NDP turns up the heat on B. C. Ferries and Liberal Government

With the revelations seemingly coming out daily regarding matters at B. C. Ferries, the NDP opposition has decided the time has come for a full inquiry into just what is going on at the vital transportation link in B. C.

Wednesday’s Daily News found North Coast MLA Gary Coons, asking for a public inquiry in the sinking of the Queen of the North. With the situation regarding the sinking of the vessel and the general deportment of business at B. C. Ferries playing itself out in the media, with talk show appearances and dueling press conferences, it might be a good idea to have a formal investigation into the Corporation and how this has all impacted on its service to British Columbians.

Of course, this being BC, nothing can ever seemingly be done easily. The normal course of events would be through the offices of the Auditor General, but at the moment there is a bit of rancorous debate between the NDP and Liberals over the current holder of that provincial position.

Follow all the twists and turns in the following article from the Daily News.


'GIVE US AN INQUIRY’ OPPOSITION DEMANDS
By James Vassallo
The Daily News
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Page one

Members of the NDP official opposition agreed late last night to push the government for a full independent public safety inquiry into the sinking of the Queen of the North.

“I think the public is saying ‘enough is enough’,” said North Coast MLA Gary Coons, the NDP’s ferries and ports critic. “We’ve had breakdowns, we’ve had crashes and now we’ve had a sinking.

“We need some leadership from (Transportation Minister) Kevin Falcon and the premier.”

The NDP will call for the inquiry to be led by the Transportation Safety Board, rather than the traditional choice of auditor general.

On May 31, a government-led committee appointed a former employee, comptroller-general Arn Van Iersel, as the province’s acting auditor general.

Section 2 of the Auditor General Act requires the unanimous recommendation of a legislative committee, the Public Accounts Committee, before the Legislature appoints the Auditor General. However, Section o7 of the Act provides that if the legislature is not sitting and the position is vacant the committee may appoint an acting Auditor General until the committee reaches unanimous agreement on a recommendation. The eight Liberals on the committee, to the protests of the six New Democrats, appointed Van Iersel, who now holds the post unless both sides unanimously agree on someone else.

“There shouldn’t be any questions about the integrity or the slant of the auditor general,” said Coons. “We’re very concerned about this partisan appointment made through a loophole.”

The call for the inquiry comes in the wake of revelations that the public may have been misled over the resignation of the ferry company’s former safety director just days after the Queen of the North tragedy.

“We’re told that he resigned for personal reasons, and that’s not the case,” said Coons.

Darin Bowland, the former safety director of B. C. Ferries, is suing the corporation, saying B. C. Ferries failed to heed his warnings of a possible catastrophic incident without fleet-wide safety improvements.

Bowland filed a writ of summons in B. C. Supreme Court claiming damages for negligent misrepresentation, wrongful dismissal, loss of reputation, as well as aggravated and punitive damages. He also claims that although B. C. Ferries told him safety was a high priority, the corporation prevented him from conducting an inquiry into the sinking of the Queen of the North on March 22.

“After commencing his employment (with B. C. Ferries) and after reviewing the safety protocols and practices associated with the fleet, the plaintiff warned – senior management that there was a strong likelihood of catastrophic incidents if … safety protocols and practices were not immediately improved. “Bowland says in the writ.”

The writ’s claims by Bowland are directed at safety conditions among the fleet generally and not specifically at the Queen of the North.

However, a week prior to the sinking, Bowland spoke to regular meeting of the Nautical Institute, telling them he was concerned about training for crew’s facing increasingly complex equipment on ship’s bridges. A recent letter from the Transportation Safety Board to B. C. Ferries said some crew members aboard the Queen of the North told investigators they were not familiar with the use of all the bridge equipment.

B. C. Ferries spokesperson Deborah Marshall said yesterday the lawsuit is now before the courts and the corporation would not comment because it is a personnel matter. A statement of defence must be filed within 14 days.

With Files CP