Wednesday October 30, 2024 | VICTORIA, BC [Updated October 31, 2024 & November 1, 2024]
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Even though the Speaker’s role has prestige and a good additional paycheque (over and above being an MLA), in this new barely-a-majority BC NDP government it would also be one of the toughest jobs in the BC Legislative Assembly. And perhaps also short-lived.
All the chatter is about who David Eby will pick as his Speaker. But it’s not an appointment. Whoever does have their name put forward to the House as Speaker will have that honour be subject to a vote of all MLAs.
It seems odd that various names are being thrown around for the Speaker role when nearly everyone around the political realm of the legislature has the name of Raj Chouhan on their lips. Chouhan served as Speaker during 2020 to 2024.
Speaker can be from any party:
The Speaker can be from any party but is usually from the majority party’s side of the legislature. If Eby follows that traditional it would mean that his razor-thin majority of 47 seats would effectively have 46 whipped votes as the Speaker can only vote to break ties.
In some past legislative assemblies there has been an opposite-party speaker such as BC Liberal MLA Darryl Plecas who served as Speaker during 2017-2020 in the John Horgan BC NDP government.
If Eby goes the route of asking a BC Green MLA to be the Speaker then he gives a lot of power to a party with just two seats. That would also leave the BC Greens with just one MLA to be operational on the floor of the house (so the Greens are likely to say no, as they would lose official party status).
If you’ve read this far you’re really into following BC politics. Keep on reading! BC 2024 Election Results | Political News
Speaker, then cabinet, then budget:
The BC Legislature must be back in action by November 5 (by issued Writ), to make MLA certification official.
The judicial recounts in Surrey Guildford and Kelowna Centre will take place a few more days after that.
Eby said yesterday that he will first go through the process of determining a Speaker. The swearing-in ceremony for the MLAs is November 12 or 13. And then Premier Eby will appoint his cabinet.
And then there will be a one-day sitting to elect the Speaker, which will probably be in the third week of November.
Eby had already said earlier this year that the next full sitting of the house would not be until February 2025. So everything seems to be on track, despite all the ups and downs of election results since October 19.
A judicial review of the results in two ridings will be delivered on or before November 12, 2024 (based on timeline rules of elections legislation).
[UPDATE (October 31, 2024): “The BC Supreme Court has confirmed that the judicial recounts in Kelowna Centre and Surrey-Guildford will take place on November 7 and 8. Judicial recounts are conducted by the Court.” ~ Elections BC]
BC Conservative Leader John Rustad — who is now Official Opposition leader — could cause enough disruption in this newly-elected Legislative Assembly that the usual four-year period of the government could be cut short. For now it looks like Eby will in February deliver a budget for 2025-2026. If for whatever reason that Budget does not pass, BC would be plunged back into another election.
Today Eby hosted his first BC NDP caucus meeting with the new MLAs. Only 28 former BC NDP MLAs have returned after the October 19 election.
===== RELATED:
- First day on the new job for Eby & Rustad (October 29, 2024)
- Cabinet possibilities in slim 47-seat BC NDP majority government (Oct 28, 2024)
- Grinding through the process for final BC Election 2024 results over the Oct 26-27 weekend (October 27, 2024)
- NEWS SECTIONS: BC 2024 Election Results | Political News