A

Elizabeth May steps down

as Green Party leader

» May reflects on her 13 years as leader of political party

Michele Provenzano
Staff Writer

 

O n November 4, Elizabeth May
announced she will no longer be
serving as leader of the Green Party of
Canada. May has led the party for the past
13 years and became the party's first elected
member of parliament in 201.

May had promised her daughter that
the 2019 election would be her last as party
leader. She looks forward to spending more
time with her husband, daughter, and
extended family.

She’s not giving up her work with
the party entirely: May will continue
to act as an MP and will be the party's
parliamentary caucus leader. What May
truly finds rewarding in her career is what
she has achieved as a parliamentarian—
such as having been able to reunite families
kept apart by our immigration system. In
an interview with Global News, she admits
that she loves the work of parliament, but
that there is nothing she'll miss about

Douglas sues roofer for damages

political leadership.

“As leader, I have to say there have
been very few rewards,’ May said ina
Global News podcast.

She believes the party is in a good
place and is experiencing enough
momentum that it makes sense for her
to step down now. May also said that she
is proud of the work the party did in this
year’s federal election. For the first time,
over one million Canadians voted for
the Green Party. They achieved a record-
breaking three seats in the House of
Commons. The Green Party’s achievements
may not be considered drastic, but the 2019
election was their most successful to date.

The Green Party's deputy leader,
Jo-Ann Roberts, will take on the role
of interim party leader until October
2020, when the Greens’ next leadership
convention is scheduled to occur in
Charlottetown, PEI. Roberts first ran fora
seat in Victoria as a member of the Green
Party in 2014. Previously, she worked as
a journalist with the CBC; she has over
twenty years of experience working in

 

Have an idea for a story?
Mi news@theotherpress.ca

the field of TV and radio. According to
her campaign website, she left her job in
hopes to “fight for social justice, protect
our environment and start the transition
to a green economy.” She ran in October's
election for a seat in her Halifax riding, but
she lost to Liberal candidate Andy Fillmore.
Polling from Ipsos last month revealed
that nearly 30 percent of Canadians said
that the climate is among their top three
concerns when deciding who to vote
for. The NDP and Liberals incorporated
climate change plans into their campaigns
this election. Kathryn Harrison, a political
science professor at UBC says, “I think
in part they stole the Greens’ thunder.”
This is due to many Canadians feeling the
need to vote strategically. According to
Ipsos vice president, Sean Simpson, many
people prioritize making sure that their
vote counts. “In all but about half a dozen
ridings in Canada, a vote for the Green
Party isn’t very effective,” Simpson says.
When asked what kind of leadership
the Green Party needs, May said she is
excited for women, indigenous, LGBTQ+,

» College blames local roofing company for flood damage two years ago

Atiba Nelson
Staff Reporter

 

na civil case filed in Port Coquitlam

Provincial Small Claims Court, Douglas
College filed a “notice of claim” against a
Lower Mainland roofing company.

The “notice of claim” alleges that the
company caused a flood in Building B of
the Coquitlam Campus in August 2017.
Douglas, through the law firm of Guild Yule
Limited Liability Partnership, states that the
total damages from the substandard roofing
repairs cost the College approximately
$35,216.

Douglas also petitioned the court for
filing ($156) and services fees ($60) related
to the claim.

The Other Press obtained a copy of
the notice of claim, court file number
COQ-P-C-17967, dated June 18, 2019 from
the provincial courts electronic document
retrieval system.

According to the obtained documents,
Douglas hired the company in question
to perform roofing work at the Coquitlam
campus in March 2017. The contract
between the two entities stipulated that the
contractor would be liable for any damages
to the College’s property while completing
the required work.

Douglas College attests that nearing
the completion of the roofing work, the
company failed to seal a drain on the roof
of Building B and “On or around August 14,
2017,’ the unsealed drain allowed water to
leak into the building and caused a flood.

An internet search of the Government
of Canada weather data for the closest
weather station to the Douglas College’s
Coquitlam campus—Port Moody Glenayre
(Meteorological Service of Canada Climate
ID: 106CL2)—showed that there was no
recorded rainfall on August 14 2017, and
only 10 millimeters of rain fell that month—
all on August 12 2017.

The case hinged on the definition of
flood and the amount of damages incurred
by Douglas.

In the reply to the notice of claim, filed
by the roofing company on June 28 2019,
the company agrees to “[A] leak” and states
that on August 15, 2017 the company and a
Douglas College representative inspected
the repairs and the water damage, and
assessed the “minimal” damages due to
the water leak to be below $5,000 dollars.
The roofing company also states that
photographs were taken and an agreement
with the College was established where
Douglas would repair the damage, and the
roofing company would assume the cost.

The two sides may have decided to
honour their original agreement, as Douglas
College withdrew their claim on September
20, 2019. Unfortunately, the document
detailing the withdrawal of the claim was
not available via the online public search;
however, the Other Press visited the Port
Coquitlam Provincial courthouse where the
initial files were submitted and confirmed
that Douglas College withdrew the claim on
September 20, and did not provide the court
with a reason for the withdrawal.

 

 

¢ Famous koi-eating otter returns
¢ Regulation redesigns tobacco packing

¢ Douglas Discusses: Who is affected by
TransLink strike?

..and more

Photo by Grant Neufeld via Wikimedia Commons

and racialized minority candidates
stepping forward.

“I think more diversity for this party
is essential,” May told Global News. She
also hopes the next leader will be fully
bilingual—May points to her inability
to debate in French as a weakness—and
hopes they will have as much energy as she
does.

May believes building the Green Party
is critical for the survival of our world.

Photo by Billy Bui