Conservatives say the move belies Premier David Eby’s promise to hit the ground running, while one expert says it erodes democratic norms
The Opposition Conservatives say Premier David Eby’s decision to not hold a fall sitting of the legislature is an indication he has already broken his promise to hit the ground running on concerns British Columbians have about the cost of living, public safety and health care.
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On Friday, Eby backed away from his promise for a one-day fall sitting to pick a Speaker and instead announced that Burnaby-New Westminster MLA Raj Chouhan will continue in that position, which he has held for the past four years.
Conservative MLA Elenore Sturko of Surrey-Cloverdale said she believes Eby’s decision to cancel the fall sitting is selfish.
“We could have gone back for a brief sitting to debate and discuss and get rolling relief for British Columbians. We are approaching the holiday season, a lot of people have more expenses at this time of year. They want to be able to provide for their families for the holidays.”
“He said that the election was a wake-up call. It’s more clear to me than ever, the selfish premier hasn’t changed a lick,” said Sturko.
Hamish Telford, a University of the Fraser Valley political science professor, said Eby’s decision represents an erosion of democratic norms and the NDP should have called the legislature back within two weeks of the Oct. 19 election to ensure they continue to have the confidence of the house.
In comparison, Saskatchewan held their election on Oct. 28 and a legislative session began Monday, less than a month later, with a throne speech.
Telford said the government will now have four months to rule unopposed until they come back in February for a throne speech and the spring session.
“We need to be establishing a principle that the legislature, not just the B.C. legislature, but any legislature in Canada, should meet as quickly as possible after an election to demonstrate that the government has the confidence of the legislature and therefore the authority to govern, and there is no need for this to take four months here in British Columbia,” he said.
“I think it was critical to have a fall session of the legislature to elect the speaker and most critically, have a throne speech and a vote on the throne speech to ensure that the government has the authority to govern. This is the first time we’ve had an election in the fixed schedule for the fall, and it’s a terrible precedent to establish that.”
Telford also believes the B.C. NDP has become too centralized, running most policies out of the premier’s office. As an example, he pointed to discussions about whether the promised grocery rebate of $500 a person can be accomplished through an order-in-council or whether it required legislation.
A communications official in Eby’s office said there will still be a secret ballot to ensure Chouhan is confirmed as Speaker by all members of the house, at which point there will also be a throne speech to ensure the confidence of the house.
It remains unclear what day the legislature will resume in February.
As for that rebate, the official said the Ministry of Finance is putting together options about how to get that out the door but it won’t be ready until the new year.
The premier has also made no secret he is still in negotiations with the Greens on shared priorities, discussions that have resulted in the delay of mandate letters to ministers until January.
B.C. Green Leader Sonia Furstenau was unavailable Monday to discuss how those negotiations are going or how she feels about the cancellation of the fall sitting.