B.C. MLAs banned from holding municipal office after bill passes

1 month_ago 14

British Columbia

The caller law, supported by the NDP and Green parties, prevents provincial politicians from besides serving connected section governments.

Langley-Walnut Grove MLA volition beryllium removed from her presumption connected municipal council

Michelle Gomez · CBC News

· Posted: May 28, 2025 7:55 PM EDT | Last Updated: 8 hours ago

A pistillate with glasses and brownish hairsbreadth stands with a antheral with grey hairsbreadth and glasses. They clasp a B.C. Conservative Party motion that reads Misty Van Popta.

A caller instrumentality passed connected Tuesday bans B.C. MLAs from concurrently holding bureau successful section governments, specified arsenic serving connected a council, a schoolhouse oregon parkland committee oregon arsenic a mayor.

The Eligibility to Hold Public Office Act is expected to person royal assent and go instrumentality connected Thursday.

Any MLAs volition beryllium removed from their section elected bureau arsenic of that day.

Misty Van Popta serves arsenic some the Conservative MLA for Langley-Walnut Grove and a councillor for the Township of Langley.

"The information that this measure is effectual instantly means that it's a targeted attack, and it's disappointing," said Van Popta on Wednesday.

"As an MLA, I person been present the 14 hours a time conscionable similar everyone else. I'm intelligibly doing this occupation 100 per cent."

Van Popta said successful her municipality, being a councillor is simply a part-time position, and galore of her co-councillors person abstracted full-time jobs.

The measure was brought guardant by Esquimalt-Colwood MLA Darlene Rotchford, supported by the NDP and Greens and opposed by the Conservatives.

"MLAs should beryllium focused connected their enactment successful the legislature, not splitting their clip and absorption portion collecting 2 taxpayer-funded salaries," said Rotchford successful a Wednesday quality release.

Rotchford says she resigned her spot connected Esquimalt assembly erstwhile she became an MLA.

"I emotion the radical successful my assemblage and ran for this full-time occupation to correspond and enactment them."

Denis Pilon, a authorities prof astatine York University, said determination is already a instrumentality successful spot to forestall politicians from holding national and provincial seats, truthful it is logical that the instrumentality should besides use to municipal positions.

"You can't clasp 2 positions astatine erstwhile and bash justness to both. And you surely can't bash justness to the radical who request the practice you're expected to beryllium providing," Pilon said.