To the editor:
For decades, BC Hydro has been an important driver of economic development and a publicly owned supplier of low cost, reliable electricity.
That is, until the B.C. Liberals took over running the operation.
They imposed a policy on B.C. Hydro that forced the utility to only buy new electricity supply from private providers in British Columbia. This plan costs ratepayers as much as four times the market rate for electricity.
They also introduced unnecessary requirements to be electricity self-sufficient, boosting the need for such purchases.
With the damage done, BC Hydro was forced to request rate hikes of more than 50 per cent over five years.
The BC Liberals called for a review of B.C. Hydro, released earlier this month. The panel touched on the policy decisions made by the BC Liberal government, but failed to emphasize the magnitude those policy decisions have on electricity rates for British Columbians.
And what was the government's reaction to the report?
Just days before [Premier Christy Clark] would announce her new focus on job creation, Energy Minister Rich Coleman laid the blame on the number of employees at BC Hydro. He argued that up to 1,000 people should lose their jobs, an unfair hit on working families that totally ignores the real problems that led to the rate hikes.
The BC Liberals must revisit the Clean Energy Act and allow for a comprehensive debate on the changes.
The legislature's Crown Corporations Committee should be allowed to meet to explore these issues after sitting dormant for years.
And the B.C. Utilities Commission must be restored to allow for an independent review of smart meters and other major capital projects.
The time has come for a broad discussion about our energy needs for the long-term. Adrian Dix and the New Democrats are prepared to have that discussion.
John Horgan
Juan de Fuca MLA
NDP energy critic
