Some that came in will likely strike a strong positive cord, some perhaps not so. This list of ideas and thoughts however is presented for you to think about and consider in how if implemented they would change the way government operates, and provides services to us.
So that no one thinks I am ranking them, I have prepared this list in alphabetical order – simply grouping the ideas as best I could under headings.
Read on, and then if you care to, give some feedback on these ideas. Do you agree?? – disagree?? -- and why.
AUTO INSURANCE …
· I personally think that competition for the insurance industry would help the average person – especially the auto industry – we are being charged far too much. Look at the millions they are giving to the government and highly overpaid employees.
· Throw out ICBC and go back to private insurers so there is some competition in B.C.
BALANCED BUDGETS:
· Mandatory balanced budgets, fiscal accountability in this province there is none. Government waste has always been a problem. There is a lot of duplication from the feds down to the provinces. The government debt must be reduced.
· The government credit card is out of control. We as citizens have to tighten our belts, so should the government. Tax reform initiatives should also be put in place.
BC Rail
· There should be an independent public inquiry into this sordid mess and any person(s) who broke the law should be punished (and not with a simple "slap on the hand.) The other two bidders for BC Rail have publicly condemned the way that the bidding was handled - they claim that it was rigged from the beginning. If this is so (rigged) then some person(s) likely made a lot of illegal money on the deal and I'd love to see them exposed and punished. For far too long politicians of every stripe have treated this province as a means for self-aggrandizement and this has to stop.
· Should be a repeal of the agreement with the CNR regarding the BCR takeover and updating the tracks for faster and more abundant passenger service.
CARBON TAX …
· The intent of the Carbon Tax was to lower the demand for fuel by making it increasingly expensive. Outside the lower mainland, B.C. has winter for at least six months each year, and there are long distances to travel. Both homeowners and businesses depend on fossil fuels for warmth and transportation. Heating and transportation are not choices, they are necessities. The lower mainland, with its more clement climate and varieties of readily available transport, has not been affected by the carbon tax to the same degree as the rest of the Province.
· The carbon tax has been felt more by residents of B.C. beyond Hope. It has added to costs of heating schools and operating school buses, heating hospitals, paying increased charges for food and other items, since the trucks carrying them must pay more for fuel in British Columbia. The carbon tax applies to gas, propane, or heating oil.
· Should we return to burning wood, or coal? Ostensibly, it improves our ’carbon footprint'. In fact, since no other jurisdiction, including the U.S., appears ready to impose similar legislation, it makes B.C. less attractive. It is seen simply as a tax grab.
· The Carbon Tax, undertaken, perhaps with good intentions, has made BC a less welcoming place to live or locate a business. It is particularly burdensome to small business, the average worker, and especially people with lower income, who, because of increased taxation will have less discretionary income to spend in their communities. It is very doubtful that the avowed intent, cutting down on carbon dioxide, will make one iota of difference to the global situation.
EDUCATION …
· The closure of schools and the shortfall in funding for many districts has made the news far too frequently in the past decade or so. Understandably, with an aging population in BC, and the lean towards one or two child families it is reasonable to downsize the system. However, this should make more funding available, rather then less, which leaves one to wonder where the Liberals put the cash. At any rate, the children of today deserve the best education that we as a province can give them. We need to do better by our children. (For the record both my children are adults. This is something we should all be concerned about, not just those with young children)
· Strengthen the public education system. Students are not the major focus -- it is the unions and the teachers that are getting more attention. There needs to be improvement and more funding for special needs students and as well more teachers to take on this challenge in the classroom.
· Improvement is needed especially aboriginal in graduation rates from high school.
· We have unemployment of 7-8% but we also have thousands of jobs going unfilled; this points to the need for more training/education. I think there should be a system of grants for those students with high achievement to help offset the cost of their post-secondary education. Not for every program, but focused on those where there is an unfilled need.
· There's been talk of setting up a trade’s school at NorKam Secondary which would give students credit towards their studies at TRU, maybe this is the sort of thing to get more people into skilled jobs. Also, if students know that what they take in high school is going to lead to a tangible goal, they might be more likely to stay and apply themselves.
ELECTORAL REFORM:
· To reduce the hold that parties have on the system, make it easier for people to run as independents. Currently, parties can raise money between elections to support their candidates, but independent MLA's cannot (not with a tax receipt, anyway). Why not allow a sitting independent MLA to form their own constituency association to raise funds between elections? If an independent candidate runs and loses and has a surplus, Elections BC should hold it in trust for them to use in a subsequent election.
· Reduce the number of MLA's. We send 36 MP's to Ottawa but we need 85 MLA's to travel the shorter distance to Victoria? Maybe we could take a page out of Ontario's book and use the federal electoral district boundaries for our elections - even if we made it 2 MLA's for every federal riding, we would reduce the number of MLA's from 85 to 72, and eliminate the need for our own electoral boundaries commission. Or adopt an MMP system with 36 constituencies and 20-30 seats allocated on a proportional basis.
ENVIRONMENT …
· My concern is government taking on a mantel of being green because it is popular rather than scientifically sound. The issue of carbon taxes is front and center in my mind. The rational for them is unfounded in science and faulty. Included are the alternate energy sources that are subsidized by the rate payer. If they are a good idea let them stand on their own economic merits. Let’s reduce government and reduce taxes -- our children will be better off.
· The Carbon tax is a big issue for the folks who live in all the outlining areas of the province – it penalizes us unfairly because of our postal code.
· Government rebates for purchasing electric vehicles, and more mandatory installation of recharging outlets in new buildings.
· Install solar panels (where possible) on every School and Provincial Government building.
· Banning incandescent light bulbs in favour of CFs on the theory that incandescents contribute to 'global warming' is ridiculous. Indoor lights used in winter help warm business and homes. That amount of heat will have to be replaced by another energy source, and Hydro is cleaner than alternatives such as coal, gas, or nuclear.
· Incandescent lights give reliable light with no untoward effects. The same cannot be said of CFL’s which contain mercury, one of the most toxic substances known. Because of their mercury content, they are banned from landfills. There is no way of enforcing that ban and CFL's will end up in landfills, where the mercury will eventually find its way into the water table. Some 'recycling depots' have been set up, however at a local depot no one could explain where the bulbs were sent for recycling. The bulbs have been known to explode; advice to consumers is to practically call in a Haz-Mat crew to deal with the result.
· People have reported migraines and seizures triggered by the flickering lights, as well as flu-like symptoms which disappeared when the CFLs were replaced with incandescent bulbs.
· The reason given for forcing people to replace perfectly good incandescent lights with dangerous CFLs was to lessen our 'carbon footprint'. How can manufacturing CFs in China, probably under dangerous conditions for the factory workers, then shipping them to Canada where they will undermine our health achieve that? The choice of which light bulbs to use ought to be a matter for consumers to decide.
FAMILY SERVICES:
· Stronger initiatives in the province in regards to at risk children – eg Head Start (Federal) more funding is needed to implement this. There is an aboriginal Head Start. This may be something to consider especially through Children and Families
FIRST NATIONS …
· British Columbia's future is tied to what happens in First Nation negotiation, which has become a case of the Government asking permission to govern the remainder of the population. I don't have a solution short of extinguishing Native Rights, which will take more than any Provincial Government alone can achieve.
· We need to take a serious look at what and how the government is handling the native Indian needs
· what ever happened to people being treated equal in this country? My neighbor can shoot at anything he wants anytime of year, but I have to wait until season and compete with the truck loads of Lower Mainland resident that fill the bush from Sept until December.
GOVERNMENT EMPLOYMENT …
· we are over serviced at all levels of Government -- as a province we should develop a formula on a percentage scale to limit the number of employee's a regional or civic government can have.
· From ‘52 – ‘72 government operated the province at 12% of GDP and approximately one person out of ten received their primary source of income from the public purse. From ‘75 – ‘90 we were working at approximately 14% of GDP and we had 1 person in 4 receiving their primary source of income from the government purse. While Vander Zalm was premier GDP went back to 16% from almost 17% of GDP. Even after government eliminated the Dept of Highways, a lot of the labs, and other areas, government was still well above the 4 in 10 employment ratio. During the 10 years of NDP the GDP climbed as high as 21% and I doubt like hell it is much lower than that today. What is the current level?? In the USA it is currently 54% and there is a name for that; but it is NOT Capitalism or Free Enterprise.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY / INTEGRITY …
· One issue which is very important to me is Transparency. Wrapped up within it we have such elements as Trust and Integrity both of which fit nicely into our core values. The Basi-Virk case has the stench of corruption related, as it is, to the BC Rail case. If we don't go after that one, we will miss a huge chance. People around here are utterly disgusted with the matter.
· Government accountability or in the case of the BC Liberals and NDP none. We must put something in our platform that sends a strong message to voters that government including MLA's should be held accountable for their actions (ie: Basi / Virk). The tax payers of this province were dealt a huge blow on that one. The bonuses for employees Re Olympics and HST are examples of others. There has to be in place more citizens’ initiatives, get the BC citizens more involved in government. Everything these days are dictated by government with no input from the residents. It is time to have the MLA vote according to their riding wishes.
· How do we balance the need for caucus solidarity and discipline in government with the desire of constituents to have their MLA represent their wishes ahead of the wishes of the Party in power? I know that not all votes in the British Parliament are confidence votes, just the budget and the throne speech - why not implement that here? Probably because no MLA wants to scuttle his/her chances of getting into Cabinet!
GOVERNMENT SERVICES …
· In my humble opinion an effective government should not be inflating the cost of government controlled services, such as what is now being done with BC Hydro, Terasen and ICBC. Where competition for these services does not exist the taxation of an essentially captive market is egregious. To eliminate provincial taxes from these services would put more money into the pockets of the public thereby making people less hostile toward the government run agency.
· Reduce government agencies, reduce waste
· allow private auto insurance.
· More accountability in crown corporations, reduce the high escalation of wages (ie: BC Ferries). Should there be a cap on wages?
GST / HST / Taxes …
· The average person with an average education operating an average business with an average annual income can no longer personally do their annual income tax. It needs to be sent out or risk not being unable to reduce my ever over burdening tax rate. That is fundamentally WRONG.
· The problem with GST is the fact that every business person has to take their time or staff time to sit down and perform a set of calculations every month or 1/4 to figure out how much of the collected tax has to be returned to the Federal Government. It is a pain in the ass and every time he does it he still remembers all to well who brought introduced the GST. The GST should be made a flat tax on every commodity and labour with no rebate or reduction to off set payment. The rate could then be calibrated to a significantly lower rate by eliminating the thousands of public employees it takes to currently administer it. HST should be handled the same way.
· I oppose it for all the reasons that have been given, especially because it applies to goods and services not previously taxed, thus adding to the tax burden of British Columbians.
· I am one of the few who believe in the HST -- in the long haul I believe this tax will do the province some good.
HEALTH CARE …
· Health care or the lack of it in the Kamloops area is a problem as surgical wait times are horrific. However if your prepared to drive to Vernon and book a motel room for the night, some items have a wait time of 2 or 3 days to a week compared to 9 months to a year in Kamloops.
· The delivery of medical services is on everyone’s mind as the Boomers go senior and the Golden Agers enjoy longevity previously unmet. So, at the risk of being accused of an act of high treason, perhaps it is time for the province to start encouraging private health care services to take some of the burden off the public system; thereby shortening wait times and Code Purple situations in the bargain.
· Strong core values in improving health care in this province. Throwing money at the problem will not necessarily fix the problem There is a lack of doctors in the province and also need to bring in more nurses.
· Encourage more kids to stay fit, obesity in the province, diabetes is now with much younger children and adults. More wellness programs in the schools.
· Stop taking services (ie: medical care) away from rural communities and centralizing them
· Stop treating our paramedics so shabbily, we need them, they should be adequately compensated and treated royally
· The majority of our provincial budget is already dedicated to the Health Ministry, and our population is aging. How can we do more with the money we already allocate to Health Care, instead of Health Care swallowing up the entire budget?
HYDRO
· What is the truth regarding the price that Run of River Power Projects charge BC Hydro? I keep hearing that we (BC Hydro) pay more than what it charges consumers such as me. Doesn't sound like a good deal to me and wonder why in hell anyone would contract for something that it will sell below cost? Also, are these contracts "carved in stone" and for how long? BC rivers are precious to every BC resident. The way that licenses have been handed out concerns me. Any outsider (from another country) can apply for them. We keep saying that our water is not for sale but I don't see any difference here. Is there a negative environmental impact here with these projects re: loss of fish spawning grounds?
· I keep hearing BC hydro is being mismanaged to the point that it may go bankrupt and perhaps sold off!! Now we hear that BC Hydro is going to raise electricity rates by 10% per year for each of the next three years!! If BC Hydro is in such financial difficulty why is this so? Is it mismanagement by Hydro execs or is it because the government-of-the-day has been treating it as a "cash cow" and saddling it with increasing debt? (I believe that the latter is the problem.)
· BC Hydro, if it was properly managed, should/would have looked into the future and noted what projects it would have to finance for the continuing viability of the Corporation e.g: infrastructure maintenance, new projects, etc. Then, in each of the preceding years set sufficient funds aside. Instead it appears that they (management) suddenly found themselves in a financial bind. So, what does BC Hydro management do? Well, it has its own "cash cow" and dumps the financial burden on its customers.
· One billion dollars has been set aside for installation of Smart Meters in British Columbia homes. Theoretically British Columbians own B.C. Hydro. We were not asked if we wanted the meters nor have we been given any reason why they are needed. In other jurisdictions where they have been installed (ie. Australia), the cost of hydro has almost doubled. If we're worried about carbon. Hydro energy is generally a non carbon dioxide-generating energy. One billion dollars might be better spent encouraging energy efficient home renovations.
· Ontario Hydro has a program that allows homeowners to install solar panels in their house and sell excess power back to the grid - why isn't BC Hydro doing this?
LEGAL SYSTEM …
· I would like a review of the criminal justice system from a provincial view-point
MISCELLANEOUS IDEAS and OPINIONS · Provide help to re-establish a ship building industry to compete for tug, icebreaker, catamaran, etc, contracts.
· Explore tunnel / bridge option to Vancouver Island
· I have a very skeptical outlook regarding politicians in general. I feel they start out with good intentions but somewhere along the path they become stretchers of the truth, greedy and loose sight of why they first went into politics.
· I would like a lot of emphasis put on the senior health care, education, local hospital needs (especially in small centers like Merritt), and welfare
· I think recent governments are catering to much to the noisy minorities (French Canadians, Natives and various cultures) and not doing what is best for the majority. I know this is an unpopular position; however, I do believe many people think like me but are just reticent to express it because it is not the popular social opinion of the day.
· Stop taking services (ie: medical care) away from rural communities and centralizing them
· Show some respect to rural residents. I appreciate that when we live out of the big centers we don’t have the same access as others to some services, that’s fine it’s a trade off we understand (or should). But, then we have to pay for things like carbon tax when we have no options such as a bus, or any public transport -- or have property taxes and no services (ie: for my $2000 a year I have no fire protection, I have to drive my trash to the dump and pay for each bag on top of it, I may see a snow plow once in the winter, I have no access to high speed internet or natural gas (even though the lines run 200m from my property) – there’s no turning lane off the highway into our community despite multiple serious crashes. The list goes on, but I get nothing for my property tax. And as far as paying for the Olympics and every other urban party / celebration with my taxes, I am sick as hell of that too. Again I don’t mind not having services as long as I don’t have to pay for everyone else’s.
· Legislation that protects the urban dwellers just makes my life difficult; i.e. gun control (federal yes, but still every time an urban representative talks of violence in their city you know what’s next.)
· Regulation on butchering meat, regulation on what I can grow/raise and where I can sell it, having to “pay first” at a gas station where I know all the employees and have been buying there for years. This stuff just adds up, until you finally just say the hell with it and loose track of what laws your breaking….which is fine because we don’t have RCMP service out our way anyhow.
· I wouldn’t move to town for anything…..but I sure won’t support any politician that doesn’t show sincere (and not just the lip service about the “heartland” or what ever they call us from Victoria) support and understanding of rural citizens and a rural way of life. And I haven’t seen many of them lately.
· How are we going to prepare ourselves and our communities to meet the challenge of a world of $2.00+ / liter gasoline? Whether or not you believe in global warming, I believe in peak oil. The provincial government will have to invest in public transit like the Fraser Valley light rail and other ideas to save energy.
I hope these ideas have sparked some serious thought for you -- have a great weekend.
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