Brian Topp, a political ally of Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, will be the next chair of Toronto Hydro.
On Tuesday, Toronto City Council unanimously approved Topp’s appointment following a recommendation from the city’s corporate nominating committee.
Topp is an NDP stalwart and among the highest-profile representatives of the party countrywide. He briefly served as president of the New Democratic Party of Canada in 2011, when Chow was an NDP MP, and placed second in a party leadership race the following year.
He is also a partner in the lobbying firm GT & Co, chair of the NDP-affiliated Broadbent Institute’s board, the former chief of staff to ex-Alberta NDP premier Rachel Notley and a previous director of ACTRA, the Canadian actors’ union.
While Toronto does not have municipal political parties, Mayor Chow is closely aligned with the NDP. Her late husband Jack Layton led the federal party, which she represented in the House of Commons for three terms.
Bradley Hammond, Chow’s director of communications, told TorontoToday that the corporate nominating committee was behind the recommendation, not the mayor herself, but that Chow supports Topp’s appointment.
“Topp has a lot of experience running large organizations across Canada” and Toronto will be lucky to have him steering the ship at Toronto Hydro, Hammond said by phone.
Topp will replace David McFadden, who has chaired the Toronto Hydro board since 2015. His current term expires at the end of the year.
The position comes with an annual retainer of $75,000. The city’s nominating committee short-listed seven candidates for the public seat Topp is taking up in addition to his position as chair. He will hold the post until June 27, 2026.
The move to appoint an ally of the mayor to the position came one day after Chow demoted her political foe Brad Bradford from vice-chair of the city’s planning and housing committee.
Topp told TorontoToday he is looking forward to helping execute the TransformTO Net Zero Strategy, which aims to reduce the city’s greenhouse gas emissions by bolstering electrification.
“Toronto Hydro also has important stakeholders — the city itself, its owner; the citizens of Toronto, its customers; and the people who work at Toronto Hydro, many represented by their unions,” Topp added by email. “The board has a good deal to contribute to Toronto Hydro by ensuring all of these stakeholders feel heard.”
“And far from least, I’m very grateful to David McFadden for his remarkable run as chair; I hope to build on his work and his example; and I’m looking forward to tapping him for advice,” said Topp.
