VICTORIA – Premier Christy Clark says she’s not about to overhaul British Columbia’s political funding rules despite Opposition moves to ban corporate and union contributions and limit individual contributions.
Clark says she represents all British Columbians and that the amount of money connected to individuals or businesses does not come into play in her government.
Recent media reports say individuals pay thousands of dollars for meetings with the premier, but Clark says she doesn’t walk into meetings with anyone asking how much they donated to her party.
Elections BC financial statements released this week reveal the government received almost $10 million in political contributions last year, while the Opposition New Democrats pulled in $3 million.
NDP Leader John Horgan introduce a private member’s bill to review campaign financing and specifically set limits on individual donations but without government support it cannot become law.
B.C. does not have political contribution limits, but the province’s Election Act establishes limits on the amount of anonymous contributions a candidate, registered constituency association or political party can accept.