The Green Party of BC has posted a release on their website detailing the recent meeting between their leader, Adrian Carr, and BC Premier Gordon Campbell.
Campbell had promised to meet with Carr to discuss the results of the referendum on Electoral Reform in BC during the last election where the BC Public voted 58% in favor of a new voting system for BC. Unfortunately this was below the (artificially high) 60% needed to force the government to act, but it appears as though Campbell is prepared to admit that 58% across the entire province is a major message… one that is far stronger than the support for his own party.
In the statement Carr says, I was pleased to hear the Premier say that he will be publicly tabling a plan in late August or early September of this year to pursue electoral reform.
It will be interesting to see what the Premier tables.. will it be STV? Or some other form of proportional representation… or will it be something less dramatic.
Carr also pushed Campbell to pursue Legislative and Finance Reform. We’ll see if that goes anywhere.
And finally, Carr indicated that in a future meeting with Campbell, she will be addressing the question of “tax sharing” as a means to promote environmental responsibility. I’ve never heard this term before, so I’ve done some Googling and come up with these links and examples.
Tax Sharing in the US: Near Milwaukee and Minneapolis
In Canada: Legislation for tax sharing between the Province of Manitoba and Municipalities.
This last example is, I would think, what Carr has in mind.
(Cheers: Declan at Crawl Across the Ocean)