Arbitration needed in transit dispute
As Vanessa Hawk’s recent article (“Transit job action continues, no formal negotiations scheduled,” Dec. 13) makes clear, the main impediment to a settlement in the ongoing B.C. Transit dispute is whether the drivers of the Vicinity buses be required to possess a Class 4 driver’s licence (which B.C. Transit wants) or the more proficient Class 2 licence (which the union wants).
Since this disagreement cannot be resolved with a meet-in-the middle compromise, and since neither side wants to give in, the only rational solution to this dispute is for both sides to agree to have this matter settled by binding arbitration.
If either B.C. Transit or the union does not agree to binding arbitration, then it would be in the public interest for the provincial government to step in and appoint a binding arbitrator so that this matter is settled once and for all.
Darryl Green
UVic alumnus
Conservatives blind to F-35 fiasco
The fiscal incompetence and complete mismanagement of Canada’s largest military procurement since the Second World War has now been fully exposed. The Conservative Party needs to be held accountable for their total mishandling of the F-35.
Two years ago, they told Canadians that the government would replace our aging fleet of CF-18s with a sole-sourced contract for F-35s for only $9 billion — now, thanks to an audit from KPMG, we know the true cost of the F-35s will be $45.8 billion. The government said the F-35 was the only plane that could meet our needs — now they admit that other planes could. They always maintained that considering other options was irresponsible and they sole-sourced the contract — now they are looking at other planes. They said there was a contract — now they don’t.
The government stonewalled, evaded every safeguard and attacked the credibility and patriotism of all those who dared challenge it. It asked voters to re-elect it using incorrect numbers.
The Conservatives need to stop the cheerleading and start asking serious questions about how the government is spending your hard-earned tax dollars. They can’t serve Canadians with blinders on.
John McKay,
MP Liberal Party of Canada Defence Critic
