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An Open Letter to Lieutenant Governor Iona Campagnolo

The B.C. Liberals intend to close the legislature five weeks early on Thursday, denying serious scrutiny of $13 billion in expenditures of taxpayers' money. Your Honour, you have the power to prevent this abuse of democracy.

David Beers 8 Mar 2005TheTyee.ca

David Beers is the founding editor of The Tyee and serves as current editor-in-chief.

He started the publication in 2003 as an experiment in new ways of doing online journalism in the public interest, including solutions-focused reporting, crowd-funded support and a humane work culture. He loves what The Tyee has become thanks to amazing colleagues and readers.

He has lived in Vancouver since 1991. Before The Tyee he was a senior editor at Mother Jones Magazine and the Vancouver Sun, and his writing has appeared in many U.S. and Canadian outlets. He is an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia's graduate school of journalism.

The letter below was emailed at 10 pm on March 8, 2005 to:

The Honourable Iona CampagnoloLieutenant Governor of British ColumbiaGovernment House1401 Rockland Avenue

Victoria, B.C., V8S 1V9

email address: [email protected]

March 8, 2005

Your Honour:

This letter is rather extraordinary, but we live, it seems, in extraordinary times. My purpose is to request that you utilize the powers vested in you and your office to safeguard the democratic rights and legislative interests of the people of British Columbia, which now are in imminent danger of abuse and neglect.

As you no doubt are aware, the Legislative Assembly has not debated or passed the spending estimates for fiscal year 2005-06. Yet on Monday, March 7, the government introduced Bill 20, Supply Act (No. 1), 2005, to permit the expenditure of more than $13.1 billion over a period of six months, or from April through September 2005, with minimal scrutiny.

Minutes later, the government also introduced time-limits on debate and announced that the legislature's business would conclude at 5:45 p.m. on Thursday, March 10. This is despite the fact that dissolution of the Legislative Assembly is not scheduled until April 19, in anticipation of the general election on May 17. This means that even though there is at least five-full weeks left to scrutinize the coming year's estimates, the government will close the legislature and prevent debate on its expenditures.

 

With these recent developments, the legislature now is not scheduled to sit from March 10 until October 3 — a period of 28 weeks. The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, the representative institution of all citizens of our great province, will not be in session for more than half of a calendar year.

 

Moreover, only in October — after more than half of the fiscal year has expired — will the spending estimates for 2005-06 be debated by the legislature.

This is, again, abusive and neglectful of our Legislative Assembly, and of the people whose House it is -- all British Columbians. It is an extraordinary situation which demands extraordinary action. You alone, as Lieutenant Governor, can protect the rights and interests our province's citizenry.

I hereby appeal to you to consider two courses of action.

First, inform the government that should the Legislative Assembly rise on March 10, five weeks prior to the scheduled dissolution on April 19, you will give serious consideration to dissolving the legislature before that date. Clearly, with the legislature not sitting there is no reason to delay either the people's legislative business or the general election.

 

May I remind you that under British Columbia's Constitution Act, section 23, the Lieutenant Governor may order dissolution whenever she "sees fit."

You could, therefore, dissolve the legislature on March 15, five days after it recesses on March 10. Given that there is a statutory requirement for a general election 28 days after dissolution, British Columbians would be provided with the opportunity to exercise their franchise on April 12, rather than waiting a further five weeks until May 17.

Second, inform the government that you will withhold Royal Assent from Bill 20, and any other supply bill which provides taxpayers monies for a period longer than two months of fiscal year 2005-06. That measure would have the two-fold effect of ensuring that B.C.'s Legislative Assembly convenes before June 2005 (rather than in October), and that a full legislative debate on the spending estimates for the fiscal year can take place before most of the monies are expended by the government.

Your Honour, I again concede that my request is extraordinary. But you alone possess the constitutional and statutory powers to prevent the government's intent to abuse and neglect the Legislative Assembly, and to protect the interests of British Columbians.

I thank you in advance for you consideration.

David Beers

Editor, The Tyee  [Tyee]

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