In the late 1990’s, BC NDP Premier Glen Clark spearheaded a disastrous “fast ferry” shipbuilding initiative that ended up wasting the taxpayers of the province almost half a billion dollars.
Fast forward to 2014 and we find BC NDP MLA Claire Trevena insisting that new ferries be built by the province’s dysfunctional shipbuilding industry:
In May, I introduced the provincial shipbuilding act in the legislature. This legislation allows for the development of a provincial shipbuilding strategy. It would ensure vessels built with public money are built in Canada, and it would assist in building a highly skilled strong workforce through apprenticeships. Unfortunately, the B.C. Liberals have blocked this legislation.
What Ms. Trevena fails to mention is that BC’s shipbuilding industry is plagued with oppressive unions which ensure that few projects can be completed on time and on budget. It would be interesting to see a non-union shipbuilding company emerge but the NDP and their comrades will forever do their best to prevent that from happening.
100% of the ship building capacity in BC yards is booked from now until about 2030.
Typical NDP moron. Can’t figure out no capacity means cannot build.
We’re talking about what 4 ships or something here. If that’ll make a difference to the ship building industry in BC then I’d say it’s in real trouble wouldn’t you? Dippers are the most idiotic people on the planet I swear.
If additional ferries or replacements ferries are needed, then put the contract out for bids from ANYWHERE – union or non-union – and give the order to the lowest bidder who meets the specs. They don’t need a “provincial ship-building strategy”, they need a provincial COMMON SENSE = LOWER COSTS strategy.
Having seen the BC shipbuilding industry from the inside the one factor that stands out is that BC has imported the same brain trust in management and union leadership that destroyed the industry in Clydeside, Belfast and Liverpool. Brings to mind the Einstein quote “If you keep doing the same thing…..
Robert, on a closely-related matter, can you remind us, please, of the disposition of the enquiry into the sinking of the BC Ferry, 10 or so years ago? Did the union manage to protect the guilty?
Unions will not allow non-union workers to muck up the work they would like to. This is why subtle anti-union legislation is more in order than any ship-building plan.
Just my thoughts.
“For Immediate Release – February 27, 2014
North Vancouver, BC – BC Ferries announced today that Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards has been awarded the $15 million contract for the construction of a new cable ferry to service its route between Buckley Bay and Denman Island.”
And … Seaspan is after the billions in work the Feds will be spending.
“Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards has been selected under the Government of Canada’s National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy to be Canada’s West Coast Centre of Excellence and long-term partner for the building of Canada’s Non-Combat vessels. The multi-billion dollar Non-Combat program will create stable work over the next decade and beyond, and see the construction of up to 17 ships to start.”
http://www.seaspan.com/building/
All of the action in shipbuilding is in S. Korea and Singapore, I believe. There is no way a West Coast shipyard is going to
be competitive.
Sorry about that.
“We’ll get it right this time.” Really, we will.
One has to laugh at the NDP.
This is nothing new. Back in 2004, a “fast ferry service” was established between Rochester, NY and Toronto. In one version, it was called “The Breeze”; in another, “The Cat”. Rochester’s city council spent millions and millions on the ferry with the expectation that it would carry tens of thousands of Canadians to Rochester, with full wallets and huge shopping lists.
Not. But then, Rochester’s city council was never noted for either intelligence or common sense. (Full disclosure – I’m Rochester born and raised.)
For details, you can go to http://rocwiki.org/Fast_Ferry
The thing went bust very quickly, and was a huge embarrassment to anyone who was even remotely connected to it. The ferry itself was pretty neat; despite early mechanical problems, it showed real promise as a transportation medium. But Canada never fully funded the required terminal at the Toronto end of the service, and even if they had, the drive time from New York to Toronto didn’t make the ferry economically viable.
And the ferry? It’s now in service in Gibraltar. Similar ferrys are operating in Australia.
So the NDP really do want to finish Glen Clark’s sundeck in the rainforest after all?
Why don’t we pour vast amounts of taxpayer cash into into an incinerator and call it biofuel generation?
I’m sure this idea qualifies as a ‘Marxist plot’:
“Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies.”
—Groucho Marx
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”
I’d love for BC to have a vibrant ship-building industry. Unfortunately the Left, through its many tentacles, has ensured this will never happen.
Trevena is a transplanted British social worker without a clue in a safe, brain-dead, NDP riding where winning the nomination means winning the election. Anything she says is meaningless (and harmless) as long as the NDP is kept out of power.
Whenever I hear of the Fast ferries, I can’t help but remember shipbuilding market expert Bob Ward.Well before the fiasco started,Ward warned the BC Gov’t there was no market for the ships that wasn’t already covered by experienced builders in other Countries,such as Australia and Sweden,where all associated costs were cheaper.
Ward was slandered by the NDP government for his attempts to bring some sense to their fairy tale dreams, so he took them to Court over their remarks,and WON,to the tune of over $100,000 in a libel settlement.
Similar case was when the NDP government illegally cancelled the forest licences for Carrier Lumber of Prince George,and ended up having to pay Carrier over $100 million in a case the Judge called the worst case of government malfeasance he’d ever seen.
Yep, if you want to f*** up anything business-wise,turn it over to an NDP government.
The most astounding item about the Fast Ferries,though,is that the guy who started the whole fiasco,Glenn Clark, now is CEO of The Pattison Group.
The NDP MLA who wants to revive the BC shipbuilding industry should be given as much respect as the 9-11 truthers, maybe less.
Not sure about a Marxist plot, but a prudent person wouldn’t trust them to manage the construction of a rowboat given their last fiasco.
A “Groucho Marx-ist” plot, hence the quote… 🙂
I wouldn’t trust them with an inflatable canoe, in this regard either.
Cheers
Hans Rupprecht, Commander in Chief
1st Saint Nicolaas Army
Army Group “True North”
Wouldn’t there be some violations of NAFTA ?
I took a high speed ferry from Vancouver to Nanaimo once and we hit choppy seas. I felt a little bit like we were on a roller coaster. I couldn’t tell scale but we were moving up and down perhaps 30 feet. We came to a full stop a few times. A quarter to half the passengers got sea sick. That high speed private service didn’t last long and stopped business.
We have to get rid of laws that force people into unions . We need right to work legislation in this Country.
BC need to shut up and just stick to what they do well – growing trees and pot. No one is going to buy ships from them and they certainly do not need another billion $ flushed down the toilet.
Having lived through the Mike Harcourt, Glen Clark, Ujal Dosanj years in BC I think it is fair to say from that experiment, that building ferries is not their forte. Mind you, they were quite nice and luxurious, only they weren’t particularly fast because of something to do with crossing bulk carrier traffic and what not. But, hey, Van Isle got some pretty guchi infrastructure out of it.
This time around, by the time all of the special interest groups get their digs in, the ship will probably feature soothing whale emulators (so as not to annoy the orcas), designated protest venues on board, constructed entirely of recycled paper and glass, and will use unicorn farts for power.
“Trevena is a transplanted British social worker without a clue in a safe, brain-dead, NDP riding where winning the nomination means winning the election. Anything she says is meaningless (and harmless) as long as the NDP is kept out of power.”
Looks like PMSH has to amend the immigration laws for more than just muzzies.
This is simply an attempt (a VERY weak one) at creating a make work project for the trades unions. This is just grandstanding, as there is not a snowball’s chance of any Dipper bills getting passed, as opposition.
As we see, the small ships are likely to be built locally, but, all large ships will be built elsewhere, where the unions here can’t monopolize their hold.
The dolts that ‘work’ on BCFerries cost us enough as is, for being overpaid flaggers.
All of us who have spent our lifetime in BC need to remember how incompetent the NDP is, when in power. They talk a good game in opposition, but, are clueless as to how an economy works. Dogmatic socialists don’t care, however, they’re ‘saving the world’…….
And of course there would be the cost and time delay required to ensure that the ranks of the ship building unions were equally represented by numbers from the LGBT community, the black community, the Native Indian community, whatever other aggrieved communities want at the trough will be attended to. White conservative men need not apply …. with all this multicultural and PC crap in the non-free work-places there won’t be any jobs left for normal non-whiney Canadians.
Nah, not really ! … I’m just messin’ wit cha.
Think?
Nice! I initially missed the quote.
Some how you’ve now reminded me of something from the NDP’s time in power during the 70s; my father’s friend owned a lumber company at the time, relatively small of course in comparison to firms like Mac-Blo, non-union I think. Shortly after the election he was having trouble getting sufficient forest tenure granted to his firm, after he was granted an audience with the Minister he greeted him & his staff with “well boys, we finally did it!” He attributed that comment to him getting everything he wanted and more; he was a long way from being a socialist or supporter, but he was quite certain he convinced them that he was one of them. 🙂
Sorry , that’s not strictly true (aside from the socialist , brain dead part)
Campbell River was a federal CP riding and a Liberal provincial riding.
Trevena was elected by a whole bunch of pot smoking antivaccination hippy morons from the gulf islands , Quadra particularly.
She is absolutely a committed union sellout , like all of her party of the brain-dead.
Put the contract out for tender, build it anywhere.
And while you’re at it contract your FUEL the same way.
Should be interesting………
Ok, Provincially, North Island has had all but one term NDP in the last 40 years and Federally, NDP, Reform, NDP and Conservative.
Hate to say it but the Fast Ferries were debunked/killed only for political reasons. Under Gordon Campbell’s regime, no way were they going to give the previous regime a win. Very sad. A waste of taxpayer’a money.
Moronic BC NDP vote whores fronting for rent
seeking crooks that run labour unions?
It seems so out of character.
Have never heard of it happening before.
Raj: “Hate to say it but the Fast Ferries were debunked/killed only for political reasons.”
Yeah. By an NDP Premier.
“After a change in leadership, the new Premier of BC, Ujjal Dosanjh, placed the ferries up for sale.”
Thanks,I love the smell of vicious sarcasm first thing in the morning.
😉
Not so fast there.
The tin cans used 50% more fuel, and caused larger wakes than typical vessels, so, they had to slowed down.
They were sold as being faster and cutting travelling time, which, in the end, they were not.
And, by the way, it was the NDP THAT TOOK THEM OUT OF SERVICE AND PUT THEM UP FOR SALE.
Its silly to blame the Liberals for the Mistake that the NDP OWNED!