ee ee ee SS —— ee "THE second session of British Columbia’s twenty-first legislature will assemble in Victoria on February 11. What will it prodyce in the way of better social and labor legislation? What willwt do to help ease the pressure on thousands of workers, farmers, pensioners and veterans? What will it do to head off the gathering clouds of another depression and assure economic security? These are the questions on the minds of the vast majority of British Colum- bia’s citizens, , A sharp reduction in living Standards has taken place dur- ing the past year, as a result of the federal ardly abandonment of price con- trols. Workers and _ primary producers alike have been sev- €rely hit, and none harder than Pensioners, veterans, govern- ment employees and those on the small fixed income. to eradicate this hardship is de- manded of the coming legisla- tive session. To fail to do so, is to turn into a mockery the things which the people of B.C. rightly expected from a hard- Won victory over fascism — last- ing peace, jobs, homes, economic Security and better social and labor legislation. The year 1947 is a decisive One in the postwar period — it is one in which the Coalition government, with its long list of unfulfilled promises, must be sharply and vigorously prodded into action. High on the list of require- ments of this session is the en- actment of a Labor Code, guar-. anteeing free collective bargain- ing and the right of a labor organization to union security including closed shop and the check-off, clearly defining ‘un- fair labor practices’ and provid- ing severe penalties for employ- €r violations, The long-promised 40-hour week is now overdue, as is a 7-cent an hour minimum wage, &nd the right of every worker to two weeks’ annual vacation with Pay. se The Workmen’s Compensation Act must be amended to pro- vide coverage for all workers, | including domestic, fishery and agricultural employees presently excluded from the act’s benefits. Compensation payments should be increased, a decent allowance Made to widowed mothers and Children of the victims of in- dustrial accidents. \ Silicosis, dread disease of the metal mines, must be fully recognized and properly treated at the earliest stages of \disa- bility instead of being left until it is accompanied by “a sub- stantially lessened capacity for work.” These are minimum require- ments, and the LPP pledges _ €very support to make for 2 Powerful anq united labor lobby to ensure their enactment. NOTHER field which demands the special attention of the Coming session is agriculture. There is no section of our popu- lation which has received more Shoddy treatment in the past. British Columbia farmers need improved marketing® facilities, elimination of excessive freight rates, the setting of parity prices based on production costs and fix- €d over sufficiently long periods to assure stable returns, aid for ‘toa SUA @ Feature Section government’s cow- - Action - the building of consumer and groducer co-ops, a program for the development and improve- ment of irrigation and the org- anizing and financing of mach- inery depots to, make available land clearing and ditching equip- ment at cost. — The integration of secondary industries (dehydration and pro- cessing plants) is a question which must be taken from the pages of the government’s re- habilitation report and translat- ed into reality. Another outstanding grievance in every section of the province is the deplorable condition of most roads and even arterial highways. A special appropria- tion for roads must be made not only to improve and extend our roads, but also to overhaul and replace hundreds of dang- erously unsafe bridges. @ Races weeks have shown a sharp spiralling of inflation- ary price trends. No section of our people has been hit as hard by the sharp rise in living costs as have our aged pensioners. Pensions must be raised immedi- ately to $50 a month and the age limit reduced to 60 years, the bare minimum on which those who have pioneered the building of our province can enjoy the twilight of life. The cbjectionable and ridiculous ‘means test’ should be elimin- ated. : : The case for our senior citi- zens is now generally recogniz- ed as an indisputable one, but _ what is required of this session is positive action. Still another major require- ment in the field of social legi- slation is the long-talked of Health Insurance Act. Pending adoption of a national health plan, the dormant Health In- surance Act of B.C., adopted overwhelmingly by the elector- ate in 1937, should be imple- menteg without delay. , Inseparable from a_ health program is the urgent need for building and extending hospi- tal and clinical facilities, for increasing research and treat- ment to reduce the high cost of sickness, of cancer and other dread di- seases, and of costly maternal and infant mortality losses. JUST as it is vitally important to the people of B.C. that satisfactory tax adjustments and powers be resolved between do- minion and provincial govern- ments, so it is necessary that a new deal in municipal-pro- vincial tax relations be inaugur- ated, Drastic revisions to the Municipal Act are required to make possible a shift of the source of municipal revenues from the prevalent vicious sys-. tem of home and land taxation to taxation of income-producing properties and a greater share of liquor and ‘gas taxes. SEE os. Newsies Organize POGe et ee ee 12 the terrible suffering from it By NIGEL MORGAN Another vital question before the legislature will be the plan- ned 20-year extension of the B.C. Blectric franchise and par- ticularly its outmoded transpor- tation facilities. Rejection of private utility franchises by the ratepayers of Victoria, Burnaby, Oak Bay, Esquimalt and essential a reopening of nego- tiations between the province and municipalities on the basis of the Gilman Report of 1945 which recommended a plan for achieving public ownership with- out a cent’s cost to the taxpayer. The value of public ownership of transportation and power utilities has been amply demon- strated in several other prov- inces and several of Canada’s larger cities, The government is committed to a policy of public ownership. This session can and must become the decisive link in the extension of this program. : e AST, but not least, the LPP 44 welcomes the announcement of the Elections Act Committee on the extension of the fran- chise to Canadian citizens of East Indian and Chinese an- cestry. But at the same time, we vigorously condemn the fas- cist basis of discrimination Saanich makes | against our own native Indians and citizens of Japanese origin. The LPP urges and will throw its full support behind the fight for the right of franchise for all citizens who are excluded now simply by virtue of racial origin, ; We urge the vote be given to all citizens of 18 years and over, and that the Elections Act be amended to make possible a more efficient registration of voters so that when the next election comes around, thous- ands of those entitled to vote particularly in the logging, fish- -ing and mining communities will not be disfranchised as they were in our last election. x achieve such a program is going to require unity of all progressive forces built upon the - solid foundation of labor-farmer- veteran cooperation. The prime need now is for unity of all those forces opposed to the reactionary Tory-Liberal policies of big business on both the political and economic field, for intensified political activi- ties towards the formation of a abor-farmer bloc. © Such a front with the united support of the CCF and LPP can: become the decisive factor in B.C. politics. It can. defeat the plans of big business and make possible the achievement of the people’s needs. An energetic campaign is be- ing planned through which the LPP will rally all the support it can behing the popular and just demands of . the trade unions, farmers, veterans’ and — pensioners’ organizations, Meet- ings, party broadcasts, leaflets 2 broad delegations, letters and telegrams demanding action and full support to the Labor Lobby and its petition campaign—this the way to fulfilment of the people’s program. *. If there was ever a time when British Columbia progressives must act, it is now. We must sharply state and widely publi- — cize the problems,.we face, ener- _ getically proclaim the .goal we pursue and exteng un * the public. understanding and support of that position. ws The session will last approxi- mately six weeks: and we must leave no effort. ‘unspent in the fight to unite all. progressive British Columbians in their common. cause the - people’s needs, as a long step towards the forging of the people’s coali- tion which alone can assure pro- gress and security.