The Carole James Experience

Big shout out to the Battleground BC blog for asking an important question about Carole James

"Where is Carole James' private sector experience?"

A great line from the blog post which really makes you think is:

The province is a $34 billion dollar business, no matter what ideological side you’re from.
Should a person who has no private sector experience be running the province?

Check out the rest of the post and see a break down of Carole's resume here

NDP blowing smoke

After last week’s provincial budget, one of the first things out of Carole James’ mouth was disappointment that the carbon tax hadn’t been axed. The NDP, self-professed home of environmentalists, continues to claim that the BC carbon tax is bad for taxpayers and bad for the climate. But the facts keep proving them wrong.

As pointed out last Thursday in the Victoria Times Colonist by Les Leyne, the tax is actually doing what it’s supposed to do. And the new budget contained a report card on the carbon tax that proves it.

“The carbon tax ogre is an essential part of the New Democrat election campaign. They need the impression that it's a punitive assault on pickup truck-driving rural B.C. to hold as much sway as possible for the next three months. So they'll likely just keep talking about it, regardless of the facts.”

Over the last eight months, gas consumption declined (although high prices at the pump probably helped that). But the structure of the tax has now created a net benefit for BC taxpayers.

The government’s report card on the tax showed that the 2.4 cents a litre more we've been paying at the pumps and similar hikes in heating fuels have been offset by the low income tax credit, the corporate and small business income tax cuts, and the reduction in personal income tax. The tax brought in $300 million in revenue, and the corresponding tax cuts have cost $338 million, leaving BC taxpayers $38 million ahead.

As Leyne wrote:

“…the vast majority of people came out slightly to the good in the first winter under the tax.”

"Are the NDP really sacrificing environmental good sense just to win rural voters driving seven gas guzzling pickups and blasting the home heating with all the doors and windows open? Because those nine people are the only ones coming out on the wrong end of the carbon tax."

Wrong party, wrong leader, wrong time.
http://www.votesmartbc.com/

I spy with my little eye, union reps on the NDP's Exec

Despite claims of severing ties between the BC NDP and unions, Carole James and other senior NDP people clearly don’t intend to break those bonds.

"We want working people and their families to join and become active in the NDP because we share the same values of social justice and solidarity. Throughout our history, we've only been successful when unions and the NDP have stood together united. That's how we will defeat Gordon Campbell in the next election." – Carole James, Lead of the opposition, The Democrat, December 2006

"Labour is an integral part of the NDP. We need to get union members more involved at every level in the Party." – Jeff Fox, President of the BC NDP, The Democrat, December 2006

Look at the list of the NDP provincial executive and you’ll find:

- former BCGEU Director of Organizing and Field Services, Jeff Fox
- current Vice-President of Canadian Office and Professional Employees (COPE) Local 378, David Black
- current Secretary Treasurer for BC Federation of Labour, Angela Schira
- current communications for BC Federation of Labour, Glen MacInnes
- OPIEU’s Kelly Quinn
- current President of USWA Local 2952, Scott McRitchie
- current chair of HEU Provincial Bargaining Committee, Barb Burke

It would appear that Carole and Jeff have gotten their wish of getting union members involved in the Party.

Unions paying the piper for NDP

In the last four years, unions have donated more than $3 million to the NDP. This is on top of the money – another $3 million -- unions have spent for their own third-party advertising leading up to and during election campaigns. Ties between the NDP and the unions are as tight as they ever were, with the BC Federation of Labour continuing to hold hands with Carole James and her party.

Carole James committed years ago to severing ties with organized labour, but obviously that doesn’t count when it comes to taking their money. In a recent speech to the BC Fed, Carole James made it clear that the NDP and the BC Fed were one in the same. She said:

"Together we will stand up for working families, for the everyday people who keep B.C. going. And on May 12, 2009, we will win an historic victory!"

How much did the BC Federation of Labour and its affiliate members donate to the BC NDP? The reports cover each calendar year, and January to October 2008 (when two by-elections were held in Vancouver):

2005-Oct 2008

· Total union donations: $3,320,751.52
· Total donations from the BC Federation of Labour: $614,783.00
· Total donations from the BC Federation of Labour affiliate unions: $2,386,664.51
· Total union donations for 2008: $483,186.51
· Total union donations for 2007: $219, 841.00
· Total union donations for 2006: $86,925.00
· Total union donations for 2005: $2,530,799.01

Do we want unions dictating economic policy for our province?

Wrong party. Wrong leader. Wrong time.

NDP have magic wand to make clean power appear!

A recent ad in the BC NDP’s magazine, The Democrat, calls for a rally to stop independent power projects (see page 8). But prominent environmentalists have said IPPs should continue. Tzeporah Berman who heads PowerUp Canada told Bill Good on CKNW on January 22, 2009.

“I think we need to see a lot more support for green power in this province than we’ve been seeing in the public…the opposition that we’re seeing in British Columbia…to the move towards green power…needs to be rethought.”

“What I’m saying is we need to support the move to green power. We need to reduce carbon emissions, as a priority. And yes, we need to do it smart; we need to be careful about our rivers. But the fact is we need to support the move to green power.”

In seven of the past ten years, BC has been a net importer of dirty electricity from the U.S. and Alberta. Carole James’ NDP say they are for clean power, but have opposed every clean energy project in the province. They’re against all Independent Power Producers, even calling for a moratorium on every proposed project.

The NDP oppose the 45 operating independent power production projects that are providing badly needed construction and operating jobs in rural and First Nations communities. In March 2008, they called for a moratorium on future developments of power projects.

Environmentalists say we need green power. Independent Power Producers are creating green power for our province, and creating jobs in needed areas. Do we really want Carole James and the BC NDP deciding energy policy for our province?

Wrong party. Wrong leader. Wrong time.
www.votesmartbc.com

NDP in need of acronym translator ASAP, current one MIA

The NDP is running scared after the Vote Smart BC campaign launched. So scared that they’ve created a website mocking our campaign. But they’ve missed the point, and can’t even focus their attack on the right group. One email sent to promote their fake website said Vote Smart BC was launched by the “Independent Contractors Business Association”, and another said it was from the “Independent Contractors and Builders Association. We’re pretty sure they know what the BCTF, HEU, and BCNU acronyms are for, but they just can’t quite seem to zone in on what ICBA is an acronym for.

The group behind Vote Smart BC is the “Independent Contractors and Businesses Association”, something the NDP and their supporters would know if they actually took the time to read our site, or even googled “ICBA BC.” Can we really turn our economy over to a group that can’t even look up the right name for something they oppose?

Of course we really should thank them for giving us more exposure!

And for the record, ICBA is a member-based organization that represents open shop construction companies in BC. If the NDP could find our website, they’d see that we offer a full suite of member services, including affinity programs, insurance and health plans, apprentice programs, education, networking and other benefits for family-owned construction businesses in BC. Our website, in case you want to let the NDPers behind the failed attack know, is http://www.icba.ca/.