NDP collapse in B.C. opens a 2-party race between Liberals, Conservatives
With traditional NDP support in British Columbia melting away, a two-party race is opening up between the Liberals and Conservatives. CBC's Lyndsay Duncombe examines the seismic voter shift creating some tight races, and even threatening to cost NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and Green Party co-leader Elizabeth May their seats.
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CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Albertans to start paying for COVID-19 vaccines after province changes immunization program
Many Albertans will have to start paying for a COVID-19 vaccine this year. In a press release Friday, the Government of Alberta said it was reducing eligibility for publicly-funded immunizations for the virus. The province said just over 1 million COVID-19 vaccines were wasted in the 2023-24 respiratory virus season, equating to 54 per cent of Alberta's order that year. It said the decision was made in response to changes to the federal vaccine procurement process earlier this year, which made provinces responsible for buying their own vaccines. 'Now that Alberta's government is responsible for procuring vaccines, it's important to better determine how many vaccines are needed to support efforts to minimize waste and control costs,' release said. The new vaccine program will roll out in four phases. During the first, only residents in senior's supportive living and home care will be able to get a vaccine for free. The second phase will open provincially-funded COVID-19 vaccines to people with underlying medical conditions or compromised immune systems, people living in congregate living accommodations, people on social programs like AISH or income support or people experiencing homelessness. In the third and fourth phases, all other Albertans starting with those 65 years old or older will be able to purchase a vaccine. Sarah Hoffman, Alberta NDP shadow minister for health, released a statement calling the decision 'callous' and 'anti-science.' 'It's cruel for the UCP government to put further financial burdens on Albertans who want to protect their health and their loved ones and not get COVID,' Hoffman said in the release. 'If the UCP government was really interested in eliminating waste and protecting the health of Albertans it would be promoting vaccines. That way the supply would get used and we would keep ourselves and our loved ones safe.' The province did not give a timeline for the rollout of the new program and did not specify when Albertans would stop being able to get a free COVID-19 vaccine or booster. Anyone who would like a COVID-19 vaccine can pre-order one starting Aug. 11. The province said it doesn't know yet exactly how much a dose will cost but estimates it will be about $110. CTV News Edmonton has reached out to the health minister's office for more information.
Vancouver Sun
an hour ago
- Vancouver Sun
What does the creation of OneBC mean for the province's political scene?
When the legislature resumes in October, it will have four political parties, after the formation of OneBC this week by independent MLAs Dallas Brodie of Vancouver-Quilchena and Tara Armstrong of Kelowna-Lake Country-Coldstream. Brodie was ejected from the B.C. Conservatives in March for comments about the Kamloops Indian Residential School that many First Nations called residential school denialism and an appearance on a podcast with former Mount Royal professor Frances Widdowson where she made comments that Conservative Leader John Rustad said mocked residential school survivors. Armstrong and Jordan Kealy, MLA for Peace River North, left the Conservatives in solidarity with Brodie and in the months since the three have formed an alliance on issues such as defending an ostrich farm in the B.C. interior that has been marked for a cull due to avian flu. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. OneBC was officially registered with Elections B.C. on June 9 and will grant Brodie and Armstrong additional funding and privileges in the legislature. In a press release on Thursday, the party outlined several policy planks from ending 'mass immigration' to defunding 'the reconciliation industry.' Other promises include pushing for a ban on strikes by teachers, allowing private health-care, and steep cuts to income taxes. Questioned about these policies by Postmedia on Friday, Brodie said the goal is to deliver on the goals that initially ignited the Conservative base. She said B.C. needs to get control over immigration in the same way as Quebec and allow for people to pay for health-care here instead of waiting for months and months, a change she believes would also reduce the burden on the public system. As for the 'reconciliation industry,' Brodie alleged that money meant to help First Nations children get ahead has instead been siphoned off to an army of lawyers, consultants and some chiefs and councils. 'What's happened is the money isn't getting down to the people who need it,' said Brodie. OneBC will not get funding through Elections B.C. as it was not a registered party during the last election. Where it will get money is through the legislature, with each party of at least two members considered a recognized caucus as soon as they have notified the office of the Speaker. Under this designation, the party will receive $108,471 per MLA for a total of $216,942. It will also receive $442,000 for Brodie's office as leader. Brodie herself will receive a top-up of $29,883.19 to her base salary of $119,532.72, meaning she will receive a total of just under $150,000, the same as Green interim leader Jeremy Valeriote. Yes. Historically the practice has been to give each party at least one question during question period, which takes place each day the legislature sits for a period of half an hour, with the Conservatives being given a question and a followup every question period after becoming an officially recognized party in September 2023. Likewise, the Greens as the official third party in the legislature receive one question and one followup during each question period. Previously the three independents got one question between them each week. Speaking to Postmedia on Friday, Kealy said he doesn't align with Armstrong and Brodie on all of their policies, although he wouldn't say which ones he disagrees with, and believes continuing on as an independent MLA is the best way for him to represent his riding of Peace River North. He isn't closing the door on joining either OneBC or another political party but for now considers himself a 'lone wolf.' 'One of the primary issues that we're having in the North here is our health-care system that is falling to pieces, and we struggle to get staff and professionals for our health care system right now,' said Kealy. 'My region's also been on fire for the past three years, and the current government seems to not really prioritize putting those fires out when they can. So there's a lot of issues that are pressing for my region that are different than others.' Four. The last time there were this many parties was last August just before B.C. United Leader Kevin Falcon's decision to drop his party out of the provincial election in an effort to consolidate support behind the B.C. Conservatives. That consolidation of the centre-right and right-wing vote only lasted for seven months before Brodie, Armstrong and Kealy left the Conservatives to sit as independents. 'John Rustad has to deal with the problems that Kevin Falcon had to deal with before, and although in the short-term, Rustad, I think, might have a little bit more success than Falcon did, because this new party is so far to the right. And, in the short term, I think that's going to make John Rustad and the B.C. Conservatives look more moderate,' said Hamish Telford, a University of the Fraser Valley political scientist. There hasn't been this much upheaval in B.C. provincial politics since the early 1990s when a series of short-lived parties formed out of the collapse of Social Credit before the B.C. Liberals under former premier Gordon Campbell were able to consolidate their free-enterprise coalition in the lead-up to the 2001 election.
National Observer
3 hours ago
- National Observer
Tories poised to help feds push major projects bill through Parliament
The federal Conservatives are poised to allow the Liberals to rush their trade and major projects bill through the House of Commons by next Friday. Along with removing federal barriers to internal trade, Bill C-5 would allow the federal government to conditionally approve projects it deems 'in the national interest' before regulatory processes take place and also exempt projects from many environmental laws. All other opposition parties are staunchly opposing a government order that aims to force C-5 through the House of Commons before summer break. But with the Conservatives' support, the Liberals may have the majority vote they need. Conservative MPs did not say outright whether they would support the Liberal motion, and took jabs at certain aspects of the legislation. But they did praise some elements of the bill in between criticisms referencing the 'lost Liberal decade' and calls to go further and eliminate environmental regulations. Conservative MP Gérard Deltell even congratulated Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc for tabling the bill, adding that the bill's aim to ensure each project only goes through one environmental assessment is something the Conservatives have been suggesting for years. 'That's a principle we agree with' and 'precisely the approach that the minister is now proposing,' Deltell said in French. The two politicians' brief, friendly exchange illustrated a shared interest on the major projects portion of Bill C-5 and hinted at an unusual Liberal-Conservative alignment after a decade of fierce opposition. The Liberals and Conservatives are joining together to 'deny democracy' by rushing the major projects bill through the Parliament, said BQ MP Xavier Barsalou-Duval Bloc Québécois MPs were quick to dub the apparent alignment on this bill a Conservative-Liberal coalition. 'What's going on in the House is a bit of a show of Conservatives opposing Liberals and vice versa, but ultimately, it's a coalition between the Conservatives and the Liberals working together now, limiting debate on this bill,' BQ MP Andréanne Larouche said in the House of Commons. Despite being a minority government, the Liberals are acting like they have a majority, BQ MP Xavier Barsalou-Duval said on Friday. The government's special time-allocation motion to force Bill C-5 through the House of Commons would greatly limit debate on the proposed legislation, which, along with approving major projects before an environmental assessment, also grants the government sweeping powers to override laws related to those projects. 'Parliamentary committees will just have one and a half days to study this bill,' Barsalou-Duval said. 'Witnesses will appear before the committee without there being enough time to propose amendments. … That is madness, and yet, that is what we are being asked to consider.' The Liberals and Conservatives are joining together to 'deny democracy,' he said. 'They're trying to ram through a bill that has never been debated before the public. No one has been able to look at the bill in detail,' Barsalou-Duval said. BQ Leader Yves-François Blanchet said the Liberals adopted a Conservative agenda and are working with the Conservatives to put it in place. 'Given the scale and the importance and the unprecedented scope of this bill, a detailed examination is in order,' Blanchet said in French. 'It shouldn't be done on the back of a napkin on a sunny June 12 day.' LeBlanc and House Leader Steven Mackinnon both justified the time allocation motion by saying the government was elected on a mandate to move quickly on projects of national interest and remove federal trade barriers. Carney said last week his government would not impose a project on a province, but the wording of the bill does not require consensus from provinces. Like the BQ, the NDP is calling on Carney to slow down and split the bill into two sections for study: one on trade barriers and one on project approvals. NDP House Leader Alexandre Boulerice said earlier this week that the bill is 'like Stephen Harper's dreams coming true.' Debate on the time-allocation motion will resume on Monday and the federal government made another motion intended to ensure a vote is forced by the end of the day.
