Thursday April 29, 2010
Elections BC says the provincial government can’t fight former premier Bill Vander Zalm’s anti-HST petition with a taxpayer-funded mail out.
A clearly disappointed Finance Minister Colin Hansen said Thursday he will pull the government’s brochure until after Vander Zalm’s petition to repeal the hamonized sales tax ends in July.
But Hansen said he’s written a letter of complaint to B.C.’s chief electoral officer Harry Neufeld suggesting Vander Zalm and the Opposition New Democrats should be subject to similar scrutiny when it comes to spreading false and misleading information about the tax.
“Elections BC essentially advised us we don’t have the right to explain through advertising why the government believes Bill 9 is in the public interest during this period,” said Hansen at a news conference.
“This is especially surprising and disappointing.”
Elections BC wrote the government Wednesday saying the government mail out does not meet the rules of the Recall and Initiative Act when it comes to government advertising surrounding promoting or opposing Bills or petitions.
“In order to ensure compliance with the Recall and Initiative Act, it is imperative that government advertising does not indirectly promote or oppose an initiative petition or the associated draft bill in any way unless government first registers as an initiative advertising sponsor and complies with the $5,000 advertising limit,” said the letter to the Ministry of Attorney General from deputy chief electoral officer Linda Johnson.
Hansen said the government was trying to inform British Columbians about the HST.
Vander Zalm said Thursday the government had lots of time to mail out information.
“Instead they waited until they saw the initiative was making great progress and then they wanted to take a million of our dollars to tell the people that they should not sign the petition.
“I’m glad with Elections BC and their ruling.”
Hansen’s letter to Elections BC points to alleged violations of the Recall and Initiative Act by the Vander Zalm petition and provincial New Democrats “with respect to provisions that specifically prohibit proliferating false and misleading information.”
The letter asks Elections BC to question Vander Zalm’s petition, which has already collected more than 145,000 signatures.
“We will fully expect Elections BC to apply the law equally to everyone involved in the HST debate, including the NDP and Bill Vander Zalm and his canvassers,” Hansen told reporters.
He said the Liberals were not setting the ground work to contest the validity of the petition.
“That’s a job Elections BC needs to do,” said Hansen.
Elections BC officials could not be reached for comment.
The Liberal government is poised to pass the HST into law, using closure to end debate.
Vander Zalm’s petition to repeal the HST requires the signatures of 10 per cent of registered voters from every one of B.C.’s 85 ridings.
If he’s successful, it could force the government to hold a non-binding referendum on the tax.
[CTV.ca]
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Are we not already taxed to death ? Enough already !!!!!!!!!!!
Definitely “NO” to the HST
Campbell has just cooked his bacon toooo much
John
I believe this will seal the fate of the liberals in BC.Any of the members of the party who has any future goals at all should listen to the people of British Columbia.Your so called leader is a liar as far as i am concerned and if were up to me Id fire him for not doing his job which is LISTENING to the people who elected him.
Yet another political party in power that has lost connection with the citizens. Gordo and your entire supporting cast of Liberal MLA’s who voted in this legislation have lied and deceived the citizens of BC one too many times.
For the Liberal Party to now complain that the people do not understand the HST, and that they now intend to spend yet another bundle of taxpayers money on more propoganda is not only an insult, but an open admission they have failed.
Plow ahead Gordo and the rest of you Liberal hacks. Not one of you MLA’s had the guts to stand up for the majority opinion when you voted. Shame on you – you have all sold out your democratic souls. What amazing integrity.??
Thanks for the good work ??
One more former Liberal voter going anywhere but Liberal.
I say “NO” to the HST.
It is the combination of the budget and the HST, that is going to sink BC citizens. Every utility for your home is taxed by the budget. Phone and cable, has the HST applied. There is very little you can purchase, without the HST. BC people are now in a dictatorship government. Campbell, Hansen, and the BC Liberals, do not honor the: Canadian Charters of Rights, our Civil Rights and Liberties, the Canadian Constitution, nor, Democracy and Freedom. The BC Legislature, is a place of mockery, and serves no purpose, beyond trading insults. Hansen and De Jong, in particular, should have been thrown out, by the Speaker of the House. However, as we have seen, some of the Speakers, need to be purged as well. The BC Liberals are rotten to the core, and indeed, Campbell’s henchmen, have no minds of their own, Campbell controls them as well. It is a mystery to me, why the Ministers, haven’t kicked Campbell to the moon, on the toes of their boots. Even the word Liberal, is a dirty name in BC.