Kevin Falcon calls it quits
Posted August 29, 2012 10:26 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The BC Liberals have lost another high profile MLA.
Kevin Falcon has resigned as finance minister and will not run in the May 2013 provincial election. After 12 years as an MLA, taking on big portfolios like transportation, health, and finance, Falcon says it’s time to go for personal and professional reasons.
Falcon tells us he and his wife are expecting a baby in February, right when the province will be rolling out the provincial budget. “I think it’s very important for the premier to have a minister of finance who throughout the fall is putting together an agenda, spending and taxation plan, et cetera, that they are prepared to fight for in an election campaign.”
“I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to assume that role and that position of making all of those decisions when I am not going to be running in the campaign in April to fight and defend the decisions that will be made,” he adds.
When asked why exactly he is resigning, he says it’s just time for new opportunities. He’s looking forward to getting something done in the private sector, though he does not have a job lined up at the moment. He does not expect to be in politics in the near future.
Falcon says he believes the premier is one of the more effective campaigners he’s ever seen and he’s skeptical of the polls that put the Liberals well back.
Falcon hopes people will remember him for always speaking his mind, even when it wasn’t popular.
Several other Liberal MLAs have already announced they will not seek re-election, including Barry Penner, Kevin Krueger and Speaker Bill Barisoff.
The premier has appointed Shirley Bond acting finance minister.
Click here to find Falcon’s full statement.
Full coverage of various reactions to Falcon’s resignation can be found here.
