From newswire at news.bc.ndp.ca Sat Apr 14 22:00:18 2007 From: newswire at news.bc.ndp.ca (BC NDP Newswire) Date: Sat, 14 Apr 2007 21:00:18 -0800 Subject: [LabComm] NDP calls for $10 minimum wage and small business tax cut Message-ID: NDP calls for $10 minimum wage and small business tax cut VICTORIA -- After a six year freeze, it's time to give B.C.'s lowest paid workers a raise, NDP Leader Carole James said today. "For six years, Gordon Campbell has frozen the minimum wage leaving many British Columbians behind," said James. "The B.C. Liberals are out of touch with the workers of our province trying desperately to make ends meet. Last month the government flat out rejected the prospect of an increase which shows the B.C. Liberals don't care about our province's lowest paid workers." James also called for the government to give employers a break by cutting the small business tax rate. To read the full press release and backgrounder, click here. To show your support for a realistic minimum wage, sign the petition.

To unsubscribe or change your settings go to: http://www.e-2ve6y.signup2.bcndp.ca/ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From newswire at news.bc.ndp.ca Thu Apr 26 02:00:20 2007 From: newswire at news.bc.ndp.ca (BC NDP Newswire) Date: Thu, 26 Apr 2007 1:00:20 -0800 Subject: [LabComm] BC NDP Connection Newsletter Message-ID: BC NDP Connection Newsletter

Accountability gap another broken Campbell promise

Gordon Campbell promised his government would be open and accountable. But after a week of revelations of secret investigations, mismanagement of public funds, and special deals for friends and insiders, British Columbians learned that that this is just another broken Campbell promise. After months of foot-dragging, and only after pressure from the Opposition New Democrats, the Campbell government admitted they are investigating some of their own friends and insiders. "What we heard this week is that accountability is only important if you're not a close friend of the Gordon Campbell government," said NDP Leader Carole James. "If you're Ken Dobell, the premier's right-hand man, the rules apparently don't apply to you," said James. "That's what the Campbell government considers accountability." Dobell, who has been called the Premier's unofficial deputy minister of everything, was apparently lobbying the government for six months before registering as required under the Lobbyist Registration Act. "You can't be 'sort of' open and 'kind of' accountable," said James. "Either there is integrity there or there's not. It's clear that the Campbell government is reluctant to hold their friends accountable." The situation is different - but no less damning - in the case of Paul Taylor. The former deputy minister of Finance, Taylor was the subject of investigation by the Premier's deputy minister, Jessica MacDonald. The government subsequently hired a Liberal-friendly firm - KPMG - to further investigate allegations against Mr. Taylor, who is now the chair of the Insurance Corporation of B.C. "But there's no assurances that the results of the investigation by Ms. MacDonald or the full report from KPMG will ever become public," said James. "We couldn't even find out from the Finance Minister what questions KPMG was hired to answer," James said. "Without that information, British Columbians will be suspicious that the Campbell government is just trying to cover up these serious allegations." In November, Yale-Lillooet MLA Harry Lali sent a letter to Premier Gordon Campbell, asking the Premier to look into the relationship between Mr. Taylor and lobbyists connected to the B.C. Liberal Party. The Premier ignored Lali's concerns, but four months later, he sent his deputy to look into the issue after it became clear the matter was about to find its way into the media. "It's pretty clear that the Campbell government wants to keep this issue hidden," James said. "When the story was about to hit the media, they launched a half-hearted, secret investigation." The accountability gap extends all the way to the waterfront in Vancouver, where the expansion of the B.C. Trade and Convention Centre is now in the range of $400 million over budget. Who was chair of that project? Ken Dobell - at least until last Friday, when he was finally removed from that post. The Premier's friend didn't go far, though. He still sits on the centre???s board of directors. "That's not holding someone accountable," said James. "If any other person had mismanaged a project that badly, that person would have been out of a job. "But if you're the Premier's friend, you get a soft landing. That's the definition of accountability under Gordon Campbell."

After months of delay, government finally agrees with NDP

After months of ignoring the needs of consumers and investors, the B.C. Liberal government finally agreed with New Democrats on payday lending and on the B.C. Securities Commission. The government this week introduced two pieces of legislation which recreate protections suggested by NDP MLAs from as far back as 2005. Bill 27, the Business Practices and Consumer Protection (Payday Loans) Amendment Act, cribs heavily from a Private Member's Bill first introduced by Victoria-Hillside NDP MLA Rob Fleming. And Bill 28, the Securities Amendment Act, would put into practice the suggestions of Nanaimo NDP MLA Leonard Krog. "While I'm glad the government is finally taking steps to regulate payday lending, their foot-dragging has meant thousands more British Columbians were risking being gouged by an unregulated industry," said Fleming. Fleming had originally introduced the Payday Lending Act as a Private Member's Bill May 8, 2006 and re-introduced it March 25 of this year. The government let it die on the order paper. "The responsible thing would have been for the government to support my legislation when it first came for debate," said Fleming. "That they waited nearly a year to act shows they don't care about protecting consumers. They only care about scoring political points." The same holds for the government's interest in the Securities Commission. Krog, the NDP's Critic for the Attorney General, has been raising concerns about the potential for fraud since last August. "The Campbell government showed no urgency in correcting the problems," said Krog. "Now they're trying to take credit for fixing a problem they let fester for years. "That's not good government," said Krog. "That's just political grandstanding. "What's worse is the bill doesn't accomplish what it sets out to accomplish. It's full of half measures and wrong-headed assumptions. If the Campbell government was really concerned about cleaning up this mess, they would have come up with a better bill than this."

Robertson helps bring climate change film to B.C. schools

Thanks in part to efforts of New Democrat MLA Gregor Robertson, schools across British Columbia will be getting their own copy of the Al Gore documentary An Inconvenient Truth. Robertson, who represents Vancouver-Fairview, met Al Gore last summer and subsequently helped co-ordinate getting the film into the hands of B.C. schools and in front of B.C. students. Robertson helped bring the Tides Canada Foundation together with corporate sponsors (Paramount Pictures and Novex) to help spread the message about climate change. "Climate change is the most important environmental issue of our time, and it will directly affect those students," said Robertson. "The first step in addressing an issue is proper education," Robertson said. "This film is a comprehensive look at climate change, presented in easily understood terms. It's a powerful tool and a good first step in examining the issue." Robertson said the real credit should go to the non-profit organization that has raised the money to buy the copies of the Academy Award-winning documentary. "The Campbell government has been all talk, no action on climate change, so it's great to see the Tides Canada Foundation step up to the plate and do all the legwork," said Robertson. "I was glad to do my own small part, to help fill in the gap left by the inaction of the Campbell government." To unsubscribe or change your settings go to: http://www.e-2ve6y.signup2.bcndp.ca/ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From newswire at news.bc.ndp.ca Sun Apr 29 15:15:45 2007 From: newswire at news.bc.ndp.ca (BC NDP Newswire) Date: Sun, 29 Apr 2007 14:15:45 -0800 Subject: [LabComm] What is Gordon Campbell trying to hide? Message-ID: What is Gordon Campbell trying to hide? For six years, British Columbians have watched Gordon Campbell's government give special treatment to Liberal friends and insiders - while neglecting our hospitals, our schools, the environment, senior citizens and the most vulnerable. Now, a series of investigations may finally force this government to be accountable for its secrecy and arrogance. Here are just some of the very important questions we've raised and Gordon Campbell is stonewalling:
  • Are the Campbell Liberals running a dirty tricks operation right out of the Premier's office - using taxpayer's money to pay people to use false names on radio call-in shows? And why won't he commit to investigate the partisan activities of his own staff?
  • Why don't the rules for lobbyists seem to apply to Campbell's top advisor Ken Dobell, who didn't bother to register as a lobbyist even though he worked in Campbell's office while also lobbying the Premier for a $5-million cultural grant on behalf of the City of Vancouver?
  • What was the nature of the relationship between top finance ministry officials and the lobbyists at the centre of the police investigation into alleged corruption in the Liberal sale of BC Rail?
Campbell has refused to answer these questions, and dozens more posed by Carole James and the NDP team. Instead of clearing the air, he evades. He dodges. He weaves. He ducks. He does everything but show respect for the public by explaining why so many of his top advisors and staff are now under investigation. He knows he's in trouble, but he hopes this will just blow over. He thinks that if he ignores the questions the media will just move on, and people will forget. We can't let that happen. It's time to make Gordon Campbell's government pay the consequences for years of secretive, arrogant and uncaring government. That's why I'm writing to you today. Your donation is needed to help us keep the pressure on Gordon Campbell. Please consider making a contribution, today. You can donate on line, just by clicking this link and following a few easy steps. It won't take long. Don't forget that provincial tax credits make it affordable to help - after taxes a $20 donation costs you just $5, and a $50 donation will cost only $12.50. With your help, we can keep investigating until we get to the bottom of Campbell's deal to sell BC Rail after promising not to. We can get answers about how his top advisors and senior staff may still be conducting dirty tricks designed to manipulate the media and mislead the public. And we can expose his special treatment of insiders and advisors. It's up to us - only the NDP are going to pressing Gordon Campbell until he is honest with the public. And it won't be easy. This is a government that has taken extraordinary steps to conceal its inner workings. The Campbell Liberals changed the Freedom of Information rules to make it harder for media and ordinary citizens to request information from their own government. Last fall, they canceled the entire fall sitting of the Legislature to avoid facing tough questions from the NDP. And over the years, Campbell has increased the budget for his own office by more than 400% as he attempts to control the every public statements made at every level of our government. That's why the NDP needs your help. Please make a donation right now. Think of it: Are the Premier's own staff still calling talk radio shows and lying about their identities? Are they paying people to heckle and disrupt public gatherings? Do you think that's an appropriate use of your hard-earned tax dollars? The public deserves answers. With your help, Carole James and the NDP team will get them. Sincerely, Maurine Karagianis
MLA for Esquimalt-Metchosin To unsubscribe or change your settings go to: http://www.e-2ve6y.signup2.bcndp.ca/ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: