COMMUNISTS ADVANCE. PROPOSALS

Legislature must act on people’s needs

By NIGEL MORGAN

he second Session of British

Columbia’s twenty - seventh
Legislature will open in Victoria
on Thursday, January 21st. All
indications point to it Setting a
record for fireworks, if not for
duration too, ~

With ayearof flushing econom-
ic activity, and an overwhelming

majority in the House of 33So- °

cred MLAs to the opposition’s
14 N,D,P, and five Liberals, the

government would appear to be —

in a strong position,

On the other hand, the winds
of revolt are gathering gale-
force proportions around such
popular issues as bus fare in-
creases, the new auto insurance
rate hike, forest - management
giveaways and the municipal tax
crisis. Notable is the way eco-
nomic struggles have taken on*®
an intense political character
this past year,

Premier Bennett’s 1965 budget
is expected to climb over the $420
million mark, Provincial rev-
enues are soaring tonew heights,
So new tax measures would ap-
pear as unnecessary, as relief
from present burdens is unlikely
from the present Big Business
government,

e

What will the big issues be at
this Session? Certainly thereare
plenty of highly explosive ques-
tions for the opposition to sink
their teeth into,

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To mention but a few of the
questions that appear likely to
trigger lengthy and heated de-
bate, there is: the Socred’s re-
sources policy (forest licences,
natural gas exports, mineral
grants covering locked -out
mines); the new U,S, Parson’s
Plan to drain B,C, water re-
sources to the U,S,; dissatisfac-
tion with B.C, Hydro’s utility
rates and transit fares; profit-
eering and price-fixing of the oil
and petroleum industry; popular
clamor for public-takeover of the
auto insurance and B,C, Tele-
phone monopoly; medicare and
pensions plans; welfare and hos-
pital financing (especially facili-
ties for nursing and chronic
care); Vancouver N,P,A, admin-
istration’s City Charter amend-
ment to restrict civic democracy;
criticisim of the Socred cutback

of the ‘winter works program’;
and the big question of increased
financial grants to the munici-
palities,

While it appears unlikely at
this time that the expected open-
ing of the Workmen’s Compen-
sation Act, or the Labor Rela-

Ends Sat., Jan. 23

VANCOUVER 3, B.C.

OK STORE

Phone MU 5-5836

tions Act will materialize—four
major pieces of legislation are
known to be underway, These are
overhaul of the Public School’s
Act; new expropriation legisla-
tion in line with the Clyne Com-
mission report; a new parks act,
to deal with commercial devel-
opment within provincial park
reserves; and enabling legisla-
tion which will ditch the Ray
Commission’s recommendation
of metro government in favor of
joint-service boards and even-
tual amalgamation, will beintro-
duced, ,

OBITUARIES.

ARTHUR WILCOX
Arthur Wilcox, well-known
trade unionist, member of the
Communist. Party and a strong
supporter of the working class
press, passed away suddenly at
Thompson Lake, Manitoba, from

‘a heart attack, on December 28,

1964,

Wilcox came to Canada from
England and went to work at
Kitimat where he was active in
the steelworkers’ union. He later
moved to Vancouver where he be-
came active in the electrical
workers’ union, playing a prom-
inent part in the fight for pro-
gressive policies,

He married his wife, Dorothy,
about three years ago before
leaving for Thompson Lake in
Manitoba, where he played ama-
jor role in organizing the Mine
Mill local there, becoming its
president,

ROGER WRIGHT
Following a long illness from
a liver disorder, Roger Wright
of Vancouver passed away last
week in the General Hospital in
his 39th year,

Born in New Westminster, Mr,
Wright served overseas with the
Canadian forces in World War
II, He was a member of the En-
gineers’ Union, and took an active

part in all peace efforts and in °

the promotion of a progressive

‘labor press,

The deceased was a member
of the West End Club of the
Communist party and took akeen
interest in all club activity,

At the funeral services Harold
Pritchett of Burnaby paid a high
tribute to the work of Roger
Wright during his brief life span,
The deceased is survived by his
father and mother, both resident
in the New Westminster area,

Smarting under the Federal
challenge to B,C,’s ‘off-shore oil
rights,’ and the Senate rejection
of the Bank of B,C, plan, it is
considered likely that Premier
Bennett may introduce legisla-
tion to provide for “treasury
branches,” “trust companies” or
some “near-bank” forms if for
no other reason than to strength-
en his hand with Ottawa,

Government takeover of auto
insurance and the telephone utili-
ty; medicare; drastic amendment
to the Forest Act to halt grow-
ing monopolization of B,C, forest
resources; and proposals to im-
prove labor and social legislation
are expected to figure prominent-

_ ly in the N,D,P,’s legislative
program,

Plans for a vigorous campaign
around the forthcoming Session
of the Legislature are now being
readied by the B,C, Provincial
Executive of the Communist
Party, In line with a brief which
MLAs will find on their desks
on Throne Speech Day, the Com-
munist Party will campaign
around these demands; (1) A new
economic policy (utiliaztion of
resources for the benefit of our
people; development of industry
and manufacturing; a program to
protect and assist agriculture;
public ownership of profiteering
monopolies in oil, phone and
auto insurance; expansion of
trading opportunities through
policies of peaceful coexistence
and ending of U.S, military and
political interference), (2) In-
creased aid to municipalities to
cut municipal taxes; improved
civic services, hospital and
school facilities; and preserve
and extend civic democracy, (3)
Reduction of utility rates and
transit fares, (4) Increased pro-
visions for welare and chronic
care hospitals; medicare cover-
age and support for B,C, par-
ticipation in the new National
Pension Plan, (5) Labor legis-
lation to guarantee job protection

Women back students |

he Women Against High

Prices Committee fully en-
dorses the protest actions of B,C,
High School students and univer-
sity students against the exhor-
bitant increase in student transit
fares,

the |
LEGISLATURE

1130 K.C.
6:55 P.M.
C K WX SUNDAYS

COMMUNIST PARTY’S
WEEKLY RADIO
COMMENTARY

by NIGEL MORGAN

the coming session of the Pro-

ss

NIGEL MORGAN, B.C. Communist -
Party leader, whose popular radio
program, ‘‘The Legislature and You,”
will be heard again every Sunday on
CKWX (1130 KC) at 6:55 p.m. The
broadcast will be on throughout the
coming session of the Legislature.

in face of growing mechanization
and automation; retrain and re-
locate laid-off workers; to pro-
vide the maximum 40-hour week
and $1.50 per hour minimum
wage; repeal of Bills 42, 43 and
123 and substitution of a Bill of
Labor Rights which would elim-—
inate entirely all elements of
compulsory arbitration; and en-
actment of Workmen’s Compen:.
sation Act changes (such as in-
creased time-loss payment to
80% of earnings) on which there
is almost unanimous agreement,

Main aim of the Communist
Party will be the development
of broad anti-monopoly unity to
halt the Socreds’ resources give-
aways, curb monopoly profiteer-_
ing and provide for the people’s
needs, In addition to the brief
to the MLAs, which willbe widely —
circulated to labor and farm or- —
ganizations, a weekly “report to —
the people from the Legislature” —
will be provided. over Radio
CKWX every Sunday night at
6:55 p.m,

Mrs, Elaine Podovinnikoff, —
speaking for the group, said that :
the actions of the students sharply
pointed up the position of the
WAHP Brief to the Public Utili- :
ties Commission in August, 1964 —
which said “that a bus fare in- —
crease would place real: hard- :
ship on those least able to carry
extra financial burdens,”

She. further pointed out: that
while the students took the initi-
ative in the most recent protest —
against fare increases, the ques-
tion of transit fares remains a
problem for all sections of the
population, and that individuals
and organizations need to public-
ly protest against the increase,

Mrs, Podovinnikoff also stated
that as the WAHP Committee is
concerned with all aspects of the
high cost of living, a Women’s
Lobby will go to Victoria during

vincial Legislature toseek action —
to remove the 5% sales tax on
essentials, :

Mrs, Podovinnikoff invites any
women interested in the work of —
the committee to contact her at
YU 17-4585; Mrs, Vi. Cameron
at HE 4-5955, or Mrs, Shirley —
Marcine at YU 7-6252,

January 15, 1965—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 2