PRESS RELEASE: Fight HST petition meets 10% threshold in 83 of 85 Ridings
May 25, 2010 Press Release
Point Grey and Quilchena hit 10% with 6 weeks still to go.
Port Coquitlam – Fight HST Lead Organizer, Chris Delaney, says the petition to repeal the HST has crossed the Elections BC 10% threshold in 83 of 85 ridings with over 6 weeks still to go in the campaign.
Delaney says the Fight HST internal threshold of 15% or more has been reached in 57 of 85 ridings.
“These numbers are particularly exciting, since they represent only 64 of 85 ridings reporting. Many areas of the province that had reached their targets took a break for the long weekend. We’ll finish up the remaining two ridings next weekend, and will meet both the Elections BC requirement of 10% as well as our own internal threshold of 15% in all ridings by the first or second week of June,” said Delaney.
Tags: bill vander zalm, british columbians, campaigns, canadian history, chris delaney, critical mass, first premier, mr campbell, petition, point grey, prime minister, prosperity, provincial election, quilchena, referendum, servant, taxpayers, threshold, time and money, youth forum
PRESS RELEASE: VANDER ZALM POLLS BC LIBERAL MLA’S ON HST SUPPORT
Nov 23, 2009 Press Release
Says MLA’s not listening to constituents on new tax
Delta BC – Fight HST leader and former BC Premier, Bill Vander Zalm, says his group has just completed a survey of all BC Liberal MLAs asking them to state their position on the HST. Vander Zalm says he had members of the Fight HST team ask each Liberal MLA if they would vote for or against implementation of the new tax.
“A lot of MLAs did not answer the questionnaire. However, we received a number of replies, all of them convoluted and totally avoiding answering the simple question of “Do you support implementation of the HST in BC, yes or no?” said Vander Zalm.
“The NDP has come out against the HST. So has the lone Independent MLA, Vicky Huntington. We feel that constituents should know how the rest of their MLAs plan to vote, so they can tell them whether they agree or disagree with them. Unfortunately, all of the Liberals chickened out and wouldn’t answer,” explained Vander Zalm.
“We were also hoping to create a hit list for the potential ‘Recall’ campaigns that we will launch immediately following the Citizen Initiative petition in the spring of 2010. Knowing in advance whether an MLA will vote according to their constituents wishes, or according to the dictates of the premier, will help everyone decide which MLAs should or should not be Recalled.”
Vander Zalm pointed out that a “Recall” cannot be launched until 18 months after an election. The recent provincial election was just held in May of 2009, meaning a Recall cannot be initiated until November 2010 at the earliest.
“November will be a perfect time to mobilize our forces for Recall campaigns in specifically targeted areas. Even some of the newspaper columnists are suggesting Recall is a good idea. We agree, and will watch carefully to see how each MLA votes in order for Fight HST to make the right choices regarding Recalls,” explained Vander Zalm.
Vander Zalm also asked every Liberal MLA if they would hold an “HST Town Hall” meeting to allow constituents to make their views known on the tax. He says most refused to answer that question as well.
“They probably saw what happened to the Democrats this past summer during the Town Halls on health care reform in the U.S., and decided a real democratic debate might be too much for many of them to handle,” concluded Vander Zalm.
Vander Zalm is launching a media tour to raise awareness for the HST that will include speeches, debates and interviews throughout the province, beginning as follows:
1. Thursday, November 18th, 8 AM, City TV – HST debate with Mr. Jonathan Winters, President of the BC Chamber of Commerce.
2. Friday, November 19th, Interview with CFUN Radio in the morning.
3. Wednesday, November 25, Debate with a pro HST Liberal, hosted by the Tsawwassen Business Association.
4. Thursday, November 26, 12:00 noon, Speech to the Fraser Valley Business Association in Surrey.
Tags: bc premier, bill vander zalm, campaigns, citizen initiative, constituents, delta, hit list, huntington, independent mla, initiative petition, liberal mlas, Liberals, newspaper columnists, perfect time, provincial election ndp, questionnaire, right choices, vicky
