Provincial Politics

On cruise ships, the NDP government denied any vulnerability to icebergs, next that there was no iceberg, and then that it was but a small blip of an iceberg. Now, it’s taking on water.

Welcome to UnSpun - The Orca's current events podcast and YouTube show. Every week, Jody Vance and George Affleck unspin the latest news in local, provincial, federal politics, and much more.

Rob Shaw on “a complex mess of fee reductions, benefits, applications, special exemptions, income-based subsidies, pilot programs, federal funding, licensed versus unlicensed spaces, funded versus open spaces, and other measures that make it almost impossible to gauge progress.”

Some new entrants in the BC Liberal leadership field, and everything happens in ministerial budget estimates.

For many voters, 2011 is ancient history, much less 2001 or 1991. Plenty don’t remember the ‘90s, because they were in diapers or weren’t born yet.

Rob Shaw: The NDP promised to do better on freedom of information, but BC’s privacy commissioner calls the situation ‘untenable’ – and likely got even worse during the pandemic.

When "putting politics behind us" is front and centre.

Rob Shaw: BC’s Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions spends most of its tiny budget on staff, doesn’t fund any programs or control services in other ministries, and isn’t involved in decisions at locations it trumpets as success. So why does it exist?

Jock Finlayson: "The economic damage done by the pandemic lies in the future, not just the painful recent past."

A difficult week to absorb, process, and discuss.