BC Politics … the week that began January 30th

Everyone has heard, see, read results of the latest political poll in BC, and as previous polls during the past year and a half have shown, the BC Liberals are in trouble.

There was more that took place this week however, so let's begin a wrap up of things political in BC, that began on January 30, 2012.

Fact finder might help resolve education crisis

… looks as if a legislated settlement is inevitable, with soft-spoken Education Minister George Abbott showing increasing impatience … government, however, is now so wounded in the opinion polls it may be unwilling to provoke a political backlash by appearing too draconian … government needs to appoint an independent "fact finder" to come up with common-sense suggestions for resolving the current education crisis …

B.C. Liberals planned to promote HST with iPad giveaway

… obtained by The Vancouver Sun after a 19-month battle under the Freedom of Information Act, draft copies of the pamphlet contain a large image of the Olympic flame on the cover and bear the title “Spirit of 2010: Building on BC’s Olympic Advantage.”  … government never sent out the pamphlet, shredding all copies not long after having spent $780,000 to have them designed and printed …

Get ready for a provincial Conservative government – Cummins

… we are doing very well in the polls … two outstanding candidates representing us in the upcoming by-elections … it’s been quite a while since we have been in such a strong position … much of the credit for that progress, he said, can be laid at the feet of the governing Liberals … We have momentum right now … what has changed is the disgust level of the people with the BC Liberals has risen …

Note to the BC Liberals … “Take a stand ---and lead”

Earlier today Liberal MLA John Rustad (Nechako Lakes) posted a link to a news story, on his Facebook page.  The opinion piece, “Fact finder might help resolve education crisis”, was written by Jon Ferry and is in today’s Province newspaper.

The story is a good read, and to me it offers a clear confirmation that our elected government is failing to do what we elect them to do … govern.  But as Jon Ferry points out in his piece, there may be a lack of willingness to do what must be done.

The BC Liberals have gone steadily downhill in public opinion, and that began just a few short months after they elected Christy Clark as their leader.  They have lost 25% of the people who voted for them in the last election to the BC Conservative party … and a further 10% who have gone over to the NDP. 

One would tend to perhaps agree then with the comment of Jon Ferry when he says:

"The Christy Clark government, however, is now so wounded in the opinion polls it may be unwilling to provoke a political backlash by appearing too draconian."

I am a member of the BC Conservative Party, so one would be correct in thinking I would not readily offer any advise that might help them (not that they would listen), but here goes anyways

A Conservative victory should be quite alarming to the Liberals

Christy Clark -- leader of beleaguered BC Liberal Party?

After posting three stories yesterday, this comment today is going to be a real short piece, and right to the point.

In a news story (Parties gear up for by-election battle in Chilliwack-Hope) in the Straight.com today, they hit the nail right on the head with the following observation:

Political scientist Maxwell Cameron says that Chilliwack-Hope is the strategic battleground for the B.C. Liberal Party in this year’s two by-elections.

It’s in this Fraser Valley electoral district where the dominant conservative vote will be up for grabs for both the beleaguered ruling party and the resurgent B.C. Conservative party.

A BC Liberal defeat in Chilliwack-Hope could mean an unraveling of the political coalition of federal Liberals and Conservatives working together to keep the leftist NDP out of the gates. It would also boost the claim of the B.C. Conservatives to being the new party of the right.

And his story concluded with a wise observation:

 

BC Liberals might even be saying to themselves … “Dang, we were better off with Gordon Campbell and the baggage of the HST and BC Rail scandals”

Angus Reid polling from 2009 to 2012

Anyone that says it’s the BC Conservative that will cause the Liberals to lose the next election --- think again --- they are causing this loss all on their own, and it has nothing to do with the BC Conservatives.

Just look at the numbers during the past couple of years.

When the last provincial election was held in May 2009 the BC Liberals had 46% of the votes … the NDP had 42%.  The BC Conservatives?, well they had … wait for it … 2% of the vote.

Just one year later (June 2010) an Angus Reid had the NDP polling at 47% compared to just 29% support for the Liberals.  Even adding BC Conservative supporters to their numbers would not have made up the support they had lost at that point in time. (BCCP was at 5% … adding that to the Liberal numbers would have given them 34%).  The New democrats would have won an election in a landslide if one had been called at that point in time --- and the BC Conservative Party would have had nothing to do with it.

Fast forward ahead.  If you look at the three poll samples taken between September 2010 and November 2010, you can see the NDP would have again won an election, had one been called.  The New Democrats at that time were sitting at a commanding 48%, while the BC Liberals had now dropped to just 25.3% voter support.

Again, if you add the numbers supporting the then leaderless BC Conservative Party, the BC Liberals still would have had just 32.6% of that vote … not enough to save them.

Now don’t forget --- those were the days of despair for the BC Liberals.  Gordon Campbell had tanked the party, and Christy Clark had yet to trade her radio broadcast studio for the Premiers Office.

So … between November 2010 and January 2012 what has happened??  

Some would say that the BC Liberals rejected a small ‘c’ conservative leadership candidate in Kevin Falcon, and instead elected a large “L” federal leaning liberal in Christy Clark.

What cannot be missed is the fact the BC Liberals went from the mid-30s in voter preference under Gordon Campbell … to the mid-40s following Christy Clark’s election as party leader … to a point where Christy Clark has taken the party to voter support that is less than what Gordon Campbell had before he resigned

New Angus Reid Poll: BC Conservative UP .... BC Liberals down

Latest BC voter preference
results -- Angus Reid (Feb '12)

The latest Angus Reid poll, out today, is just further proof of growing support for the BC Conservative Party.  This is the 3rd straight poll by Angus Reid showing increased voter support across the province. Meantime the Liberals have dropped another 3% in voter support and are below 30% according to the poll.   

Fully 27% of those who voted Liberal (small "c" conservatives) in the last election are now supporting the BC Conservative Party.  And as proof they are little more than NDP Lite -- 10% of their voters have gone back to the New Democrats

Here is the full story, and poll results, from Angus Reid:

Across British Columbia, 42 per cent of decided voters and leaners (+2 since November) will support the NDP candidate in their constituency in the next provincial election, followed by the BC Liberals with 28 per cent (-3), the BC Conservatives with 19 per cent (+1) and the BC Greens with 10 per cent (+2).

As Shakespeare stated in Romeo and Juliet … “A plague on both of your houses”

We need less studies,and more action, towards job creation

Today the CBC came out with the story … “BC income gap getting worse”.  In it, they stated:

The first measurement looks at household income and found that BC is second only to Alberta as having the greatest inequality of any province.

In the second measurement, BC ranked dead last, having the biggest gap between the top and bottom 20 per cent of income earners.

The report notes that the gap has increased since the early 1990s and that other provinces have had more success redistributing income through taxes and benefits.

Ouch … redistribution of wealth!!!  Redistribution of wealth is not the answer! 

YES … we do need to have social programs that help those individuals, and families, who are in need and are unable to provide the necessities they require (food and shelter).  Redistribution of wealth however should not be taking from one group to give to another.

To reduce the necessity to provide what is needed for those on low or no incomes, we need a vigorous and aggressive plan to get BC moving forward with good quality high pay jobs in traditional areas that have always provided them … as well as in the new technologies.

Those of us in the middle class are getting squeezed tighter and tighter with higher fees and taxes --- and no resulting / corresponding increases in wages to meet these increased costs.

If you decide to support the forces of constructive change – then the future will be different

Yesterday (01/30/12) the Vancouver Sun had a piece written by Paul Kershaw from the University of British Columbia.  It was entitled “A Canadian sidekick for Colbert”, and it began with the following:

Just 10 per cent of Canadians trust politicians, according to a recent Ipsos poll. Canadians are more likely to trust new-car sales people than elected officials, data from Leger Marketing tell us.

These facts may be good for a laugh. But, really, we shouldn’t be amused. The fact that Canadians are more likely to treat politicians like punch lines rather than people to respect is a fundamental reason why we are tuning out politics. Barely 60 per cent of Canadians voted in the last federal election; in Ontario’s fall provincial election, fewer than 50 per cent of eligible voters showed up at the ballot boxes. Our largest province has not seen such low turnout since Confederation in 1867.

Apathy is not a neutral force in our democracy. Apathy helps to sustain the status quo. And the status quo is not a friend of Canadians under 45.

“POLITICIANS” … have become the punch lines, and punching bags, of municipal, provincial and federal voters – and THEY DESERVE TO BE!  And not just of people under the age of 45.

In 1999 a Canadian political party release a brochure … “This is the Reform Party”.  Here are just some of the things they had as policy objectives in this brochure:

1. the equality of citizens …
2. Responsible government that is accountable to citizens …
3. More and better jobs through balanced budgets and tax relief
4. Safer streets and communities
5. Strong reliable and affordable social services
6. Greater support for Canadian families as the basic building block of Canadian society

In BC we have two political parties that have governed this province over the past two decades … the BC Liberals … and the New Democrats.  Has anything truly been done towards the goals I noted above ... and that apply just as easily to our province?  I think the fact that only 10% of Canadian voters trust politicians provides the answer.

Common sense ideas and policies are making a comeback once again.

Edmund Burke -- viewed as
the philosophical founder
of modern Conservatism

Here is what Murray Langdon, of CFAX 1070, had to say in his radio editorial today (January 30, 2012)

When the BC’s Finance Minister unveils his budget in a couple of weeks, we will get a sense and snapshot of how we’re coping financially in this world of turmoil. Sadly however, because of the political climate in the air, we may not get that.

As Kevin Falcon adeptly put it, BC, on a world stage, is a “small, resources-based economy”. As such, that means we are subject to shocks, gyrations and swings that occur on a continent-or-world-wide basis. But we still have control over our own destiny, and much of that revolves around our expenditures.

What we have right now in BC is a situation where several areas of concern drastically need funding. Areas such as our criminal justice system, which has been mired in a multi-year funk over shortfalls in legal aid, the judiciary, etc. This is but one area requiring more money to function as it properly should. This isn’t a wish list; it is a must have list. There are several other areas of similar state; the list could go on and on.

The point is for every extra dollar taken in tax, fees or licensing, there is already a home for it. We have an acute need for revenue, which our looming or demanding expenditures can’t wait to get their hands on.