November 2008 Archives

Tomorrow morning, on Public Eye Radio, provincial Liberal House Leader Mike De Jong joins us to discuss the recent legislative session. 24 hours' Bill Tieleman gives us a Basi-Virk trial update. And our rabble-rousing panel - Don Anderson, Eleanor Gregory, Bob Russell and Allan Warnke - will debate the week that was in provincial and federal politics. You can listen to Public Eye Radio outside of Victoria by logging into CFAX 1070 between 8:30 and 10:00. If you have a question for one of our guests, you can email us or leave a comment below.

Earlier, we reported the provincial New Democrats introduced a comprehensive government integrity bill that would have, in part, patched up the Campbell administration's broken Lobbyists Registration Act. This, after the government failed to introduce its own fix during the recent legislative session. And it seems Attorney General Wally Oppal isn't in any hurry to take such action in the future. "We want to change the legislation. But it's not quite as dire as the NDP suggests because the remedies are still there," Attorney General Oppal said in an interview with The Vancouver Sun's Jonathan Fowlie, adding that police can still investigate any allegations of wrongdoing.

The Campbell administration doesn't seem to be in a hurry to fix its broken Lobbyists Registration Act before the next election. So, today, the New Democrat tried to takeover that job, tabling a comprehensive government integrity bill that would patch up that act and strengthen the province's conflict of interest laws. "Members of this House will recall the many commitments to openness and transparency made by the current government, commitments that seem to have been abandoned along the way," said Ms. James. "This act establishes a stronger, more open and transparent regime for ethical conduct of lobbyists, public officeholders and former public officeholders in this province."

Private bingo hall and community gaming centre interests appear to have contributed $269,711 to the provincial Liberals between 2002 and 2007. But almost none of those donations were made via companies publicly-identified as bingo hall service providers in British Columbia Lottery Corp. annual reports released between fiscal 2002/03 and 2007/08. Instead, a three week investigation by Public Eye shows 98 percent of the donations came in the form of contributions from industry-connected individuals or other companies whose president is a current or former gaming facility owner/operator. And almost a quarter of the donations or $65,000 were recorded by the Liberals as being made on the same day - February 15, 2005, three months before the last provincial election.

A former top provincial bureaucrat has been working for the bingo hall and community gaming industry. In an email, Registered Gaming Management Companies of B.C. president Tom Nellis stated his association retains ex-Socred and New Democrat government deputy minister Frank Rhodes "on a part time basis" - along with "a number of other business consultants."

Tomorrow morning, on Public Eye Radio, provincial New Democrat House Leader Mike Farnworth joins us to discuss the current legislative session. And our rabble-rousing panel - Don Anderson, Eleanor Gregory and Allan Warnke - will debate the week that was in provincial and federal politics. You can listen to Public Eye Radio outside of Victoria by logging into CFAX 1070 between 8:30 and 10:00. If you have a question for one of our guests, you can email us or leave a comment below.

Last month, we asked provincial Libral election preparation co-chair Hector MacKay-Dunn if top party operative Patrick Kinsella has been involved in those efforts. His response: "I would have to say there's a whole lot of people that are involved. So I wouldn't preclude Patrick from that." But fellow co-chair Rick Thorpe wasn't as talkative. Asked the same question today, the Okanagan-Westside MLA said, "I don't talk about the party activity in the legislature." On October 5, CKNW paraphrased Premier Gordon Campbell as saying Mr. Kinsella isn't involved in the 2009 campaign.

Today, provincial elected representatives returned to Victoria for a five-day sitting. But, in an interview with Public Eye, Attorney General Wally Oppal said fixing the government's broken Lobbyists Registration Act isn't on the Campbell administration's fall legislative agenda. Nor could he say if such an amendment would be introduced before the next election "because that's entirely up to the house leader. But I would like to have something done sooner than later." Although, when asked for comment, House Leader Mike De Jong said he couldn't "say for certain" if that would happen before British Columbians go to the polls. "But they're working on it."

Former solicitor general John Les says he can't remember any specific meetings between himself and top provincial Liberal operative Patrick Kinsella. Speaking with Public Eye, Mr. Les said, "You know, I probably had thousands of meetings in my ministry experience. And I can't possibly remember what I might have been discussing with anybody in particular or in general. I've got a good memory. But it's not that good."

British Columbia's largest bingo and community gaming centre operator has been getting help from a former casino company executive and long-time provincial Liberal campaigner. In an interview with Public Eye, Playtime Community Gaming Centres Inc. chief executive officer Tom Nellis said Jacee Schaefer "has been closely aligned with myself for a number of years. And Jacee helps when we seek approval for slot machines" - from local governments.

Tomorrow morning, on Public Eye Radio, Monday Magazine's Sid Tafler and Jason Youmans, along with Shaw TV's Alan Perry, discuss the results of the last night's local election. And our rabble-rousing panel - Don Anderson, Eleanor Gregory, Bob Russell and Allan Warnke - will debate the week that was in provincial and federal politics. You can listen to Public Eye Radio outside of Victoria by logging into CFAX 1070 between 8:30 and 10:00. If you have a question for one of our guests, you can email us or leave a comment below.

Provincial New Democrat attorney general critic Leonard Krog is raising concerns about Supreme Court of British Columbia Chief Justice Donald Brenner's participation at a Fraser Institute event. Next Tuesday, Justice Brenner is scheduled to talk about reforming the legal system as part of the institute's Behind the Spin cocktail series. Tickets to the event, which is being held at the "stylish" Metro Restuarant, are $65 dollars. And those who want to attend a private dinner with Justice Brenner - which is "closed to the public and the media" and has a 14 person seating limit - must pay an additional $195.

The provincial government wants to know how much the coal resources in the Dominion Coal Block are worth. The government has been negotiating to open up those federally-owned lands to mining since at least 2003 - despite concerns the development of those resources could pollute the waters in and around America's Glacier National Park, as well ruin valuable wilderness habitats. And now, the Campbell admnistration has tendered a $50,000 contract "to determine the market value" of the block's coal deposits, including conceptual mining plans for the region. The government has asked that work "to commence as soon as possible and be completed within 2 months" of the contract being awarded. The following is a complete copy of the statement of work for that contract.

Tomorrow morning, on Public Eye Radio, Rob Reid discusses why he wants to be mayor of Victoria. And our rabble-rousing panel - Don Anderson, Eleanor Gregory, Bob Russell and Allan Warnke - will debate the week that was in provincial and federal politics. You can listen to Public Eye Radio outside of Victoria by logging into CFAX 1070 between 8:30 and 10:00. If you have a question for one of our guests, you can email us or leave a comment below.

The president of an association representing British Columbian community gaming centres and bingo halls says top provincial Liberal backroom operative Patrick Kinsella attended meetings between owner/operators and the provincial government as a free favour to the industry. In an interview with Public Eye, Tom Nellis said, "He's never received a cheque or payment or any kind of compensation whatsoever" - from the Registered Gaming Management Companies of B.C. or his own company, Playtime Community Gaming Centres Inc. "He's never been asked to do anything for us or by us."

In November 2007, the provincial government quietly announced it was considering distributing debit cards to its income assistance clients. The government would then use those cards to make welfare payments to those clients. But that initiative seems to have gotten off-schedule. At that time that announcement was made, the government anticipated it would be launching a bid process in about three months to find a financial institution to run the debit card program. However, it wasn't until yesterday that that request for proposal was issued, with a closing date set for December 15.

Earlier, we reported federal Liberal leadership candidate Bob Rae supports keeping the party's convention in Vancouver. And, in an interview with Public Eye, Rae campaign spokesperson Sheila Gervais confirmed that position, saying, "Our view is that what's in the best interests of the party and Canadians, frankly, trumps candidates. And, in our view, the party should be encouraging as open and as accessible and as robust a race as they can. The party has to appeal to broad sections of the public that have not been favourable towards them through the last period. And Vancouver should be an area that the Liberal Party should be interested in."

Earlier, we reported Deloitte Touche LLP's contract to draft the Campbell administration's home and community care strategic document had been extended till October 31. But, even though the company's contract has ended, the health services ministry confirms that document won't be ready until March 2009 - as stated in the government's response to the auditor general's recent report on care services. The reason: "the ministry is still working with stakeholders on the documents."

Yesterday, Canwest News Service's Juliet O'Neill reported federal Liberal officials are "still researching their options" on which city should host the party's leadership convention, having "invited proposals from other cities." But Mayor Sam Sullivan is pressing the party to keep that convention - which will inject at least $10 million into the economy - in Vancouver, as planned. And our understanding is that Liberal leadership candidate Bob Rae is supportive of that position. Although we're told some of his competitors may prefer a different host city.

The provincial Liberals claim their open platform - which will allow British Columbians to "help shape" the party's election platform via the Internet - is, to the best of their knowledge, the first such process "ever launched by a political party in Canada." But that's simply not the case. In November 2003, the federal Greens launched a living platform project, that would allow both party members and non-party members to contribute to the creation of a binding election platform. "It's sort of an on-line blackboard," then party platform and research head Michael Pilling told The Globe and Mail's Roy MacGregor in 2004. "Everybody gets a piece of chalk. Everybody has an eraser." Unfortunately for Mr. Pilling, though, the biggest eraser belonged to party leadership. He was fired on February 10, 2005. And the project became embroiled in controversy.

Earlier, we reported on the departure of top tourism, culture and the arts bureaucrat Bruce Okabe - who left the civil service on August 31. That was just 23 days after the Campbell administration announced the maximum payable salary for deputy ministers was increasing 34.93 percent to $299,215. According to the ministry, Mr. Okabe resigned to "pursue other opportunities." Specifically, on October 6, it was announced the former Telus Corp. business solutions vice-president has joined InterVISTAS Consulting Inc. as a senior vice-president with the firm's business strategy group. According to the news release announcing that appointment, Mr. Okabe will "take a lead role in delivering tourism, strategic planning, business planning and climate change services to a diverse range of clients."

As part of the provincial Liberal's open platform initiative, British Columbians have been invited to "submit videos, photos, art and music that will showcase the beauty, strength and diversity of our province and its people and culture." According to the party, those submissions "will be selected for use on this website and profiled in various way throughout the upcoming provincial election campaign." But this isn't the first time the Premier Gordon Campbell has attempted to get British Columbians to do free audio-visual work for him.

Tomorrow morning, on Public Eye Radio, Victoria mayoral candidate Steve Filipovic talks about his bid for the Garden City's top political job. And our rabble-rousing panel - Don Anderson, Eleanor Gregory, Bob Russell and Allan Warnke - will debate the week that was in provincial and federal politics. You can listen to Public Eye Radio outside of Victoria by logging into CFAX 1070 between 8:30 and 10:00. If you have a question for one of our guests, you can email us or leave a comment below.