We the signed call on the Provincial Government of British Columbia to outlaw the practice of Provincial Government Entities, including municipalities from paying lobbies for memberships and subscriptions.

We consider that the practice of government entities paying lobbies for memberships/subscriptions is a major ethical conflict of interest in a democracy and should thus be made an illegal conflict of interest, so that the practice is no longer allowed to take place.

Taxpayer money in public organizations should not be paid to lobby organizations, because what that entails is a full circle ethical conflict of interest, whereby government entities are using public funds to subsidize lobbies that in turn are lobbying government entities (thus in essence the government lobbying themselves) for private interests.

Not only are the dangers of undue influence on elected officials and governments very strong in this situation, but we consider that this clearly compromises the very nature of democracy itself, which by definition is rule by the people, not rule of the people in private interests.

So common and widespread has the practice become in B.C. that dozens of municipalities across the province, including much of Metro Vancouver and Greater Victoria have become paying members of the Urban Development Institute development lobby to name only one lobby that municipalities and other provincial entities are paying members of. 

Other provincial entities that are paying members of the lobby include BC Housing, BC Transit, BC Hydro and the Capital Regional District (CRD).

What it boils down to ultimately in our view is the normalization of overlapping interests between lobby and state.  To ensure democratic principles are being followed by our Provincial Government, we consider it necessary to separate lobby and state by making this common, yet ethically unacceptable practice illegal.


Resources:

https://udicapitalregion.ca/membership/member-directory/

https://udi.memberzone.com/list

https://www.timescolonist.com/local-news/saanich-bails-on-membership-in-developers-organization-6708103

For more information please contact: BCPetition@mail.com