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  • HST DOCUMENTS: THE TRUTH SHATTERS B.C. LIBERAL CLAIMS
    2 Sep, 2010

    Sept. 2, 2010

     

    HST DOCUMENTS: THE TRUTH SHATTERS B.C. LIBERAL CLAIMS

     

    Government documents released Wednesday show the truth behind many B.C. Liberal false claims regarding the HST:

     

    The HST wasn’t on their radar before the election

     

    The claim:

     

    "The harmonized sales tax was not on our radar. We said it was not part of our election platform and it wasn't."

    - Finance Minister Colin Hansen (Times Colonist), July 28, 2009

     

    "The fact of the matter is it wasn’t on our radar. We didn’t engage in any discussions. I wasn’t thinking about it until after the election.”

    - Premier Gordon Campbell (The World Today, CKNW), Aug. 7, 2009

     

    The reality:

     

    A briefing note to the finance minister dated March 12, 2009, two months before the election, shows that he was briefed by staff on the impacts of an HST in B.C.

     

    Premier Gordon Campbell had also been given a January 2009 briefing note on the HST before he went to the Council of the Federation (of Canadian premiers) meeting.

     

     

    The HST was the best thing for the B.C. economy

     

    The claim:

     

    “[The HST] is the single biggest thing we can do to improve B.C.’s economy.”

    - Premier Gordon Campbell (News Release), July 23, 2009

     

    “…The HST is the single biggest thing that's actually going to stimulate the economy and create jobs in this province.”

    - Finance Minister Colin Hansen (Hansard), May 30, 2010

     

  • MLAs tackle HST petition Sept. 8
    26 Aug, 2010

    Prince George Free Press August 26, 2010

    MLAs tackle HST petition Sept. 8

    VICTORIA – The B.C. Liberal government should accept the people's verdict quickly and make a deal with Ottawa to get out of the harmonized sales tax.

    That's the message from an NDP member of the committee that has until December to decide what to with B.C.'s first successful citizen initiative.

    Victoria-Swan Lake MLA Rob Fleming says the low-profile committee should not get into discussion about what to do about the costs of bringing back the provincial sales tax, such as the $1.6 billion federal transition fund that is already being spent.

    "This was something that was cooked up in the political backrooms," Fleming said in an interview. "There is a legislative fix on offer thanks to the people of British Columbia, but there are going to be some things that have to be solved politically between his government and Ottawa in terms of the $1.6 billion and other things."

    Asked if that means Ottawa should forgive the transition fund, Fleming said federal politicians in B.C. are also feeling the heat.

    "The federal MPs, Conservatives, face the same electorate," Fleming said. "They clearly don't want to own the responsibility for introducing the HST. In fact I would suggest that, seeing how the people of B.C. have reacted, they probably want to be seen as helpful in getting this government out of a jam that they've forced upon British Columbians."

  • B.C. LIBERALS JUSTIFY INTERFERENCE IN ART GRANTS WITH SPIN
    26 Aug, 2010

    Aug. 26, 2010

     

    B.C. LIBERALS JUSTIFY INTERFERENCE IN ART GRANTS WITH SPIN

     

    Embarrassed by the fallout from the resignation of the former chair of the B.C. Arts Council, the B.C. Liberal arts minister went on the radio to spread misinformation about why she resigned.

     

    The minister told the CBC Early Edition that Jane Danzo resigned because of pressure from people in the arts community, even though the former chair has repeatedly stated that she resigned because of government interference with the B.C. Arts Council.


    What Kevin Krueger said about Danzo’s resignation:

     

    “I know that there are some people in the arts and culture community that are actually quite vicious, and they have been grinding on her really hard and on me and on the government and on their MLAs. …She finally reached the point where she is saying if what the arts community really expects from me is full-on advocacy, she'd never attack people like that group did, but she had had enough of that, so she stepped aside to say what she said.” (CBC Early Edition, Aug. 26, 2010)

     

  • B.C. MUST JOIN CONVERSATION ON LIBERATION THERAPY, SAYS NDP
    24 Aug, 2010

    For Immediate Release

    Aug. 24, 2010

     

    B.C. MUST JOIN CONVERSATION ON LIBERATION THERAPY, SAYS NDP

     

    VICTORIA – With the majority of Canadian provinces already on board with advancing clinical trials of “liberation therapy” for multiple sclerosis patients, it’s time for British Columbia to stand up and be counted, say the New Democrats.

     

    “B.C.’s voice needs to be heard in this discussion. It’s time to join other provinces in calling on the federal government to begin a truly national effort,” said Adrian Dix, New Democrat health critic. “The B.C. Liberal health minister needs to add his voice to the conversation and show that British Columbia is on board.”

     

    Today, New Brunswick added its voice to the debate, saying the province “would be interested in participating in any process on this issue led by the federal government and Health Canada.” Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec have also responded to Manitoba’s call for a federally run clinical trial. Saskatchewan has committed to fund its own trials provincially, and Yukon has voiced support as well.

     

  • PARKS DETERIORATING UNDER B.C. LIBERALS, REPORT SHOWS
    23 Aug, 2010

    For Immediate Release

    Aug. 23, 2010

     

    PARKS DETERIORATING UNDER B.C. LIBERALS, REPORT SHOWS

     

    VICTORIA— An explosive new report from B.C.’s Auditor General shows that the B.C. Liberal government is failing to protect the provinces parks, say New Democrats.

     

    “This report shows how the B.C. Liberal government is failing to protect B.C.'s treasured Class A parks and ecological reserves,” said New Democrat environment critic Rob Fleming. “This is just one more glaring example of the B.C. Liberal government’s environmental hypocrisy.”

     

    The Auditor General’s report set out to answer three key questions about the government’s commitment to conserving ecological integrity in the park system. These questions were:

     

    1.     Does the ministry have a vision, plans and operational policies for conserving ecological integrity in the parks and protected areas system?

     

    2.     Is the ministry ensuring that ecological integrity is being conserved in the province’s Class A parks and ecological reserves?

     

    3.     Is the ministry reporting on the state of ecological integrity within the parks and protected areas system?

     

    In every case the Auditor General’s answer was a resounding ‘no,’ noted Fleming.

     

  • NDP LEADER CALLS ON PREMIER TO EXPEDITE NEXT STEPS IN HST INITIATIVE PROCESS
    22 Aug, 2010

    For Immediate Release

    Aug. 21, 2010

     

    NDP LEADER CALLS ON PREMIER TO EXPEDITE NEXT STEPS IN HST INITIATIVE PROCESS

    Legislature is set to receive initiative bill on Monday; now it's the B.C. Liberals' turn to act, says James

     

    VICTORIA -- New Democrat leader Carole James called on Premier Gordon Campbell to give a clear directive to his MLAs to undertake next steps in the HST initiative and stop delaying an important democratic process.

     

    James' call comes after acting Chief Electoral Officer Craig James confirmed that the HST petition and the attached bill will be forwarded to the Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives on Monday, Aug. 23 for further action.

     

    "Judge Bauman's ruling on Friday cleared the way for the B.C. Liberals to take next steps. And Elections B.C. has confirmed the bill will be forwarded to the legislature on Monday," said James. "My team is ready to get down to work immediately. Now it's the Premier's turn to provide a clear directive to his MLAs on the committee to act as soon as the bill is delivered on Monday."

     

  • OPPOSITION LABOUR CRITIC CALLS FOR FULL INVESTIGATION INTO TREEPLANTER’S DEATH
    17 Aug, 2010

    For Immediate Release

    Aug. 17, 2010

     

    OPPOSITION LABOUR CRITIC CALLS FOR FULL INVESTIGATION INTO TREEPLANTER’S DEATH

     

    BURNABY — Opposition labour critic Raj Chouhan is calling for a fuller investigation into how the squalid conditions of a discredited silviculture company’s camp factored into the death of a 46-year-old treeplanter earlier this summer.

     

    Chouhan, the New Democrat MLA for Burnaby-Edmonds, said the revelations of the substandard conditions in the camp are justification for a coroner’s inquest into the death of Santokh Kooner, who died while at a camp operated by Khaira Enterprises.

     

    “The chief coroner may reopen an investigation into a death if new information comes to light,” said Chouhan. “The atrocious working conditions – which were not widely known when Mr. Kooner’s death was originally investigated – certainly constitute new information.

     

  • PREMIER LOBBYING LEGISLATORS IN CALIFORNIA ON BEHALF OF HIS FRIENDS INSTEAD OF DEALING WITH HST AT HOME
    17 Aug, 2010

    For Immediate Release

    Aug. 17, 2010

     

    PREMIER LOBBYING LEGISLATORS IN CALIFORNIA ON BEHALF OF HIS FRIENDS INSTEAD OF DEALING WITH HST AT HOME

     

    VICTORIA— Instead of using our tax dollars to lobby lawmakers in California on behalf of his friends in the private power industry, B.C. Liberal Premier Gordon Campbell should be focused on listening to voters at home, say New Democrats.

     

    Rather than dealing with the fallout from the HST petition here in British Columbia, Premier Campbell has been in California lobbying against Proposition 23, a measure that would put the brakes on the state’s plan to purchase more green energy.

     

    “The problem with Premier Campbell’s appeal to California legislators to defeat Prop 23 is that B.C. run-of-river projects have too many negative environmental impacts to be considered green energy,” asserted Guy Gentner, New Democrat critic for intergovernmental relations. “Most private power projects in B.C., including those run by the B.C. Liberal government’s flagship donor Plutonic Power, do not meet California’s standards for green energy.”

     

  • CHONG AND COELL’S REFUSAL TO STAND UP OVER HST IS A SLAP IN FACE TO CONSTITUENTS
    16 Aug, 2010

    For Immediate Release

    Aug. 16, 2010

     

    CHONG AND COELL’S REFUSAL TO STAND UP OVER HST IS A SLAP IN FACE TO CONSTITUENTS

     

    VICTORIA – MLAs Ida Chong and Murray Coell’s refusal to urge the premier to recall the legislature and allow a free vote on the HST bill is a slap in the face to the Oak Bay and North Saanich residents they were elected to represent, New Democrats say.

     

    “The successful citizen-led initiative to stop the HST has been stalled by B.C. Liberal friends attempting to bog the issue down in the courts,” said New Democrat MLA Maurine Karagianis. “As someone who sits around the cabinet table, Murray Coell could stand up for the 13,488 constituents who signed the petition and made the initiative a success.

     

    “Instead he is hiding behind the B.C. Liberal power brokers who are trying to thwart the democratic will.”

     

    Last week, Elections B.C. found that the initiative petition had obtained more than the number of signatures required to succeed. However, the chief electoral officer has refused to forward the petition to the legislature, citing a court case brought forward by a group of organizations which have donated over $381,500 to the B.C. Liberal party since 2001.

     

    “Despite the fact that she is a cabinet minister and sits on the provincial treasury board, Ida Chong has been silent on the HST since the B.C. Liberals broke their election promise and announced the $1.9 billion tax shift,” said New Democrat MLA Rob Fleming. “And even though 8,997 of Ida Chong’s Oak Bay-Gordon Head constituents signed the initiative petition, she is still refusing to stand up for the people she was elected to represent.

     

    “Ida Chong should call on the premier to bring back the legislature, table the HST bill, and allow his MLAs a free vote so they can finally represent their constituents.”

     

  • Canada has big geothermal potential, industry says (Reuters)
    13 Aug, 2010

    By Nicole Mordant

    VANCOUVER, British Columbia , Aug 9 (Reuters) - Canada has the potential to generate enough clean, low-cost electricity from geothermal sources to power 5 million homes, the country's geothermal association said on Monday.

    As things stand though, the resource-rich country does not produce a single unit of geothermal energy, which comes from hot water and steam produced by heat deep below the earth's surface.

    This is a result of a lack of government funding, a shortage of land made available for development, a dearth of knowledge and the existence of other cheap and more traditional power sources like hydro and natural gas, Alison Thompson, chairman of the Canadian Geothermal Energy Association said.

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