It was announced today that BC Place is indeed getting the new retractable roof it so desperately needs.  The $458 million project will be complete in 2011.  This is great news!

Why do I support this project? Check out this short video I put up in early October.

By Janet Steffenhagen - Vancouver Sun – 9 Oct 2009

Former education minister Christy Clark’s interview with current minister Margaret MacDiarmid on CKNW radio today is definitely worth a listen. (Find it on NW’s audio vault just after 1 p.m or Click Play > on the bar just below the photo to the left.)

The feisty Clark began her interview by asking the minister about a letter protesting Liberal education funding that was sent to her this week by the presidents of the B.C. School Trustees’ Association, the B.C. Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils, the B.C. Teachers’ Federation and the Canadian Union of Public Employees.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Click Play > to listen to the interview and caller questions.

In particular, Clark challenged MacDiarmid on whether the education budget this year was sufficient to cover negotiated salary increases for teachers. “You aren’t even funding the increases to the teachers’ salaries that your government imposed on them,” she insisted, although MacDiarmid said that was wrong.
Read the rest of this entry »

A former provincial deputy premier has sharply criticized B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell over his plans for introducing a harmonized sales tax.

Christy Clark told CBC News on Thursday that she thought it was “sneaky” of the Campbell government to announce the HST after the May provincial election.

Clark said it seems impossible the tax wasn’t contemplated before the spring ballot.

“I just don’t think it’s possible that that could be the case,” said Clark, who was appointed deputy premier by Campbell in 2001. She quit provincial politics in 2005.

B.C. Finance Minister Colin Hansen has said the HST was not on the Liberals’ radar until after the election.

Clark said business groups and senior financial officials had recommended a harmonized sales tax for years but the Campbell government said nothing until July.
Read the rest of this entry »

You’ll find it in figureheads, puppet masters, mediators and dictators. There’s no mistaking it: power.

Once upon a time, it was easy to pinpoint; spot the loudest, proudest white man in a suit and you’d likely find an organization’s key decision maker. It’s not so simple anymore.

Power has been divided and diluted throughout organizations. Leadership is being nurtured in ­innovative ways and as a result, power has a new face.

A new generation is set to take over as the boomers’ careers crest, and the concept of women leading in the workplace has gone from unthinkable to mandatory.

So who has the power now? How do they wield it? What is expected of them? How can organizations adapt to these changes? BCBusiness gathered a panel of experts to find some answers.

Christy Clark is a former B.C. MLA who has served as deputy premier, minister of education and minister for children and families, and now hosts the Christy Clark Show on CKNW.

Karin Kirkpatrick is the director of the Centre for CEO Leadership at UBC’s Sauder School of Business, a project that provides peer support and education to top executives.

Lisa Ryan is a senior consultant for Mica Interna-tional Inc. specializing in talent management and leadership training. She has developed programs for companies such as Best Buy Canada Ltd., Canaccord Capital Corp., Ballard Power Systems Inc. and the Government of Yukon.

BCBusiness: In politics there are lots of maneuverings where, at the end of the day, somebody’s idea or vision wins out. Christy, what qualities does it take to succeed in that sort of power situation?

Christy Clark: It’s not the things that you do every day that everybody else does that sets you apart. It’s all the behind-the-scene things; it’s the dinners, it’s the friendships, it’s the favours. So all of those relationships you create are critically important. Then it’s the ability to be persuasive, whether that’s making trade-offs with somebody else who has a little bit of power or just being able to make a good argument. But power is only what people perceive you have, and if people think you make a lot of bad judgments, they don’t care about you anymore. If people stop caring about you, you don’t have any power.
Read the rest of this entry »

Fiery radio comments spark cries of racism, calls for removal

Calls for the dismissal of Bruce Allen from a key position on the 2010 Olympics ceremonies committee continued yesterday following a storm of controversy over the concert promoter’s radio comments — comments some have labelled as racist.

“He is a person who will have important influence in the opening and closing ceremonies and, judging from his comments, I don’t think he will reflect Canadian values,” said MLA Harry Bains, the NDP Olympics critic, last night.

“His comments are very, very disappointing and have left a lot of people angry,” added Bains.

“He is not the right person to be representing Canadian values at our opening and closing ceremonies and if he has any influence we will be embarrassed.”
Read the rest of this entry »