Clark's appointment of 10 Parliamentary Secretaries disappoints those hoping for smaller government
By Contributor
During the leadership race, Christy Clark committed to a smaller cabinet and to redefining and empowering the role of MLA. Appointing a smaller cabinet gave the appearance of follow through. The addition of 10 parliamentary secretaries means 56% of the Liberal caucus has appointments.
“Christy Clark is continuing the trend of using perks to retain party loyalty, to placate those who don’t make it into cabinet (with a bump in salary to ease the disappointment), and most importantly, to silence dissent,” says Jane Sterk, leader of the Green Party of BC.
“Parliamentary secretary positions are simply make work roles much like the make work ministries that Campbell favoured. When the majority of a party’s MLAs become eligible for special treatment, the possibility of increasing the independence of MLAs is diminished.
“It is a great way to ensure MLAs toe the party line. The parliamentary secretaries are always hoping to be elevated to the minister rank while back benchers know that the only way they make the premier’s list is by displaying both partisan and personal loyalty to the her,’ continues Sterk.
The Green Party of BC believes strengthening the role of the MLA is critical if we want to change how the legislature functions. As long as ordinary MLAs are unimportant because party discipline prevents them from representing their constituents, nothing can change.
“When she appointed a smaller cabinet, I thought Clark might be the change she boldly declared she represents. It took only a day for my skepticism to return,” concludes Sterk.
This article is a press release from the Green Party of BC.
