Powell seeks Liberal nomination

CASTANET:
A North Okanagan lawyer and business owner has tossed his hat into the ring. Andrew Powell, a resident of Lumby, has formally confirmed his candidacy for the B.C. Liberal nomination for the constituency of Vernon-Monashee. “This community is my home, and I have seen it suffer. I want to support it now by seeking a spot in government, on the side of the team that stands for recovery and economic responsibility,” says Powell. He says his legal background will help set him apart from the other candidates. “I have a tremendous amount of respect for the others in the running. It is a credit to this constituency that there are so many excellent people who are willing to serve it. But my background is firmly in business and law, and I believe that, at this stage of the game, we should be seeking someone who has had hammered home all the practicality and pragmatism that comes from that type of career line.” Powell says before becoming a lawyer, he worked in the Policy and Public Affairs departments of the BC Environment Ministry. “I have been inside government. It is familiar territory for me.” For the last six years, Powell has been the assistant General Manager of Paragon Wood Products, an independent forest-products company owned by his family which has been hit hard by the current crisis in the lumber industry and the down turned economy. The main mill, in Lumby, has been in curtailment since September. “Perhaps more than any other candidate, I have experienced the effects of government decisions, market shifts, and industry fluctuations in very up-close and personal and I am tired of being critical. There has to come a point when a person stops complaining and tries to do something to help change things. For me, that time is now.”