Proportional representation needed; stopping pipelines makes sense
Thank you for printing David Slade’s letter about the wonderful work which he and One Cowichan are doing.
I support proportional representation, but I want to vote for people with whom I am acquainted and who will represent my local community. I do not support the voting systems which are being proposed, which greatly expand the size of the electoral districts and which have people voting for more than one candidate.
I understand that there exists a voting system which provides for proportional representation and which can use the existing electoral districts and existing form of ballots, which provides for me to vote for one of a slate of candidates in my community. The total votes received for political parties determine how many seats each party is entitled to and a simple formula can be used by Elections BC (or Elections Canada) to determine which candidate in each electoral district becomes the elected representative.
I also do not support a voting system which will, in a multi-party society, result in no party leader getting to be premier (or prime minister) unless he or she forms a coalition with one or more of the other parties. I would prefer that the elected members elect whom they want to be the premier (or prime minister). We, the people, elect the MLAs (or MPs), who then elect the party leader whom they want for their premier (or prime minister). That’s democracy.
I do not know what commitments about pipelines our provincial and federal governments have made with China to enhance the development of potential trade agreements, but a recent article which I have read (Paul McKay, The Energy Mix, March 4, 2018) indicates that such pipelines no longer have any practical value.
Since President Trump has permitted American companies to export American oil, the Asian need for Canada’s bitumen has disappeared. Also, “Bound for China, the inaugural run (of the new super tankers) signals a major shift in global oil shipping patterns, economics, and the highly competitive oil refinery business.” The new very large crude carriers (VLCCs) can carry four times the oil of current large tankers and, for marine safety reasons, are barred from B.C.’s Burrard Inlet. It would seem to be obvious that our federal and provincial governments should stop the construction of pipelines and pay off whatever contract penalties are involved.
Robert Radford
Duncan