B.C. Election 2013

Discuss the upcoming provincial election. Keep it civil in here, people. It's not the Political Arena.
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NAB
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B.C. Election 2013

Post by NAB »

Well, the writ hasn't been dropped yet, but we may as well keep proceeding as though it has.. it's not as though we have had much in the way of effective governance instead of campaigning since long before the last election.... over 4 years wasted on wheel spinning from both the government and opposition benches on all fronts IMO.
Nab

Scandals overshadow bills in short B.C. legislative session
Rob Shaw / Times Colonist
March 14, 2013

B.C.’s Liberal government limped out of a short legislative session Thursday and into its election campaign, battered and bruised by a series of scandals but having passed most of its legislation.

A plan to pool registered pensions for the self-employed failed to pass, as did the government’s balanced budget and a plan to elect federal senators.

Nonetheless, it was a “very productive session given what some of the predictions might have been,” said Liberal house leader Mike de Jong.

The government passed “significant legislation” during the 19-day session, de Jong said, including a Tla’amin treaty agreement, a seniors advocate, sanctions on troublesome properties, justice reforms and term limits for the auditor general.

One bill expanded the powers of B.C.’s child and youth advocate to include young adults, while another loosened laws to allow donated liquor to be auctioned for charity.

Those victories were largely overshadowed by scandals that hit the government, most recently a multicultural outreach plan that resulted in several resignations.

De Jong said those were difficult times for the government, but that it also distinguished itself by tabling a balanced budget.

“It takes time, though, for some of the accomplishments and the legislative changes that have been proposed and passed here to become more widely known,” de Jong said.

“That will become part of our task going forward as we move into an election campaign.”

The Opposition NDP said the only real thing accomplished was a bill to reintroduce the provincial sales tax on April 1, after the harmonized sales tax was defeated in a provincewide referendum in 2011.

“That would be the singular accomplishment of this session,” said NDP house leader John Horgan.

“We have a seniors advocate bill that’s inadequate. We have a Senate nomination bill that won’t be proceeded with.”

Horgan said he expected more from the government after it cancelled the fall 2012 legislature session.

“You’d think if you spend eight months thinking of a legislative session, they’d be able to do better than they did here.”

B.C. voters head to the polls on May 14.
George+
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by George+ »

AGREE.
Newspapers very scathing of government and Clark.
NAB
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by NAB »

Beginning to look more and more like there is less and less to differentiate between the Liberals and the NDP, at least from a policy/campaign "promises" and the economy/gov't spending perspective. So it will probably come down to which side has the least to apologize for covering the last 12 years. I also suspect the environment will be a, if not the, major issue... and the Liberals will probably come up zero on that front. There will be a lot of talk about jobs creation I suppose, but that old horse has had its day.

Nab
Donald G
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by Donald G »

NAB and George+ ...

The post you have written and agreed with is a bit more balanced than your usual comments. Actually a little bit of truth on both sides and thus food for thought. Thank you.
NAB
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by NAB »

Clark on defensive as B.C. election nears, with legislature session ending on sorry note
Les Leyne / Times Colonist
March 15, 2013

British Columbia’s 39th parliament sputtered to an end this week and for a lot of the politicians involved, it was like waking up from an Alice in Wonderland opium dream.

Cast your mind back to the first sitting of the legislature in 2009, after the B.C. Liberals won a third straight election. A disengaged public (50 per cent turnout) gave them a 49-35 seat edge. Gordon Campbell became the first premier in 23 years to last three elections. His party’s hold had slipped from the historic 77-2 win of 2001, but was still secure.

Facing Opposition leader Carole James, who they were utterly certain would never become premier, they gave every indication of being partway through a dynasty that could last several more years.

Since then, after almost four years of chaos, the legislature wound up Thursday afternoon. Both original leaders are gone. The Liberal margin is reduced to just a handful of seats.

The government lost a historic referendum, its surplus for three years, two byelections, two MLAs and all of its edge in all of the polls.

It sounded like a platitude when Campbell told the house on opening day in 2009: “We are living in significantly changing times.” It turned out to be an understatement.

The throne speech opened with an urgent explanation of why the HST was a great idea. Nobody bought it. The tax change was the root cause of nearly every major change in the past four years.

The biggest single change was the election of Christy Clark as premier by Liberal party members on Feb. 26, 2011. She won it almost completely on the strength of having had nothing to do with the HST.

So it was fitting that one of the few bills of any consequence in the brief fifth and last session was the law restoring the separate provincial sales tax.

On April 1, the HST will be gone, along with a lot of other things the Liberals were banking on.

The rest of the legislative package was a small-change assortment of modest ideas. Considering that the government went eight months between sittings, it proved the sincerity of Clark’s views — caught last year by a reporter — that she thinks the legislature is a “sick culture” she’d sooner avoid.

Her party is in desperate need of a big new idea. They have one in liquefied natural gas. But that is seven or eight years away, so even Clark recognized that legislating the prosperity fund she mentioned in the throne speech would be premature.

Apart from resurrecting the PST, they managed to create a seniors advocate, enact some justice system reforms and expand the jurisdiction of the representative for children and youth.

But they couldn’t even finish the very limited job they set out for themselves. The worthy idea of creating a pooled-pension opportunity, for the majority of people who don’t have one, died on the order paper. So did the showy idea of allowing for provincial elections of federal Senate nominees.

During the spring session, the government waited until the last week to introduce more than a dozen bills and wound up having to jam some of them through the process by forcing debate.

This time around, they lowered their sights, but still didn’t manage to reach their targets.

The overall tone of the brief finale wasn’t found in the legislation. As usual, it took shape in question period. And despite Clark’s penchant for counter-attacking, the lasting impression was one of an apologetic government keen to make amends.

The ethnic-outreach scandal that dominated the past two weeks prompted profuse apologies from Clark and ranking cabinet ministers.

With a last-day-of-school feeling in the air on Thursday, Clark stood up during question period to make another round of apologies for the aborted, ill-conceived project.

“I’ve apologized for the mistake. Two members of staff have resigned … When you make a mistake, the right thing to do is own up to it.”

She urged the Opposition to do the same for the suspicious use of constituency allowances that they appropriated for ethnic outreach.

They could conceivably be the last words she utters as premier in the house.

An abject apology and a defensive rejoinder. Those are hardly the notes you want to start an election campaign on.
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by gordon_as »

Here is a question , and I ask it in all honesty. I have no political affiliation , no agenda.

If in fact , the NDP win the election , will the teachers and nurses etc. expect the new govt to cough up all the extra stuff they feel entitled to ? Would the NDP actually do that , or would they just say we would love to , but , sorry there is no money and it is all the fault of the previous Liberal Govt.
NAB
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by NAB »

Part of the answer to your question may be here Gordon//

viewtopic.php?f=26&t=49818

Problem seems to be that some complain that (name your party) are not forthcoming with their platform or plans (in this case Dix), then when positions are put out there refuse to believe them. Go figure LOL.

Nab
gordon_as
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by gordon_as »

Thanks NAB , that pretty much answers my question.
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by Logitack »

teachers, nurses, bcgeu, health sciences, et al will "want" the ndp to increase wages but they will be disappointed... they need to think back to the early and mid 90s when the ndp legislated them back to work with zero wage increases.

with the deficit and debt now larger than it has ever been in the history of BC, the ndp will have no choice but to hold the line at a minimum and more likely make cuts to programs.
NAB
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by NAB »

Apparently there is major confusion in the minds of some (many?) who fail to maintain sufficient differentiation and separation between the operations of our Provincial Government and those of political parties. A blurred situation consciously inspired by the new Premier's office since day one IMO. We seem to forget that political parties have no authority to govern or even influence governance, only elected MLA's do!

My primary focus is and has been on the government rather than the political parties, and that focus has lead me to the belief that the government we have effectively became leaderless and lost its way badly back in 2005/06, really went to hell in a handbasket in 2009/10, and in spite of an opportunity to correct resulting from Gordon Campbell and Carol James resignations have simply gone from bad to worse - generating almost 4 years of malfeasance, lazyness, political games, uncertainty and chaos for BC Governance in the process.

Well, very shortly they will all be out of a job so of no particular consequence any more, and the focus will, of necessity, shift to selecting a new batch of MLA's from the only 2 parties and their leaders to steer the province through the next 4 years .....since the last 4 years has failed to produce a viable, competent, and trustworthy third party option.

For me therefore it is an easy choice, change.... for I simply cannot, in all good conscience, play a supporting role in perpetuating the frustrating status quo of the last 4 wasted and unproductive years.

Nab
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steven lloyd
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by steven lloyd »

NAB wrote: My primary focus is and has been on the government rather than the political parties, and that focus has lead me to the belief that the government we have effectively became leaderless and lost its way badly back in 2005/06, really went to hell in a handbasket in 2009/10, and in spite of an opportunity to correct resulting from Gordon Campbell and Carol James resignations have simply gone from bad to worse - generating almost 4 years of malfeasance, lazyness, political games, uncertainty and chaos for BC Governance in the process.

I’ve never been an ideologue or held onto some irrational loyalty to just one party. I had concerns with the recklessness of Campbell’s approach (“Let’s cut everything. What’s this do? I don’t know, let’s cut it”) from the get go, and aside from how that (and a few other malfeasant acts thrown in) benefited a few of his select friends I’ve noted the greater long term costs to the province. When Campbell finally resigned in disgrace there was an opportunity, even a responsibility, for any who proclaimed to want to be able to influence the political process and then leadership of the province to participate. Why anyone would think that participation disallowed any further criticism escapes me – especially after our ultimate failure to have contributed to any change (at least we managed to keep “looking for a fight” Falcon from taking control). I don’t see how this could be so seemingly confusing for some, and suspect it is just another effort at deflection – the last defense of the Liberal apologists.

NAB wrote: For me therefore it is an easy choice, change.... for I simply cannot, in all good conscience, play a supporting role in perpetuating the frustrating status quo of the last 4 wasted and unproductive years. Nab

Unfortunately change is the last and only logical choice left for us. You can’t say you are against the past malfeasance of the NDP and then support and vote for an even more malfeasant group – unless you are a diehard ideologue and do hold onto some irrational loyalty to just one party. I hope that one day the people of this province will have a choice to vote for, but until we start voting this corrupt governments out of power instead of back into power we will accomplish nothing but the perpetuation of the status quo If there is no change then there is no change.
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by Donald G »

In my opinion there is far too much political posturing and far too little political fact displayed in this NDP opened thread. I, as a Federal Conservative initially joined a number of these treads in an effort to find the information I needed to make a knowledgeable decision as to how to vote in the upcoming provincial election. Unfortunately there is little besides political hype, in this and many similar threads opened by the same three NDP hacks. I will find the information I need elsewhere as all three of them are unfairly coloring my opinion of the local NDP candidate due to their immature emotionalism. I think past NDP Premiers like Dave Barret and Mike Harcourt (both of whom I supported) would rip their heads off for blatant political incompetence.
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steven lloyd
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by steven lloyd »

Donald G wrote: Unfortunately there is little besides political hype, in this and many similar threads opened by the same three NDP hacks. I will find the information I need elsewhere as all three of them are unfairly coloring my opinion of the local NDP candidate due to their immature emotionalism.

You'll find what's apparently your type of political hype on the board linked below. As there exist less rules for decorum there, that's where you'll find the real intelligent stuff (and accordingly where you'll find the Liberal apologists posting more prolifically).

Hope you find the maturity you are seeking.

viewforum.php?f=82
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Urbane
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by Urbane »

With the silly season already here and the actual election campaign about to begin be wary of those who just slip phrases in like "Campbell resigned in disgrace" because that's not what happened at all. NDP'ers who don't like Campbell might tell you that everything he did was a "disgrace" and that everything that Clark has done is a "disgrace" (and everything is a "scandal" too!) but that's just political posturing. Campbell resigned because his popularity was low and he saw the writing on the wall. As most of us know Campbell's popularity was low because of the HST and not because of any illegal activity on his part.

"Resigning in disgrace" is what Dix did after backdating a memo in the middle of a criminal investigation. That's not the same as being unpopular for introducing a new tax. People who deliberately conflate unpopularity with what Dix did are being intellectually dishonest. Anyway, Campbell is not running in this election but Dix is. While the NDP'ers on here (including those who pretend not to be NDP'ers but who actually are) tell us that in this election nothing else matters but "Liberals are bad" thinking voters should actually study the issues and make an informed choice.
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steven lloyd
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Re: B.C. Election 2013

Post by steven lloyd »

Urbane wrote: ... thinking voters should actually study the issues and make an informed choice.

:smt023 good advice
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