UBCM Convention Starts Today
Prince George, B.C. – The Union of B.C. Municipalities annual convention and connection with the Provincial Government, kicks off today in Vancouver.
This is the 114th UBCM convention, and approximately 2,000 delegates are expected to attend .
From today, through Friday, delegates will attend a number of workshops on current issues, starting with one this morning on the legalization of marijuana. Local governments have expressed a number of concerns about the pending legalization, and will hear from representatives from all levels of government .
That session will provide a back drop to the first resolution to be considered at the convention which calls for :
- fulsome and meaningful provincial consultation with local governments;
- provision of adequate provincial funding to cover any responsibilities and increase in administrative burden of any provincial framework that requires local government participation;
- equitable sharing of tax revenues from cannabis between all orders of government; and
- respect for local choice, jurisdiction and authority, including but not limited to land use and zoning decisions.
Prince George has submitted a late resolution calling for action on the proposed Greyhound service cuts.
- Vanderhoof has five resolutions to be considered. Two have to do with rail transportation , as one calls for Transport Canada to require rail companies to provide communities with up to the minute details of hazardous goods travelling through those communities, and the other calls for an end to the use of train whistles. Vanderhoof is also calling for major upgrades to highway 16.
- The Regional District of Fraser Fort George has submitted a resolution calling for design and maintenance of decommissioned roads in the back country which are used for recreation purposes.
- Quesnel is calling for Family Day in B.C. to be moved from the current second Monday in February to the third Monday.
- Williams Lake has submitted a resolution calling for action to improve forest health by treating diseased trees within parks and designated areas.
All three party leaders will be addressing the convention delegates with the Green Party Leader, Andrew Weaver set to speak on Wednesday, interim Liberal Leader Rich Coleman addressing the gathering on Thursday, and Premier John Horgan delivering an address on Friday, the final day.
Comments
I wonder if the delegation from Prince George took Greyhound to Vancouver as a way to get the message across that it is such an important service to the people of the region. A more likely scenario is their resolution consists of empty words not backed up by actions.
Jillian might be a tad late- never made it past Hixon as she could not find the bike lanes there:P
I would like to see a new way to fund local governments that supports local economies against the ravages of globalist arbitrage of internet retail purchases.
The hollowing out of our local economies and small business from the Wal-Mart use of cheep imports for arbitrage profits off of slave labor and lax environmental laws in comunist dictatorships like China will be nothing compared to the greed of online internet companies like Google and Amazon.
I would like to see a 20% tax on internet purchases (in lue of bricks and mortar costs for storefronts) that sees the full proceed going to the local government of the purchasing postal code. It is about funding local governments for the local economy disruption of the internet. Then provide a 75% rebate on the internet tax for registered retail outlets with a storefront to support local free enterprise.
I just read the CP article to the right of the 250 thread on Trudeau pushing free trade via the internet with the Chinese internet retail monopoly… this exactly the kind of local economy undermining trade practices over the internet I was thinking about when writing the above comment. A guy like Trudeau just doesn’t have a clue in the kind of damage this does to our local economies….
Well dear leader with all his tax avoiding trusts lives in an isolated fairy tale world has not a clue.
Left out the part where he admires the communist dictatorship government of China and really would like the title of dear leader.
The stuff I get from China via the internet, all of it below $100, is delivered free by slow boat from China, and is less expensive than from US box stores for exactly the same item.
It is a fact of today’s age.
The response to it is to compete on higher end goods as well as services while we still can before we lose that capacity as well.
Other countries manage to do it. What is wrong with us?
We have gone through a low cost, post WWII, Made in Germany, followed by Made in Japan, then Made in Korea, and now Made in China, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Vietnam, etc.
Things change. Luckily the hewers of wood and drawers of water country is still managing quite well. Protectionism is not going to help. In fact, it will hinder and make us lazy and technologically ignorant.
I disagree with moving the family day back a week. I don’t think its a good idea to have it at the same time as Alberta and Washington State. Its nice to be able to travel without competing for hotels and such and its too far from Christmas holidays if they move it back a week IMO. Its nice having the family time in a slow time of the year.
February/March is Carnival time in many countries, one of the most festive and busiest times of the year.
In Canada, only Quebec City knows how to celebrate that.
The reusable filter for my Keurig coffee filter broke, I looked at Wally’s World and they wanted 20 damn dollars…..checked Ebay and ordered a two-pack for 3 buck with free shipping…. by air…. was here in a week. Was an exact match for the one that came with machine.
Best Buy will price match from Canadian online retailers including Amazon and stock in the company is up 40% ytd as they are a company that has learned to compete in the new economy. As long as price and availability are comparable I will shop local as there are benefits if problems arise with purchase.
Have been less successful with items from the states mainly because of Canada Customs. I had to return a faulty item and had no problems with the retailer but Customs would not release it unless I paid duty again despite having the paperwork to show it was warranty replacement. They based it on the value of the item not that it came at no cost to me. After a few letters back and forth I finally said screw it—–I’ll get them next time I drive across the line.
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