Legislative Session Defined by Admitted Mistakes

As of May 8, 2006, only 8 days remain in the Legislative Calendar for the spring sitting, and there may not be a fall sitting. The first full legislative session after the May 17, 2005, election should go down as the session of admissions and corrections. The Campbell government was faulted by Ted Hughes for its cuts to the Ministry of Children and Family Development, and it was forced to create an independent officer of the Legislature to replace the Children's Commission which it axed in its over-exuberance following the 2001 election.

After breaking collective agreements and imposing wage cuts in 2002, the Campbell government appears to have had a reconciliation with labour as it successfully negotiated agreements with all but the teachers as of May 8th. Perhaps they should admit that they went overboard with needless confrontation in their first term.

Part of the Campbell government's first term cuts included stripping the teachers' agreement of all protections regarding class size and class composition, and replacing those provisions with legislation that depended on district wide class size averages. Bill 33 (2006) repealed that provision and replaced it with a limit of no more than 30 students for all classes between grades 4 and 12, not what the teachers wanted but a very long way from the foolishness of 2002. That repentance could lay the groundwork for a settlement with the teachers, which would be a first for negotiating a provicewide agreement.

The often stubborn Premier Campbell also implicitly admitted he was wrong on electoral reform. He bent to the advice of the Chief Electoral Officer and deferred the next referendum on the Irish voting system (BC-STV) until May 12, 2009, concurrent with the next provincial election, rather than holding it with the 2008 municipal elections and allowing only six months for its possible implementation.

Hope springs eternal that Campbell will acknowledge and correct other errors and excesses, perhaps the cuts to legal aid or its mean-spirited approach to welfare. While admission of mistakes may create some embarrassment, correcting them leaves little room for the Opposition to capitalize on the admission that mistakes were made. Combined with a strong economy, the government appears to be on a roll that will challenge the Opposition to identify key vote-determining issues that separate the parties before the election just three years and 4 days from now.

Health care is usually an election issue. The Throne Speech which began the Legislative session was full of questions about the future of health care in BC, but very short on hints about the Campbell government's position. Apart from a post-Olympic world wind tour of European facilities, nothing has been said to spell out how the Campbell government will consult over the future of health care. It would be a big mistake to think that something equivalent to the Citizen's Assembly could come to grips with the enormously complex issues that drive health policy, yet that may be the direction the government takes. The NDP enjoys the advantage of greater credibility on the health file, an advantage the Campbell Liberals will attempt to destroy. New Democrats need to admit that it was a mistake to allow WCB and ICBC to queue jump by paying for procedures in private surgery centres. As the Liberals are fond of saying, it is necessary to focus on the future rather than dwelling on past errors. That is a standard they are anxious to apply to their mistakes but not to their characterization of the 1990s.

Key issues for the 2009 election campaign are yet to be determined. The NDP needs to set the agenda and define the issues rather than just responding to the government's agenda. There may be satisfaction in seeing the Campbell government admit to mistakes, but those admissions are unlikely to swing voters in 2009. It may be February 2007, with the next provincial budget, before work to define the agenda begins, but political strategists need to realize that three years go by very quickly with no chance to make up for lost opportunities.