Premier David Eby has for months been using wartime imagery to describe the threat of American tariffs, calling it “declaration of economic war” and “the most consequential time for our province since the Second World War.”
But it wasn’t until he tabled his government’s new tariff legislation Thursday that we finally understood how serious he was about that metaphor, proposing the most extraordinary law in a generation to give himself unprecedented wartime powers.
Bill 7, the “Economic Stabilization (Tariff Response) Act” basically cuts out the legislature for two years when it comes to making decisions about anything to do with B.C.’s economy. The premier’s cabinet will have the power to amend any law, overwrite any policy, change any regulation, levy any fee, or gather anyone’s personal data with simply the stroke of a pen in a cabinet order.
Gone is the need for pesky public debate on the floor of the people’s house, or votes by the 93 people elected to represent their communities. Instead, one person, heading a 28-person cabinet, gets to marshal the full might of the provincial government and its $95-billion budget at his discretion.
“We see this as emergency legislation,” said Eby.
“This is not everyday legislation, this is not routine legislation, this is in an emergency situation where we need legislative authority, we need government authority to do something quickly to minimize damage to the economy, to people, and an unpredictable action from an unpredictable president.”
Eby said he initially intends to use the powers to prepare fees on trucks travelling through B.C. en route to Alaska, end American contracts with government and lower interprovincial trade barriers.
To their credit, Eby and Attorney General Niki Sharma did not attempt to downplay the severity of what they are proposing. The move would in many ways exceed the authority that government wielded during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“In extraordinary times, we needed these extraordinary powers,” said Sharma.
The checks and balances, though, are few.
Government must twice a year table a report in the legislature outlining what it has done. It can’t override First Nations consultation, or scrap environmental reviews for natural resource projects. The powers expire May 28, 2027.
“This gives the government sweeping powers to basically do anything they want with no oversight,” said Opposition Conservative Leader John Rustad.
The bill was tabled just before the legislature adjourned for a two-week spring break, and will be debated when MLAs return in April.
Voluntary guidance for involuntary care
Another major government priority inched forward this week, as the premier’s top advisor on involuntary care issued new recommendations.
Addictions specialist Dr. Daniel Vigo, who Eby appointed 10 months ago, concluded the doctors need clarity on when and how to detain someone suffering severe drug addictions and mental health trauma, not new legislation. He sent 11 pages of guidanceto all health authorities.
“The law didn’t need to change, what needed to change is the confusion surrounding the interpretation surrounding the law,” said Vigo.
Doctors are not allowed to detain someone suffering drug addiction and treat them against their will, he said. But they are allowed to detain someone for whom drug addiction has contributed to underlining psychosis, mental impairment or brain damage under the Mental Health Act, said Dr. Vigo.
Opposition Conservative MLA Elenore Sturko called it a disappointment, and said it will do nothing to help families concerned about loved ones suffering addiction.
The government hopes to have two involuntary care centres open in prisons later this spring.
Eby said during the election that expanded involuntary care could help deal with visible street disorder and prolific offenders who are in the grips of severe addictions and mental health crises. It’s not clear, however, whether Dr. Vigo’s limited clarity on the existing law will accomplish that political promise.
Tesla, Polling, Columbia River Treaty
- The B.C. government pulled Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc. from being eligible for up to $10,000 in provincial subsidies on EV charging stations, in response to Musk’s close ties with U.S. President Donald Trump and Trump’s threats to annex Canada. “I think that if British Columbians heard that $10,000 in taxpayer money was going to Elon Musk they’d want to throw up,” said Eby. “So we removed them from the program.”
Musk himself noticed the move and called it “crazy” on his social media site X. - The BC NDP holds a slim lead over the BC Conservatives in the latest polling by Research Co., but only one-third of British Columbians surveyed considered Conservative Leader John Rustad to be a “premier-in-waiting.”
- The U.S. government has suspended a deal with B.C. that would have renegotiated the Columbia River Treaty, with Energy Minister Adrian Dix expressing concern that Trump’s consistent attacks on Canada’s sovereignty have imperiled the deal.
- The BC NDP and Greens finalized their confidence agreement on Wednesday. The only changes from the preliminary deal, first announced months ago, was the addition of meaningful consultation with the Greens on government measures to respond to U.S. tariffs, and the inclusion of review of Elections BC’s performance in the 2024 election as part of an all-party committee examining improving democratic participation. The move aligns the two Green MLAs with the NDP on confidence votes, giving the NDP government’s one-seat majority in the legislature an additional buffer of support.
Rob Shaw has spent more than 17 years covering B.C. politics, now reporting for CHEK News and writing for Glacier Media. He is the co-author of the national bestselling book A Matter of Confidence, host of the weekly podcast Political Capital, and a regular guest on CBC Radio.
