tv : London: Mayoral Debate - The Local Campaign
Devon Peacock, 980 CFPL: 980 CFPL Mayoral Debate.
Daryl Newcombe, CTV News:
Note: there are 12 candidates running for mayor. You can learn about all of them by visiting The City of London’s list of candidates.
The Urban League’s 14 All Candidate Meetings Now Available for Viewing
You can learn more about these meetings here.
Rogers Television is broadcasting each of them regularly as election day approaches. The Loon was thrilled to partner with the Urban League this year. We wrote many of the questions asked at these meetings we and helped promote the events, too. For a grass roots, not-for-profit, volunteer led organization, the Urban League of London has really gone above and beyond with this initiative.
All 14 Ward All-Candidate Meetings are available on the Rogers tv YouTube channel and are running regularly on Rogers tv.
Sponsor Highlight: Hamilton Road BIA
Thanks, as always, to our show sponsor, Hamilton Road BIA. Through advocacy, investment, beautification and promotion, the BIA works to strengthen the Hamilton Road community while celebrating the rich history and diversity that make the area unique.
Buckle Up is Sponsored by Hamilton Road BIA
www.hamroad.com
Supporting independent local journalism in our community
The Loon (London Ontario Online News) lineup
Local independent journalism bringing you new content every day.
Find our editorial standards and policies here.
Meet the Londoners who team up to send you a new feature every weekday:
Monday - Buckle Up - podcast with Matt Brown
SPONSORED BY HAMILTON ROAD BIATuesday - City Tours with Cedric Richards
SPONSORED BY LONDON BICYCLE CAFÉWednesday - City Hall Notes by Mike Donachie
SPONSORED BY SPERO LAWThursday - the Forest City Arts and Culture Roundup by Diana Tamblyn
SPONSORED BY DOWNTOWN LONDONFriday - Reflections with Steve Cordes
SPONSORED BY OLD EAST VILLAGE BIAAlso on Fridays: the local news ROUNDUP.
Every other Saturday: The Matt Brown Podcast. It’s the show about all things local, and maybe some other stuff too. SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE.
If you’ve been following what we’ve been up to here at The Loon you’ll know that we are bringing together London voices to deliver fresh content each weekday. Through podcasts, articles, video features, and in-depth analysis, we cover the civic decisions, local issues, arts and culture, and community stories that matter most.
Thank you to everyone who has already taken out a paid subscription to support this work. If that’s not you just yet, you can help too. A subscription to The Loon gives you more than news - it gives you the insight to understand your city better while helping sustain independent local journalism for the future. If you’re not in a position to take out a paid subscription, that’s okay too, we’re glad you’re here with us. And, everyone - you can help by following and sharing The Loon, far and wide - with your family, neighbours, colleagues and friends.
