The Speaker of the Legislature is defending a decision made behind closed doors to give transitional allowances of 127-thousand dollars to MLA’s who are recalled.
The decision was approved by both Liberal and NDP MLA’s on the legislative assembly management committee in February of 2011.
Speaker Blll Barisoff says the committee decided the transtional funds that already go to retiring or defeated MLA’s should also go to any who were recalled by voters.
“MLA’s have difficulty finding a job and in the case of cabinet ministers they have more of an extreme difficulty because they can’t do a lot of things for the first two years.”
But Barisoff says in hindsight, the transitional payments should be made on a case by case basis, noting an MLA who is recalled for criminal activity for example should not qualify….but for now, that policy remains in place.
B-C’s Premier says she hasn’t had a chance to talk to the committee yet that made the vote.
Christy Clark says she had no idea the vote had been taken.
“I wasn’t privy to dicussions, so I don’t know what they talked about, why they made the decision, and I don’t have any specific, any personal kind of involvement in it or background on it. But it does sure sound like a lot of money.”
Clark says BC is in a tough economy, and people wouldn’t say that made sense.
But, she stood firm on spending 1.5 million on a party planner for Family Day in February.
“You know I do think it’s important that we help families think about Family Day. And things that they can do on the very first family day.”
The price tag came from the NDP, which Clark dismissed.
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