Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Former MP Kerry-Lynne Findlay has won the race to replace former British Columbia Conservative leader John Rustad on the fourth ballot, beating commentator Caroline Elliott. Findlay won with 51 per cent of the vote, just ahead of Elliott, who finished with 49 per cent. Three other candidates, starting with sitting MLA Peter Milobar, then entrepreneur Yuri Fulmer, and finally former BC Liberal cabinet minister Iain Black, were all eliminated in the three earlier rounds as the last-place finisher was cut from contention ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

It’s been a century or so since surgeon and Burnaby sanatorium owner Dr. Robert ­Telford was opining in the Vancouver Sun about the urgency of launching a facility in BC that ­provided treatment for “drug fiends.” Debate had been heating up about these ­so-called drug fiends for a while. Fueled by racism toward Chinese labourers in the ­country, opium was the new enemy. Prohibition ­politics were in play, and an appetite for treatment was ­building. Everyone in the province had an opinion on whether to manage illicit drug use as a criminal problem or a social concern. But the commonly held view was that drug users were moral degenerates from the ­“underclass” who needed saving from the evil, soulless criminals selling drugs. The world has changed hundreds of times over since then ... CLICK HERE for the full story  

Whoever gets elected the next leader of the BC Conservatives on Saturday will inherit a party largely free of caucus drama—for the first time, perhaps, in its history. They can thank Trevor Halford, who as interim leader has helped stage a remarkable turnaround of the opposition party during the spring session of the legislature. The BC Conservatives have now gone five months without public fights, split votes, controversial bills or unauthorized renegade speeches that exploded into crisis management. That’s no small feat  ... CLICK HERE for the full story

BC’s recreational fishing industry lures thousands of tourists to the province each year generating an estimated $1.25 billion in expenditures, but it could soon be clubbed over the head again, ocean charter operators say. Following a round of public consultation that concluded in March, the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) is now set to revise the 1999 Salmon Allocation Policy, which could further limit recreational fisher access to coho and chinook salmon. A revision to the policy was launched in 2018 following a BC Supreme Court decision affirming Indigenous rights to commercial fishing on Vancouver Island. With those new rights legally bestowed and only so many fish to go around, charter operators and sport fishers alike are preparing for the worst—much greater limits on when they may fish and how many fish they can retain ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is blaming Prime Minister Mark Carney’s policies for Canada entering recession territory. Statistics Canada released a report Friday that said the economy contracted slightly for the second quarter in a row to start the year — a benchmark that meets some definitions of a technical recession. Some economists weighing in after that release said the recession talk was premature and argued that while Canada’s economy is soft, the declines are marginal and do not meet the definition of a widespread downturn. Poilievre said Friday there’s nothing technical about rising rates of mortgage delinquency, increased food bank usage and five quarters of falling business investment ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

If Team Canada brings the same gimmicky craftiness to the World Cup that the NDP government displayed in disclosing the costs of hosting it, then by God, we could win this thing! The BC government’s own betting parlour (PlayNow) is currently offering a $150 return on every dollar bet on that outcome. Those government odds makers don’t seem to recognize home-field advantage. But if Team Canada learns ball-handling skills from the way the BC government juggled the hot-potato cost issue, it might be worth taking a flyer on Canada to win ... CLICK HERE for the full story

The BC government provided its long-awaited update on the cost of hosting FIFA World Cup games in Vancouver Friday, showing the tournament is either getting more expensive or more affordable, depending on how you look at it. The gross cost of hosting seven matches at BC Place starting next month is now estimated at between $685 million and $729 million, according to the updated figures the province released Friday ... CLICK HERE for the full story  

The BC Conservatives are expected to announce their new leader on Saturday ... the announcement at a leadership convention in Vancouver could also represent a pivotal moment for the governing NDP, which Angus Reid Institute president Shachi Kurl says has suffered a "brutal, bruising" spring session. "It has not been this government's finest hour," she said, after controversies over the government's handling of Indigenous relations, the province's finances and health care ... CLICK HERE for the full story

As separatism burbles in two provinces, it's worth remembering how federalism in this country should, and should not, work. The common good is a universal goal that cannot be realized universally. At best, that good can only ever express itself locally, among a specific people, in a specific time, and a specific place, and through social bonds among groups of people. Aristotle called this kind of social connection, which he believed was a precondition for a healthy social order, a “civil friendship.” “Civil friendship” exists on a spectrum of social ties somewhere between the personal bonds of a family and the transactional bonds of a commercial enterprise — but closer to the family than to the corporation. A man might willingly die for his family or his country, but only a fool would die for corporation. Let’s start there, with a discussion of Canadian federalism ... CLICK HERE for the full story

It was a big week for Prime Minister Mark Carney's one-liners. On two occasions he made headlines for his offers to help U.S. President Donald Trump with his vow to "make America great again" and his advice to Alberta Premier Danielle Smith given what he saw first-hand with Brexit.  Plus, ardent environmentalist Steven Guilbeault has finally had enough, and why one bill proposing easier access to digital evidence has privacy and tech heavyweights sounding alarm bells.   The week that was Let's start with the most recent development because it could be the most consequential of the week.  While some Liberals may have bristled at Carney's offer to ...

Dozens of protesters carrying placards gathered in a park in Burnaby to rally against the provincial government’s cancellation of a construction contract for a hospital expansion in the city. At Avondale Park in Burnaby, about two minutes drive from the hospital, protesters on Sunday held up yellow signs with slogans reading: Burnaby matters. Premier David Eby said earlier in May that plans for the Burnaby Hospital expansion aren’t dead despite the provincial government’s announcement the contract had been cancelled ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

Premiers representing the territories and Western provinces will gather in Kananaskis, Alberta, for a two-day meeting starting today. What's happening: Pipelines, separatism, equalization payments and Indigenous land rights could be among the hot topics discussed as the premiers sit down today in Alberta. BC's David Eby, Alberta's Danielle Smith, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and Premier Wab Kinew of Manitoba are all expected to attend. Premiers at odds: Smith and Eby have been at odds in recent months after the signing of the memorandum of understanding on a potential new pipeline project to the Pacific coast. Eby criticized Smith's approach to separation and pipeline talks earlier this month. Both leaders have suggested the meetings could get awkward ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

... a second product of that earlier post was a question in the comments section: what about people - like libertarians - who don’t fit so neatly on the right-left spectrum? Does the Canadian Election Study data have anything to say about them? First, we should define exactly what a libertarian might be. The academic figure most often associated with libertarians is the Nobel laureate economist, Milton Friedman. So that’ll be as good a place as any to find a working definition. As a rule, Friedman believed that governments should engage only in activities that the market cannot do effectively on its own. For Friedman, those activities would be limited to ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is demanding Prime Minister Mark Carney step in and overrule the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) as it forces mostly American web giants pay more to fund homegrown media content. In an interview with CBC News, Poilievre said the CRTC's decision to triple the revenue streaming firms like Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime must set aside to fund Canadian programming is akin to a tax on consumers and cannot stand. "This will be a consumer tax, it will all be passed on. Let's not be naive and pretend that the web giants or the streamers are just going to absorb it. Of course they're going to make Canadians pay more," Poilievre said ... CLICK HERE for the full story  

MLAs in the BC legislature have eased their minds about a number of glitches in the 2024 general election, but there are still worries about ­the misinformation and ­disinformation that was spewed during the campaign. Concerns, particularly in the Conservative Party of BC, about problems that emerged during the closest vote in ­provincial history prompted the unusual move this year of ­referring Elections BC’s final report to a special committee on democratic and electoral reform ... CLICK HERE for the full story

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 

Yesterday, I published the latest version of The Maple’s annual database of elected officials at the provincial level who are landlords and/or invested in real estate. These annual releases are only possible because all provinces require their elected officials to fill out disclosure forms containing, in part, property they own, sources of income and investments, which are then made public. With that said, some provinces have far better disclosure report systems than others. After spending hours browsing through each province’s system annually, I’m well positioned to rank them, which I’m going to do here. This may sound dry or unnecessary, but it’s actually important ... CLICK HERE for the full story

How badly does the NDP government not want to talk about the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples anymore? Very badly, judging by debate on one of two First Nations treaties that were hustled into the legislature as the DRIPA crisis was reaching full boil last month. The government made a vain attempt to steer away from DRIPA during debate on the K’ómoks treaty covering parts of northern Vancouver Island, even though DRIPA is specifically cited as an integral part of the treaty. The Conservative Party of BC Opposition is intent on exploring every aspect of the contentious law that recognizes Indigenous rights to full partnership in most provincial decision-making. It’s an obvious way to score political points. It is also warranted by the implications of the court decision last year that created the controversy ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

The province’s cancellation of contracts for as many as seven new long-term-care homes is drawing attention to the thousands of older people languishing in hospital beds while ­waiting to get into a home, with some dying on the wait-list. Laura Kyle says her mother, Barbara Donaldson, spent seven months in hospital with Parkinson’s, first at Victoria General and then at the Gorge Road Health Centre, before dying in September. She says that Vancouver Island Health Authority officials had told them that the wait for a long-term care bed could have taken another two years ... CLICK HERE for the full story

During Question Period on May 20, NDP house leader Mike Farnworth shut out Conservative efforts to find out how much the government is spending on a suite at BC Place Stadium during FIFA World Cup. The Jobs and Economic Growth Ministry told theBreaker.news that the cost for the 10-person, catered suite is $475,000, via the City of Vancouver’s host city supporters’ program ... CLICK HERE for the full story

It’s not yet at a Carney-level of turnaround, but Christine Fréchette has given the Coalition Avenir Québec new life and, just maybe, new hope that the October provincial election won’t be an unmitigated disaster for the governing party. Last week in this newsletter, I highlighted two new Quebec polls from Pallas Data and Liaison Strategies that put the Parti Québécois and Quebec Liberals (PLQ) in a tie, with the CAQ rising to either 18% or 19%. This week, we have a new poll from Léger for Québecor — and it suggests that the trends picked up by Pallas and Liaison are continuing to boost the CAQ from potential spoiler status to long-shot contender ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

IMAGE CREDIT -- Premier David Eby (Facebook) Yesterday (May 20th) the Official Opposition attempted to move a reasoned amendment to the second reading of Bill 20, the K'ómoks Treaty Act, 2026, that would refer the subject matter to the Select Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs before the Legislature proceeded further. The amendment was voted down by the NDP government.   The amendment asks the House to pause the treaty ratification until the committee has examined, in public, overlap issues raised by neighbouring First Nations, the substantive changes the government made between the publicly-released Agreement-in-Principle and the final Treaty, and the implications for British Columbians.   "Modern treaties are supposed to bring certainty. That is the whole point," said Scott McInnis, MLA for Columbia River Revelstoke and Official Opposition Critic for Indigenous Relations.  “This Treaty inserts UNDRIP as an authoritative source for its own interpretation...

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 ...

Canada’s former environment minister says a new proposal by the federal government to allow major projects to proceed even if they result in wildlife extinctions is “morally wrong.” “The rules were put there for a purpose and I would be extremely reluctant to see them changed,” David Anderson told The Tyee. Anderson played a major role in getting Canada’s Species at Risk Act passed in 2002 when he was environment minister in a Liberal government ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has pushed a pipeline idea that the BC government dismisses as a figment of her ­imagination to a fast-tracked national ­priority that could break ground just 15 months from now. That has left Premier David Eby sputtering in indignation. The awkward, tangled history of pipelines in BC shows that is not the best stance. He’s been reciting a litany of reasons why another oil ­pipeline through BC is a bad idea — no proponent, no ­financing, no firm customers, no route, etc. And yet, here we are: A concept the B.C. NDP has been fighting in various forms for at least 15 years has moved from a memorandum of ­understanding between Ottawa and Alberta to an ­“implementation agreement.” And that agreement has a shockingly fast timeline ... CLICK HERE for the full story  

Higher gas prices driven mainly by the war in Iran pushed inflation higher in April but some economists argue the conflict’s looming costs haven’t been fully captured in the latest price data. Inflation rose to 2.8 per cent in April, Statistics Canada said Tuesday -- the highest annual inflation rate since May 2024. StatCan’s April report marks a jump from March’s inflation rate of 2.4 per cent, though a Reuters poll of economists had expected inflation would accelerate even more to top three per cent ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

Why were our forebears more adventurous than we are today? Was it just that they had more empty space to explore, no GPS or instant communications to keep them safe, no social welfare state to protect them?  It’s all that and more, writes Murray Lytle. The derring-do of days past, he argues, sprang from a value system that admired courage and saw risk-taking as a social virtue – even a duty – that could expand knowledge and build a better world as well as protect the nation. Lytle urges our society to shake off its smothering safety culture and rediscover a sense of adventure ... CLICK HERE for the full story

The biggest comprehensive literature review to date has confirmed that Indigenous stewardship bolsters conservation goals. The literature review was published recently in People and Nature and found “a clear, positive relationship” between conservation and Indigenous stewardship, said lead author William Nikolakis, associate professor at the University of British Columbia faculty of forestry and environmental stewardship. “The evidence is clear that Indigenous Peoples’ lands do deliver conservation outcomes that are superior to, or at least equal to, state-run protected areas,” he told The Tyee. This is despite Indigenous lands largely not being protected by or formally recognized by their country, and Indigenous Peoples around the world largely not being paid for their stewardship by the state ... CLICK HERE for the full story

This summer could mark the final season for the Canadian Forces Snowbirds in their current form, as the Department of National Defence prepares to unveil a plan critics warn could ground the aerobatic team for years. Defence Minister David McGuinty is expected to announce changes Tuesday to the future of the Snowbirds, the iconic aerobatic squadron based in Moose Jaw, Sask. Critics fear the retirement of the CT-114 Tutor jets after the 2026 flying season — combined with what is typically a lengthy procurement process — could sideline the team for years, interrupting a tradition of more than five decades of aerial performance ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Canada is grappling with debates over national identity and security as well as international trade. Ottawa is navigating U.S. tariffs and Donald Trump’s threats of higher trade duties ahead of this July’s review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement, while also managing populist and separatist movements, hate crimes, and broader pressures on national cohesion ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Are we witnessing the beginning of the end of Mark Carney’s second political honeymoon? Although the federal Liberals continue to lead their Conservative rivals in public support, new data from Liaison Strategies suggest the government’s approval ratings have taken a hit in recent weeks. Naturally, nuance is key here: net approval remains comfortably in positive territory, but the recent movement in the numbers can hardly be dismissed as mere statistical noise. According to the latest Liaison update — a two-week rolling poll fielded from May 4 to 16, 2026 — 56% of respondents approve of Mark Carney’s performance as Prime Minister of Canada, against 36% who expressed disapproval ... CLICK HERE for the full story

The U.S. undersecretary of defence said Monday that the United States is pausing a long-standing military board, claiming “Canada has failed to make credible progress on its defense commitments" ... ...  Colby said the United States can “can no longer avoid the gaps between rhetoric and reality” in the post, where he shared a link to a transcript of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s speech the World Economic Forum in Davos in January. Carney never mentioned U.S. President Donald Trump during the widely applauded speech where he described a “rupture in the world order.” The address did garner the president’s attention and following the speech Trump referred to Carney as “governor.” But Canada has not been the main target of Trump’s ire in recent weeks ... CLICK HERE for the full story

When The Bureau published its analysis of Bill C-2 last fall, the diagnosis was unsparing. Ottawa had confused expansion of state power over ordinary Canadians with the enforcement tools Canada actually needs to confront the Chinese Triads, Mexican cartels, and hostile-state networks that have turned Canadian cities into operational platforms for the hemisphere’s most dangerous criminal organizations. The government has now repackaged that same flawed instinct under a new number. Bill C-22, the so-called Lawful Access Act, deserves the same verdict. The critics arriving at that conclusion now span an extraordinary coalition ... CLICK HERE for the full story

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 ...