COLUMN: From the Hill -- the new trade agreement
After months of negotiations and a seemingly endless series of false deadlines, negotiators have hammered out a new trade agreement between Canada, the USA and Mexico. The new agreement (called the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA for short) will create winners and losers, of course, and the general consensus...
There's something about local politics in B.C.
Judging by the mud flying, it would seem – splat – local elections are well underway across B.C. If the campaign turns out anything like the opening acts, there's going to be some hefty dry cleaning bills this October. So what does the field of candidates look like after the dust settled and nominations closed? This spring ...
Op/Ed: Vote Pro Rep and get what you vote for
By Maria Dobrinskaya When governments get 100 per cent of the power from just 40 per cent of voters, something’s not right. Election after election, a minority of voters gets to decide our government, and then that government gets a four-year dictatorship. It’s minority rule, plain and simple. And it’s unfair and undemocratic....
Have your say this fall!
Have you moved or changed your name since the last election? Are you a registered voter for BC? The BC government wants to make sure that everyone who is eligible can vote in the October – November referendum on electoral reform, and urges everyone to either register, or make sure their voter information is up-to-date. Chief...
Opponents fail to stifle referendum
According to a tweet today (Tuesday, August 28) by Keith Fraser of the Vancouver Sun, a bid to stop this fall's referendum on electoral reform has failed. The Independent Contractors and Businesses Association (ICBA) sought an injunction to stop the vote, but in order to obtain an injunction to stop a thing from happening,...
Community Leadership! What’s important on City Council.
We all have ideas about how City Councillors should conduct themselves and all the things our council ought to do, but Monday evening’s session in Castlegar was presented by two well-informed experts on the topic whose ideas have withstood the test of reality. If you have served on Council and think you’re...
From the Hill - MP speaks to wildfires
It’s now official — 2018 has just become British Columbia’s second worst forest fire season in history, second only to last year. Residents have endured weeks of heavy smoke, some have been evacuated from their communities, and some have unfortunately lost their homes. Businesses have suffered as tourists leave or stay away,...
Op/Ed: Keeping people safe, and protecting our communities through the wildfires
By John Horgan For the second year in a row, our province is in a state of emergency. People, business and communities in every part of B.C. have been affected, and many remain under evacuation alerts and orders as over 550 wildfires continue to burn. Our government is doing everything we can to support firefighters and...
Op/Ed: Wildsight comments on Columbia River Treaty negotiations
By Wildsight Representatives of the Canadian and American federal governments met on August 15th and 16th for the second round of negotiations to update the 54-year old Columbia River Treaty. The meetings were held, not in Ottawa or Washington, but in Nelson, in the Canadian Columbia River Basin. The treaty between the two ...
OP/ED: National lobby group calls for Victoria to give BC Interior a tax break
The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) is calling on the provincial government to give interior residents a break by cutting fuel taxes, fixing ICBC and axing the Employer Health Tax (EHT). With many interior businesses depending on long haul trucking, tourism and shipping, the high cost of fuel and fuel taxes are punishing...
