Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

FORSETH: Declaring something should be essential service, without ensuring the service is provided to British Columbians, is no solution


While the wheels of transit, in metro-Vancouver, sit idle, BC United leader Kevin Flacon has a solution:

“Frankly, these are essential services. People use transit to get to work, to get to doctors appointments — this is not something that should be getting in the way and interrupting the public.”

I find it interesting that Falcon has decided this is the solution, not because I disagree with him, but because I never thought I would hear the leader of ANY political party say it.

For as long as I can remember, I have always believed that if a service is provided by the government, then it should be deemed essential to the needs of British Columbians. The flip side of that, of course, would be that if it isn’t a service essential to our needs, then why should (or does) the government provide it?

But back to Falcon and his comment.

I realize he didn’t specifically say that IF transit is deemed essential, then workers shouldn’t be permitted to strike – he simply commented that transit should be considered essential.

The reality is, he wasn’t really offering a solution to the problem, his comment just made for a good 8 second (as they call them) sound bite.

Which leads me back to my initial wondering --- IF a government provides a service, then why are workers permitted strike action?

The same holds true for British Columbians youth – why are strikes permitted in education?

Or in healthcare?

Is there a better solution?  What might that look like?

Declaring something should be an essential service, without ensuring the service is actually provided to British Columbians, is no solution. It sounds good, but that’s about it. And sadly, no one in the media chose to challenge Falcon on his comment, and ask for an explanation as to what his proposal would look like.

There is a workable solution, we just have to take the time to figure it out so that the people of BC, and the employees who provide us with valuable and much needed service, can come up with it.

In Kamloops, I’m Alan Forseth.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

'Very good news' that Supreme Court will hear B.C. mineral claims case, Eby says

The BC government needs clarity from the Supreme Court of Canada on a landmark mineral rights claim, Premier David Eby says. But the lawyer representing the challenger says that they would have preferred the province respect the lower court's decision. Eby said Thursday it is very good news that the court will hear its appeal of a ruling that found the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the provincial mineral claims regime are "inconsistent." The BC Court of Appeal ruled in December that the provincial Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, or DRIPA, should be "properly interpreted" to incorporate the UN declaration into the laws of B.C. with immediate legal effect. That ruling set off the appeal from the province amid concerns that it could cause economic uncertainty ... CLICK HERE for the full story 
Post a Comment
Read more

EBY OFFSIDE WITH NATIONAL INTEREST AS CARNEY AND SMITH BUILD BC'S ECONOMIC FUTURE WITHOUT HIM ~~ BC Conservatives

IMAGE CREDIT :  CBC News   Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced a landmark agreement today committing Ottawa to designate a new pipeline to BC's west coast as a project of national interest by October 1, 2026, with construction approval targeted for September 1, 2027. The deal pairs the pipeline with a new industrial carbon pricing framework and a fall 2027 construction start. British Columbia, the province where the pipeline ends, where the jobs would land, and where the export terminal would be built, was nowhere at the table. "This is a nation-building deal, and the BC NDP have been locked out of the room," said Trevor Halford, Interim Leader of the Official Opposition.  "While the Prime Minister and the Premier of Alberta were doing the hard work of growing the Canadian economy, the NDP is on the sidelines calling this pipeline a 'fiction' and an 'energy vampire.'  He chose petulance over partnership, and now BC ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Kamloops - North Thompson BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer speaks to Bill 20 — K’ómoks Treaty Act

The following is a condensed version of Kamloops – North Thompson MLA Ward Stamer’s remarks, to the BC Legislature, on the afternoon of Tuesday May 19th : I rise today to continue remarks on Bill 20, the K’ómoks treaty, and to address what I believe are some of the most important constitutional, democratic and governance concerns facing this Legislature today. At the centre of this debate are two major issues. First, unresolved overlapping territorial boundaries tied to this treaty process. And second, the growing legal and political consequences arising from the provincial government’s implementation of the Declaration of Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, more commonly known as DRIPA. Much of the government’s defence on DRIPA rests upon references to the United Nations declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, commonly known as UNDRIP. And this is where we must begin having a more honest and mature conversation in this province. UNDRIP was never originally designed to function ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more