On the reluctant leader, defending the faith and when push comes to shove
Podcast preview: “Did you do your level best?”
Selina Robinson was a long-time BC NDP MLA and former minister of municipal affairs, housing, citizen services, finance and finally post-secondary education. She was recruited to the legislature when she was a Coquitlam city councillor by the late John Horgan, winning her first term in 2013 as a New Democrat and retiring from politics as an Independent in 2024.
Widely perceived as a capable cabinet minister, she was confident, well-regarded and skilled at managing her files. That is, until one careless turn-of-phrase uttered on a relatively unknown podcast on a politically charged topic somehow escalated into a political maelstrom that culminated in her being fired from cabinet, and her deciding to walk away from the friends and colleagues she’d worked with for a decade.
Eighteen months later, Selina reflects on the painful lessons and the insights she gained into the party and people she thought she knew, what’s missing in politics these days, what she thinks makes a truly great leader, and more. As the Finance minister who left a $5.7 billion surplus in her wake, she also weighs in on the current fiscal “pickle” of British Columbia’s finances.
Podcast producers: Rob Shaw and Zach Proulx
Listen to the audio highlight reel:
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