Campbell Premier In Next Provincial Election- Never

By Ben Meisner

There is a growing feeling in the province by those who cover provincial politics that Premier Gordon Campbell will not be the leader of the party going into the next provincial election.

Paul Wilcox, of The Victoria Times Colonist goes so far as to say,” absolutely no way Campbell will run again”. You never can say never, but given the next few scenarios it is safe to say Wilcox’s prediction is on solid ground.

The Olympics will be a grand hoorah for the Premier. The budget is coming in March and expect it to be a cost cutting one in which a large number of jobs will be cut, costs in most departments will be cut, and the province will be digging under every stone to find some money to pay for the 2010 bills and in particular the cost overruns for the security.

Now marry that up with the introduction of the HST and you have grounds for a divorce, but there is more.

The Premier already finds himself facing a voting public that is not happy in the election pitch that the deficit will be no larger than,”495,000,000”, and not a squeak about the introduction of the HST even though the Federal Government was talking about it in March, long before the provincial election.

But there is more, if and you must ,”if” the Basi- Virk trial gets under way , expect a lot of old dirty laundry to make its way to the surface. The sale of BC Rail is like an old dog stretched out on the floor, you just never know when, or  if he will bite you.

So unless the economy shows signs like it has just won the Lotto 649, unless the 2010 is such a success that all of the people of the province forget about the bill they have just received, and unless somehow the Premier is able to convince the public that the HST is going to lead us all out of the economic problems that we have, Wilcox is on the money

Tomorrow a look at who the possible successors might  be.

I’m Meisner and that’s one man’s opinion.

Email | Print | Facebook | Twitter | Digg | Del.icio.us