(LifeSiteNews) – The Conservative opposition in British Columbia is warning that a proposed new law under the guise of dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs would give the current socialist government near “unlimited powers” that would allow them to do what they please.
John Rustad, leader of British Columbia’s Conservative Party, warned in an X post last week that Bill 7, proposed by British Columbia’s ruling New Democratic Party (NDP) under Premier David Eby, is “government overreach” the likes of COVID.
“If you thought government overreach during COVID19 was bad — wait until you hear about what BC’s radical NDP is trying to with Bill 7,” he wrote.
“Bill 7 gives BC’s already authoritarian top-down NDP government sweeping, almost unlimited powers with zero oversight. Bill 7 is so radical that it’s almost hard to believe — for example, it includes provisions that allow the NDP to introduce road pricing and collect your personal information.”
Bill 7, or the Economic Stabilization (Tariff Response) Act, has allowances in it that would let the NDP put in place arbitrary road tolls at will, as well as collect people’s personal information at will. The road tolls would be geared toward American trucks that pass through the province on their way to Alaska.
The bill has powers that would allow the government to change current laws or override current regulations retroactively to January 2025 under the supposed guise of combating Trump’s tariffs against Canada.
The proposed law. noted Rustad, is something his party would never “support,” warning that if it fails to pass it would trigger a provincial election.
“@Dave_Eby, the Conservative Party of BC will NEVER support Bill 7 legislation that includes powers for road pricing, secretive collection of personal information, and almost unlimited ‘emergency’ powers,” he wrote.
“If you want an election — drop the writ. We won’t back down from this fight.”
Law professor Mark Mancini of Thompson Rivers University warned that Bill 7 has some of the most extreme clauses to let the government essentially do whatever it wants.
“Bill 7 contains the broadest Henry VIII clause I’ve seen in some time. These extraordinary clauses allow Cabinet to amend a primary law via regulation. This Bill is even broader — it permits Cabinet to amend almost *any* primary law. I see no justification (for) this,” he observed in a post on X last week.
According to B.C. Trucking Association, Bill 7 is not only clumsy but could lead to Trump putting in place counter-tariffs or other retaliatory measures.
According to the Eby government, which is in power by the slimmest of minorities, the proposed bill is about reducing interprovincial trade barriers, but road tolls would be imposed on non-Canadian commercial vehicles.
Trump has routinely cited Canada’s lack of action on drug trafficking and border security as the main reasons for his punishing tariffs, which have been paused until April 2.
The NDP government of British Columbia was in power during COVID and had in place some of the harshest and strictest mandates in Canada, which saw those who refused the jabs fired or placed on leave.
