Premier David Eby’s new cabinet, announced on Wednesday, is in many ways a mirror image of Eby himself — youthful, idealistic, and in some respects untried.
Eby, of course, is no novice. He was attorney general for five years.
But there is a world of difference between being No. 2 or No. 3, and holding the top job. As well, he follows in the footsteps of one of the most popular premiers in recent B.C. history.
For several years John Horgan led all his provincial counterparts with ratings rarely seen. Horgan managed this by combining a pleasant and relaxed personality with non-ideological, straightforward polices. Not an easy act to follow.
Eby’s most immediate challenge was how to fill the three lead ministries, health, attorney general and finance. Each of these lies at the centre of the most urgent issues facing the new administration, though health takes first place.
Surprisingly perhaps, the current health minister, Adrian Dix, stays on. We say “surprisingly” because Dix has endured the toughest five years ever to confront a health minister since the Second World War. If ever someone needed a rest, it is Dix.
Part of the reason may lie in the fact that, not being a lawyer, he couldn’t be attorney general, and finance always looked like a long shot. Yet these are the only two portfolios that would not have been seen as a demotion had he been moved.
The principal issue confronting the new attorney general, Niki Sharma from Vancouver-Hastings, is how to respond to the growing presence of random street violence.
Eby has already promised to spend an additional $230 million to help fill vacancies in rural RCMP detachments and to strengthen specialized police units. That should help.
Yet there is also the reality that B.C.’s Crown prosecution service has a reputation for being reluctant to bring charges in any but the most serious cases.
In April the B.C. Urban Mayors Caucus wrote to Eby, complaining that too often, “individuals who are routinely arrested by police … are either not charged and/or promptly released on bail, often without any conditions.”
The challenge facing the new attorney general then is to bring about a mind shift in a prosecutorial service known for its fierce independence. Sharma has her work cut out for her.
In another surprise move, the finance minister, Selina Robinson, has been dropped, though she stays in cabinet as post-secondary education minister. Her replacement is Katrine Conroy, MLA for Kootenay West.
This seemed unlikely, because Robinson had presided over a huge turnaround in the province’s finances, from a deficit of $5.5 billion two years ago, to an estimated surplus of $5.7 billion this year.
While some of that recovery had nothing to do with government actions, nevertheless Conroy will do well to match it.
All seven of Vancouver Island’s cabinet ministers stay on, though several were moved. With roughly a quarter of the cabinet seats, that gives the Island a strong voice.
If there is a criticism to be made in this shuffle, it lies in Eby’s tendency to distribute the most important responsibilities between several ministries. Thus there are three ministers with a say about child services, two with a role in combatting climate change, and two with responsibilities for health care.
Arrangements like these invite bureaucratic infighting while minimizing accountability. In none of these fields can anyone say where the buck stops.
There’s been speculation that Eby may be quietly considering an early election call, perhaps as soon as next September.
He’s denied any such intent, and formally speaking the next general election is set for the fall of 2024.
However, if his new team does well, the proof of the pudding may be a trip to the polls less than a year from now.
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