The choice by the NDP government to ignore the pleas and advice of both their critics and supporters to quash Bills 7, 14, and 15 is a huge concern to the ranchers of B.C. who are members of BC Cattlemen’s Association.
The drive to press forward and pass these bills before the legislature goes on recess for the summer should be of equal concern to every citizen of B.C.
As an organization that represents the majority of ranchers in this province, we have long advocated and requested that government reduce “red tape” and “streamline” processes as the bills intend to do, but we believe this should be done while maintaining democratic principles.
We agree with the need to move forward on projects deemed necessary and beneficial to British Columbians, but it must be done with complete transparency.
Originally, Bill 7 asked that cabinet be given a sweeping concentration of power to make exceptions to laws and create new ones that only they would need to approve. This was a blatant attempt to circumvent democracy based on an inflated threat to Canada’s economy. Mercifully, there was enough opposition from British Columbians to force government to reconsider and amend the bill.
Are bills 14 and 15 a backdoor way to achieve the unilateral decision-making that Bill 7 attempted to deliver?
Bill 14, Renewable Energy Projects Act and Bill 15, Infrastructure Projects Act, both state they will streamline the permitting process and allow “critical” projects to move ahead quicker. This may be true, but it is somewhat ironic that government appears to be crafting legislation to cut through red tape of its own making.
Although bureaucratic red tape is frustrating and can unnecessarily grind projects to a halt, let’s not lose the strength of our democracy by removing the need for healthy debate and informed decision-making.
Wise decisions are made after gaining a technical understanding, and by consulting with First Nations and stakeholders. The legislation would allow government to bypass environmental assessments and disregard protection of the Agriculture Land Reserve, jeopardizing the future of B.C.’s democratic foundation.
This is not the direction we should be heading.
These proposed bills will allow the Premier and cabinet to unilaterally “pick and choose winners” based on politics, according to the BC Conservative opposition leader. This will undermine democracy and erode public trust.
We are concerned this will lead to dangerous divisions, and expose us to societal unrest and more foreign interference than is currently occurring.
Having the checks and balances of the legislature, local government authorities, laws and regulations all give our society strength and make us less vulnerable to outside threats.
Bill 7 was first introduced on the premise we needed to be able to react swiftly to foreign threats against British Columbia’s economy. It now appears the threat from the south may not be as critical as we first thought. Instead, these proposed bills have revealed another threat – this one from within British Columbians’ own government.
Despite pushback from First Nations, municipal leaders, legal experts, former premiers, and the business community, BC Premier David Eby is plowing ahead with legislation few appear to want, all the while telling citizens to not worry and trust government will do the right thing.
It’s barely six months since they won the slimmest majority government imagined and were almost relegated to the opposition bench. Is this what we can expect for the next four years?