Furstenau only interested in her paycheque
In the 2017 B.C. provincial election, Skeena NDP MLA Robin Austin retired from politics. His successor did not win the election to remain as an NDP seat, and the B.C. Liberals won the election. B.C. Liberal Ellis Ross won the election and needed an MLA office. He knows that taxpayers pay all expenses with MLA offices, so he met with former NDP MLA Robin Austin and then discussed that he take over the former NDP MLA office. All Ross had to do was change the name on the outside of the office. Zero taxpayer dollars.
Sonia could have done exactly the same in the Cowichan Valley riding, when she won the election to become our MLA.
She could have taken over the former offices of former NDP MLA Bill Routley. Instead, she went looking for her own office on Station Street. She spent taxpayer dollars renovating the office, and buying the furniture needed. I do not agree with her decision. She could have saved taxpayer dollars but did not.
Sonia says that she is going to hold John Horgan fully responsible for calling a provincial election in the middle of a pandemic.
That’s fine but she will not commit herself to telling us, the voters, that if the next provincial election ends up with a minority NDP or Liberal government, is she going to back the Liberals or once again hold hands with John Horgan.
Sonia’s Green Party signed an agreement after the B.C. 2017 election stating that her party would support an NDP minority government for the four year mandate with no election. That is fine, nothing wrong, but that agreement still allowed for her Green Party to disagree with the NDP policies and tax increases.
Sonia’s party held the balance of power, and did not use that power once in the last three and a half years. Instead, she could have saved taxpayers mega dollars. Why? The B.C. NDP brought in 23 new tax increases.
Some of these taxes were the health employer tax to recoup the elimination of medical services premiums, a speculation tax on real estate, and the community benefits plan.
There was no need for the employer health care tax. Why? The NDP should have left the medical services billings the same and just lower the income tax. Taxpayers are not saving a single dime. Under the old system, the City of Vancouver paid out $4 million to B.C. Medical Services, yearly, on behalf of their employees. Now with the NDP employer health care tax, the City of Vancouver now pays the provincial government $10 million. Now the City of Vancouver has no choice but to charge more tax to homeowners to cover this NDP nonsense tax.
Was just a money shuffle. Taxpayers now pay more in taxes than what the medical services bill was. Sonia agreed to this tax.
The speculation tax is nothing but a cash grab. It takes the rights away from B.C. taxpayers. This tax has forced taxpayers that they cannot anymore have a second home in a vacation area that stays empty. Sonia agreed to this tax.
The community benefits plan is an old program from the days of the former NDP government of Glen Clark. This plan applies to all infrastructure projects in the province of B.C. Both non-union and union contractors can bid on the projects, but will have to pay wages that the NDP have set up. All hiring has to be made through the community benefits office, which is now a Crown corporation for the next six years. All hours of work must be submitted to this office, and all paycheques will be produced at this office. After 30 days of employment, all employees must join a union. An NDP government treating us like a third world nation.
This community benefit plan will cost taxpayers mega dollars. Why? The Vancouver Island inland highway from Parksville north cost $50 million more than the Coquihalla highway because of the wage scales set up by the NDP government. Quite ironic when the island highway consisted of land clearing and new bridges and the Coquihalla was solid rock. Sonia agreed to this plan, being re-introduced by John Horgan.
Presently in B. C. this plan is costing the taxpayers $22 million more than original cost on highway construction near Revelstoke, B.C. and $100 million more than original cost on the new Pattullo bridge. Also ironic is that this bridge is only going to be four lanes.
Sonia ran in the election as a choice for a third party in B.C. Once elected and holding the balance of power, she should have just crossed the floor in the Legislature to become an NDP MLA. We the taxpayer have never heard that third party voice in the last three and half years.
In the last B.C. legislature, Sonia was paid a taxpayer salary of $111,024.19 and an additional $11,102.42 for services as house leader of the third party.
Now that she is the leader of the B.C. Green party, and if re-elected she will collect her MLA salary and a additional $27,756.05 for services as the third party leader.
Presently Sonia’s office is now vacant on Station Street in Duncan. Sonia has no care in the world about taxpayer dollars, and is now probably looking at a more fancy office as she is now the leader of the B.C. Green Party.
Her policy making is outrageous. Why? She says she would shut down the Site C dam project. Total workers on this project range from a workforce of 3,500 to 5,000 employees averaging $5,000 a month in wages with work lasting to 2024. This is excellent money, and workers can buy a home, a car, and many other things. She does not explain how her wind energy solution would supply these high paying jobs.
Most ironic, Sonia would not spend her own money like her and John Horgan have done with B.C. taxpayer dollars.
A quote from former Green party leader, Andrew Weaver. “My former colleagues Adam Olsen and Sonia Furstenau, were afraid to stand up to the B.C. NDP with regards to the LNG development” Weaver wrote on Twitter of May 23. “I was ready to go to election but in my opinion they were more interested in re-election than they were about standing up for B.C. Greens principles.”
Voters, remember, Sonia is only trying to be elected for her paycheque only. A very sad state of affairs.
Taxpayers if you believe otherwise, you are living in a fantasy world.
Unbelievable!
Joe Sawchuk
Duncan