Premier Christy Clark feels it鈥檚 entirely appropriate for the head of B.C. Hydro to join her election team and travel the province with her, advising her during the upcoming election campaign鈥攁nd to do so without taking a leave of absence from his job.
Earlier this month, Brad Bennett said Clark personally asked him to reprise his role from the campaign four years ago when he rode the Liberals campaign bus with Clark each day in the last few weeks leading up to the vote, helping her drum up the support that lead to her party鈥檚 seemingly improbable come-back victory.
At the time, Bennett was not the chairman of B.C. Hydro. A year after the Liberals won the 2013 election, Clark appointed him to head of the huge Crown corporation.
Asked if she felt it was appropriate for Bennett to work for her campaign again, this time given his current position鈥攁nd not to take a leave of absence to do so鈥擟lark said as a volunteer, Bennett can do as he pleases.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think its a surprise to anyone that Brad Bennett supports free enterprise,鈥� Clark said Thursday in West 琉璃神社 to laughter from several of her supporters gathered to hear her announce new funding for the fight against invasive mussels entering B.C.
Bennett is the son of former B.C. premier Bill Bennett and the grandson of another former B.C. premier, WAC Bennett. Clark is running for re-election in a area that used to make up part of both former premiers鈥� ridings.
When Brad Bennett told reporters he plans to join Clark鈥檚 campaign for the upcoming election, he shrugged off the notion there would be any conflict by working directly to help his boss get re-elected, or that the people whom he said he actually works for鈥攖he ratepayers of BC Hydro鈥攚ould, in essence, be paying him to campaign for Clark because he will not taking leave from his role as BC Hydro chairman to do so.
But Clark鈥檚 NDP opponent in the soon-to-be-renamed 琉璃神社 West riding disagreed.
Shelly Cook said it appears to her to be a conflict of interest.
鈥淭his appears to be another example of blurring the lines when it comes to conflict,鈥� said Cook. 鈥淚t鈥檚 certainly questionable.鈥�
Bennett said his volunteering for Clark鈥檚 campaign would be no different than other BC Hydro employee鈥檚 participation in the election.
