Horgan defends public cash for parties
NDP premier says taxpayer cash for provincial political campaigns is only temporary
VICTORIA — Premier John Horgan is unrepentant over his plan to provide public subsidies to political parties, saying it’s an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars and is only temporary support.
“I’m unapologetic about wanting to get big money out of politics,” he told reporters at the legislature, where he was under attack for flip-flopping on the issue. “I’m unapologetic about having a transition fund that will be gone by the next election.”
Horgan faced questions Tuesday from Opposition Liberal MLAs, and the media, over why he ruled out per-vote subsidies for political parties before the May 9 election, and then proposed it in a bill on Monday. Taxpayers are on the hook for $27.5 million over the next four to five years in subsidies and the new 50 per cent reimbursement program to parties for expenses.
The bill would also ban corporate and union donations, set a $1,200 annual individual donation cap, and overhaul rules on loans, fundraising and other campaign finance rules.
But giving taxpayer money to political parties remained the proposed legislation’s most contentious feature, amplified by Horgan’s contradictory pre-election comments.
Before the election, then Liberal premier Christy Clark accused Horgan of proposing political finance reforms that would leave taxpayers footing the bill. Horgan repeatedly denied that was the plan.
“The premier in all of her distortions last week, one of them was she said my preference was taxpayers pay for political parties. That’s just not the case,” Horgan told reporters on Feb. 16 at the legislature. “It’s up to the independent B.C. head of elections and the committee that will be struck to take a look at all options and bring forward the best one for B.C.”
That review, headed by Elections B.C., was also not contained in the NDP legislation Monday.
Horgan said Tuesday those comments were made when he thought the NDP would win a majority government. Instead, the NDP signed a power-sharing deal with the B.C. Green party and formed a minority government.
“I’m owning up to what I said before the campaign; I don’t want you to think that I’m running away from this because I’m not,” said Horgan. “But it is not what you are making it out to be. This is a transition fund and will be gone at the end of this mandate.”
B.C.’s bill contains a clause to allow an all-party committee of MLAs to extend the subsidy with a decision in 2022, or eliminate it. Horgan said MLAs will have to be accountable for their choice.
The new rules are “a massive change” in campaign finance rules, said Horgan.
“We believe it’s good public policy to have a transition, which is a modest cost to taxpayers in the grand scheme of things and will be gone in four years.”
Horgan pointed to Ottawa, which used subsidies from 2011 to 2015 during a change to campaign finance rules.
Green leader Andrew Weaver denied his party pushed the NDP during negotiations to force the subsidy. The Greens have used consultation to force the NDP to change position on numerous issues so far.
“We did not push for the subsidy but we understand for bigger parties it is more of an issue,” Weaver said Tuesday. “For us, we’ve already banned big money. We don’t get hardly anything.” However, the Greens do stand to at least double their annual funding under the new per-vote subsidy.
Opposition Liberal house leader Mike de Jong attacked Horgan during question period on Tuesday.
“Why is he breaking his repeated promise and forcing British Columbians to fund, through their taxes, political parties they have no interest or desire to support?” de Jong asked in the legislature.