Vaughn Palmer: Furstenau promises continued cooperation with NDP if elected Green leader
Credit to Author: Hugh Dawson| Date: Tue, 28 Jan 2020 03:04:26 +0000
VICTORIA — When Green MLA Sonia Furstenau announced her bid for the party leadership on Monday, she included a long recitation of things that the current government has gotten wrong.
The New Democrats have granted massive subsidies to development of a liquefied natural gas industry, as Furstenau sees it.
They eliminated bridge tolls when the money would have been better spent developing transit.
They’ve poured billions into constructing a hydroelectric dam at Site C on the Peace River instead of promoting smaller-scale, renewable power projects around the province.
They have shortchanged funding for the current round of bargaining with teachers, and allowed the forest sector to slide into crisis.
There’s still too much child poverty and “staggering rates of homelessness.”
On and on she went, prompting the obvious question from the assembled news media:
If Furstenau becomes leader of the Greens later this year, would she go on propping up a government with so many shortcomings and failings on so many issues?
She would.
“There are good things happening in this government,” she told reporters. She cited expansion of child care, funding for early childhood education and capital projects, including a school in her own riding.
Plus there was the power-sharing agreement between the New Democrats and Greens — known more formally as the confidence and supply agreement, or CASA.
Not only did Furstenau sign the power-sharing agreement with the B.C. New Democrats, she reminded reporters how back in May 2017, she had helped to negotiate it.
Indeed, her stance was critical to the deal. Furstenau made no secret of her revulsion for the B.C. Liberals. Realizing that, the New Democrats also realized they need not offer all that much to get the Greens on board.
The agreement commits the Greens to maintain the New Democrats in power until the next provincial election, scheduled for Oct. 16, 2021.
Under her leadership, the Greens would honour the power-sharing agreement and thus maintain the government in power, Furstenau indicated.
She hedged on one point, when asked about the standoff over the Coastal GasLink natural gas pipeline.
She echoed the interim leader of the Greens, Adam Olsen, in urging the New Democrats “to absolutely put their efforts and time into a non-violent peaceful solution to this issue.”
If the government were to fall short and there is violence, would that be a deal-breaker for the Greens?
“I never really want to say,” replied Furstenau. “We are constantly assessing where we’re at. But our commitment at this time is to maintaining stable government and honouring CASA.”
Instead of looking for opportunities to bring down the government, she favours using the next 20 months to recruit candidates and lay out a new vision for the province.
The new vision leans heavily on “embracing new ideas” and “shifting away from century-old markers like GDP growth,” on “moving beyond the tired ideological wars of the 20th century,” building “a more inclusive, equitable and representative democracy,” and “working collaboratively to find common sense policies.”
Which sounds to me like the kinds of things the Greens were pledging under their previous leader, Andrew Weaver.
Weaver departed both the party leadership and the Green caucus earlier this month.
His office at the legislature has already been walled off from those of Furstenau and Olsen, and when the house resumes in February, he will be sitting apart from them as an independent.
The ex-leader of the Greens was accorded only a passing mention by Furstenau and the six endorsers who came forward at her campaign launch in downtown Victoria on Monday.
But the candidate might have had Weaver in mind when she said “leadership is not about being the loudest and most dominant person in the room. It is about listening and creating a sense of engagement and belonging.”
Asked point-blank whether the Weaver style was less than inclusive, Furstenau gave a snort of laughter, then replied:
“I’m very committed to showing what my style of leadership is, in contrast to any other leaders or any other prospective candidates.”
Weaver says he has formed such a bond with Premier John Horgan that could not imagine campaigning against him next time.
Would Furstenau have any problem running against Horgan?
“I will have no trouble campaigning,” she replied. “I very much look forward to presenting an incredibly exciting and vibrant platform to show that there is a very real alternative to the two status quo parties in this province.”
But for now, there’s the leadership contest itself, building to an online vote starting June 15 with the winner announced June 27. Other candidates are expected to enter in the next few weeks.
Weaver, before his exit, suggested that the party should consider a candidate from outside the southern Vancouver Island turf occupied by himself, Furstenau and Olsen.
“Our growth is limited unless we have a presence in the Lower Mainland and that is something I hope that maybe the membership considers. … It would benefit the party to have a leader from the Lower Mainland.”
He’s also backhanded Furstenau and Olsen as “activists” in contrast to his own pragmatism.
Still, Furstenau is the safest choice. She already has a seat in the house and a good working relationship with the New Democrats. She has experience and a level of energy that several of her supporters remarked on at the launch.
All that makes her the obvious front-runner and, barring surprises, the likely winner as well.