According to the B.C. Liberals, lessons learned from winning the battle but losing the war in the recent provincial election pushed them to make two serious u-turns in political direction. Hogwash.

Social Development Minister Heather Stillwell香蕉视频直播檚 insistence the Liberals will increase welfare rates by $100 per month香蕉视频直播攁fter a decade-long freeze香蕉视频直播攁nd Attorney General Andrew Wilkinson香蕉视频直播檚 saying big money donations to parties will be banned are political moves, pure and simple.

They are aimed at making the NDP and Greens vote against two positions they support when they vote down the Liberals香蕉视频直播� Throne Speech in order to bring down Christy Clark香蕉视频直播檚 government. They will also be used by the Liberals to claim credit when they are reintroduced in the coming months by the yet-to-be installed new NDP minority government.

Cynical? Nah. It香蕉视频直播檚 the way politics is played.

So too is the kerfuffle brewing over the tenure of the speaker of the Legislature the Liberals plan to put forward later this week. But in that case, the Liberals are right.

It香蕉视频直播檚 not up to the Liberals to provide a speaker for a party that not only plans to bring down Clark香蕉视频直播檚 government, but also plans to do it to take the reigns of power with a one-seat majority thanks to the B.C. Greens.

As the NDP has pointed out, the party in power has a responsibility to appoint a speaker. If that香蕉视频直播檚 the NDP, it香蕉视频直播檚 their job. If it香蕉视频直播檚 to the detriment of NDP voting strength, that香蕉视频直播檚 its problem.

So the Liberal speaker plans to step down after the Liberal government is brought down. And the NDP香蕉视频直播檚 one-seat majority will evaporate in straight forward head-to-head voting with the Liberals in the Legislature. That is unless its 香蕉视频直播渘eutral香蕉视频直播� speaker starts regularly breaking tied votes in its favour. And that香蕉视频直播檚 something the supposedly neutral speaker is only expected to do on rare occasions, not as a matter of course. Kinda takes the neutrality out of the job, eh?

But welcome to the new normal of B.C politics.

All this, of course, is because voters left the make-up of the Legislature at 43 seats for the Liberals, 41 for the NDP and three for the Greens.

And these issues are just a foreshadow of some of the difficulties facing an NDP minority government. Whether it香蕉视频直播檚 a final decision on the Site C dam香蕉视频直播攁 real Hobson香蕉视频直播檚 choice for leader and premier-in-waiting John Horgan香蕉视频直播攎inimum wage or Lower Mainland bridge tolls, Clark香蕉视频直播檚 Liberals are not about to make this easy for him.

And remember, Clark told us she heard the message from voters loud and clear. She said they want B.C. politicians to work better together. If this is 香蕉视频直播渂etter,香蕉视频直播� I香蕉视频直播檇 hate to see when things really get ugly and both sides drop the gloves for some real parliamentary pugilism.

One thing is for sure, the start of the next B.C. election campaign, not matter when that vote occurs, will start the minute MLAs walk into the Legislature later this week. So don香蕉视频直播檛 expect Robert香蕉视频直播檚, or anyone else香蕉视频直播檚, Rules of Order.

Alistair Waters is the assistant editor of the Capital News.