Frankly Speaking

Grace McCarthy was one of the most influential B.C. politicians from 1966 to 1994, and a trailblazer for women in politics. Her death Wednesday comes at a time when B.C. politics is in turmoil. She was one of the last living persons to have served in the cabinet of Premier W.A.C. Bennett, who first came to power the last time B.C. voters elected a minority government - in 1952. It is symbolic that results of the closest election in B.C. history were finally confirmed on Wednesday, just hours before news of the death of Grace McCarthy became public. A younger generation won’t know McCarthy’s name, but she played a key role in B.C. politics for many years and almost certainly blazed the trail for the current generation of female politicians. Her work in uniting the right after the NDP were elected in 1972 under Dave Barrett was absolutely critical to the future of the Social Credit Party and its ideological successor, the BC Liberals. She served as deputy premier under Bill ...

B.C. Government photo The W.R. Bennett Bridge over Okanagan Lake at Kelowna is one of the few reminders of the 11-year reign of Bill Bennett as B.C. premier, from 1975-86. He died in Kelowna on Thursday at the age of 83. Bill Bennett, premier of B.C. from 1975 to 1986, died on Thursday after years of battling Alzheimer's disease. He was one of the most significant premiers of the 20th century in B.C., and he, along with his NDP predecessor Dave Barrett, brought B.C. into the modern era. Bill Bennett was a reluctant politician, at least at first. He was recruited in 1973 to run for the seat his father W.A.C. Bennett, B.C. premier for 20 years, vacated after losing to Barrett in the 1972 provincial election. The South Okanagan seat was a Social Credit bastion, but even before he said he would seek the seat, Bennett was under terrific pressure to take over as Social Credit leader. He had no political experience and had shown little interest in politics until that time. Bill B...