Some of the BC NDP government’s front-bench members found themselves squirming last week when their words came back to haunt them.
B.C. Green Party leader Andrew Weaver delighted in reading into the record many of the statements made by a number of NDP MLAs in the legislature on the possibility of an LNG industry in this province.
Before forming government, many New Democrats were vocal opponents of LNG.
Weaver compiled about 20 pages worth of quotes from NDP MLAs in a remarkable version of the tried-and-true “that-was-then-but-this-is-now” political game. It was part of his attempt to defeat the NDP legislation that sweetens the tax burden for LNG companies.
“This is the big sellout of British Columbia,” was how Energy Minister Michelle Mungall characterized the former BC Liberal government legislation designed to woo the LNG industry in 2015.
“We are creating significant environmental catastrophe, significant health issues and we are going to cost the economy of this province, this nation and the world of billions of unnecessary dollars,” was Environment Minister George Heyman’s view in 2016 of the impact an LNG industry would have on climate change.
Back when she was the finance critic, Carole James’ view of the BC Liberals’ LNG plan (which was even less generous to the industry than her government’s plan is) was decidedly negative, as she branded it “the wrong direction for our province to go. It’s the wrong direction for a government to go.”
Some may call this hypocrisy, but I beg to differ.
Instead, I think it is yet another example how the positions a party takes in Opposition are often subject to change once it forms government.
An Opposition that is in constant agreement with a government is likely not going to be an effective counterweight. But it has to change its mindset once it takes on the difficult task of developing industries, creating jobs and growing revenue.
So I don’t fault the NDP for switching gears here, but that does not make the government immune to accusations of hypocrisy in other areas.
Take the recent airing of partisan radio ads that attack the BC Liberals. They are paid for out of the taxpayer-funded budget for the NDP government caucus.
This is a blatant, crass move directly tied to self-centered political interests and unlike wooing an LNG project, has nothing to do with public policy or the economy.
The NDP rightly condemned the former B.C. Liberal government for spending money on advertising that promoted government policies, but I don’t recall even the hyper political B.C. Liberals dipping into its caucus budget to pay for ads, or using tax dollars to attack their political opponents.
No, this meets the hypocrisy sniff test.
Switching positions on LNG? Not so much.
Keith Baldrey is chief political correspondent for Global BC
