Colin Hansen won’t run for B.C. Liberals

Ian Bailey Vancouver — The Globe and Mail Published Friday, Sep. 21 2012, 11:44 AM EDT
After 17 years as an MLA, former B.C. finance minister Colin Hansen says he won’t seek re-election in his Vancouver-Quilchena seat.  Mr. Hansen’s decision, announced in a statement Friday morning, continues an exodus of veteran government MLAs that recently forced Premier Christy Clark to shuffle her cabinet.  Mr. Hansen offered no specific reasons for his departure, but took responsibility for the flawed rolling out of a harmonized sales tax for B.C. that rocked the Liberals and forced the departure of former premier Gordon Campbell. “We did not do an adequate job in how decisions were made and how they were implemented and, as the Minister of Finance at the time, I take the responsibility for that,” he said. “Many became convinced that we had planned the HST from before the election and that we had explicitly promised during the election that it would not be introduced. Neither of these perceptions is true and I accept responsibility for not being able to correct the public perception.” The HST was eventually defeated in a public referendum forced by a petition campaign. Mr. Hansen spent 10 years in such cabinet roles as finance, health, and economic development. He said he will be taking on the role of deputy campaign manager for the B.C. Liberal campaign in the May, 2013 election. The Liberals are running about 20 points behind the opposition New Democrats in most polls. Mr. Hansen will be leaving one of the Liberals’ safest seats. He won the riding with 70 per cent of the vote in 2009.
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BC: Colin Hansen Joins Pension Parade
Taxpayers.Com Sept 21.
Colin Hansen, former Finance Minister and 17-year MLA for Vancouver-Quilchena announced he would not seek re-election in 2013. If he bought back his missing years of pension, he will start with a year 1 pension payout of $89,039. If he lives to be 80 years old, his lifetime pension is estimated at $1.54 million.