Town council in Canada at standstill over refusal to pledge oath to King

A municipality assembly successful Canada is said to beryllium astatine a standstill due to the fact that of recently elected members refusing to pledge an oath of allegiance to the King.

Stephen Johnson, the mayor-elect of Dawson City, successful the territory of Yukon, said helium and others refused to instrumentality the oath due to the fact that of the Crown’s past with indigenous populations, the Canadian Press quality bureau reported.

He told the quality outlet that the assembly has not been capable to govern and is waiting for the territory’s Department of Community Services to respond to its petition to instrumentality an alternate oath.

The Canadian Press said the oath of allegiance requires recently elected councillors to curse oregon affirm they “will beryllium faithful and carnivore existent allegiance to His Majesty King Charles III” and his “heirs and successors according to law”.

Mr Johnson said they are presently incapable to bash thing legally required of them nether the Municipal Act.

“It’s a spot of a sticky situation,” helium told the Canadian Press.

Mr Johnson said helium and 3 different councillors refused to instrumentality the oath successful solidarity with councillor Darwyn Lynn, a subordinate of the Tr’ondek Hwech’in First Nation, connected whose accepted onshore Dawson is located.

“This is being done with nary disrespect to His Majesty King Charles. And besides we’re not doing this to spell ‘rah, rah, look astatine us’, to poke everybody crossed Canada, to get escaped of the Crown,” Mr Johnson said.

“It was conscionable thing we wanted to bash unneurotic to amusement solidarity successful what we bash present successful this town.”

The territory is reviewing the council’s petition to curse a antithetic oath, a Community Services spokesperson said successful an email to the Canadian Press.