GREEN, WITH ENVY
Christy Clark left out in cold, as Greens’ Andrew Weaver and NDP’s John Horgan reach deal on governing. Prepare for a wild ride, Mike Smyth says
It was a handshake between two guys that, just a little while ago, didn’t seem to like each other very much.
But now NDP Leader John Horgan and Green party Leader Andrew Weaver have put their differences aside to consummate an extraordinary political deal that will shake up B.C.
Premier John Horgan. Get used to the sound of that.
The agreement will likely vault Horgan and the NDP into power, evict Christy Clark from the premier’s office and end 16 years of Liberal rule.
“It’s an historic day,” Horgan said, as he and Weaver smiled for the cameras at the legislature building.
The power-sharing deal came 20 days after a provincial election in which Clark’s Liberals got the most votes and won the most seats, but not enough for a majority.
The Liberals won 43 seats, one shy of a majority in the 87-seat legislature. Now the NDP will combine their 41 seats with the Greens’ three seats to vote down any attempt by Clark to stay in power.
For Clark, it’s a brutal blow after an election in which she had multiple advantages over her rivals and was favoured to win, again.
Clark — who remains the premier for now — issued a short, written statement saying she will “carefully consider our next steps.”
But she doesn’t seem to have many options.
Clark could ask Lt.-Gov. Judith Guichon to call another election, but it would be a hopeless gesture with the two opposition parties already forming an alliance and indicating they’re ready to govern.
Clark’s other options: Resign immediately. Or go out on her shield by appointing a new cabinet, recalling the legislature and presenting a throne speech.
The speech would be voted down, and Clark would be bounced out of office anyway. But she might prefer to fight until the bitter end.
And her troubles don’t stop there. If Clark tries to stay on as opposition leader, she could face a backlash inside her own party. The knives could come out if she doesn’t quit as Liberal boss, too.
Horgan and Weaver, meanwhile, are getting set to take over.
Why did Weaver back the NDP instead of propping up Clark? Weaver said he was “very close” to an agreement with the Liberals, but hinted Clark’s support of the controversial Kinder Morgan pipeline was a deal-breaker.
“This issue of Kinder Morgan is one that was critical to us,” Weaver said.
Horgan’s NDP had already vowed to fight the Alberta-to-Burnaby oil pipeline, even though it’s a federally approved project.
Other top priorities of a Greenbacked NDP government: Banish “big money” from B.C. politics by reforming political fundraising laws.
And bring in a referendum on a new proportional-representation voting system that would almost certainly give the Greens more seats in future elections and likely produce additional minority governments.
“We want to show that minority governments can work,” Weaver said, adding no Green MLAs would join Horgan’s cabinet.
A full text of the NDP-Green agreement is to be released Tuesday after it’s ratified by the NDP caucus. The deal calls on the Greens to support the NDP in power for a full, fouryear term of government.
But keeping such a razor-thin majority in power will be difficult.
The NDP and Greens have 44 combined seats, the smallest possible majority in the house. The whole thing could unravel if they lose a single MLA.
The Liberals, meanwhile, will be out for blood. You can bet the Libs and their business backers will be furious over any efforts to hike taxes, stiffen regulations or bring in a deficit budget.
Will an NDP-Green government damage the economy and lose jobs? Horgan and Weaver defiantly fired back at their critics.
“Just watch,” Weaver said. “You will actually see job growth.”
Horgan insisted it was the dawn of a new era in B.C.
“We can do great things when we work together across party lines,” Horgan said.
But with just a one-seat margin of error, Horgan’s Green-backed government would be teetering on a razor’s edge. And the Liberals will be spoiling for revenge — probably under a new leader.
Buckle-up. It’s going to be a wild ride.