The 1990's in BC Politics

By 1990, the public's perception of Bill Vander Zalm had altered greatly since his 1986 election as Premier. His government had been plagued with scandal after scandal, even one of his top ministers Grace McCarthy, the woman who rebuilt the Social Credit Party member by member after the 1972 election resigned in protest. Finally, Mr. Vander Zalm resigned as Premier in April 1991 during a scandal involving an amusement park he owned.

Rita Johnston though was closely associated with Mr. Vander Zalm. She was unable to rebuild the liberal-conservative coalition and was essentially left to remain on a sinking ship. As the Social Credit Party began to lose support, the Liberal Party led by Gordon Wilson was looking to become a prominent political party once again. Always the opportunist, he got his chance the 1991 election, and never turned back. The NDP too had a new leader, Mike Harcourt. He was a moderate in the party, and he went in with the expectation that he would lead the second social democratic government in British Columbia.

The 1991 election debate was a turning point during the campaign. As Harcourt and Johnston bickered as their predecessors had done so often for the past thirty years, Gordon Wilson stood there and appeared as the middle of the road candidate between the right-winger and the left-winger, a true centrist. He interrupted the leaders with this powerful line that guaranteed him moderate success later that month:

"This reminds me of the Legislature, and here is a classic example of why nothing ever gets done in the Legislature of British Columbia."

What do you say to that? Without surprise, the 1991 election played out with the Liberal Party having had no seats before the election, forming the Official Opposition to the majority NDP government with the SoCreds becoming the third party. The election realigned the BC political spectrum, and ended the rights dominance over the province since 1975.

The British Columbia general election of 1991

1. BC NDP - 41% (51 seats)

2. British Columbia Liberal Party - 33% (17 seats)

3. British Columbia Social Credit Party - 24% (7 seats)

4. Green Party Political Association of British Columbia - 1%

5. Independent - 1%

The night was disappointing for Mike Harcourt, who along with the party expected a larger majority and was expecting to hit the mid to upper 40's. Rita Johnston having produced one of the worst sitting governments defeat in recent memory, resigned as SoCred leader in early 1992. Not long after her resignation though Gordon Wilson was also ousted for having been involved in an extramarital affair with recently named Opposition House Leader and fellow Liberal MLA Judi Tyabji. His party grew weary of his leadership blaming it on inexperience and elected a new leader in September 1993, one Gordon Campbell who was at the time, Mayor of Vancouver. By 2001, he would become the premier and lead the province for a decade.

The NDP began to uncover the poor fiscal traditions of the previous governments, but was met with the Go-Go 1990's, a time of massive economic expansion, to which BC was not immune. The population of the province was also growing at an incredible rate with a mass amount of immigrants arriving from Asia contributing to the new found diversity among our demographics.

The BC Benefits program was introduced in response to dramatically reduced funding, which reduced the availability of welfar services. A concerted effort was underway to remove those cheating the system. The NDP truly was a "socialist hoard", as Wacky Bennett had so famously called them many years before. Mike Harcourt described our differences with socialism best.

"I am not for the redistribution of wealth; I propose the creation of wealth."

With Gordon Campbell as the newly-elected leader of the Liberal Party, he understood that to succeed he would have to position himself against the NDP. To do this he would have to displace the SoCreds. Luckily for him, that was already being achieved. As Grace McCarthy was elected leader, party infighting was widespread. The party that had shown unity so many times before was now being torn apart. By 1994, Grace McCarthy lost a by-election by fewer than 100 votes. Seeing it was the end of the road, four MLAs representing the party joined the Reform Party. The winner of the by-election was a fellow by the name of Mike de Jong. Sound familiar?

With the SoCreds dead, a new political vacuum was open. The Liberals moved to the right wing by the mid 1990's, which in part helped them to better attack the government's policy. It was here the blistering and false attacks about the state of the economy in BC were first delivered. While it was mess a politically, the economy was improving greatly with the highest minimum wage in the country, the second lowest level of debt per person in Canada, and low hydro and auto insurance rates. Lies in government? Well I never...

As 1996 approached, the NDP feared for a re-election campaign. It had never been achieved by them, and with support down among the public, due to misconception about the state of the economy, the party was right to be nervous. Unfortunately, David Stupich got involved in a political fundraising scandal, but to avoid any negative connotations with the party, Mike Harcourt resigned as Premier as well in an apparent shock to everyone. His successor was a young man from Vancouver named Glen Clark. The process of resignation from the leader of the NDP for the sake of the party was renewed once again in 2010 with the resignation of Carole James among infighting.

At the dissolution of Parliament, nearly everything had changed since 1991. Mike Harcourt was no longer Premier, Gordon Wilson was now with Judi Tyabji in his party, the Progressive Democratic Alliance, the SoCreds had one MLA, Gordon Campbell was now leading a right-wing opposition, and the Reform Party had four representatives. The 1996 election though played out oddly. It pitted businessman Campbell versus pro-labour Clark, and resulted in a much weaker NDP majority despite losing the popular vote. Campbell, rightfully angered by the results demanded electoral reform once elected Premier, while the NDP breathed a sigh of relief.

The British Columbia general election of 1996

1. BC NDP - 39% (39 seats)

2. British Columbia Liberal Party - 42% (33 seats)

3. Reform Party of British Columbia - 9% (2 seats)

4. Progressive Democratic Alliance - 6% (1 seat)

5. Green Party Political Association of British Columbia - 2%

6. Independent - 1%

The election saw the Green Party rise to 2% support, and Gordon Wilson retaining his seat while his wife lost in her re-election bid. The Reform Party lost seats in favour to the Liberals. This election brought forward many of Gordon Campbell's future Ministers, including Barry Penner, Murray Coell, Colin Hansen, Rich Coleman, Ida Chong, and Kevin Krueger. A cool and confident Glen Clark had this to say after the election:

"We are an economic engine for the country. We are doing well, we're doing things a little differently in British Columbia, and we need that recognized, and I won't stand back and not allow that to be recognized."

It was a change from his personality during the campaign. The NDP shifted its attention towards health care and education during its second term. It never once cut health care funding, reduced class sizes, built a new school on average every 19 days, hired 4,000 additional teachers, removed over half a thousand of those damn cold and damp portables (I should know, I was in one for a year), had the lowest child poverty rate second only to PEI and BC's child care was rated first among the country by the Vancouver Sun.

The Government also continued to make progress with the environment by planting 2.5 billion trees, restored salmon runs through a comprehensive plan, created 345 new park areas and was the first jurisdiction in North America to reach the UN goal of 12% protected parks and wilderness. Next and perhaps most detrimentally, Glen Clark shifted his attention to BC Ferries. Yes, the Fast Cat Ferries are coming up.

Clark viewed BC Ferries as an extension of the highways system. This coupled with the boom in population growth; Clark saw it fit to get new ferries to help accommodate the province. Unfortunately, to do this it would cost money. Money which as the Opposition pointed out, we were short of. In a turning point, the 1996/1997 budget was forecast to have a small surplus, but once the revenues were allocated it turned out we had a small deficit. The public was angry, despite the fact that we had achieved so much in face of such stiff opposition, along with the budget being the most accurate in British Columbia history at the time.

Eventually, the ferries were revealed to only be suitable in the open ocean due to the waves and as a result couldn't be used along our coast line. We attempted to fix them, but the public had lost all confidence in us. Glen Clark's political career was over. Later he had this to say about his resignation as Premier:

"I would say the problems for the NDP have not been particularly me, my leadership or even the mistakes I made. The real problem has been the psychology of the province and the sense by a lot of people that we're not doing as well as we should have."

He hit the nail on the head with that sentence. He made way for the last Premier of the 1990's: Dan Miller. Mr. Miller was an interim leader, meaning he was only intended to be leader for a few months until the NDP was ready to select a new leader. He led the party during a gradual recovery in public opinion polls. Gordon Wilson was now Finance Minister having joined the party in 1997, and dissolving the PDA. Since the 1996 election however, the Liberals had won every by-election. Even as the 2001 election emerged, left-wingers upset with the BC Benefits package turned to the Green Party. The NDP had reached its nadir or "basement" of support at 22% as the 2001 election approached.

As the decade came to a close the NDP achieved much more than many will give credit for. In advanced education, tuition fees were frozen as they appeared to rise to assist students. Three new universities were opened, with 40,000 post-secondary student spaces and the second best participation rate from students to enrol in post-secondary institutions from the worst rate before assuming office.

BC had the greatest job growth in Canada at 24% during the decade, the economy grew at a faster average then the national economy every year, income taxes were cut $800 million since 1995, we established the lowest small business tax in the country, in fact the NDP has been called the best manager of the economy in comparison to the Liberals and SoCreds. That's right, taxing big business actually helps the economy! Suck on that Liberals! With the collapse of NDP support, so too began a new era for the right-wing to control the province. The liberal-conservative coalition was now put in the hands of the BC Liberals, the spiritual successor of the Social Credit party. It went on to win the 2001 election without difficulty, easily winning 77 of 79 seats with some conservatives fearful the party would be too radical with Gordon Campbell as Premier. To this day, it continues to fight the constant pro-labour party, the NDP, which has regained its support to late 1980's levels in the low to mid 40's.

The 1990's were a time of achievement and progress. I am proud of our accomplishments, I am proud to be associated with Mike Harcourt and Glen Clark. I am proud of the New Democratic Party of British Columbia, and no one can deny our triumphs in the name of social democracy.

Political figures of the day

Bill Vander Zalm - Premier of the Province of British Columbia, 1986-1991

Rita Johnston - Premier of the Province of British Columbia, 1991

Mike Harcourt - Premier of the Province of British Columbia, 1991-1996

Glen Clark - Premier of the Province of British Columbia, 1996-1999

Gordon Campbell - Leader of the Official Opposition, 1994-2001

Gordon Wilson - Leader of the Official Opposition, 1991-1994

Mike de Jong - Member of the Legislative Assembly, 1994-Present

Note: This has been edited as of December 2011 from the original version I posted in November 2010. All that's changed is the wording of some sentences. I have issues with the awkwardness of the wording I often find in my older writing, ok?

Rage

The Senate doesn't go against the will of the House of Commons very often. When it does however, it gets a significant amount of news coverage as it brings up that 1990's issue of reform to the legislative body. It happened before with the GST and it has occurred this past week with the Climate Change Accountability Act.

As the bill was brought forward by the NDP, this wonderful piece of legislation is near and dear to my heart. It followed the guidelines as established by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change requiring greenhouse gas emissions to be 80% lower than their 1990 levels by 2050. It passed the House of Commons with the Conservatives voting against it, and was the first bill requiring emissions reductions by a democratic body. By the time it had reached the appointed Senate Harper was fed up. The bill failed to pass second reading in the upper chamber without debate.

Ladies and gentlemen this is another example of the failings with the Senate, let alone the groups and individuals in the Senate. Should an appointed body have the power to stop legislation as approved by a democratic body? Put simply, no! Worse still, it could have been passed had more Liberal Senators bothered to show up for the vote but considering their pension is already lined up why would they bother to stop Harper?

The Climate Change Accountability Act is a fantastic piece of legislation that should be enacted, but Harper's allies stopped it with indirect assistance from lazy Liberals. As I stated earlier this year and to reiterate the NDP and Bloc Quebecois position on the Senate, it's time we abolish the upper chamber and remain content with the democratically elected House of Commons, and save energy, time and money.

West Coast Represent

The bad news just keeps on hitting the BC Liberals like a tonne of bricks. It's been so bad that I really don't even know where to begin. Perhaps chronological order would be best. First came the refusal of many "good" leadership candidates bowing out of the race, then the suspension of the planned 15% income tax cut following Mr. Campbell's resignation, the impending recall campaign of Ida Chong and the Bill Bennett situation.

Flip-flopping is a reverse in policy by a party or individual after being previously announced or alluded to. After Gordon Campbell announced his removal from the Premier's office, everything previously announced by him not currently set as legislation was put up in the air, including the tax cut he showcased a week before. It has since been proclaimed by de facto Premier Colin Hansen that this will come to nothing. Not a bad call considering its unpopularity, but it still makes the government look clumsy at best.

My personal favourite for BC Liberal leadership, Carole Taylor early on said she wasn't interested in returning to politics. I'm still in denial over her not running to become the Premier. While I wouldn't have voted for her party, they would have at least been respectable. After she stood down, I though Dianne Watts would be the best fit despite the bug jump required from being Mayor to Premier. However, even she shook her head in disapproval. As Keith Baldrey said, "Doesn't anyone want this job?" The only candidates, or soon to be candidates bring negative views with them from the public. It sounds like a recipe for success to me. Fuck, if no one else wants it, I'll do it!

Ida Chong while also in an unpopular party is not a popular MLA either. On November 26th in fact, a recall campaign will begin in Oak Bay-Gordon Head. It will be the first of its kind in seven years, and will require 40% of all registered voters in 60 days to sign it. A tough challenge, but it has been achieved before. The principle driving force behind the drive is the HST. Unfortunately, focus is off the tax for now as the public desperately searches for a new leader. If however the team can tap opinion into her previous actions, it just might be successful. Still, I wish them the best.

Most recently, Bill Bennett has become the Liberals very own Bob Simpson: a shit disturber! First he was removed from cabinet as Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources after saying Mr. Campbell should step down as Premier immediately. After this he had a little bit of a breakdown and called the first minister arrogant and many other not so pleasant things. It is because of those remarks he has also been removed from caucus. Yes, Bill Bennett is now an Independent MLA. He joins three other Independents Vicki Huntington, former New Democrat Bob Simpson, and former Liberal Blair Lekstrom.

The good news for New Democrats though: Gordon Campbell is still the leader of the pack and with that comes an awful stench to the public. These bad times will end soon ladies and gentlemen, and the sun will shine again.

A Sad State of Affairs

The days are getting colder, and less sunlight is beaming over my high school, Belmont. While it has been agreed upon by most politicians, including our MLA, John Horgan, it desperately needs to be replaced, the current government has yet to change that for the aging structure. In the past, it was in the fall and winter that the true problems with it become increasingly apparent, and this year is no different.

Just a few weeks ago, numerous leaks occurred during the first significant rainfall of the season. The school's solution: throw garbage bins to collect the water. Ever since then a pool of water has relaxed on the roof failing to be effectively routed or evaporate even during the few days where the sun graces its rays. That must be great for mould. Along with this is the fluctuating temperature of the building. One end's humidity will alter only due to the weather outside. While the winter makes for miserable days over on the south wing, the summer days make up for it during those heat waves. This along with the presence of numerous rat holes, whose occupants most likely will make a resurgence in population near the cooking rooms in the spring. This is our school every day from Monday to Friday. Oh, did I forget to mention the duct tape concealing the holes in the floor, the asbestos in the walls, or the lead in the water?

The school isn't in a second world country, so why is Belmont treated as though it is? In 2010, warning signs about the dangers behind those walls causing lung cancer shouldn't watch over the next generation as they attempt to get a decent education. It's high time we tear down this train wreck we call a school, and begin anew. It's time we rebuild a high school in the West Shore. Better yet, we should erect a new one elsewhere in the area as well to reduce the ease on the schools rapidly growing population of over 1,400.

The provincial government's response to these demands was that schools were in worse shape over in Surrey. Well isn't that great? Someone has got it worse than us! If this is true, then we should start praying for those poor souls on the mainland subjected to conditions we can only imagine. Victoria also pointed to a lack of funds for a new school. Here's a suggestion: perhaps if we stopped shuffling those jokers in Cabinet like cards, ceased our gold plated pensions and massive pay increases, we could pay for basic necessities like this. Many families in BC have taken a hit to their pay, perhaps it's time cabinet ministers and MLAs suffer the same fate.

Having been constructed long before I was born, let alone my parents, Belmont is not ready for a massive earthquake. Should one strike as the scientists have predicted, while classes are in session, the bloodshed will be enormous. This is a matter of safety. If the government does not listen, it will suffer the consequences. The time for excuses is over. In the words of John Horgan, a proponent of replacing Belmont, "... the time has come to build a new high school for the 21st century. Let's get on with it."

The Tsunami of Resignations

Keith Martin, the MP for Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca has decided to call it quits, and doesn't intend to run in the next federal election, opting to work for NGOs and the private sector. He has been the elected representative of the district for the past 17 years, after he defeated former BC NDP Premier Dave Barrett in his re-election bid during the 1993 election.

Mr. Martin claims that the reason for his retirement from politics is due to polarization in the House of Commons. While this is a reasonable explanation, it's more likely in his belief that his next re-election bid would probably end in failure after 2008's strong Conservative result. He also ruled out running to become the next leader of the BC Liberals stating that he has weak connections with most MLAs in the governing caucus, and that provincial politics is even more polarized than its immediate successor.

Mr. Martin's removal from the local political scene represents the end of the Red Tory movement begun by him. This move will cause the riding to return to normalcy, with either the Conservatives or NDP winning, and the other finishing in second. A Liberal victory here in the next election would be very unlikely.

Mr. Martin's final hope is that the train be utilized as an alternative method of transportation than sitting in Colwood for an hour. His comment also clearly had an allusion to the Conservatives plan for a new interchange. Finally, Mr. Martin said that without new blood in Ottawa, new ideas will be unable to move forward. While I respect Keith Martin for what he has done for our community, his remarks suggest he is an activist who is lacking fresh ideas. Mr. Martin is right though, new blood is coming in the form of an NDP victory in Esquimalt-Juan de Fuca.

Auditioning to Become the First Minister

A lot of people are considering whether or not they want to become the Premier for the remainder of the 39th Parliament. The following is a list of potential candidates currently "mulling" over the idea:

George Abbot Minister of Education, and MLA for Shuswap since 1996. Mr. Abbott is the only potential contender evidently seriously considering the leadership role. His role in cabinet is not too influential, but is an upgrade from Minister of Aboriginal Relations & Reconciliation. He may have difficulty gaining the support of the inner party, let alone constituency associations across the province. Still, I would call him to be one of the first to announce his candidacy publicly.

Rich Coleman Minister of Housing, Public Safety, Solicitor-General, and MLA for Fort Langley-Aldergrove since 1996. Mr. Coleman too rose up in the ranks of the Executive Council shortly before Mr. Campbell announced his resignation, but is also far from the Premier's desk, and he will have his work cut out for him should he choose to seek it.

Kevin Falcon Minister of Health Services and MLA for Surrey-Cloverdale since 2001. Mr. Falcon, who is known by the NDP for his blistering and false attacks on the party could very well take control of the westernmost province of Canada. His position in cabinet is quite influential and unlike most other cabinet hopefuls, he looks like a Premier.

Mike de Jong Attorney General and MLA for Matsqui from 1994-1996, Abbotsford-Mount Lehman from 1996-2009 and Abbotsford West since 2009. Mike de Jong has the capability to become leader due to his current role as Government House Leader, and is widely regarded as Mr. Campbell's right-hand man along with Mr. Hansen.

Carole Taylor Former Minister of Finance and MLA for Vancouver-Langara from 2005-2008. Of all candidates discussed thus far, Ms. Taylor has the most charisma, and is disassociated from the HST for her opposition and lack of participating in the decision making. Unfortunately, she has accepted the chancellery at Simon Fraser University beginning in June 2011, so it is unlikely she will run.

Dianne Watts Mayor of Surrey. Ms. Watts is a very popular local politician having transformed the political landscape of Metro Vancouver. Her term as Mayor will expire in November 2011, so the potential for her early resignation is present.

It's nice to see two woman as potential candidates, both of whom are the most widely discussed to be the next Premier. Also, most candidates have young families, something that could easily resonate with families around our great province. Who will succeed Gordon Campbell and continue the failed policies of conservatism down in Victoria? For now, it is too early to say, but my guess is, the people on the list above this will quickly reveal their intentions.

The End of an Era

After nine years as Premier of British Columbia, and 17 as leader of the BC Liberals and MLA for Vancouver-Point Grey, Gordon Campbell is resigning. After 16 months of bitter political attacks over his flip-flopping on the HST, a 15% income tax cut, a cabinet shuffle and a 9% approval rating, it appears to have been internal upset that caused his soon to be removal, and not external forces. It's fitting in the fact that Mr. Campbell has been ousted in a similar manner to his predecessor, Gordon Wilson.

He expects to stay on until a leadership convention can be held which could be as late as June of next year, but waiting so long seems unlikely for a party sinking like a rock in the polls. These revelations also have little effect on the HST or HST referendum for that matter. A good question to ask ourselves however is who will become the next BC Liberal leader and subsequently Premier.

If the Liberals were smart, they would get an outsider of the party, disassociated with its current actions regarding the HST, and place him/her as the new leader. Still, names like Rich Coleman and Kevin Falcon have appeared as possible successors. Luckily, Colin Hansen has stated that he has no plans to become the first minister of our province. This new leader could drastically alter current Liberal policy, and even adjust them to their roots, centrism. Should this be the case, the Conservatives will appear as the dominant successors to the pre-2009 Liberals.

It's the end of an era in British Columbia, and the end of a career for Gordon Campbell. Let us rejoice, for this was inevitable, but recognize the party of which he affiliates with, remains in power. Let us celebrate in the fact that this is a step towards the BC Liberals overthrow from power in 2013, and let us celebrate in the fact that this too is a small step towards the complete introduction of social democracy in our province, and the beginning of something better for all of us.