Date of publication: June 22, 2022 • 13 minutes ago • 4 minutes reading • 40 comments The Prime Minister of BC. John Horgan speaks during a media debate Photo by TROY FLEECE / Regina Leader-Post
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After insisting for weeks that the only way to protect BC history was a $ 789 million replacement for the Royal Museum of BC, Prime Minister John Horgan stepped down on Wednesday, halting the project and taking responsibility for miscalculating public support.
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“We made choices based on the best information available and thought we had the right one,” Horgan told a news conference in Victoria. “It simply came to our notice then. I have clearly heard from the people of British Columbia that we were making the wrong decision at the wrong time. “I made a wrong call.” While critics said the descent was the right move, they said the damage had been done. The county will start from the beginning and ask the Royal Museum BC to fully consult the public before deciding on the future of the building, which Horgan said is still in desperate need of modernization. He said he had taken full responsibility for the poor timing of the project, which came during a crisis of affordability that left British Colombians struggling to pay higher gas and food prices.
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“With all the other challenges they face in their daily lives – gas prices, food prices, rents, mortgage payments and the prospect of higher interest rates, health care challenges – the public felt we were putting it all aside to focus on the museum. “, Said Horgan. “It was not like that, but that was the perception. “I think the right way is to take a step back, take responsibility as head of government and see where the consultation will lead us.” Horgan had been under intense pressure to halt the project, with many saying the government should first spend public dollars on healthcare problems and seismic upgrading of schools. There was no public consultation before the surprise announcement on May 13 that the 54-year-old museum would be closed, demolished and replaced by 2030.
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The decision to scrap the project was made at a cabinet meeting on Monday, but Horgan said he was considering a negative response a week after the May 13 announcement, when the project “landed with one blow”. Horgan said Wednesday he did not want the museum to become a “laughing stock at a party” or political football. The surrounding face means that the museum will not close on September 6. The county, however, will continue to build a new $ 224 million archive and collection building in Colwood, a suburb of Victoria. BC Liberal leader Kevin Falcon, who has called for the “boondoggle vanity museum” to be canceled, told reporters he was happy the project was on ice, but it “is not a milestone” for Horgan.
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Falcon worries that the government is going to stop the project “until the temperature drops”, go through a “fake” consultation process and rebuild it anyway. Falcon noted that the Prime Minister has predetermined the outcome of any consultation process, stating that he is not in favor of renovating the museum. Despite a controversial two-week baking period during the end of the spring session and angry emails from voters across the province, Tourism Minister Horgan and Tourism Minister Melanie Mark had insisted the province’s “collective history” was in jeopardy. because the aging museum is seismically unsuitable and at risk of flooding. BC Green MLA Adam Olsen said, “The damage has been done.” Horgan and Mark “made it sound like it was going to fall and that there was asbestos in the air,” Olsen said. “They must be held accountable for everything they have said in defense of this work.”
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David Black, a political communications expert and professor at Royal Roads University, said it was a wise political move to push for the museum to be replaced after its “symbolic” release. The New Democrats could not ignore the results of an Angus Reid poll released last week that found that 69 per cent of British Columbians oppose the costly rebuilding of the Royal Museum BC and are more concerned about inflation, health and safety. of housing. “This is a doomed number for any issue,” Black said. The $ 789 million price tag shocked taxpayers, and if it had progressed, it would have been the most expensive museum work in Canadian history in straight, non-inflated dollars. In response to concerns that the public had been left in the dark about the $ 789 million cost, Mark released the business case on May 25, which showed that renovating or repairing old buildings would cost as much or more than the construction of a new museum.
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“We just will not abolish this project,” Mark said at the time. “There is a danger of doing nothing.” However, critics point out that there are 250 schools in BC. awaiting seismic upgrades. Earlier this month, the Ministry of Education confirmed that it was delaying seven new schools that had been promised in the past and seismic upgrades to existing schools due to the economic impact of last year’s pandemic and catastrophic floods. This is despite the fact that Horgan said on June 7 that there is no limit to schools’ budgets. [email protected] More news, fewer ads: Our in-depth journalism is possible thanks to the support of our subscribers. For just $ 3.50 a week, you can get unlimited, ad-lite access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, the National Post, and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us with your registration today: The Vancouver Sun | The Province.
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