Frankly Speaking

  In Surrey at least, the BC Liberals may have new life after announcing that the policing transition requires a referendum before going any farther. This, of course, will only happen should party leader Andrew Wilkinson gain enough seats to become premier. The policing transition in Surrey has become a major campaign issue in the provincial election, and it has the potential to give the  BC Liberals a big boost. Whether it will be enough for the party to regain power after more than three years in the political wilderness  is another question. The NDP are well ahead in the most recent public opinion polls. The BC Liberal party issued a statement on Sunday that a BC Liberal government would pause the transition process, and give Surrey residents a vote in a referendum on whether to switch to a new Surrey Police force or stick with the RCMP. Mike Farnworth, who as public safety minister gave the transition the green light and specifically said ...

Surrey and Delta voters chose to go a different direction Monday, with five of the six local ridings now Liberal. Other than Sukh Dhaliwal in Surrey-Newton, who will return to Ottawa as a Liberal MP (he served from 2006-2011), all the MPs elected from the area are new to federal politics. The heavy Liberal representation from this area is a significant change. Most areas of Surrey have not been represented by a Liberal in Ottawa since 1953, while in Delta the most recent Liberal MP was last in office in 1972. What caused this change?   Voters were hungry for it, for a number of reasons. The Conservatives’ governing style turned off many people. Changes to immigration policy, particularly in areas like family reunification, were unpopular with many. The niqab issue was disquieting to recent immigrants. The Liberals ran a positive campaign. Justin Trudeau, who visited Surrey several times, appealed to younger voters. Strategic voting was given a high profile by the media and...

It is quite possible that voters in Surrey and Delta will be taking part in the most competitive elections in many years, for all or most of the six local seats in the House of Commons. That is likely why many came out to vote at advance polls over the weekend. Across Canada, 3.6 million voted at the four-day advance polls – up 71 per cent from the 2011 totals. In Surrey, a number of voting stations had lengthy lineups at times over the weekend. Elections Canada clearly had not expected so many to come and vote early. It seems certain that voter turnout will be up in this election. There are a number of reasons. It has been a lengthy election campaign, the longest in modern Canadian history, so very few people can say they aren’t aware of it. The prime minister has been in office for almost 10 years and, as a result of decisions made over that period, there is clearly a mood for change among many. Strategic voting has been highlighted more than ever, and has been aided by se...

In three of the five Surrey ridings up for grabs in the Oct. 19 federal election, crime is a very hot topic. That’s what the candidates are saying. They hear about it all the time on the doorsteps, over and over. People in Surrey-Newton, Surrey Centre and Fleetwood-Port Kells are saying there needs to be drastic changes so that random shootings and gang activity are reduced, if not eliminated. It’s not surprising. There have been dozens of random shootings this year, and Surrey-Newton   MLA Harry Bains’ nephew was shot to death this spring. Most, if not all, the shootings are linked to the drug trade. Voters in Surrey-Newton are particularly concerned, as many of the shootings are taking place in Newton neighbourhoods. In one particularly troubling case, shooters were active near Strawberry Hill Elementary on Sept. 15, as children were playing in the area. One man was injured, and bullets struck the school building. That’s completely unacceptable. Newton resident Meera G...

I have quite deliberately ignored the federal election campaign until now. It made no sense to write about leaders who talked too much about nothing during the month of August, when no voters were paying attention anyway. However, it is now time to share a few thoughts. This is my column published in the Friday edition of The Peace Arch News and Surrey-North Delta Leader. Although the federal election has legally been under way since Aug. 2, it only really began in earnest this week. There was one leaders’ debate in August, the details of which no one can now recall.   There were very few signs up in August, and they were ignored by almost everyone. Attempts by candidates to portray themselves as saints and their opponents from other parties as the worst types of sinners have, for the most part, gone unheard. Far too much media attention focuses on party leaders. This is not only unhealthy for democracy, as it makes leaders think they are in charge of the entire campai...