Hamilton Mayor Andrea Horwath held her second availability of 2026 on Thursday, February 19, 2026 following the final council meeting reviewing her 2026 City of Hamilton budget plan.
The following is a transcript from the availability.
Joey Coleman (00:16): Council completed its budget process.
Mayor Andrea Horwath (00:19): Council has completed it, yes, though there’s still some process to go.
Joey Coleman (00:22): Where I’m going with this—is your part of the process complete or are you considering vetoing items?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (00:31): I take my job and my role very seriously. I’m going to take the time to look at everything that we’ve done before I make a final call, because that’s my responsibility and that is exactly what I am going to do.
Joey Coleman (00:48): There’s one amendment that is not veto-proof—the library budget, which passed on a 9-7 vote to permit the library at the 5.25 percent increase. You voted against that. What is your position and are you considering a veto?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (01:07): I’m going to look at all of the decisions that came forward through the amendment process. I want to say again that I’m grateful to the councillors who came forward with a number of different ideas. I’m going to look at each and every one of them to determine the path forward. I don’t expect it to take a very long time—I expect it to be fairly speedy. There weren’t a lot of amendments, they were well debated and discussed, and so I’m looking forward to giving that work the scrutiny and review that is due as part of my responsibility as mayor.
TheSpec (01:47): What are your thoughts on some of the councillors’ messaging about frustration with the budget process?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (01:56): There’s no doubt that the provincially mandated process causes frustration, and every year we try to fine-tune it. I think this year went much more smoothly than last year. There were some concerns raised, and as I did last year, I’m going to take responsibility to make sure we don’t lose those comments and concerns, and try to continue to improve the process. As long as that’s the process we have to deal with, we’re going to try to make it as smooth as possible here in Hamilton.
CHCH (02:32): You mentioned you don’t expect it to take very long. Should we take that to mean you’re not going to take the entirety of the ten-day period?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (02:39): I highly doubt it’ll take ten days.
CHCH (02:41): And you won’t tip your hat if you’re considering any vetoes?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (02:44): No. At this point, I need to take the time to look at what’s come through and determine whether there is anything that’s going to be overturned. That’s my responsibility and I have to take that seriously. But I do not expect it to take inordinate amounts of time.
CHCH (03:05): You mentioned process. There have been some concerns raised from councillors about collaboration. Do you anticipate changes moving forward?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (03:16): There’s always opportunity for us to look at procedures and process. What I have to say, and what Hamiltonians need to know, is that at every budget session I literally send emails to all the councillors inviting them to come have a conversation about what they’re thinking about the budget, what they’d like to see, what concerns them, and whether they’re interested in setting targets. I want to have a sense of where they’re coming from.
(03:48): In some cases, councillors take advantage of that offer and we have those conversations. Sometimes we follow up on those conversations. Some councillors have refused to participate from day one—that’s their prerogative. But what’s not their prerogative is to pretend that engagement isn’t happening. I’m a little bit frustrated by it, to be frank. You can’t say there has been no engagement when you haven’t taken advantage of the engagement that has been offered. Are there ways that perhaps make a different process? Perhaps. But in order for a process to work, people have to engage in it.
Joey Coleman (04:19): Going back to the library—you’re aware of the crisis occurring there. What is your response to the crisis at the Central library?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (04:29): There is no doubt that the City of Hamilton is facing a significant crisis, and the central branch of the library is feeling that pressure. We are doing everything we can to address the ongoing crisis, but folks know this is not something that can be resolved solely at the municipal order of government. We continue to do our part—you’ll see some of those investments in the budget—but we also continue to press the other orders of government.
(05:01): In fact, big city mayors just re-upped the Solving the Crisis campaign at the end of last year. We need the crisis to be solved. We cannot do it alone, and it’s multifaceted. There is no single silver bullet. It requires deep investments in mental health and addictions work, affordable housing, people’s income levels, ability to access primary care, transitional housing, supportive housing. There are many solutions that need to come to the table, and they cannot be funded by the property taxpayer alone.
CHCH (05:40): What’s the importance of the shipyards agreement for the city? What do you make of that agreement?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (05:51): It’s very exciting. We have a deep-water port in Hamilton. We had shipbuilding in Hamilton for a very long time historically—in fact, some folks don’t know that. What this does is breathe new life into the ability of that industry to respond to the current environment. If the federal government is looking for ways to fund more production of defense vehicles and marine equipment, this is a city ready for that kind of investment.
(06:30): From the marine perspective, Ontario Shipbuilding has been around for some time and they are primed and ready. In fact, they have been asking for some time—a couple of years now. I’ve been visiting their facility with the understanding to follow up with the Provincial Minister of Finance and Premier. I know they’ve both visited more than once, as have I. The federal government is interested as well. We’re primed to be the solution to this opportunity that the federal government has made. Shipbuilding is something we can do. It helps support our broader industrial sector, and a lot of the input materials used at Ontario Shipyards come from local producers and fabricators of steel in our city. It’s a win-win all the way around.
CHCH (07:38): Any specific comments on the Korean agreement, or is everything on the same page there?
Mayor Andrea Horwath (07:45): What we need to do is be ready to be a part of these opportunities. And what I can say for certain is that Hamilton is ready to take advantage of these opportunities. We’re ready in a number of ways. We have amazing industrial capacity and great leadership in the private sector in that space. We have wonderful relationships—myself as well as other representatives—with the federal and provincial governments, and those relationships matter. When these kinds of opportunities come forward, Hamilton is on the radar. I’m not sure it’s always been on the radar, but it certainly is now.
(08:19): I continue to push forward as mayor to find those opportunities and support local business, support Mohawk College in their support of local business, support McMaster University and the work they’re doing. Because shipbuilding is one piece. You’ll know we’ve also had a $400 million investment at the airport coming in the next number of years, which has already brought all kinds of renewal. We now have jet bridges where you don’t have to walk on the tarmac every time. We have Porter Airlines, which is great. We have the investment in our downtown with a downtown plan coming. We have a radiopharmaceutical industry that’s becoming a hub for the entire nation—again, a partnership with Mohawk, McMaster, and McMaster Innovation Park. We have agribusiness.
(08:51): Our economy is firing on all cylinders right now. I know that some conversation was about job loss being the second largest in history, but we’ve also issued building permits at record levels in the city of Hamilton in 2025. These are things we need to celebrate and remember. Yes, there are challenges we face as a city, but there’s also a great deal of opportunity. And I’m just talking about jobs and industry and economy. Look at what’s happening in arts and culture. Look at what’s happening in terms of our ability to create better, more livable neighborhoods. Those are commitments this city council made, and we are delivering on those promises. Thank you.
Note: This transcript has been edited for clarity and readability.
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Published: February 21, 2026
Last updated: February 21, 2026
Author: Joey Coleman
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