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Wilson does what NDP wouldn't try

B.C. Politics

by Russ Francis

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It's something the government hasn't dared do. But this month, infuriating the Liberals he once led, the fearless Gordon Wilson did it for them.

on July 8, the member for Powell River-Sunshine Coast invoked closure on a labor code-related motion.

That allowed the government to end debate on a motion to adjourn and take another small step towards passing the labor code changes, which are ensconced in Bill 26.

It's the first time closure has been used in the B.C. legislature in seven years.

June 27, 1991, was the uproarious last day of the Socreds' last session as government. New Democrat John Cashore was kicked out of the house, for refusing to sit down after environment minister Dave Mercier walked out rather than answer his questions. And the government used closure to end debate on a spending bill, so that they could run off and have a leadership campaign. (Before that, closure hadn't been used since 1983.)

At the time, Mark Rose, the NDP MLA for Coquitlam-Moody, called it a "gag rule", and its use "an affront to democracy".

Of course, these days the NDP would never dream of doing such a thing.

This month, speaker Gretchen Brewin accepted Wilson's motion, allowing the NDP to use its majority to prevail in the subsequent two votes. (Once again, independent MLA Jack Weisgerber, who opposes the bill itself, joined Wilson in siding with the government.)

Wilson said afterwards that using closure was entirely his own idea.

He wouldn't rule out invoking closure again for Bill 26, particularly when a motion to adjourn for 35 minutes is debated for five hours.

"If the Liberals are going to filibuster on whether we should break for dinner, that really makes us all look like the south end of a north-bound donkey."

The rules are about to change for a favorite pastime of mid-level public servants.

"Did you make the public accounts yet?" is a common cry around government water coolers.

The question is a cryptic way of asking how much someone makes, for once a salary hits $50,000, it is recorded beside the employee's name in the annual public accounts of the province, published each fall in three volumes.

But the government has just decided to raise the salary threshold to $75,000. The move doesn't need the OK of the legislature or even of its public accounts committee - it is up to Finance Minister Joy MacPhail and comptroller general Arn van Iersel alone.

At the same time, the threshold for publishing government contracts has jumped from $10,000 to $25,000.

Even the salaries and contracts will no longer be published in the usual sense - instead they will be available only on the internet.

While van Iersel notes that the information will still be available, it's not quite the same as flipping through a hard copy.

The government's motivation for the change may have been honorable - van Iersel says it will save around $13,500 in annual printing costs, and an unknown amount of staff time - but it's yet another step to reduce the amount of information available to the public.

A poor decision.

E-mail comments to: russfrancis@compuserve.com or fax them to 273-5272.

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