ale

The Property Tax Forum that stopped in Terrace _.

last week stated after a few meetings previous to’ this:

one that they were tired of hearing from sclicol
trustees and others involved in public education issues.
Finance Minister Mel Couvelier implied that these peo-

ple are a bunch of spoilsports taking the spotlight...

away from ‘‘Joe Taxpayer’’ (what about Josephine?), *

under orchestration from the provincial associations -—
for trustees and teachers. In Terrace Marilyn Baker, a
forum member and president of the Union of B.C. —
Municipalities, said trustees should organize their own
“road show’’, and Couvelier suggested they’d already
had their kick at the cat during last year’s Royal Com-

- mission on Education hearings.

There is a message here that this group would ob-. |

viously rather not hear. The funding of public educa-. —

tion in this province is set up in such a manner that
residential property taxes are inextricably bound up ©
with the school system, and ministers of the Crown -
who choose to ignore that while trying to analyze the
taxation system aren’t really doing much of a service
to anyone. Couvelier’s half-hearted defense of the
government’s 24 percent increase in education spend-
ing over the past three years isn’t much of an answer
to ratepayers who have seen their property taxes go up
by triple that percentage and more.

School District 88 trustee Edna Cooper made a tell-

ing point at the forum by pointing out that the public —

education system is now involved in areas fax beyond
basic education — “‘it’s not just education, it’s care’’. .

li?s all paid for through taxation in one form or
another, of course. Perhaps the reason for concern
over property taxes is that it’s such a blunt and honest
type of taxation: you get a bill (indecipherable as it
may be), and you go down to. city hall and ‘pay it. We
imagine there would be rather less concern if (not that,
we're advocating this) property taxes were paid |.
through some kind of withholding system, like income’.
tax, at a rate slightly above the actual rate of taxation.
At the end of the year you get a refund. Less painful,
more sinister. | —

A better way would be to return all ora portion of
taxation powers on non-residential property (and
perhaps even industrial machinery, now that we're out.
of the recession).to local government, with an
equivalent reduction in provincial taxing authority on
those same classes. At least we’d have a clearer idea of

' where the money’s coming from and more control

over how it’s spent.

‘0

ae

reese

‘. VECTORIA — Former B.C.
Premier Bill Bennett intends to
write about his life in the
political hot seat... but not yet.

Although I had an interesting
and engaging 75-minute conver-
sation with him.in Kelowna last

- Wednesday, the publishing of

his memoirs was the only area

it was agreed could be on the
record, The rest was fas-.

cinating, believe me,-but a

deal’s a deal.

_ Tanned, fit and at ease, and

looking:at least five years ©

nett said timing of its release .
was the most important aspect
of any book about his life with
father W.A.C. Bennett and of
his 10 years as premier.

Second-class mall

Established May 1, 1985
registration No. 6896.

The Terrace Review |s published

each Wednesday by _ Ail material appearing In the Terrace Review is

Close-Up Business Services Ltd. — protected under Canadian copyright Registre:
; | ' flan "No. 362775 and cannot fegally be repro-
‘ duced for any reason without permission of the

publisher.
Publisher: Errors and omissions. Adverilaing Is accepted
Mark Twyford on the condition that in the event. of
Editor: typographical errar, that portion of the advartia:
or. ing space occupled by the erroneous. {tam will
Michael Kelly nat be charged for. pul tha balance of ihe axiver-
; w ald for at ihe applica _
a Staff Reporter: Advertisers must, assume responsibility tor or
C."Yed Strachan : fore in any classified ad which Is supplied to the
; . race win handwritten :

- Advertising Manager: in compliance with the B.C. Human Alghts Act,
Mar] Twyford no advertisement will ba pubtished which
Typesattin g: discriminates against a person dus to age, race,

' raligion, color, sex, nationality, ancestry or place
Carrie Olson of origin. :
Production wnager: 4535 Greig Avenue,
Produstion: | Nga iMr
Charles Costello, “Phone: 635-7840
_Gurbax Gill, Fern Lincoin |  Paone:
Se -fflost > Past 635-7268
Carrie Olson Ome ear eunaetpiion:
:. Accounting: Cuneds 42.00
Mar] Twyford - Out of Canada $80.00

Senior In Terrace and District $12.00

.. Harminder Dosanjh.
aa Seniors cut of Terrace and District $15.00

‘If you go too early with
such a project, you are always
trying to fight the last battle
over again. Too late, and no
one is interested.” Bennett said
former deputy prime minister

Erik Nielsen had probably gone
too's00n with his memoirs, -.
when later on-they.might have
had greater impact and might
have been written a tad dif-
ferently.

The affable former premier
said although he had not com-
mitted absolutely to producing
a book, there had been several
overtures from assorted jour-
nalists and political hangers-on
who wanted to help him to
‘write it.

_ “| have kept plenty of notes
and my files... and I would ex-
pect that 10 years is about the.
right time,"* said Bennett. —

won't have to wait until 1996
— I’m betting he has it rolling
off the presses within three or

- The view from

“py John Plfer —

younger than his 57 years, Ben-

Chances are, though, that you .

four years.

To his credit, Bennett con-
tinues to keep to his pledge -
made when he resigned in early

1986 — that he will not talk’

for the record about the reign
of his successor, Bill Vander
Zalm. .

Pity, —

You may find this hard to
believe, dear readers, but 1.
have considerable empathy for
Vander Zalm’s plight, vis-a-vis
the crucial by-election in the
Cariboo on Sept. 20.

With at least four prominent

- Socreds who fancy themselves

as Premier hovering like
vultures waiting to pick over —
his bones if he loses, Vander

‘Zalm must feel more embattled

than ever before in his three
years as. The Boss. (For those
of you needing a scorecard, the
aforementioned quartet still ac-

- tively campaigning behind the

scenes are Attorney-General

-Bud Smith; former Cabinet

minister Grace McCarthy,

Speaker John Reynolds and

Finance Minister Mel
Couvelier, in order. of slather-

-ing eagerness, ambition and an-

ticipation).

' Couple with that the divisive
split in the party in the region,
thanks to the bitterness from
the family and friends of the
late MLA Alex Fraser, and
things couldn’t get much worse
for Vander Zalm.

And as Vancouver Province
coluninist Brian Kieran so aptly

- pointed out recently, another

Socred liability is the other

~ member for the Cariboo, Neil

Vant. The appointment of the.

- “polyester preacher” (Kieran’s -

phrase) as highways minister to
replace the King ef the Cariboo
_ was the greatest insult to
Fraser’s legacy of hard work ..
and loyal dedication.
Vant, who bears an uncanny
resemblance to TV’s Mr. Dress-
up.in manner and appearance,
should not survive a Cabinet
shuffle if it is held after the by-
- election. He has hardly shone ~
in the portfolio. - =
If, however, Vander Zalm
decides to damn the torpedoes
and go full speed ahead with
Cabinet changes before Sept. —
20, Vant likely will survive, at
least for a while, because of the
vote there. ©
With pundits already predict-
ing a real horse race in -
Cariboo, and saying that the
Premier would have no choice
but to step down if the Socreds
lose, maybe Vander Zalm  ‘-
_should fight with any ammu- »
nition he can muster. And I
suggest that a wholesale
Cabinet shake-up, rewarding.
those who deserve it and dump- :
ing those who should be axed, i
would be quite a cannon for :
him to fire across the bows of
his own Socred ship of state.
- . Such a gutsy move sure
would make them all sit up and
take notice, and might well =. a
‘garner some extra votes among ;
the strong-minded peoplé of.
the Cariboo, De
Stay tuned.

_ While in Penticton earlier in
the week, I discussed the  ~
Cariboo vote with each of the
Boundary-Similkameen MLAs
_— Socred Ivan Messmer and
_ NDPer Bill Barlee, Their dual -

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