VICTORIA – New Democrats will press the Campbell Liberals to reverse their decision to cut $750,000 from the budget for B.C.’s Representative for Children and Youth when the Legislature’s Select Standing Committee on Finance meets Friday.

Bruce Ralston“The Campbell Liberals’ vindictive attitude has generated chaos and confusion on this matter,” said New Democrat MLA Bruce Ralston, Deputy Chair of the Select Standing Committee on Finance.

“We’re calling on the B.C. Liberals to reverse their position and ensure that the children’s representative receives every penny she requires to do her job.”

Today the Campbell government responded to pressure from the New Democrats and agreed to reconvene the Finance Committee in order to reconsider the budget for children’s representative Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond. This comes following public outcry over the decision last week of the B.C. Liberal-dominated committee to cut $750,000 from the representative’s budget request.

Nicholas Simons“The Campbell Liberals’ decision to cut the representative’s budget put vulnerable children at risk. I’m pleased the B.C. Liberals are responding to public pressure, and I hope they will now agree that we must restore the representative’s full funding,” said New Democrat children’s critic Nicholas Simons.

Carole James and the NDP have been challenging the Campbell government’s misplaced priorities when it comes to protecting children. James pointed out that while the B.C. Liberals denied the representative’s budget request they spent more than half a million dollars on fancy renovations at the Ministry of Children and Family Development headquarters.

“It’s a shame that the B.C. Liberals’ unnecessary partisan politics delayed approval of the representative’s budget. This is yet more proof of how the Campbell government’s misplaced priorities are creating chaos and confusion in the child protection system,” said Simons.

Simons noted that the NDP will keep up pressure on the Campbell Liberals to ensure that they make child protection a priority.

Last week New Democrat Leader Carole James wrote to Premier Gordon Campbell urging him to demand that the Finance Committee reverse its decision to cut the representative’s budget.

Bruce Ralston

Surrey-Whalley

Bruce Ralston was re-elected as the MLA for Surrey - Whalley on May 12, 2009. He was first elected to the Legislature in 2005.

Nicholas Simons

Powell River-Sunshine Coast

Nicholas Simons was first elected as MLA for Powell River-Sunshine Coast on May 17, 2005.