Gordon Campbell’s 10 ways to win friends and influence voters!

The Premier snuck into the supper hour newscasts on Wednesday, seeking our attention as he delivered his 10 point plan to deal with the economic worries that are rotating around the world. (see speech here)

While his cherished Carbon Tax the shiny thing in his political sandbox still seems to be on, Campbell did provide a few offerings to a population that has been watching the economic news from around the globe with growing concerns.

Keeping an eye on the gathering clouds of the economic storm the Premier and his finance minister took to the airwaves to outline what it is that they plan to do to help keep the choppy (and occassionally wild) waters calm for British Columbians

With two by-elections set for next week and the provincial election coming our way in May, the financial moves are designed to show that the Government has a handle on the financial file and is setting the agenda for the political season to come.

The Liberals, Campbell says, are, ready to insure your Credit union account whatever its level, cut your ferry rates (for two months), keep building those bridges and roads, offer up a private sector pension plan for those that don’t have one and a cut for your taxes!

Just to name five blocks of the 10 block foundation of his economic strategy.

Not surprisingly NDP opposition leader Carole James wasn't overly impressed, suggesting that the Premier's speech was more of an image makeover than a financial statement, dismissing it as something that might have been figured out on the back of a napkin. Though she probably won't be getting much time in the Legislature to talk about the plan.

In order to get his financial ball rolling, the Premier plans to call the Legislature into session for one day on November 20th to make the legislation law, it's doubtful that the Government will spend much more time than that in the Legislature for discussions.

They'll be looking to keep their talking points on the Premier's financial outline out in the areas that they can control, meaning more press releases and friendly interviews with like minded news outlets.

All leading up to the provincial budget in the Spring, which no doubt will provide for more voter friendly ideas, unless of course that uncontrollable world economy gets in the way!

Vancouver Province-- Premier pledges tax cuts, 2 months of ferry fare cuts

Vancouver Province-- Leaders react to Campbell's 10-point plan

Vancouver Province-- B.C. premier says no to deficit

Vancouver Sun-- Dramatic economic plan for B.C.

Vancouver Sun-- After a silly buildup, Campbell offers a sensible package
Vancouver Sun-- First take on Campbell's new cause du jour: mostly good

CBC News-- Campbell fast-tracks tax relief, recalls legislature

"A Premier in a pickle"

Nathan Cullen, the NDP MP for Skeena-Bulkley Valley seems to have perfectly described the situation that BC Premier Gordon Campbell finds himself in these days.

The Premier has been building up his environmental bona fides of late, with passionate speeches at the UBCM and a photo session with now Nobel Peace prize winner Al Gore, all part of his new found determination to protect the environment of "the best place on earth".

So it will be interesting to see how he handles the prospect of Northgate Minerals proposal to build the Kemess North project. That plan got a rather sudden jolt of reality recently when a joint provincial and federal environmental panel released a decision not to approve the Kemess mine.

A decision that has shocked the mining industry, which has been slowly rebuilding its presence in the province and an industry that has long been a supporter of the Liberal party and its candidates. While the mines proponents, Northgate Minerals haven't totally given up on the prospect of Kemess North, they seem a bit confused about where they stand on it now.

During the course of an event called the Denver Gold Forum, an exclusive by invitation only session which examines mining issues world wide. At the forum, Northgate Minerals CEO Ken Stowe expressed his concern over the BC environmental process and allegedly made remarks that have caused the local First Nations communities in the project area to express disappointment in his approach.

The controversial aspect of his speech apparently involved his questioning the spirit of the province's review forum participants in BC when asked about the review procedure in BC by a member of the Denver Forum audience.

The comments that have put him in hot water reportedly were: "There's things in there that went on the panel about people speaking to bears, so, it's pretty hard to talk science."

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Mr. Stowe's comments probably are not helpful to his cause or to a Premier, who one one hand is trying to rebuild bridges with First Nations communities across the province, nor does the mining strategy seem to twin with his Green agenda which seems to be one of his main concerns of late.

Where that leaves a traditional ally such as the mining sector is something that only the Premier's office knows, but as Mr. Cullen points out, it's a situation that certainly doesn't leave him with much wriggle room either way.

A complete look at "Mr. Campbell's pickle" was provided in Friday's Daily News as the front page story.

Campbell is facing tough choice over mine says MP
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Friday, October 12, 2007
Pages one and three

B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell is literally caught between a rock and a hard place over the joint federal and provincial environmental panel's decision not to approve the Kemess mine in northern B.C., said Skeena Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen.

"B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell is in a real pickle over this," said Cullen.

On one hand, Campbell is being pressured by the mining industry, which has strongly supported his Liberal party, and on the other hand Campbell is trying to build a new relationship with First Nations, said Cullen.

"When push comes to shove, I'm not sure which way the province is going to break on this," he said.

Northgate Minerals was proposing to build the Kemess North project, a second open pit, would have extended the life of the existing Kemess South project, 425 kilometres northwest of Prince George, by another decade.

However, the environmental review panel recently released a decision saying the mine's benefits did not outweigh long-term concerns.

First Nations in the region - including Takla Lake, Tsay Keh Dene and Kwadacha - were opposed to the use of Duncan Lake, called Amazay in their language, to dump mine waste.

Northgate said it was the best environmental option, and the only economically viable one: $200 million versus the next best option at $1 billion.

Since then, Northgate Minerals CEO Ken Stowe said he is concerned First Nations have won a "veto" over mining projects in British Columbia.

"I think this project, in a way, has been sacrificed on the alter of unresolved land claims in British Columbia," said Stowe, in the company's first public airing of its reaction to the panel's rejection.

Stowe called the panel decision unfortunate and illogical, while speaking at the Denver Gold Forum in Denver, Colo., an invitation-only event that attracts major global fund and portfolio managers, institutional investors and analysts.

The panel's rejection is considered rare - Stowe said the federal-level rejection was a first - as most provincial and federal environmental review processes give the greenlight to resource developments, although sometimes with conditions.

Cullen said the province has indicated that it does not this as a dead project just yet.

"What they would have to do is override the environmental assessment panel. That's pretty serious and the story's not over," Cullen added.

Stowe also made a number of comments at the mining event that have sparked ire among northern First Nations.

Stowe's view was that the project was essentially rejected for two reasons: The panel had no idea what would happen 10,000 years from now (which was true for probably anything in life, he noted), and that some people had said Duncan Lake had spiritual value.

"There's things in there that went on the panel about people speaking to bears, so, it's pretty hard to talk science," he said in response to a question from the audience.

Questioned following his presentation about whether Northgate had any legal recourse, Stowe said the company was not going to spend millions of shareholder dollars fighting "the unwinnable fight".

"We'll wait to hear what the governments say before we decide anything," he added.

With files from the Prince George Citizen.

An inconvenient portfolio

Much is being made this weekend over a disclosure about Premier Gordon Campbell's personal finances, as it turns out that both he and his wife Nancy, have (or had) investment portfolios that consisted of an undisclosed number of shares in stock of Alcan Incorporated.

For the Premiers part he said on Friday that his shares in Alcan were sold by January 11th and that he no longer has any shares in the company and for that matter is not sure if he made any money on them. His shares were included in a discretionary equity portfolio which is managed by a Vancouver brokerage house.

Of course even the fact that he owned stock as recently as January 10th has raised a few flags of interest in the province, considering the current situation between Alcan and the BC Utilities Board.

The aluminum smelter and now apparent provincial energy provider is in the midst of a serious game of hardball with not only the community of Kitimat, but the British Columbia Utilities Commission.

The Commission late in December turned down the plan put together by Alcan and BC Hydro plans to sell electricity generated by Alcan to the province, a decision which has led to a fair amount of sabre rattling about planned modernization plans to the aging Kitimat Works plant.

The Premier has been a rather vocal booster of Alcan and its contribution to the British Columbia economy, and was quite expansive in his praise of the Aluminum giant when it announced its planned refurbishing of the Kitimat plant last summer.

Of course what's good for Alcan it would seem to some, might also have been good for the Premier's portfolio, a situation that is making a few observers a tad uneasy over perceptions of conflict and such.

It's an interesting situation, on one hand you might think that a public official might not want to be investing in businesses that may benefit directly from any form of governmental decision making, but then again it's possibly a sign that the Premier is so bullish on the BC economy that he's investing in it.

But the way the storyline is being presented, it seems that his involvement is possibly the byproduct of a large investment pool investing in a number of Canadian companies, a situation which it's suggested would be nigh impossible to monitor on a day to day basis and to which he probably would have little control over anyways.

There have been no accusations of wrong doing made thus far, nor suggestions of funny timing on stock purchases, rather it's more the optics that seem to have some people upset. That of a sitting Premier holding shares in a company that is currently looking for governmental support in its plans for not only Kitimat, but to remain a player in the energy sector in the province as well.

The NDP is keeping an eye on the situation and were making some hay of it over the weekend, suggesting that they will be approaching the province's conflict of interest commissioner, to see if ownership of the shares put Campbell in a conflict of interest situation.

Once the smoke clears on the current tempest, it will be interesting to see if this gun is a smoking one, or one that has fired blanks...

Here's some reading material on the issue from some of the weekends news sources:

Campbell's reveal Alcan Holdings ... Georgia Straight
Campbell says he dropped shares... Canada.com
Conflict allegations silly says financial advisor... CBC News
BC Premier accused of conflict over Alcan... Globe and Mail
Campbell faces conflict probe... Globe and Mail
NDP question premiers Alcan holdings... National Post
Campbell accused of conflict... Victoria Times-Colonist