CKNW Editorial
for September 14, 2000

What do Liberal leader Gordon Campbell and former premier Mike Harcourt Have in common? They are both great tap dancers. They can use words by the bushel to answer a kernel of a question. In short, they know how to run out the clock. Yesterday’s interview with Gordon Campbell demonstrated the point admirably, I think. We talked about health care and heard every platitude except please don’t walk on the grass before we were done. The operative word was " resources" something which we must apply to all problems, evidently.

And where were these resources to come from?

Huge savings here and even more savings there. The Liberals will manage better.

In fact they won’t. At least nowhere near to the extent they think.

Bureaucracies are very difficult to cut. In the health industry especially, they are deeply entrenched and have been for a very long time. Much of the work is unionized and the positions and the remuneration is unbudgeable. Some costs are not being incurred but will – nurses for example. Other costs are simply going to continue to rise – doctors fees for example.

Of course there is fat in the system but in an un-competitive atmosphere that is hidden just as a good tailor covers our love handles. And bureaucracies are very jealous of their positions, stubborn as hell and almost impossible to pare down.

What I found fascinating yesterday was Mr Campbell rejecting any arguments that include a private patient care option. What is strange about this is that not only would you expect a free market party to want such a debate but that we already have huge private leaks in the public system we operate under. Just one example – if you need eye surgery you can go onto the list and wait 6-9 months for a government paid operation or you can get it done in a couple of weeks by paying the opthmalogist privately. Why can’t you do that for knees? Well, you can if you’re a football or hockey player … or are on Workers Compensation. The very thing the public health system is trying to avoid, elitism, is there for all to see.

It’s not a question of whether or not we involve the private sector in the health care system but to what extent? Mr Campbell either doesn’t understand this or doesn’t want to deal with it – more likely the latter.

The political advice Mr Campbell is getting is so obvious that it was hard to suppress a smile. How to deal with Health care was the question and answer provided was twofold – memorize all the platitudes for media consumption and have a study, preferably by the public, who can be depended upon to provide enough input and briefs to stifle any action until well after an election. This is Politics 100 we’re talking about here folks, not rocket science. The idea is not to do or say anything … but to appear to be doing something … while tap dancing with a smile on your face.

Will it work?

Who knows. The NDP strategy will be to react to Liberal claims of fiscal prudence by saying "look here … we have balanced the budget and have met the government’s obligations. Just how are you, Mr Campbell, going to lower taxes, keep up our social obligations and balance the budget?"

Mr Campbell’s strategy, in addition to wearing plain shirts and leaving his guitar at home, will be to mumble platitudes and hope that the public want the NDP out so bad they won’t notice.

The trouble is that campaigns take on a life of their own and this defensive strategy will only work so long as the public’s attention is on heaving the NDP out. If, during the campaign – say at the time of the televised debate – the public decide they want answers it may be too late for Mr Campbell to think of any.

That’s the weakness of a "do-nothing-to-get-into-trouble" campaign which is what Mr Campbell’s advisers look like they will run.