If the scandals weren't bad enough, admissions following the resignation of Surrey-Whalley MLA Elayne Brenzinger are likely to further drive down support for the Campbell government. Brenzinger's resignation may have received little attention had it not been for the admission by government whip Kevin Krueger that she had been "suspended" from caucus for two weeks in December and that others have suffered similar punishment.

Brenzinger resigned from the Campbell caucus on the morning of March 8th; the regular March Ipsos-Reid poll, due out next week, probably concluded its field work prior to her announcement. Of course the polling numbers will be impacted by the scandals that plague the Campbell government: the raid on the legislature, the write-off in the Ministry of Children and Family Development, the write-off of fines and leases for fish farms and votes for extended care beds on Vancouver Island. The February Mustel Group poll had the BC Liberals and the NDP tied at 40% each. Whatever Ipsos-Reid comes out with for March, the impact of Brenzinger's resignation and the attempts to discredit her will not be captured by the poll.

As is frequently the case in politics, the response to an event is more important than the event. In attacking Brenzinger, Krueger accidentally revealed that the Campbell Liberals have been running what amounts to a secret court expelling members of their caucus without telling the MLA's constituents about the "time out" or the reason for it.

In question period on Tuesday, March 9th, Opposition House Leader Joy MacPhail asked Premier Campbell "how many other Liberal MLAs have been secretly suspended by his caucus?" No one on the government benches rose to answer the question. MacPhail then asked "Can the Premier advise the House whether the government caucus advised the legislative comptroller general that the funding for the MLA for Surrey-Whalley should be diverted for two weeks - taxpayers' money - and can he assure the House that the government caucus has not received a penny of taxpayer funds to support other Liberal MLAs who have been secretly suspended?" Again, no one from the government benches rose to answer the question. Could this be why the 15 minute session is called "question period" rather than "answer period"? On the third try, MacPhail asked "Why doesn't the Premier get up and now inform the constituents of those government caucus members who had been suspended secretly and explain to them what they were suspended for, when, and for what procedure went over to suspend them?"

After her third question, no one from the government benches rose to answer the question, but Government House Leader and Minister of Finance Gary Collins rose on a point of order to say "Questions about caucus are not in order in this House. That member knows that. I assume the Chair knows that as well." Saying "I assume the Chair knows that as well" was extremely rude and essentially amounted to telling the Speaker that he is a flunky who must follow Collins' orders. Perhaps that is why, for what may be the first time since he was made Speaker, Claude Richmond rebuked the government side of the House. Richmond ruled "Hon. member, the question of caucus stipend is in order."

They don't get it! Wouldn't you like to know if your MLA was kicked out of the government caucus? Wouldn't you like to know why that happened? By not naming names, they have cast a shadow on every member of the Campbell caucus. Each MLA's local media will ask, "were you secretly kicked out?" That is the kind of pressure that could produce caucus leaks as each tries to save their own skin by leaking the names of others who were punished.

Krueger told the media that it was none of their business who gets kicked out of caucus, but he explained that a member might go through escalating discipline and ultimately be suspended if, for example, that member was habitually late to meetings. Imagine that! MLAs who are paid over $70,000 per year plus expenses are treated like elementary school children. If intense peer pressure is applied for trivial behaviour, what message is sent about so called "free votes"? Can anyone expect their MLA to publicly criticize the government or to provide an informed critique of bad policy when they know what lurks for them behind the closed door of their caucus room? Campbell is known as a control freak. Now we know that his control extends to the minutest behaviour of his MLAs who are supposed to be independent thinkers fighting for their constituents.

Brenzinger's resignation from the Campbell caucus has raised other issues. Premier Campbell admitted that he swore at her in a caucus meeting. He minimized the incident by saying that his words were in "jest". How does someone swear at someone as a joke?

As the MLA for North Vancouver Lonsdale I attended NDP caucus meetings from 1991-96, and I occasionally sat in until 2001 as a senior member of the Premier's staff. One person, Robin Blencoe, was kicked out of caucus during those ten years. I never heard "colourful language" in a caucus meeting. Members behaved as they would on the floor of the House. It is shocking to discover that the Campbell caucus operates as if it is a bar room brawl with secret expulsions while they pocket the legislative stipend as if the member were fully participating.

The open, honest, transparent government promised by Gordon Campbell is a sham. They deserve to drop in the polls.