VICTORIA’S SECRETS

The B.C. Liberals figured they had a bright, shiny, vote-winning issue before the May election when they promised to bring the popular Uber ride-for-hire service to B.C. in time for Christmas.

Just think: No more worries about getting home from the office Christmas party when it’s impossible to get a taxi.

No more temptations to drive after a glass of eggnog, when a quick-and-cheap Uber ride was just a tap away on your smartphone screen.

The Liberals’ point man on their Uber-by-Christmas promise was cabinet minister Peter Fassbender, who represented Surrey-Fleetwood in the B.C. legislature.

For some of the Liberals’ opponents in the rival New Democratic Party, this was just perfect.

The New Democrats knew the Liberals’ Uber plan was setting off alarm bells inside a taxi industry dominated by South Asian cab drivers, many of whom had sunk their life savings into their taxi licences.

“I know a lot of families worried about losing their homes,” said Harry Bains, the NDP MLA for Surrey-Newton. “They are really scared.”

The Liberals, of course, knew their Uber plan would anger taxi drivers, especially among Indo-Canadians. But they calculated many more people wanted Uber than opposed it, and the opinion polls appeared to back them up. Now, key Liberals admit it was a mistake. “A lot of young people love their smartphone technology and wanted Uber,” former Liberal cabinet minister Bill Bennett told me. “Unfortunately, a lot of young people don’t vote.”

For a politically sophisticated and engaged Indo-Canadian community, however, it was a different story.

“South Asians dominate the taxi industry and the Uber issue drove votes to the NDP,” said Gurpreet Singh, talk-show host at Spice