Premier Christy Clark will recall the legislature within a matter of weeks and fully expects her Liberal government to be defeated by an alliance between the NDP and B.C. Green Party.
Clark told reporters Tuesday that constitutional convention and historical precedents require her to face the house and test its confidence rather than step aside immediately to make way for a minority government led by NDP Leader John Horgan and backed by B.C. Green Party Leader Andrew Weaver.
“We all know that Mr. Horgan and Mr. Weaver have made an agreement,” Clark said. “They’ve announced a significant deal, but what’s most important is this basic principle, that if there is going to be a transfer of power in this province — and it certainly seems like there will be — it shouldn’t be done behind closed doors.
“It should happen in public, as constitutional convention tells us it should. It should happen in the people’s house, with 87 members elected by British Columbians to our legislature making that decision.”
Clark has 43 seats in the legislature to 41 for the NDP and three for the Greens. The NDP-Green pact would give the parties a slim 44-seat majority.
Asked whether she will resign if her government topples, Clark said she is prepared to accept any job that British Columbians give her.
“Should the government fail the test of confidence in the house, as seems likely, I would be given the job of leader of the Opposition,” she said. “And I’m more than ready and willing to take that job on.”
Clark spoke to the media in Vancouver shortly before Horgan and Weaver officially signed their accord at the legislature in Victoria against a backdrop of applauding NDP and Green MLAs.
Horgan and Weaver both said it’s Clark’s constitutional right to test the legislature’s confidence, but they expressed hope that she does so in a timely manner.
“We’re anxious to get going,” Horgan said. “We’re anxious to start that transition.”
Weaver said the agreement between the two parties shows that they are committed to working together.
“We are clear with the signing of this accord that the B.C. Greens will work with the B.C. NDP to put people first in the upcoming session.”
Under the deal between the NDP and Greens, the NDP would run the province for four years with support from the Greens on confidence and budgetary motions that, if defeated, could cause a government to fall.
The “confidence and supply” agreement lists more than two dozen policies they have agreed to support together, based on the principle of “good faith and no surprises.”
It will be delivered to Lt.-Gov. Judith Guichon this week with the signatures of 41 NDP MLAs and three Greens, representing a majority of the legislature.
The 10-page understanding states that the two caucuses will:
• Immediately refer the Site C dam, under construction on the Peace River, to the B.C. Utilities Commission for review of its economic viability
• Employ every tool available to stop the expansion of the Kinder Morgan pipeline
• Establish a fair-wage commission to set a pathway to a $15 minimum wage, with an initial report due 90 days after its first meeting
• Create a standalone Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction Strategy
• Eliminate Medical Services Plan premiums
• Hold a referendum on proportional representation during the municipal elections in the fall of 2018. If approved, the voting system would be changed in time for the next provincial election in 2021
• Introduce legislation in the first sitting to ban corporate and union political donations, limit individual donations and eliminate “any other means by which individuals or entities may wield undue influence over government”
• Change the provincial election day to the fall, from the spring, to allow for passage of a budget before the vote
• Support adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s recommendations and the Tsilhqot’in Supreme Court decision
• Increase and expand the carbon tax. Rebate cheques are to be sent to a majority of residents to ensure they are better off financially.
Horgan said the timeline for implementing the agreement rests with Clark and Guichon. As long as the Liberals remain in power, the NDP is unable to access the transition materials created by the public service, he said.
“There’s a lot of work that needs to be done that can’t be done until the current government … is defeated,” he said.
The clock is already ticking because the government’s interim supply bill, which finances government, runs out this fall.
“I’m hopeful that Christy Clark will be true to her word and the recall of the legislature will be as quick as possible, so that gives us the maximum amount of time to put in place our budget priorities, the priorities that we campaigned on,” Horgan said.
Earlier in the day, the NDP leader received a standing ovation from his caucus as he arrived at the NDP offices at the legislature to discuss details of the deal with the Greens.
“Wow!” he said. “What a race, what a contest, what an election campaign and how excited are we today?”
Horgan said the agreement with the Greens will bring stability to the legislature and allow the parties to focus on making life more affordable for British Columbians, protecting health, education and other services and ensuring the economy works for everyone.
“This agreement allows us to focus on the things that matter to British Columbians and I could not tell you how happy I am to be here with you today,” he said.
— with a file from Les Leyne
