Social Credit MLA
He was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 1975 election for the riding of Surrey (he would later represent Richmond after the 1986 election), in which Social Credit won back power after a three-year hiatus.
He served in the cabinet of Premier Bill Bennett as Minister of Human Resources from 1975 to 1978, where he continued his crusade against welfare fraud. After the swearing in ceremony, the media asked him to comment on what the public could expect regarding welfare people, to which he replied "If people are truly in need, they can expect and will be treated fairly and compassionately. If people are elderly we will treat them with respect and when in need reward them for their lifelong contributions. If people are handicapped they will be treated generously, hopefully even more so than in the past. But if someone is able to work and refuses to do so, they had best pick up a shovel or I'll give them a shovel." He became widely known overnight when the media reported his off-the-cuff remark with headlines "Vander Zalm Says Give Them a Shovel".
On June 22, 1978, the Victoria Daily Times published a political cartoon by Bob Bierman that portrayed the then-Minister of Human Resources as a grinning sadist deliberately snapping the wings off helpless flies. Vander Zalm launched legal action for libel, Vander Zalm v. Times Publishers. Justice Craig Munroe of the B.C. Supreme Court awarded Vander Zalm $3,500 in damages. The decision was overturned by the BC Court of Appeal in 1980, a decision praised by journalists as a victory for free speech. The original cartoon was purchased by the National Archives of Canada for $350.
He also served as Minister of Municipal Affairs & Transit from 1978 to 1981 and as Minister of Education from 1981 to 1983.
In 1984, he bought Fantasy Garden World, a theme park. The same year he ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Vancouver, as the candidate for the Non-Partisan Association. He lost to Mike Harcourt, who was later the provincial NDP leader during most of Vander Zalm's tenure as premier.
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