[31] Moscoe rose to greater prominence in 1988 as a leading critic of proposed Sunday shopping reforms introduced by the provincial government of David Peterson.

Moscoe argued that the Peterson government was abdicating its responsibility by permitting municipalities to legislate change on the issue, and described efforts to expand Sunday shopping as "an attack on labor unions, small business and the family".

[35] Moscoe's efforts to reform the Toronto Transit Commission came to fruition in late 1988, when council voted to replace all of the TTC's citizen members with elected officials.

[36] Moscoe argued that the change was necessary in light of the Metro councillors's increased responsibilities, adding that the "citizen members" were in fact high-level patronage appointees.

[38] He criticized Mel Lastman's plans to provide public funding for the North York Performing Arts Centre in 1991, arguing that it was an unnecessary expense and that private entrepreneur Garth Drabinsky would be the primary beneficiary.

Moscoe also criticized the municipal election reforms passed by David Peterson's government in the same period, arguing that large land developers would be able to avoid donation limits without difficulty.

A Toronto Star survey from the election lists him as the hardest-working member of council, but adds "his effectiveness has been hurt by his penchant for mischief-making, which often casts him in the role of the buffoon".

He described the sale as a "sell-out" orchestrated by members of the governing Progressive Conservative Party, and argued that the deal would be remembered as "the greatest orgy of patronage ever in this country.

"[44] After the Liberal Party of Canada won the 1993 federal election, Moscoe encouraged new Prime Minister Jean Chrétien to cancel the deal and turn the airport over to a non-profit local authority.

[46] Moscoe also spoke out against Metro's decision to reject funding for two gay and lesbian cultural groups in the same year, urging councillors "not to succumb to a radical, right-wing fringe" in withholding revenue.

[47] In December 1995, Moscoe co-sponsored a successful motion calling for Metro Toronto to block a contract with Shell Canada, on the grounds that its parent company was complicit with human rights violations in Nigeria.

[55] Moscoe was strongly critical of a 2004 decision by the provincial government of Dalton McGuinty to negotiate future infrastructural arrangements with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario rather than with individual communities.

[58] In late 2005, Moscoe amended a municipal motion to include Toronto councillors and the mayor under the terms of a planned 12.25% salary increase for the city's unionized employees.

[71] In a letter published in the Toronto Star in February 2007, Moscoe argues that subsidies should be provided to the disabled poor, rather than to those who can afford their own and drive a car.

[72] In late March 2007, Moscoe led the licensing and standards committee in supporting a ban on airport limousines picking up fares in Toronto (a practice sometimes called "scooping").

[73] Council approved the motion the following month, but imposed a one-month delay on its enforcement to allow further negotiations with the Greater Toronto Airport Authority and the City of Mississauga.

As early as 1979, he brought forward a motion to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities calling for senior levels of government to provide operating and capital costs for public transit in cities.

[101] After his reappointment in 2003, Moscoe expressed concern that the provincial government of Ernie Eves was abandoning Toronto transit services in favour of projects in the surrounding municipalities.

[104] In the same period, the federal government of Paul Martin announced that it would contribute a portion of its fuel tax revenues to municipal transit, including the TTC.

[112] In March 2006, Moscoe announced that he would support provincial funding for a united transit system covering the Greater Toronto Area from Burlington to Oshawa.

[114] Moscoe has also criticized the provincial government's plan to introduce "smart card" transit passes for the Greater Toronto Area, arguing that the city could buy 400 buses with the money being spent on the program.

Moscoe apologized to Lowe during a meeting at City Hall, and promised to "sort out our procedures" to ensure that coverage would not be delayed to injured workers in the future.

[121] Ducharme also criticized Moscoe for granting a non-bid contract to Bombardier for the purchase of new subway cars, citing an estimate from rival company Siemens suggesting that it would cost Toronto as much as $100 million.

Moscoe said that his opponents were "trying to get to the mayor" by attacking him, and argued that the controversy was being fomented by Siemens and its lobbyists, who were in contact with a number of councillors critical of the non-bid contract.

[129] In late August 2006, an outside panel of experts judged that Bombardier's offer was a good deal for city, with one consultant saying that the proposed bid "is below most of the recent comparable North American procurements."

Moscoe announced in late October 2006 that the TTC was considering the installment of electronic signs, to show bus and streetcar riders how long they would have to wait for the next vehicle.

[133] He has also proposed shifting Toronto to an automatic train system to increase service capacity, and introducing a station master at each stop to handle upgrades and customer complaints.

He later spoke out against abuses in Toronto's taxi licensing system, drawing attention to cases in which wealthy owners purchased plates that were rented to drivers at exorbitant rates.

[151] He was a founding member of Metro Toronto's Council Action Committee to Combat Racism but resigned in January 1991, saying that it had rendered itself ineffectual by declining to make police issues a priority.

[158] Moscoe played a significant role in Metro Council's deliberations over market value tax reform in late 1992, working with three Progressive Conservative councillors to broker a last-minute compromise on the issue.