Testimony to the Joint Review Panel on the Enbridge Northern Gateway Project

By Marc Lee, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
January 16, 2013

My name is Marc Lee, and I have served as an economist for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives for more than 14 years. Most recently I have been Senior Economist and the Co-Director of the Climate Justice Project, a multi-year SSHRC-funded research project with the University of British Columbia, in collaboration with a large team of academics and community groups.

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Climate change forced its way onto the political agenda in 2012, as Hurricane Sandy ripped through the northeast United States just days before the U.S. presidential election. And while action remains frustratingly slow, extreme weather disasters that do billions of dollars of damage are making a statement that politicians can no longer ignore. The costs of our addiction to fossil fuels are starting to pile up, and we cannot afford to keep dithering.

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As we head towards the May 2013 B.C. election, what I'd most love to hear from B.C.'s political leaders is evidence that they are ready to get serious about the defining issues of this era. In particular, I'm going to be looking for real leadership on the issues of climate change and inequality (what we at the CCPA like to call "the two great inconvenient truths of our time").

It's not enough to offer platitudes about sustainability or families. Nor is it sufficient to speak eloquently about climate or inequality, but then offer up election platforms that will barely make a dent in either.

When British Columbia sets up public private partnerships (P3s) to let the private sector operate hospitals, roads and bridges, one of the considerations is taxes. However, when down the road ownership of the P3 private operator gets moved to a tax haven, it appears there is no subsequent examination of the impact on provincial revenues.

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My letter to Christy Clark, Premier of B.C.; Rich Colman, Ministry of Energy and Mines; Mike de Jong, Ministry of Finance; Terry Lake, Minister of Environment; Adrian Dix, Leader of the Opposition; John Horgan, Official Opposition House Leader and Opposition Critic for Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources; Rob Fleming, Opposition Critic for Environment:

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The following comes from a short talk on a vision for a zero-carbon B.C. that I gave at a couple of events this fall. Many have asked for the text so I've posted it here, and we may try and turn it into a video. That said, I have been reluctant to do so up to now because it was intended as a 5-6 minute talk and thus had certain major omissions. In parentheses below I have added back a couple of paragraphs that got cut due to time constraints.

Welcome to B.C., 2040

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In September, when the B.C. government tabled its First Quarterly Report on the B.C. budget the big story was on plummeting natural gas royalties, which means cuts to public services in order to keep the budget balance in check. As the update states on page 6:

More than 30 years ago, the women's movement put child care on the public agenda. And while there have been important successes along the way, it can get depressing for grandmothers like me to see so little political progress. Parent fees are too high, staff wages are too low, there are nowhere near enough spaces and public funding is almost non-existent.

But the good news is that there's a solution.

Hundreds of mayors, municipal councillors and regional district directors are meeting this week in Victoria at the annual gathering of the Union of BC Municipalities. And not surprisingly, one of the major topics of discussion in the first three days has been the taxes local governments collect to provide their services.

The local government leaders heard some good news about their taxes that have been under attack.