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EDITORIAL

Our myopic ‘fathers’

M onday this week an historic Federal-Provincial confer-

ence opened in Ottawa to begin preliminary discussion on

a new, or drastically revised constitution for Canada’s second century.

In opening this constitutional conference, attended by all provincial

premiers, including B.C.’s ‘‘prime minister’ W.A.C. Bennett, Prime

Minister Lester Pearson stated ‘‘what is at stake here . . . is no less
than Canada’s survival as a nation”.

That warning was probably more true than even the PM knew,
certainly more conscious of the gravity and importance of the vital
issues before the conference than the smug village-pump sound-offs
that have come:so far from the ‘prime minister” of B.C. and his “‘me
too’’ attorney-general Bonner.

When it comes to providing U.S. monopoly with big chunks of
B.C.’s rich natural resources at giveaway prices for a fast buck, our
“prime minister’? rates high among Canada’s monopoly brokers,
(although he frequently got clipped at that game too by his Yankee
buyers, as in the case of the Columbia River giveaway), but when it
comes to accepting the reality of an independent and sovereign French-
Canadian nation within the constitutional framework of an independent
two-nation Canada, this B.C. caricature of a new confederation
“father’’ might just as well have stayed at home. —

When Bennett refers to a nation of over six million French
Canadians who were building Canada 250-years before the
Confederation of 1867 as “hyphenated Canadians, he merely
demonstrates a colossal ignorance, rendered all the more dangerous by
the power and authority an accident of history has vested in him.

Bennett wants no tinkering with the colonial-vintage BNA. With
WAC what was good enough for grandfather is good enough for him. To
him whatever “‘rights’ are or have been conceded to Quebec under
the BNA are sufficient. As for French Canadian language and culture
in B.C., pooh, pooh, ‘‘we’re all one happy people here’. There’s a
kernel of truth here; if Bennett’s consistent whittling down of English
educational needs in B.C. is any criterion, French-Canadian language
and culture would fare very badly indeed under Socredia!

And if all that weren’t bad enough, what of the New Democratic
Party Opposition leader, Robert Strachan?

To date we have heard very little from Strachan that differs in any
large measure from the mouthings of Messrs. Bennett, Bonner and Co.
on the vital issues of French Canada and the Canadian confederation.
Mr. Strachan believes that Quebec must be confined to its provincial
status; that any concessions, grants, etc. from the central government
should apply “‘equally”’ to all provinces. This implies (with Bennett)
that a little tinkering with the BNA might be permissible — but nothing
more. '

The NDP leader of the Opposition seemingly fails to understand,
along with Bennett, that sovereign independence for French Canada,
and full equality with English-speaking Canada, — a “right to fight for
that right’, is not possible without very drastically revising, or better
still scrapping a ‘‘Made-in-England’’ colonial constitution, which
denies French Canada those fundamental basic rights within a two-
nation Canadian state, and now threatens its survival.

In brief, Strachan is just as far away from the realities of this vital
“fork” in Canada’s road to national survival as Bennett is. In fact
further, since the working people of B.C. expect a greater measure of
constructive leadership, while from WAC they generally expect the
worst — and are seldom disappointed.

oa

‘West Coast edition, Canadian Tribune

Editor—TOM McEWEN
Published weekly at Ford Bldg., Mezzanine No. 3, 193 E. Hastings St.,
Vancouver 4, B.C. Phone 685-5288.

Associate Editor—MAURICE RUSH

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© Wribune

. Making sector of the utility, gas and
electricity, which last year netted .

CALLS FOR PUBLIC ACTION

Tax hike on city

homes

Unnecessary, says Rankin

By ALD. H. RANKIN

Vancouver taxpayers are being
brainwashed. They’re being told that
the city’s financial situation is the
worst in living memory and that the
result may be a 25 percent increase
in taxes. The purpose of this line is to
condition them to expect the worst.

This is what is called the
“‘softening-up process.’’ Then when
it is finally announced that the actual
increase will be ‘‘only’ 10 or 15
percent, everyone will (they hope)
heave a sigh of relief and accept the
increase as a necessary evil.

In my opinion there doesn’t have to
be any hike at all in taxes on homes
this year. It can be avoided if City
Council and the provincial
government will act to protect
homeowners.

Whether or not this happens
depends upon what tax payers and
tenants are prepared to do about it.

Here is what the situation is right
now.

City expenses are going up.
Council’s finance committee
estimates that our 1968 budget-will
be up $9.6 million over last year. It’m
sure this can be pared down
considerately. We can’t afford, for
‘instance, to increase the police force
by 56 men as demanded by the police
commission. And Council should
rescind its ill-advised decision to
donate another $500,000 to the PNE
for the new coliseum.

However, even if we pare our
estimates to the bone, our budget for
1968 is still likely to exceed that of
1967. _

Then there is the school budget, up
$4.8 million compared to last year.
How much this will boost our mill
rate depends on what increases, if
any, the provincial government will
make in educational and homeowner

grants.

With all of these increased
expenses, how can a jump in the mill
rate be avoided? There are two
ways.

e FIRST and foremost is the need
for the provincial government to

increase its educational grants to
Vancouver and to share with our
citizens some of the money it
collects here. The province should
rebate to the city at least 50 percent
of the profits from the sale of liquor,
gasoline taxes and motor vehicle
licences.

e SECONDLY, Council can
redistribute the property tax burden
in Vancouver by compelling big
commercial and industrial interests
to pay a fair share of taxes. The eight
percent business tax is far too low
and assessments on big properties
are too often far below market value.
Shaughnessy Golf Course, for
example, is assessed at $1,020,000,
yet the CPR is asking $2.75 million
for this piece of property!

My proposal is that we establish.a
system of two mill rates — one rate
for commercial and industrial
properties, and a second and lower
rate for residential properties.
Toronto and Winnipeg have such a
double mill rate system and they
work out fine.

The mill rate for commercial and
industrial properties should be 10
mills higher than for residential
properties.

If provincial grants are
substantially increased and if big
commercial and industrial
properties pay taxes more in line
with their income, then taxes on your
homes need not go up at all.

But this will come about only as a
result of a lot of pressure on both
levels of government by concerned
citizens. Your letters, phone calls
and delegations can influence the
outcome. Vancouver needs a new tax
deal from the province, and
homeowners need a tax break from
City Council.

Tell them in no uncertain terms ,
what you want. They are there to
carry out your wishes.

City Communists urge
takeover of transit, utilities

By CHARLES CARON

Pressure against the Bennett-
Socred cut-back on. schools and
social needs is mounting. But up
until now the only outcome from this
pressure has been a show of ‘fancy
footwork on the part of the
government while they continue to
follow the same policy.

In the Lieutenant-Governor’s
address an announcement was made
that the government would slow
down construction on its pet project
— hydro — but belatedly, after it had
raided every trust fund in its
custody.

An ominous portend for the future,
outlined in the throne speech, was
the proposal for the establishment of
a Lower Mainland Transit Authority.
When the Provincial government
took; over the B.C. Electric, this
included the transit system. Since
the expiry of the transit franchise .
1966, every effort has been made ti
dump the transit system on the
taxpayers of Vancouver. Premier
Bennett went so far as to offer the
transit assets, — running stock, and
terminal, valued in the neighborhood
of $27 millions — for $1.00.

The catch is that the transit
operates at a loss. In 1963 it lost $1.4
million. In 1966, the loss for the
Lower Mainland and Vancouver
Island was $3 million. Under the
B.C.E.R. utility structure these
losses were covered by the profit-

boa be

over $9 million. Bennett's goal is still
to unload the transit system which
continues to operate at a deficit, and
to retain the lucrative hydro and gas
distribution of this inter-locked
utility.

He is trying to achieve the
foregoing under the pretext of
economy by the Provincial
government and simultaneously
convey the illusion of control of the
utility by those using the transit
system. The Communist party in
Vancouver calls on the city council
to reject this swindle by the Socred
Government. We propose:

1. Vancouver city council initiate

plan for

a Lower Mainland conference 0
municipalities to establish a Lower
Mainland Utility Authority.

2. That this conference demand
the Provincial government take over
ownership of gas.

3. That distribution of gas,
electricity and the ownership and
operation of a rapid transit system
be undertaken by a Lower Mainland
Utility Authority.

4. To guarantee that the benefits
from the operation of these utilities
accrue to the people we call for
representation of labor and
ratepayer organizations on such a
Utility Authority.

School freeze brings crisis

A petition has been launched by the Parent Teacher’s Association in
School District No. 43, Coquitlam, demanding that the provincial government
‘lift the freeze on school construction. PTA’s are taking the petition door to
door and asking all residents to also write to their MLAs and Minister of

Education Peterson.

The petition says that accommodation for school children in District No. 43
“has reached the crisis stage.’’ It estimates that unless immediate approval
is given by Victoria for construction of projects needed approximately 5,000
children will be on shift in September, 1968 in the District.

The petition points out that unless school construction, which was endorsed
by a ratepayers in a recent referandum is approved, it is estimated that 10,500
children in District No. 43 will be on shifts by September, 1969.

Particularly hard hit are Junior and Secondary Schools. Chairman of the
School Board recently indicated that double and possibly triple shifts will be

necessary next year.

All PTA’s in the province have been called upon by the B.C. Parent-Teacher
Federation to join in a mass lobby to Victoria on Wednesday, Feb. 14 to take
up with the government and MLA’s the crisis in our schools. Many buses are

~ expected to take parents to Victoria for the one-day lobby... .. .. 2... ...505