British Columbia New Democratic Party - Barrett Government

Barrett Government

The BC NDP first won election in 1972 under Dave Barrett, who served as Premier for three years. The BC NDP passed a great deal of legislation in a very short time. Among lasting changes were the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia, the Agricultural Land Reserve, and additions such as Question Period to the legislature. The BC NDP drove the small BC Liberal caucus to abandon their leader David Anderson for the Social Credit Party, as did one of the two Tories elected in 1972. The BC NDP introduced capital taxes, slashed funding to universities, but suffered the most for bringing clarity to the accounting Social Credit had used, and showed that BC was significantly in debt.

In the 1975 election Social Credit, under W.A.C's son Bill Bennett, won a snap election called by Barrett. The Barrett government had initiated a number of reforms in the areas of labour relations, the public service and social programs, most of which endured through to the restraint budget of 1983.

The BC NDP peaked in popular support in the 1979 election with 46% of the vote. And after a minor decline in the party's vote share in 1983, Barrett retired as leader.

Riding high in the polls, it appeared that the party was poised to win the 1986 election against the unpopular Social Credit government of the day but due to a minor verbal gaffe by its new leader Bob Skelly during the campaign and the surprising charisma and telegenic performance of the Socreds' new leader William Vander Zalm, the party failed to score its anticipated breakthrough.