Shirley Bond takes over gaming policy, Ida Chong becomes arts minister

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      Arts and non-profit advocates can claim a small victory today, as Premier Christy Clark has wrested gaming policy and enforcement from Minister Rich Coleman, who had held on to the portfolio for ten years. Coleman is now Minister of Energy and Mines (minister responsible for Housing).

      Last Friday, the Alliance for Arts and Culture and the B.C. Association of Charitable Gaming called on Clark to remove Coleman as minister responsible for gaming policy, and it appears Clark was listening. Coleman has been replaced by Shirley Bond as Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, whose responsibilities include gaming policy and enforcement.

      Clark also anointed a new arts minister. Ida Chong takes over from Stephanie Cadieux as Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development. (Cadieux has been named Minister of Labour, Citizens’ Services and Open Government.) A notable addition to the culture ministry’s general responsibilities is “community gaming grant eligibility”, a sign that Clark has taken seriously the concerns of the arts and non-profit sector, many of whom were cut out of the gaming grant process altogether in the past two years.

      Oak Bay-Gordon Head MLA Ida Chong recently survived a recall attempt headed by the anti-HST organizers.

      Comments

      10 Comments

      Ken Lawson

      Mar 14, 2011 at 4:33pm

      Christy Clarks two major appointment mistakes 1. Ida Chong what will she screw up next and how much food will she eat on the taxpayers dollar, this was simply a token appointment.

      2. Rich Coleman BCLC file alone should send him out of Cabinet, how can you put mining and housing to gether, you tell me?

      artsworker

      Mar 14, 2011 at 4:43pm

      a fresh start and a chance to get it right....kudos m. clark....let's hope your administration doesn't blow it with bad policy and arrogant politics like they have for most of the last few years...remember you'll never fill the twin black holes of health and education but a couple of million should get the arts off your back

      Norman

      Mar 14, 2011 at 9:10pm

      I'm not interested in responsibilities; I am interested in policies.

      thanks

      Mar 14, 2011 at 9:11pm

      With Shirley gone, maybe we can kill the Evergreen Line for good and move on.

      glen p robbins

      Mar 15, 2011 at 8:45am

      Nice to have the gaming minister from Prince George with all the hullaballoo going on over the Vancouver casino expansion.

      Like making a lawyer the health minister - what's the strategy there?

      Fan'o Truth

      Mar 15, 2011 at 9:50am

      @thanks

      With Shirley gone, maybe we can kill the Evergreen Line for good and move on.

      There's an honest admission of what certain people want!

      Cara

      Mar 15, 2011 at 11:27am

      Congratulations and welcome to these women!

      Dan Clay

      Mar 15, 2011 at 4:48pm

      perhaps Coleman will be undermining social housing, or mining under housing or...mining the developer potential for present social housing sites that they want i.e. Little Mountain Housing ??to start with

      Ken Lawson

      Mar 15, 2011 at 4:51pm

      @Cara what are you celebrating, they have not done anything yet,honeymoon is now officially over get to work. What exactly is Shirley Bonds background will she screw this file up, how many have we had in this position lately

      Jaded in Vancouver

      Mar 17, 2011 at 9:50pm

      Like Ida Chong will do anything useful.