It took three ballots but Adrian Dix finally won out over two other NDP leadership candidates Sunday and will become the new leader of the provincial Opposition. The Vancouver-Kingsway MLA edged Mike Farnworth, after Dana Larsen and Juan de Fuca MLA John Horgan were dropped after the first and second ballots, respectively. Dix received 9,772 […]

The Province is continuing its fight against the mountain pine beetle epidemic with a $9-million infusion to help B.C.’s three beetle action coalitions continue their front-line battle. The three coalitions have been developing and funding projects to help mitigate the current and anticipated economic, environmental and social impacts of the pine beetle epidemic. Now, the […]

The mistake most people make in rating election debates is they assume all the candidates start as equals.  But unless they’re all neophites, that is simply not true: one is already the Prime Minister or Premier or Mayor–and it’s up to the others to knock him/her of the top perch. It was a good debate, […]

Some key dates for the HST referendum were announced Friday. • Monday, June 13 – Elections BC starts mailing out referendum ballots for the HST to all registered voters. • Friday, June 24 – Majority of British Columbians have received the ballot. • Friday, July 8 – Last day for unregistered voters to request a […]

The re-negotiations of the federal-provincial-territorial health accord are on the horizon, and everyone is looking for a way to save money and improve health.  Sound impossible?  Why don’t we put our money where our mouth is?   It’s a strange truth of Canadian public policy: the care of our lips, tongues, and throats is fully […]

Ask anyone who has lived under a dictatorship and they will tell you of its ugly features: A Supreme Leader who rules with an iron fist; legislation pushed through by a rubber stamp legislative assembly with little or closured debate; government officials ordered into silence or fearful of speaking up; and a press denied the right to even […]

There are lots of questions remaining about the BC Rail scandal…. the biggest being ‘why did the Liberal government pick up the $6M defence lawyers’ tab for two convicted criminals?’.   This week I had a chance to keep that question–and story-alive, by appearing on broadcaster Stirling Faux on-line business show This Week in Money.  Here’s […]

New government data shows that more than 300 grizzly bears were killed in British Columbia last year, mostly as a result of trophy hunting. Released by the David Suzuki Foundation at the start of B.C.’s spring bear hunt, official government records indicate 317 grizzlies died at the hands of humans in 2010. Almost four out […]

Apppointed (not elected) Premier Christy Clark promised “change”. And as part of her honeymoon period in the public eye, the media has treaded rather softly in scrutinizing her early days in office. She announced a raise in the minimum wage to be staged over time, but nevertheless welcomed by most British Columbians. Many were embarrassed by this […]

So what do we do now? We’re about to have an election almost no one wants; that likely won’t change the political balance of power; and, despite the rhetoric, probably won’t actually result in substantial policy changes.  And for this non-altering experience taxpayers will shell out $300 million! Sigh… I am not a dedicated partisan. Over my life, I have voted for all […]