Edmonton city council placed a temporary ban on issuing new licences or event permits for combative sports Friday.
The moratorium will remain in effect until Dec. 31, 2018, or until council provides further direction, the city said in a news release.
Council issued the moratorium after receiving an update on the status of an independent, third-party review into the death of professional boxer Tim Hague, who died after a sanctioned boxing match in Edmonton last June.
The final report will be made public next Thursday, said Mayor Don Iveson.
“The Hague family needs closure on this,” Iveson said. “We just ordered that whatever state it’s in, [the report] needs to be released.
“It’s time for the recommendations and findings, whatever they are, to be aired publicly and then for council to act on them in the new year.”
Some city councillors say the province should regulate combative sport, not municipalities, said Coun. Ben Henderson.
“We argued for a long time, this isn’t the business the city should be in … and at a certain point you’ve got to go, ‘Enough.’ “
“[The moratorium] is a way to sort of catch our breath, and ultimately reiterate the message that has been stated by us for a while … this is a provincial responsibility.”
The Edmonton Combative Sports Commission said it respects the decision.
“We will continue our work as a commission, using this time to move forward with the comprehensive policy review that had already been underway,” the commission said in a statement.