Any rumours or speculation Ron Cannan might make a return to provincial politics are unfounded.
However, the veteran politician was far less emphatic when commenting on whether or not a run at sa国际传媒sa国际传媒 mayoral position might be in the cards two years down the road.
The provincial election is slated for Oct. 19. Cannan is halfway through his current term as a City of sa国际传媒 municipal councillor. The next municipal election is in the fall of 2026.
鈥淎ll of the positions have been filled,鈥 said Cannan, when asked if theresa国际传媒 any possibility of him joining the provincial election race with less than two months until election day. 鈥淚 haven鈥檛 spoken to any of the leaders of different political parties. I鈥檓 sticking with city council. I have no plans join the provincial or federal race at all.鈥
The interview with Cannan was conducted before the bombshell announcement that BC United was pulling out of the election and endorsing the BC Conservatives.
Cannan was a city councillor in sa国际传媒 for just over nine years before making the jump to federal politics, where he was the MP for sa国际传媒-Lake Country from three terms from 2005-2016.
He left politics for roughly seven years, before running and winning a seat again on sa国际传媒 council two years ago.
While reiterating he will not be running for provincial office, Cannan wouldn鈥檛 make the same commitment when asked about a possible mayoralty run. He helped campaign for Tom Dyas during his mayoral run in 2022.
He still respects the job Dyas has done as mayor, but admits their political relationship is not as close as it was since he joined council two years ago.
鈥淎 week is a long time in the world of politics,鈥 he said. 鈥淚鈥檝e been approached by several people, but I鈥檓 a councillor and working towards the success of our community right now. I鈥檝e got to see if I decide to run again. Thatsa国际传媒 a big commitment for four years.
鈥淯ltimately, I campaigned to help Tom get elected and since then, things have gone in a different direction than what we had campaigned on. I鈥檓 going to continue to focus on the issues that I campaigned on.鈥
He didn鈥檛 agree with using the alternative approval process to get the new Parkinson Recreation Centre project through, and there have been other key issues he differs on since Dyas became mayor, said Cannan.
鈥淭heresa国际传媒 lot of good things Tom is doing, I just disagree on certain things that he has his own way of managing,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 was trying to hold him accountable for some of the things we campaigned for. At the end of the day, I was kicked off the regional board and the airport advisory committee and was not pleased about that.鈥
Cannan opposed a staff recommendation in April that would give Dyas and members of council a 35 per cent pay hike.
Cannan declined the pay hike that would have lifted his salary from $43,000 to $58,000.
鈥淚 believe citizens elected me to provide my viewpoint from over 40 years of business and political experience,鈥 said Cannan in April. 鈥淲hen I ran for council in 2022, I didn鈥檛 run based on the salary. I wanted to use my experience and knowledge to address important issues and provide positive leadership in our community. I鈥檝e heard from many residents who are facing hard times as a result of the high interest rates and inflationary pressures. Property taxes continue to climb higher than inflation. Most folks would like to be in a position to give themselves a 35 per cent wage increase. However, council is not self-employed. This is taxpayers鈥 hard-earned money.鈥
Cannan was one of four councillors who argued against the pay raise, along with Rick Webber, Mohini Singh and Gord Lovegrove. Cannan was the only one who told the city clerksa国际传媒 office he wouldn鈥檛 take the extra salary.
Cannan said he proposed a 鈥渃itizensa国际传媒 council consultation committee鈥 composed of local residents, union members, business owners that would make a recommendation to take affect in October of 2026 once a new mayor and council was selected, but that recommendation was rejected.
sa国际传媒 is one of the fastest-growing cities in Canada and that presents serious challenges, said Cannan.
鈥淚tsa国际传媒 a good problem to have in the sense we鈥檙e a city thatsa国际传媒 very desirable to want to move to,鈥 he said. 鈥淢anaging that is very important and what we do in terms of making decisions today is very important to our future.鈥
Instead of spending hundreds of millions of dollars on the Parkinson Recreation Centre, that money would be better spent partnering with UBC鈥圤kanagan to build a world-class recreation and sports facility, said Cannan.
鈥淚 think we need that kind of vision,鈥 he said. 鈥淥thers may disagree.鈥
Cannan said municipal politics provides different challenges than those he faced as a federal politician.
The influence of the party in power at the provincial level, in this case Premier David Ebysa国际传媒 NDP, has been significant, he said.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e closest to the people and get the most results and impact at the local level,鈥 he said. 鈥淓very level of government has its ability and authority. Obviously, from the local perspective, our biggest challenge is feeling our ability has been constricted by the NDP government. They have basically ripped up every Official Community Plan in the province and have made each individual community homogenous.鈥
Unilaterally legislating the allowance of four homes to be built on one lot, while removing the input from municipal governments has been upsetting and difficult to deal with, said Cannan.
Thousands of hours of work developing local plans have been thrown away by new provincial regulations, he said. Local residents and municipal leaders know whatsa国际传媒 best for their community more than any politician in Victoria, said Cannan.
鈥淭he fact is they (provincial government) keep saying we鈥檙e in a housing crisis, when the truth is we鈥檙e in an affordability crisis,鈥 he said. 鈥淏uilding more expensive homes isn鈥檛 going to address the housing affordability crisis.鈥
Cannan said he will be voting for the BC鈥圕onservative Party in October.
鈥淚鈥檓 hopeful that a strong, united Conservative Party can form the next government,鈥 he said.
