Premier Campbell Will Face B.C. Liberal Leadership Review
On September 5, 2010, Michael Smyth of The Province wrote an article entitled "Party insider wants Campbell gone" in which the call for Premier Campbell's resignation by Scott Nelson is discussed. I picked up on something else in the article - there will be a B.C. Liberal convention in November 2010 and a secret ballot regarding Campbell's leadership.
This is interesting in light of the strong opposition to harmonized sales tax (HST). The Campbell government is facing potential recall campaigns or a referendum on HST. The British Columbia Supreme Court has heard a judicial review of the procedure followed/not followed in implementing HST in British Columbia. Based on my experience, it is easy to dismiss a judicial review application from the bench and it takes longer to write a reasoned decision (in favour of the petitioner or the respondent). There is a democratic uprising that continues to move forward.
It is possible that Premier Campbell will be at the receiving end of more calls for his resignation. It is possible that the leadership review will not be favourable to Premier Campbell. It is possible Premier Campbell will be succeeded by someone who does not want to carry the HST baggage into the next election. The conditions in British Columbia are such that the continuation of HST in that province is unpredictable. That being said, I would be willing to place a bet on the end to HST in British Columbia.
I should let readers know that I studied history at university before admission to law school. The current Canadian events in British Columbia in the context of HST are fascinating - when will it become history?
Cyndee Todgham Cherniak is counsel to and in affiliation with the International Trade Law and the Tax Law (Commodity Tax
