A raise isn't in the cards for Toronto city councillors

Plus, Toronto's troubled school buses and food banks at a tipping point [Get This Offer]( [The Star] First Up [By Andy Takagi] By Andy Takagi Good morning. Here’s the latest on city councillor pay raises, the state of Toronto school buses and the crisis facing Canadian food banks. DON’T MISS Steve Russell/The Star star exclusive [Why city councillors aren’t getting a pay hike]( Even though a report recommended big raises for city councillors, the mayor and Toronto’s top bureaucrat quietly shelved the idea, the Star has learned. The recommended pay hike was 22 per cent — with a hefty $700,000 annual price tag. [Ben Spurr uncovers why the report never made it to council](. - Money, money, money: Even without a raise, an annual salary of $128,347 means city councillors still make more than the median Toronto household. - At Queen’s Park: MPPs — who earn less than city councillors or MPs — [have seen their salaries frozen for a decade-and-a-half]( Michelle Mengsu Chang/The Star education [These school bus trips are ‘a ticking time bomb’]( More condos, more families, more students — it’s the perfect recipe for skyrocketing demand for school buses. With bus drivers under pressure and stretched thin amidst a driver shortage, parents say the buses are often late, prone to unexpected cancellations and lack supervision. [Janet Hurley reports on how students are getting caught in the middle](. - Sound familiar? Earlier in October, more than 140 school bus routes were abruptly cancelled, impacting 1,600 students, when it was discovered that [drivers didn’t have the correct licence to operate their vehicles](. Nick Lachance/The Star cost of living [Food banks across Canada are reaching a tipping point]( Canadians facing varying degrees of food insecurity paid two million visits to the country’s food banks in March alone, a new Food Banks Canada report shows. The country’s lifeline for those in need of food is buckling under rampant demand, with food bank use up 90 per cent from before the pandemic. “We are at a tipping point,” food bank organizations told Reagan McSwain. [Here’s what’s driving demand](. - In Ontario: [Nearly one in 14 Ontarians were going hungry over the past year]( with over a million people turning to food banks.  [Customer interviews] Interested in helping the Star improve online? We're holding interviews with customers like you to get your insights on our digital products, including but not limited to newsletters like this one. If you're interested, please email us at customerfeedback@thestar.ca. WHAT ELSE Tense exchanges, powerful allies and bigotry accusations: [Why the Don Valley West byelection is unlike any other](. Updated COVID-19 boosters will be available for all Ontarians on Monday. [Are they still effective?]( Olivia Chow announced a plan for [Toronto libraries to be open seven days a week by 2026](. [A Canadian education group is calling for new strategies]( amid international student upheaval. The man who rescued the only survivor from a deadly Tesla crash [still hears the cries of the woman he saved](. The Canadian Medical Association wants to [end employers’ sick-note requirements in some cases](. Toronto’s rents are finally falling. [Here’s why it’s happening — and how long prices could drop](. This week in Toronto: [A frosty start and a possibly rainy Halloween, plus some TTC changes to be aware of](. New condo sales plummeted in Toronto in September, BILD says. [Here’s why](. [Jukebox musical “& Juliet” will return to Toronto]( as Mirvish announces a new Canadian run. Five years after trading in Toronto life for a country home, Eya Donald Greenland [shares why she’s ready to swap her rubber boots for city shoes](. Nine games in, [what’s really changed for the Maple Leafs this season]( POV Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick [Justin Trudeau should listen to the dissidents who want change. But, Althia Raj writes, there’s a reason why the message isn’t getting through.]( CLOSE-UP Lance McMillan/The Star BAY LOWER STATION: Delays on the TTC can be nightmare-fuel, but this abandoned subway station was offering up a different kind of subway scare over the weekend with the transit agency’s “Halloween Fest.” [Lance McMillan took all the spooky shots for your mortifying Monday](. 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_4511). I’ll see you back here tomorrow. Get [thestar.com]( + ePaper edition. Only $1 for 6 months! Save over $100. [Get This Offer]( If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. [Unsubscribe From This Newsletter]( [Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts]( [View in Browser]( Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8. 416-367-2000 [PRIVACY POLICY](