Gordon Campbell joined a select group as the first British Columbia premier since 1986 and only the fifth in the province’s 127-year history to win back-to-back elections.
But voters gave the Liberal party leader a mixed endorsement on May 17.
From winning 77 of 79 seats on election night in 2001 he saw his massive majority dramatically reduced to 46 seats against 33 for the left-wing New Democratic Party.
Having inherited a financial mess four years ago, Campbell made deep cuts to health and education spending, generating negative voter reaction.
For the oil and gas industry, however, the return of the Liberals is popular. Government incentives and regulatory streamlining generated an unprecedented surge in oil and gas investment during Campbell’s first term to C$4.5 billion from C$2.6 billion, turning northeastern British Columbia into Canada’s gas hot spot.
Energy and Mines Minister Richard Neufeld, who was re-elected, told Petroleum News that the province aims to build on its success by exploiting opportunities to develop yet-to-be-discovered resources of 150 trillion cubic feet of gas, 90 tcf of coalbed methane and 18 billion barrels of oil.
Achieving those goals requires action on several fronts, not least agreements with aboriginal communities on treaties and land claims to promote exploration and development of coalbed methane and largely unexplored regions of northern British Columbia.
The hottest issue remains the future of the British Columbia offshore, which Campbell and Neufeld have vigorously promoted as vital to the province’s economy.
But they have been unable to persuade the Canadian government to lift a 33-year exploration moratorium and have failed to get the necessary backing from aboriginals and environmentalists to endorse exploration and development.
