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

FAIR VOTE CANADA - BC NDP and BC Green Party Accord includes a committee that will look at proportional representation!


The new "Cooperation and Responsible Government Accord" between the BC NDP and the BC Greens includes a special all-party committee that will look at proportional representation!

The committee will hear from experts and the public and produce a report on preferred methods of proportional representation for BC in the summer of 2025.

But that might not be the end of the story...

The Accord between the BC NDP and the BC Greens will be up for renewal annually. Every year, the parties will negotiate "renewed and new policy initiatives". 

The special committee could be a first step to kick-start a conversation that leads to a real agreement for proportional representation in British Columbia. 

As we look at democracies that use proportional representation in the OECD, in almost every case, proportional representation came from a multi-party agreement.

Parties who were serious about building a fair, inclusive and cooperative democracy became willing to negotiate and compromise to make it happen. 

Real action on proportional representation can't come soon enough. The last first-past-the-post election in BC left the province more polarized than ever.

Voters were robbed of choice when BC United (formerly the BC Liberals) folded overnight in order to back the BC Conservatives. 

This drastic decision, with far-reaching consequences, only happened because of the cut-throat incentives of a winner-take-all system.

In the long run, moving closer to a two-party system could take politics down a dangerous path of division and alienation.

On the outcomes that matter most to our lives—health, the economy and the environment—countries with proportional representation have been proven to outperform countries with winner-take-all systems.

The cooperation deal between the BC NDP and BC Greens has opened up a new opportunity for a fairer voting system in BC.


Anita Nickerson
Executive Director, Fair Vote Canada

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

NDP Government Blames Everyone but Themselves

The federal government has announced new measures to support British Columbia's forestry sector, including $65 million in funding for projects across the province. While any support is welcome, it falls far short of the level of assistance other provinces have secured for key industries. Conservative Forests Critic Ward Stamer says the NDP government needs to take responsibility for its mismanagement of B.C.’s forest industry instead of trying to pass on the blame. Despite promising to create more jobs in the forest sector, the NDP government has overseen the loss of thousands of forestry jobs and 21 mill closures which have devastated communities. “If Premier Eby spent more time addressing the regulatory issues impacting the forestry sector than he did complaining about the federal government, we would not be in the position we are now,” said Stamer. “And instead of trying to place the blame for mill closures on Donald Trump, Minister of Forests Ravi Parmar should t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Tourists Rack Up $200M in Unpaid Health Bills While BC Patients Wait Years for Care

While British Columbians wait years for basic medical care, the NDP government has allowed non-residents to rack up $200.6 million in unpaid health bills since 2020-2021. New research from SecondStreet.org, obtained through a freedom of information request, revealed that people from outside Canada are coming to BC, receiving health services, and leaving without paying their bills.  The losses span every health region in the province. "British Columbians are not guaranteed timely access to healthcare, be it treatment or diagnostics, and this situation continues to deteriorate under the NDP," said Anna Kindy, MLA for North Island and Critic for Health. "Taxpayers are footing the bill for tourists' health treatments to the tune of over $200 million, enough to cover over 21,000 hip replacements in this province while British Columbians wait months to years for that surgery.” The research found BC has the worst record of any province in Canada examined so far. Under a dec...
Post a Comment
Read more

NDP Finance Minister Given "F" on Report Card by Canadian Taxpayers Federation

Peter Milobar, MLA for Kamloops Centres and Official Opposition Finance Critic, released the following statement in response to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation's 2026 Finance Minister Report Card, which ranked BC Finance Minister Brenda Bailey dead last among provincial finance ministers in Canada with an overall grade of "F":  "British Columbians didn't need a report card to know things are headed in the wrong direction. They see it every time they pay their bills, try to buy a home, or watch another government deficit pile up. But now an independent national organization has confirmed that NDP Brenda Bailey is the worst-rated finance minister in Canada. "After nearly a decade of decline under this NDP government, British Columbia has become a province where people pay more, government borrows more, and families get less in return. We have some of the highest debt in the country, repeated credit downgrades, and no credible plan to get our finances back on...
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more