Bill Tieleman on CTV TV for BC Election coverage from 8 p.m. till closing time! Joining anchors Mike Killeen, Tamara Taggart, ex-BC Liberal MLA Lorne Mayencourt, pollster Mario Canseco

Tune in to CTV TV in British Columbia tonight for your BC Election coverage!

Tamara Taggart, Bill Tieleman, Mike Killeen and Lorne Mayencourt on set of CTV News Election special run-through .  NOTE - Mary Polak photo as elected part of practice!

I will be joining news anchors Mike Killeen and Tamara Taggart along with my BC Liberal counterpart Lorne Mayencourt - former MLA, all above, along with Angus Reid Public Opinion pollster Mario Canseco and the great CTV News team in studio and across the province for excellent election coverage!

Hope you watch - on Channel 9 in Metro Vancouver.  

I will also be on CTV Morning with Lorne at 7:10 a.m. Wednesday to talk results.

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BC Liberals received big donations before liquor law changes

The BC Liberal Party raised more than $300,000 from liquor businesses in a single day in 2010

Rich Coleman, BC Liberal Liquor Minister - TV screen shot

By Bill Tieleman and Jeremy Nuttall

24 hours Vancouver exclusive

Thursday, May 9, 2013

The BC Liberal Party raised more than $300,000 from liquor businesses in a single day in 2010 just weeks before the provincial government introduced substantial changes to the LiquorControl and Licensing Act, a 24 Hours Vancouver investigation has found

The changes included a section that “allows inducements for the sale of liquor subject to regulations or a direction of the general manager” by liquor manufacturers to liquor licensees, according to notes explaining the legislation.

Elections BC financial disclosure records show that on March 24, 2010, the BC Liberal Party received at least 12 liquor business donations of $15,000 each, plus a $25,000 contribution from the Alliance of Beverage Licensees of BC.

Independent liquor industry sources told 24 Hours the BC Liberal Party held an event March 24, 2010, at which liquor industry officials each paid $15,000 to meet with then-premier Gordon Campbell and Rich Coleman, the minister responsible for liquor distribution, over lunch at Gotham Steakhouse in Vancouver to discuss industry liquor issues.

Former Premier Gordon Campbell 

The records also show dozens of smaller liquor business donations, for a total of $302,500 on that day.

ABLE BC’s executive director at that time was Kim Haakstad, who later became Premier Christy Clark’s deputy chief of staff before resigning over the ethnic outreach memo scandal.

Three current ABLE BC directors, Dave Crown, Mariana Fiddler and Roger Gibson, are listed as officers in the 2010 donor list.

The fundraising event occurred five days before the government reached a new contract with the BC Government and Service Employees Union, which represents public liquor story workers.

BCGEU spokesperson David Vipond told 24 Hours Thursday that government liquor store hours were reduced and new stores were not opened as planned between 2010 and 2012.

“This reduction of hours was to the benefit of private stores,” Vipond said, adding liquor industry contributions are “of concern” to the BCGEU, which supports banning corporate and union political donations.

In the B.C. Legislature on June 1, 2010, independent MLA Vicki Huntington questioned liquor legislation amendments she said were “curious” because they allowed "inducements for the sale of liquor subject to regulations."

Coleman responded on June 1, 2010, that: "This is really removing something that is somewhat arcane in our ability to enforce and manage the operation of liquor in British Columbia … The historical reasons for the policy are no longer very applicable.”

Neither the BC Liberals or ABLE answered questions about the donations by deadline Thursday.

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After HST Betrayal, Why Trust Christy Clark and BC Liberals on Oil Pipelines? Or anything else?

The BC Liberals made a big error choosing Christy Clark as their leader – voters shouldn’t make the same mistake

BC Premier Christy Clark - trust me!

Bill Tieleman’s 24 Hours Vancouver/The Tyee column

Tuesday May 7, 2013

By Bill Tieleman

"We've got tankers going up and down the St. Lawrence for heaven's sake. I don't know why we'd ban them necessarily off the west coast."

- Christy Clark, Feb. 24, 2011.

If you liked how the BC Liberals betrayed voters by imposing the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) after the 2009 provincial election, you'll love what they will probably do with bitumen oil pipelines if they win again in 2013!

Premier Christy Clark's position on the Enbridge Northern Gateway and Kinder Morgan pipeline proposals from Alberta is short and anything but clear: "Trust me!"

This from a leader whose party told voters it had "no plans" to bring in the HST -- and then did exactly that mere weeks after the election.

The BC Liberals said in writing to homebuilder and restaurant owner groups who were worried -- and asked about an HST -- not to worry.

Then after the 2009 election, their financial throats were slit when the HST was brought in!

So in this election, why would voters be suckers once again and reward Christy Clark's party for breaking trust?

And Clark herself had a clear choice when she became premier: she could have scrapped the HST and saved British Columbia an enormous amount of time, trouble and money.

Instead Clark led the government's expensive pro-HST campaign against the grassroots group Fight HST, which I helped form with ex-Social Credit premier Bill Vander Zalm, that forced Canada's first ever citizens Initiative vote on the tax.

Bill Tieleman and former BC Premier Bill Vander Zalm
during Fight HST campaign

Even after 705,000 people signed the Initiative petition, Clark spent $6 million taxpayer dollars on HST advertising.

And Clark removed financial disclosure regulations in the binding referendum, so we will never know how many additional millions the big business coalition spent.

Whether you were against or for the HST, it was clearly a political betrayal of trust.

And now in this election whether you are against or for the Enbridge and Kinder Morgan pipeline projects, can you trust the BC Liberals?

Clark plays both sides

Why won't Clark commit to being either against the pipelines, like New Democrat Leader Adrian Dix and Green Party Leader Jane Sterk, or in favour, like BC Conservative Leader John Cummins?

Then look at her comments on the record -- on both sides of the issue.

Clark said during the BC Liberal leadership campaign that oil tankers travelling our ecologically sensitive coastline were no problem:

"We've got tankers going up and down the St. Lawrence for heaven's sake. I don't know why we'd ban them necessarily off the West Coast. I think that's a step too far, way too soon," Clark said in February 2011. "Let's not foreclose our options here before we even decide whether or not the Enbridge pipeline is going to be built."

But later Clark said she had five conditions that must be met before B.C. would agree to the Enbridge pipeline, including that the province get "a fair share of the fiscal and economic benefits".

And that proponents provide: "World-leading marine oil spill response, prevention and recovery systems for B.C.'s coastline and ocean to manage and mitigate the risks and costs of heavy oil pipelines and shipments...."

Who would interpret whether all the conditions were met on oil pipelines after the election? Christy Clark -- trust me!

Voting NDP carries power to stop pipelines

For anti-pipeline voters this election offers a critical choice -- because only one opposition party can form a government -- the New Democrats, not the Green Party.

And both the Enbridge and Kinder Morgan pipeline decisions will be made in the next four years by whoever is elected May 14.

That means those considering voting Green have a tough choice.

That's especially true in closely fought ridings like Vancouver-Point Grey -- where Clark faces NDP candidate David Eby, who nearly defeated her in the 2011 by-election and could do so this time.

Voting for your beliefs is important but so is considering the consequences for the province if the BC Liberals are narrowly re-elected and have the power to approve both Enbridge and Kinder Morgan.

That makes this election environmentally time sensitive.

But whether it's oil pipelines, B.C's $11 billion debt increase in just two years, job losses or claims this year's budget is "balanced," it's abundantly clear the BC Liberals made a big mistake when they chose Christy Clark as their new leader.

Voters should not make the same mistake on May 14.

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BC's Unbelievable Premier Christy Clark - the things, you say/Your purple prose just gives you away

Clark's credibility slides with statements on BC's "balanced" budget, job creation

Premier Christy Clark in media scrum after TV debate in CBC studios

Bill Tieleman’s 24 Hours Vancouver/TheTyee column 

Tuesday April 30, 2013

By Bill Tieleman

"The things, you say / Your purple prose just gives you away 

The things, you say / You're unbelievable"  

- "Unbelievable" by EMF

If you believe Premier Christy Clark, B.C.'s budget is not only balanced -- it's actually been verified by international credit rating agencies.

And thanks to Clark's B.C. Jobs Plan, this province apparently leads the country in job creation.

But the facts simply disagree with the premier.

During this election Clark has been trying to sell more Whoppers than Burger King.

'Go ask Moody's'

Clark said two noted agencies agreed with her that the B.C. budget has no deficit in a radio interview on CKNW AM 980 April 22.

"Go ask Moody's. Moody's is a debt rating agency that works all over the world and looks at everybody's budgets and decides whether or not those budgets are balanced," Clark told host Bill Good.

"They said it was balanced. They are the world's experts. Dominion Bond Rating agency said the budget was balanced," Clark added.

Hold the cheese on that Whopper because no, they didn't, not Dominion, not Moody's.

In fact, Dominion says the B.C. budget is not balanced at all but will likely have a deficit of $1.7 billion, based on their analysis.

"In response to softening economic conditions, the province announced additional tax measures and continued spending restraint to deliver a small budgeted surplus of $197 million in 2013-14. This translates into a DBRS-adjusted deficit of $1.7 billion, or less than 1.0 per cent of GDP," they wrote.

And Moody's report in early April raises concerns about B.C.'s debt level, which increased $11 billion just in Clark's two years in power.

"The negative outlook reflects the risks to the province's ability to reverse the recent accumulation in debt given a softened economic outlook, weaker commodity prices and continued expense pressures," Moody's states.

Nor does Moody's share Clark's optimism that she can balance the budget by selling off nearly $800 million in provincial property.

"Disposing of surplus properties, often with associated operating costs, would appear to make sense, however, these one-time sales cannot be relied on to resolve structural budget imbalances," Moody's says.

Yet Clark has the nerve to claim in a Vancouver Sun opinion piece that:

"Controlling spending, which we accomplished by balancing the 2013 budget -- which was recently confirmed by Moody's."

Uh-huh. Would you like fries with your Whopper?

(Amazingly, Clark's Vancouver Sun article had not been recommended by anyone on Facebook and re-Tweeted by just one person as of April 28.)

Jobs snow job

Okay, let's look at those job creation claims.

"In the first year of the jobs plan, we led the country in jobs creation," Clark said on April 5.

The reality is that Statistics Canada figures show B.C. is ninth in job creation since Clark launched her plan, losing 34,800 private sector jobs since then.

It appears clear that the things you say, premier, are simply unbelievable.

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Christy's Magical Mystery Tour Just One Bad LNG Trip - Debt Free BC Freak Out!

The longer you look at premier's LGN claims, the more you freak right out, man!  

Christy Clark: Trust me - you'll love the blue LNG pill - you'll feel groovy!

Bill Tieleman’s 24 Hours/The Tyee column

Tuesday April 24, 2013

By Bill Tieleman

"Roll up for the Mystery Tour/ The Magical Mystery Tour/ Is hoping to take you away"

- The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour.


Come on British Columbia -- Premier Christy Clark's Magical Mystery Campaign Tour is dying to take you away!
 


Just drop a big hit of this free LNG and it will be a psychedelic, far out, groovy good trip -- satisfaction guaranteed!
 


Jump on the liquifed natural gas fueled BC Liberal Party bus and we'll drive you to fiscal nirvana, baby!
 


$100 billion in a Prosperity Fund! And "100,000 high paying jobs," man!

What's that? You're not so sure it's safe?  
 


Don't be such a bummer, man! Hear the Christy word! 
 


"LNG is the industry that will make British Columbia debt-free," Clark told skeptical media downer-types last week.  
 


Jumping into LNG is a gas, gas, gas -- that will pay for, well, like, everything, man!
 
LNG will wipe out B.C.'s entire $56 billion debt in just 15 years -- it will disappear right before our eyes!
 


What? Well, yes Christy has increased B.C.'s debt by $11 billion in just two years in office.
 


Uh, yeah, Christy plans to add another $13 billion more debt in the next three years.
 


Um-hmm, that would make Christy the premier who raised B.C.'s debt by $24.3 billion -- that's 54 per cent in five years -- the fastest in provincial history.

Too many hits
 


But who cares? This LNG stuff is totally magical, even if it's a mystery when we will see the cash, since there aren't actually any LNG plants being built yet. But don't worry!
 
And like, I really need one of those "100,000 high paying jobs" from LNG.
 


Huh? B.C. actually lost 34,800 private sector jobs since Christy launched her B.C. Jobs Plan in September 2011?  
 


And Statistics Canada shows B.C. is in ninth place for job creation since then?
 
Wow! You are kind of freaking me out! 
 


My head is spinning -- maybe I took too many hits, because everything seems totally unreal.
 


You were right, man, this BC Liberal Magical Mystery Tour is just one LNG bad trip!

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Why do we dislike BC Premier Christy Clark? Let me count the ways....

Christy Clark has gone from charismatic champion of the BC Liberals to lacklustre leader. What happened?

Premier Christy Clark at Laxmi Narayan Mandir  Hindu temple last month 

Bill Tieleman’s 24 Hours Vancouver/The Tyee column

Tuesday April 16, 2013

By Bill Tieleman

"For every person who says they dislike her because she's too casual, there is another person who dislikes her because she is too formal."

- Angus Reid pollster Mario Canseco on Christy Clark

How do we dislike B.C. Premier Christy Clark? Let me count the ways.

Because with a 65 per cent personal disapproval rating in a poll last month, a 20 per cent gap behind the front running New Democrats and only 16 per cent saying she would make the best premier after two years on the job, Clark is obviously not Miss Congeniality to British Columbians.

Some media pundits have professed it to be a mystery why Clark has gone from the BC Liberals' charismatic champion to a lackluster leader but there's a room full of obvious clues, some that we saw on her half-hour Sunday TV infomercial.

Clark has proven to be a political chameleon who will say and do anything to get votes, with breathtaking arrogance.

Like telling an audience celebrating Philippine Independence Day last year that: "In my heart, I am Filipina." Really?

Or on TV Sunday claiming that since her father left their family debt free, how could she leave B.C. with a debt? And the word "debt" kept getting repeated through the show.

Yet the BC Liberals are on their way to doubling the provincial debt since 2001, from $33.8 billion to $66.3 billion in 2015! But who cares about facts?

Then there's Clark's short shift for TV cameras as a diner "server", her Vancouver Canucks jersey girl pose [jinxing our Stanley Cup run?], setting up Alberta Premier Alison Redford as the "bad girl" on the Enbridge Pipeline proposal and Clark attacking the "sick culture in Victoria" -- despite previously saying she loved the B.C. Legislature.

Or how about Clark, a perpetual federal Liberal Party member who worked in Ottawa for them, cozying up to Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper -- even hiring several of his hard right ex-staff to make her look less Liberal.

Or becoming pals with former Reform Party leader Preston Manning, even attending his "conservative family reunion", a gathering of the kind of people Clark used to denounce as dinosaurs on her former CKNW radio talk show.

'She's willing to say anything': former radio colleague

Instead, Clark now denounces CKNW itself, criticizing several on-air hosts last year at a BC Liberal fundraiser for apparently not giving her an easier ride.

CKNW host Gord MacDonald wasn't going to take it anymore and he let Clark have it:

"We thought she was bright... she sounded articulate... and we all understood when she went left radio to seek the premier's job after Gordon Campbell resigned. Boy, were we wrong. Now, she insults the CKNW listener. Nobody listens to CKNW any more, right?" MacDonald broadcast on air last July.

"Yet again, Christy Clark showed on Saturday she's willing to say anything to anybody to get their vote. But speaking as one who clearly misjudged her talents as a politician, a word of warning. When times get tough, some people stay true to their word. Others, like Christy, don't," MacDonald concluded.

I had my own Clark experience at CKNW when she started guest hosting and I was making regular appearances and guest hosting also.

"You should stop attacking me," Clark told me in the studio off air one day, unhappy with my coverage of her role in the B.C. Legislature Raid case. "We're working on the same team now."

"No, we're not," I replied, rather astonished she would attempt such a blatant effort to influence my reporting.

Negative vibes

Clark is dislikeable for other reasons, with her condescending, self-righteous tone, singularly inability to admit any personal mistakes and lack of vision for the province.

Take her "jobs plan" that incorrectly claimed last fall that B.C. was first in job creation in Canada when it was actually in sixth place -- and has dropped further since then, without ever being corrected.

No matter -- spend $15 million in taxpayer dollars to advertise your jobs plan and spread the misinformation just before an election.

Are there still other ways to dislike Clark?

How about Clark's annoying habit of attempting to sound like a working class hero by deliberately dropping the "g" from words and sounding more like Larry the Cable Guy than Christy the Premier?

"What's needed here is a dose of humility and sort of asking for forgiveness," Hamish Telford, political science professor at Fraser Valley University Telford told CKNW's Bill Good on Monday.

"And for this premier, humility doesn't not come easily but I think it is important -- this lack of humility is why often politicians get turfed out," he said. "Parties rarely win elections in Canada, governments lose them."

And Clark leads a government headed for a humility lesson.