Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Wages for g overnment employees in B ritish Columbia were 5.8 per cent higher ( on average) than wages for comparable workers in the province’s private sector last year , finds a new study by the Fraser Institute , an independent, non- partisan Canadian public policy think- tank.   “ Of course, all levels of government in BC should offer competitive compensation to attract qualified employees, but wages and benefits in the government sector are clearly out of step with the private sector ,” said Jake Fuss, policy analyst at the Fraser Institut e.   In addition to the wage gap (which accounts for worker characteristics such as age, gender, education and type of work ) the study , Comparing Government and Private Sector Compensation in British Columbia , finds that government employees in BC — including federal, provincial and municipal workers — also enjoyed more generous benefit s in 2018, the latest year of comparable data.   For example ...

It was a remarkable week in the Legislature in Victoria . On Tuesday, just two days before the fall session adjourned for the decade, all Members of the British Columbia Assembly voted in favour of Bill 41, The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA). The Bill was introduced with much ceremony, and celebration, on October 24th. Following second reading speeches, a two-week break for Thanksgiving and Remembrance Day, and extensive scrutiny at committee stage, Lt. Governor Janet Austin gave the Act Royal Assent with a simple nod on Thursday morning. The occasion marks the end of my two-year effort to ensure the government followed through on the commitment they made to British Columbians during the 2017 election, and to the BC Greens in our Confidence and Supply Agreement, to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. It marks the beginning of the next effort With the Act receiving support from all Members,...

One day after naming former Liberal MP, Leona Alleslev ( crossed over to the Conservatives September 2018 ) to the role of Deputy Leader, Andrew Scheer today named his Shadow Cabinet. From the BC interior, and my home riding of Kamloops – Thompson – Cariboo MP Cathy McLeod has been named as the Conservative Party’s Shadow Minister for Natural Resources (Forestry and Mining).   “ I am stepping into this role as the crisis in the softwood lumber industry continues to unfold ,” MP McLeod said. “ At least 20 mills have been forced to shut down or curtail production.  As a result, more than 4,000 people across 27 communities in B.C. are at this moment, out of work.   This does not include the thousands of contractors and small businesses that have been affected indirectly .” “ The challenges facing this industry are vast and complicated. The amount of trees available for logging plummeted in the wake of the pine-beetle infestation, which is now headin...

Yesterday in Question Period Premier John Horgan characterized me as being " gloomy " for highlighting how climate change is challenging our province. Frankly, I'm gloomy because this week's report from the UN warns we are on the path to 3.2 degrees warming - something one expert described as "terrifying." This legislative session we've asked questions about species like steelhead and caribou that are going extinct, and heard no real plan to address the root of the problem - the World War 2 era economic plan. In the face of all the scientific evidence and warnings, this government not only chooses to approve the biggest point source of pollution in the province's history, but subsidize it with public funds every step of the way.   Adam Olsen, Green Party MLA, Saanich N. & the Islands Despite the responses from government it's important to focus on the fact the public needs more than just highlighting the number of people ...

While John Horgan’s BC NDP government, and the federal Liberal government of Justin Trudeau, continue to put a ‘price on pollution’, Alberta’s Conservative government, under the leadership of Jason Kenney, is actively at work to dramatically reduce greenhouse gases. On April 1 st of this year, the provincial carbon tax in BC rose from $35 to $40 per tonne of C02. This tax will continue to rise, as it has now for over a decade, as it sees $5 increase each year until it reaches $50 per tonne in 2021. Minister Nixon, joined by Steve MacDonald of Emissions Reduction Alberta, Joerg Nixdorf of Lehigh Hanson, and Beth Hardy of the International CCS Knowledge Centre, announces a carbon capture and storage feasibility study at Lehigh Cement’s Edmonton plant Meantime across the border in neighbouring Alberta, Emissions Reduction Alberta is making $1.4 million in funding available to support the $3-million feasibility study, which will look at capturing and storin...

The provincial governments second Quarterly Report (2019/20 Financial Update and Economic Outlook) was released on Monday, and according the Finance Minister Carole James, all is well. BC Finance Minister Carole James “ Our government continues to show that investing in people while being strong fiscal managers is not only possible, it is fundamental to building a resilient economy ,” said Carole James, Minister of Finance. “ With careful planning and foresight built into every stage of our fiscal plan, BC is well prepared to weather the global storm, while delivering on our commitments to make life better for people .” One thing in the report however should be cause for concern, especially given the importance of BC’s forest industry, and other natural resources. Under the heading of “Risks to the Fiscal Forecast” (pg 11) the report states:   Natural resource revenues can be volatile due in part to the influence of the cyclical nature of these sectors in th...

One of the reasons why I write weekly MP reports is so citizens can be informed and follow events occurring in Ottawa ... and by extension, hold myself and MP's from other parties to account. As much as I would like to share events occurring in Ottawa this week unfortunately the House of Commons is still not in session. Despite the election occurring back in late October, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has waited until Thursday, December 5th to recall the House for a Throne Speech. After the Throne Speech the House is not scheduled to sit again until Monday, January 27th of 2020. The House of Commons was last in session in late June of this year and, with the exception of the brief throne speech on December 5th, it will have sat vacant for over half a year. While it is understandable that this is an abnormal time, as a result of the federal election, it is concerning that nearly three months will have passed, since the election, before the House assumes regular sittings....

On Monday, November 25, a report was released by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), falsely claiming the British Columbia government gives hundreds of millions of dollars annually in subsidies for fossil fuel, this from Ben Brunnen and the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers. The report, he stated, is yet another instance where the authors alter the definition of a subsidy in order to support an inaccurate report. There are no subsidies given to the oil and natural gas industry to support production. “ The industry is one of the largest private investors in the British Columbia economy and one of the biggest sources of resource revenue for the provincial and federal governments; revenues that support healthcare spending, infrastructure development, as well as investments in education and schools ”. Continuing, Brunnen remarked, “ Royalty programs and tax measures are ways for provincial governments to ensure they receive fair v...

Mere mention of the old Beatles classic ‘Yesterday’, sets my mental jukebox a-spinnin’: Yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away But now it seems as though they’re here to stay. Oh, I believe… in yesterday... Suddenly, I'm not half the man I used to be There's a shadow hanging over me Oh I believe in yesterday ... I keep it confined to my head, of course.  The last time I busted out in unbridled song all the small animals fled my neighbourhood and didn’t come back for weeks. Dreamt up whole-cloth by Paul McCartney one night in 1965, Yesterday is a meaningless ditty about shattered romance . For many, though, it’s an anthem for hard times. Most of us are acquainted with unexpected reversals of fortune.  Dark clouds descend like a shroud “as though they’re here to stay”, the gloom shaded by our frustration with the seemingly random and whip-saw turns of the universe.  It can all seem so unfair.  Unf...

We are still wondering how the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) managed to lose the October election. It seems we were even more inept than our opponents. Many of us underestimate the impact of abortion and gay rights protection; both are highly charged, emotional issues. Being pro-abortion and pro-gay is “in”. Conservative leader Andrew Sheer was indecisive, which is considered dangerous by those who motivated by emotion. A 5% swing in undecided votes is deadly in a first past the post system. Scheer’s campaign people and advisors should all be dismissed. In the critical period from the beginning of May to the end of August, Scheer was a ghost with no media presence. No one knew what he stood for. No policies were articulated. The CPC was a cipher. Scheer failed to “brand” the Conservative Party as his. That led to criticisms that the CPC was still Harper-era, and that Scheer was a reincarnation of Harper. Scheer needed to brand the Conservatives as his i...