Thank you to the Victoria newspaper (Times Colonist) for continuing to express various submissions of complaint about Bill 7. Important to be informed.<\/p>\n
Proposed legislation in British Columbia to give the cabinet sweeping powers to respond to threats from foreign governments amid Canada\u2019s tariff fight is getting more pushback from businesses as the Greens meet with the government about their concerns.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Rational oversight needed for Eby<\/h2>\n
BC Chamber of Commerce President Fiona Famulak says in a letter to Premier David Eby and Attorney General Niki Sharma that the legislation known as Bill 7 lacks \u201cguardrails\u201d and allows the government to make nearly any change it wants to provincial laws \u201cwith the stroke of a pen.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Famulak says in the letter released Wednesday that the bill is a \u201cstep in the wrong direction for democratic institutions\u201d and without accountability to the legislature when changes are made, the government is unacceptably requiring British Columbians to \u201cmove forward on faith and trust alone.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Bill 7 would give the cabinet powers to respond to challenges from the actions of a foreign jurisdiction, or for a purpose \u201csupporting the economy of British Columbia and Canada\u201d without requiring debate in the legislature, something Eby says is required to respond swiftly to threats from U.S. President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The bill is expected to be debated for the first time when politicians return to Victoria next week and is the first major test for Eby\u2019s government, which holds a majority of only one seat.\n <\/p>\n
The BC Green Party, which signed a confidence agreement with Eby\u2019s New Democrats, says its representatives continue to meet with the government this week over Bill 7.<\/p>\n
Interim Green Leader Jeremy Valeriote said in a statement last week that Bill 7 in its current form has \u201cvague wording\u201d and \u201ccould allow for sweeping economic decisions without clear limits or transparency.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article><\/div>\n