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UPDATED: BC Conservatives' sole MLA resigns after Cummins survives leadership review vote
CHILLIWACK/CKNW (AM980)
Shane Woodford | Email news tips to shane.woodford@corusent.com
9/22/2012

Updated: BC Conservative Party leader John Cummins may have survived to fight another day as party leader.

Out of 1,104 votes, only 312 or 28 percent voted for a leadership review.

“Total no votes for a leadership election: 788. Percentage of no votes for an election, 71.4 percent.”

However, mere hours after the vote, the party's sole MLA, John van Dongen, has announced he will resign immediately as a Conservative and sit as an independent, saying he cannot be part of a party run by Cummins.

Van Dongen says Cummins doesn't seem to care if he stays or left, adding that the party leader doesn't listen to him.

While addressing reporters just prior to van Dongen's announcement, Cummins admitted differences between the two and said he was willing to iron them out.

The man who headed up an effort to oust Cummins is accepting the party’s will.

Ben Besler says Cummins has his support and the party is not divided.  

"I’ve said I can work with Mr. Cummins if the membership elects me as president. Let's pick this party up and move it forward. I have no problems with that."

Meanwhile, one Liberal MLA  Kevin Krueger says he's not surprised at all van Dongen has handed in his membership to the BC Conservatives.

"Within the last two years, I've seen him dramatically undermine Gordon Campbell, Christy Clark, now John Cummins, I think Mr. Cummins is utterly mistaken in his initiatives but still this is not all his doing because John seems to have a real tough time working on teams." 

Krueger says he thinks van Dongen realizes the Conservative effort just splits the non-NDP coalition.

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  • 21
  1. ChrisM_18 posted on 09/22/2012 02:01 PM
    Well Dix has to be smiling

    The only votes the Conservatives will get now are the far right wing ultra conservatives

    Give the keys to the piggybank to the NDP now - there is nothing left to be a viable alternative
    1. TonyB_0924 posted on 09/22/2012 04:23 PM
      @ChrisM_18 Well at less when the NDP had the keys to the piggy bank back in 2001 BC had a surplus of 1.54 billion dollars not the deficit like today under the BC Lying Liberals 6.6 billion dollars deficit come 2013 according to the new fiancé minster Mike de Jong a BC Lying Liberal
    show more replies
  2. PeterK_18 posted on 09/22/2012 04:13 PM
    Van Dongen seems to be the opportunist instead of a principled conservative...will do almost anything to be a cabinet minister again.
  3. RonE_1902 posted on 09/22/2012 05:16 PM
    Well he was a goner if he stayed where he was, jumping ships seldom pays in politics.

    Most likely has "golden pension" options that are well indexed to fall back on though.

    Instead of tow the line he must have not realized he was told to hold the anchor.

    As for John Cummins on a separate note the man has to go, as the public would rather eat their own arm than vote him into power.

    B.C. politics never fails to please as a blood sport.
  4. RonE_1902 posted on 09/22/2012 05:20 PM
    @TonyB_0924 Yes but the corruption and free offer of home improvements proved to much.

    To much politics if I remember coming out of the North Burnaby Inn.
  5. joes_2868 posted on 09/23/2012 07:53 AM
    Once again as mentioned before. Liberal strongholds will be won by B.C. Liberals and NDP strongholds will be won by the NDP. Example, Rich Coleman and Jenny Kwan win their strongholds. Final result will be a majority government with only at the most a 10 seat majority of whoever wins the election. B.C. conservatives will not elect one MLA including John Cummins.
  6. joes_2868 posted on 09/23/2012 08:51 AM
    ChrisM: Give the keys to the piggy bank to the NDP. Why, when in 2017, the NDP would lose the election. Example, Nova Scotia voted for a NDP government in 2009, and now have had enough and will put them back into opposition status, in the next election. A one term government just like that of Dave Barrett. In the last election in Saskatchewan, before the election call, the official opposition party, the NDP, had 20 seats. After the election the NDP was still the official opposition with only 9 seats. Saskatchewan does not even have one federal NDP seat. Ontario taxpayers said good bye to the NDP long ago and the NDP is now the third party. Manitoba returned a NDP government in their last election in October, 2011, but now only a year later, voters are saying that they would vote for the official opposition, the Progressive Conservatives. Never mind about the talk always about Quebec, B.C. is the province that other Canadian's laugh at.. If the NDP did win government, then all other provinces will know one thing, and that is B.C. taxpayers listen to a Ricky Nelson song over and over again, titled, "FOOLS RUSH IN". Would be a much better insurance policy if B.C. taxpayers listened to Barry Gibb's song, "WHY THROW IT ALL AWAY"
    1. brianp1950 posted on 09/23/2012 03:45 PM
      @joes_2868 Give me afriggin break! the current govermpnment is corrupt, have done nothng but lie to us, pay stupid money to the managers of the this sinking ship and you think the NDP are bad? lets see HST, carbon tax, double of MSP premiums, selling BC Rail, selling off parts of Hydro, Highest gas taxes in NA, Highest combined taxes and user fees West of Quebec (somethng to really be proud of) If thiis were an NDP government doing all these things people on the right like you wuld be setting their hair on fire! Lets face it you are right wing and anything and everything these guys do is ok? Can hardly wait for you to actually see how bad our buget defecit is and please remember who ut us where we are wit the last 30 plusbillion dollars of debt. We are paying 9 million dollars a day to service our current debt, at todays rate, if yiouare a business person it would not take a rocket scientist to figure out that works out to almost 3 billion dollars a year or lets see, a new Port Mann every year, or maybe a couple of new hospitals every year, maybe no increases in ICBC or Hydro rates, and this would all be paid for by not having our current uncontrolled debt. But dont worry a new load of Liberals will really solve our problems!
  7. joes_2868 posted on 09/23/2012 04:35 PM
    brianp: God oh mighty! Now go back and read what I wrote previous. You are shooting off the hip. Leave that up to Adrian Dix and Jim SinClair. You still have not told us readers why the NDP should be government when they cannot win the 2017 election. Talk about corrupt. Give me a break. Adrian Dix is bringing in Brian Topp to be the NDP campaign manager. At one time, Brian was deputy chief of staff to NDP premier Roy Romanow of Saskatchewan. In early February of 1999, Brian made the front page headlines of all newspapers in Saskatchewan. He was accused of whitewashing a legal committee report on a major political NDP scandal involving the botched sale of a government owned Channel Lake Petroleum Ltd., the natural gas producer for crown corporation SaskPower. This whitewashing is the same as Adrian Dix back dating a letter-memo for casino related Glen Clark. Compare apples to apples with detailed examples before shooting from the hip. You would never take back a former spouse from a previous divorce to re-create the nightmare but are willing to do it with government. REMEMBER, ALL GOVERNMENTS ARE THE SAME, BUT SOME ARE BETTER THAN OTHERS. If Adrian Dix does form government, we know for sure that on the morning of May 15, 2013 some B.C. taxpayers will be headed to the EI office to file for employment insurance. Business does not invest in NDP territory and cutbacks are the tradition where they have investments.
    1. ChrisM_18 posted on 09/23/2012 04:47 PM
      @joes_2868 Full marks for this posting !
      Just like a pedophile school teacher - you can change the location , but you can't change the behaviour .
      We all know that the NDP are full of inept bumblers - but our media seem to be giving them a free ride right through to next April
    2. brianp1950 posted on 09/23/2012 05:11 PM
      @joes_2868 the lining up at ghe ei office obviously will not be Liberal MLA'S because the ones that know they are likely to lose their seats have opted to take the 15 month severence they get for not running! where do I sign up for that gravy train. Are the NDP the answer? no! Are the same crew that we've had the last 13 years the answer? again no! what do you do as a disgusted taxpayer? I for one would like to see a tapayers bill of rights that would be a requirement to sign before the MLA takes his seat and starts collecting his paychecks Things like working for your constituents and not the party, easier to recall to put the fear of the electorate on their minds. With protection like this we might not have the HST, we might not have the cabon tax and on and on. I've contacted Mr. Van Dongen, no reply, I contaced the Tapayers Federation they said they might consider it in the Fall, I contacted Integrity BC not much luck there either. So what do we do? we complain and accept the outcome. I have worked hard for 45 years for what we have as a husband and wife retired and I am sick and tired of all these guys continuing to put their hands into my pockets one at a time until it they are empty!
  8. BOBF_5970 posted on 09/23/2012 04:45 PM
    no wonder there is voter apathy , really , how does one choose with every party a loser...i sure hope there is an independant in our riding as they would get my vote. this partisan bs does not feel like democracy
    1. ChrisM_18 posted on 09/23/2012 04:49 PM
      @BOBF_5970 You have said it !! Where is someone out there that isn't part of the same tired old crooked political partys ?
      We used to refer to this as BOHICA - bend over , here it comes again !!
  9. joes_2868 posted on 09/23/2012 05:27 PM
    brianp: Go to google and type in "Nova Scotia Department of Finance-Finance Minister" then click on "Taxation" go down and click on "Tax rates across Canada". Go to google and type in "Electricity rates by province". Go to google and type in "NDP majority pass largest tax hike in 25 years/Manitoba/news. Take your time, read it and then you can say that you did some research, not like Adrian Dix and Jim SinClair, who never do any research but spread propaganda. ALL OTHER READERS, PLEASE DO THE SAME AND READ THE ARTICLES. THANKS.
    1. brianp1950 posted on 09/23/2012 06:41 PM
      @joes_2868 That's your answer lets compare ourselves to all the other have ot provinces out there? we have 60 pus billion in debt do NS or Manitoba? no. With Translink, Carbon tax, HST, Provincial tax and Federal tax we have the highest gas taxes in NA, right now in Alberta and Saskatchewan both have provinces it is less than $1.10l I was just talking to my sister who lves on the Ontario Quebec border and theirs is 1.24l

      When you add the MSP premiums to your tax bill, currently for a family of 2 is $116.00 a month I pay that do you? add that to your tax bill compared to Manitoba and NS they do not have MSP premiums on $45.000.00 annually that adds $1400.00 after tax dollars to your tax bill. add the 11.5 % increase to your car insurance. add the 7% increase to your hydro bill all this and we are still running a defecit this year of 1.4 billion dollars. Please these guys are no better than the NDP! tax spend, tax spend, its been a broken record for the last12 years. As I said are the NDP any better? no they are not but it is time to swing the pendulum back the other way for a change. We do not need to be the lowest corporate tax rate in Canada with a 60 billion dollar debt. Check out the lineups going to the US and yiu will better understand how some of us feel.
    show more replies
  10. joes_2868 posted on 09/23/2012 07:41 PM
    brianp: What are you trying to be? Mike Farnworth blowing a gasket and raising the blood pressure to levels beyond normal. You failed to mention that all provinces in Canada including the federal government are fighting deficits. You failed to mention that the same decifits occur across the border, onto Europe, onto Asia, onto New Zealand and Austrailia, a world wide economic mess. You failed to mention that the deficit co-incides with population numbers. 4,400,057 in B.C., 1,208,268 in Manitoba, and 921,727 in Nova Scotia. You failed to mention that the pharmacare deductible based on a income of $50,000 is $2540 in Manitoba, $2750 in Nova Scotia, $1500 in B.C. You sure did not read the hydro rates I told you to read. You forgot to mention that B.C., Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, all have government car insurance brought in by previous NDP governments, and that all of these three provinces have the highest rates in all of Canada in comparison to the other 7 provinces that can shop and save, just like you do everyday before spending money. You did not read the tax tables properly, because you did not mention that B.C. has the second lowest basic tax rate in Canada next to Ontario. You must of not read the budget of Manitoba, because if you did, you would have told us that you approve Adrian Dix to do this too. You my friend say that you are not a NDP'er, then why throw a vote to them? You still have the time to create a political party. Remember when the NDP was in government last time they were in and started making blunder after blunder, everyone you could talk too, said I never voted NDP. Somebody had to. I have said enough, because you and I are not winning, so I will close off but as I said previously on May 14, 2013 the government can be either the Liberals or the NDP, but who ever it is will only have a 10 seat majority at the most. Maybe we can chat next May, and I can say I TOLD YOU SO. If it is the NDP, they will lose in 2017, and once again you can blow a gasket because the new coaliton government will have to take drastic measures to clean the mess up left by the NDP, just like Bill Bennett and Gordon Campbell, did. But remember, never blame the NDP, you must blame yourself and your neighbours because everything you are blowing gaskets over is not just happening in B.C. Remember Brian, the race in life is a long one, it is only with yourself, and your chances are only at half mast, and so is everyone else's. Always remember that B.C. is an investment province and because of that, who gives taxpayers their cheques every second Friday, Jim SinClair or the investment business.
    1. brianp1950 posted on 09/23/2012 08:00 PM
      @joes_2868 you dont understand user fees are taxes and we are the highest taxed in Canada, you mus be sme sor of politicalperson to have thse answer so quickly? wh is it ha o think tha he right wilmhaveto clean p a mess in 2017. o do not think we are n a mess now? look a all the figures not just the ones yo thonk benefit you. Campbell was ood for he firs two years after ha he torw up legal contracts, sold BC Rail( said he was not going to sell it) brought us the carbon tax no other jurisdictin has this in NA, he brought us the HST after saying it was not on his radar, he lied about the defecit in 2008 and the lies about our finances continue! Our MSP premiums have doubled, only Ontario has MSP premiums and they are half ours. Translink is a mess, BC Ferries is a mess, they are going to sell the liquor control board, Managers at crown corporatins keep raping the taxpayer while the foot soldiers are told there is no money for an increase, installing smart meters, taking 1.3 billin in dividends from ICBC and Hydro, by the way those dividends are taxes as far as taxpayers are concerned so add that to you tax rate along with the MSP premiums and we all of a sudden do not look so good tax rate wise!

      yea other provinces and countries have defecit problems but most are dealing with them but not us, we keep spending like Socialists, right?
      So if the right will need to clean up the mess as you describe which will be left in 2017 who is gong to clean up the mess in 2013 from the last 12 years, the Liberals? I doubt that very much. These guys could not manage a peanut farm!
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