Saturday’s B.C. election may mark a milestone in the politics of the province in more than one way.
It took place under the sign of a pandemic that has turned the world we had known upside down. The global economy, with its extensive transnational lines of supply and demand, will not remain the same. National sovereignty has suddenly acquired a new importance, as borders have been closed, and country after country seeks to ensure an adequate national supply of key medical equipment.
Austerity, the byword of several decades of economic policy-making in the OECD world and beyond, has taken a big hit, as countries — and subnational units like provinces — engage in forms of deficit expenditure not seen since the Second World War.
Something else may also have been taking place, with significant long-term implications. The intense polarization that has often characterized politics, not least in B.C., has given way to a more consensual approach. In Canada at least — unlike countries like the United States or Brazil — there has been a significant level of co-operation between the federal and provincial governments. The same has been true for the interaction among political parties within B.C.
British Columbia, where divisions between right and left were once paramount, has been a model of parties coming together to face an overriding threat. We have been well served by excellent public health officers — Dr. Bonnie Henry first and foremost — but also by an excellent Minister of Health, Adrian Dix, and by close co-operation across party lines in the legislature.
One of the reasons the NDP was successful in securing a second mandate, this time with a clear majority, was because of its good management of the pandemic, when compared to provinces like Alberta, Ontario, and especially Quebec. The NDP also benefited from having run a fairly tight ship fiscally in the three years preceding COVID-19, in co-operation with the Green Party. And it was also helped, in my opinion, by the less polarizing character that has characterized provincial politics in recent years
The NDP is a moderately left-of-centre party with less of the ideological animus that characterized it 25 or 50 years ago. The Greens have emerged as an important third force, positioning themselves as an alternative voice, especially in matters related to the environment. And the B.C. Liberals, the main right-of-centre provincial party, find themselves chastened in the aftermath of their Oct. 24 defeat, forced to rethink some of their harder ideological stances of yesteryear.
So maybe, just maybe, B.C. politics may have come of age. The pandemic in particular has reminded us all that faced with challenges to our very survival, old ideological divides matter a lot less. The more we can find consensus, at least around core issues, the better.
I hope some of this carries over into the newly elected legislature and that Premier John Horgan lives up to his promise to pay close attention to relevant suggestions that come from across the aisle. Then we may discover that the pandemic, for all its devastation, may have done the politics of this province some good.
Philip Resnick is emeritus professor of political science at the University of British Columbia.
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FREDERICTON – A look at David Coon, leader of the Green Party of New Brunswick:
Born: Oct. 28, 1956.
Early years: Born in Toronto and raised in Montreal, he spent about three decades as an environmental advocate.
Education: A trained biologist, he graduated with a bachelor of science from McGill University in Montreal in 1978.
Family: He and his wife Janice Harvey have two daughters, Caroline and Laura.
Before politics: Worked as an environmental educator, organizer, activist and manager for 33 years, mainly with the Conservation Council of New Brunswick.
Politics: Joined the Green Party of Canada in May 2006 and was elected leader of the New Brunswick Green Party in September 2012. Won a seat in the legislature in 2014 — a first for the province’s Greens.
Quote: “It was despicable. He’s clearly decided to take the low road in this campaign, to adopt some Trump-lite fearmongering.” — David Coon on Sept. 12, 2024, reacting to Blaine Higgs’s claim that the federal government had decided to send 4,600 asylum seekers to New Brunswick.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
FREDERICTON – A look at Blaine Higgs, leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick.
Born: March 1, 1954.
Early years: The son of a customs officer, he grew up in Forest City, N.B., near the Canada-U.S. border.
Education: Graduated from the University of New Brunswick with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1977.
Family: Married his high-school sweetheart, Marcia, and settled in Saint John, N.B., where they had four daughters: Lindsey, Laura, Sarah and Rachel.
Before politics: Hired by Irving Oil a week after he graduated from university and was eventually promoted to director of distribution. Worked for 33 years at the company.
Politics: Elected to the legislature in 2010 and later served as finance minister under former Progressive Conservative Premier David Alward. Elected Tory leader in 2016 and has been premier since 2018.
Quote: “I’ve always felt parents should play the main role in raising children. No one is denying gender diversity is real. But we need to figure out how to manage it.” — Blaine Higgs in a year-end interview in 2023, explaining changes to school policies about gender identity.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
OTTAWA – The pressing issues of climate change and food security join more familiar ones like violent extremism and espionage on a new list of Canada’s intelligence priorities.
The federal government says publishing the list of priorities for the first time is an important step toward greater transparency.
The government revises the priorities every two years, based on recommendations from the national security adviser and the intelligence community.
Once the priorities are reviewed and approved by the federal cabinet, key ministers issue directives to federal agencies that produce intelligence.
Among the priorities are the security of global health, food, water and biodiversity, as well as the issues of climate change and global sustainability.
The new list also includes foreign interference and malign influence, cyberthreats, infrastructure security, Arctic sovereignty, border integrity and transnational organized crime.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
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