Terry Lake
Encyclopedia
Terry Lake is a Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
and a member of the BC Liberal Party
. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly from the riding of Kamloops-North Thompson in the 2009 provincial election
. In the 39th Parliament of British Columbia
, Lake was not named to Premier Gordon Campbell
's cabinet
, but he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for the Ranching Task Force and, following that task force's work, Lake was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Health Promotion. Lake also chaired the Sled Dog Task Force
. Once Christy Clark
became premier she appointed Lake,on March 14, 2011, the Minister of Environment.
Lake gained media attention when chaired the Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives. When the provincial government announced the intention to introduce the Harmonized Sales Tax
, a petition against the tax was circulated across the province, gaining the requirement number of signatures to force Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives to either order a referendum on the tax legislation or forward the issue to the Legislative Assembly. Lake's involvement with the HST led to a recall campaign against him in early 2011, but which failed.
Pior to being elected as a MLA, Lake was elected to one term (2005–2008) as mayor of the City of Kamloops and one term (2002–2005) as a councillor of the city. In Kamloops, Lake made priorities of developing a convention centre and expanding the airport. He was also involved is passing citywide vicious dog bylaw and regulations on performances by exotic animals. He served on the executive of the Union of British Columbia Municipalities in 2005 and on the board of BC Transit
from 2006 to 2008.
A veterinarian by training, he was an animal health technology instructor at Thompson Rivers University
in Kamloops from 1997 to 2005. He had an early career in broadcasting
, but eventually became a veterinarian
. He owned Coquitlam Animal Hospital from 1989 to 1996, before moving to Kamloops with his family. He is a past vice-president and treasurer for the World Small Animal Veterinary Association.
, Hampshire
, England
, to a father, Morris, who worked as an electrician in the Royal Air Force
. Morris moved his family, which included two daughters and two sons, to numerous air force bases around the world, including Calgary
, Germany and Saudi Arabia. They moved, in 1972, to the Okanagan area
of British Columbia where Terry graduated from high school. He attended Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, where he studied journalism and worked for Broadcast News. He went on to the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon
where he graduated with a doctorate degree in veterinary medicine
. He then moved to Coquitlam, British Columbia, where he opened his own veterinary practice, in 1989, called the Coquitlam Animal Hospital. He became active in the B.C. Veterinary Medical Association serving as a councilor and secretary-treasurer. He was recognized by Tourism Vancouver with a "Be a Host Legacy Award" in 1997 for his efforts in attracting the World Small Animal Veterinary Association to hold their annual world congress in Vancouver. Lake went on to serve as a board officer, vice-president and treasurer for that Association.
After several visits to friends who lived Kamloops, Lake and his wife, along with their three daughters, decided to move there. He got a teaching position at Thompson Rivers University
's animal-health technology program beginning in 1997. He became active in the community, playing in the soccer league, coaching youth soccer and lobbying to ban performances by exotic animals within the city, like during a circus or rodeo. In 1999, he sought to be elected to the city council. During the campaign, he noted that he was in favour of installing residential water meters, a moratorium on new big-box stores until an impact assessment was completed, and he was opposed to using referendums to make tough decisions. With eight council seats in contention, Lake finished in ninth place with 5,400 votes and claimed $4,562 in election expenses. Lake complained afterwards, and sough legal advice, regarding illegal advertising by the third place finisher, Brian Husband, who ran radio ads on election day. Lake continued to help organize the World Small Animal Veterinary Association's annual (2001) conference which he helped attract to Vancouver. He returned to Kamloops advocating that the city develop a modern conference centre.
John O'Fee's campaign manager in the federal election
which they lost to Conservative
Betty Hinton
. In 2005 he was elected to board of the Union of B.C. Municipalities, attended the Federation of Canadian Municipalities convention in St. John's, Newfoundland
, and visited Aichi, Japan
as part of a cultural exchange with Kamloops's sister city.
With the incumbent mayor retiring, Lake sought to be elected as mayor in the November 2005 election. He faced two others: public relations worker Al McNair and crime-prevention officer Pete Backus. City debt emerged as a primary point of contention during the campaign, with Lake arguing that the debt is an investment in the community and was at a manageable level, and McNair arguing it was too high and uncontrollable. Lake won the election with an unexpectedly high number of votes (11,727) while spending $38,564. He identified airport expansion as his top priority. However, WestJet resisted flying to Kamloops by demanding guaranteed revenue and federal MP Betty Hinton and provincial MLA Kevin Krueger
both saw highway upgrades as higher priorities. In 2006, Lake was appointed to the board of governors for B.C. Transit. Also in 2006, Lake opposed his council who voted in favour of sending a letter to the province requesting a ban on uranium exploration and mining and Lake sought reforms to the Agricultural Land Commission
(via a motion to the Union of B.C. Municipalities) after they refused two Kamloops development applications. As a board member of the Thompson-Nicola Regional District, Lake suggested the province should enable local governments (outside of Metro Vancouver) to levy a gasoline tax so that local public transit could be removed from property taxes. While Kamloops was struggling with a bylaw to ban cosmetic pesticides, Lake advocated for a province wide ban. Lake traveled to Japan and China in October 2007 promoting Kamloops (and resulted in Chinese speed skaters using facilities in Kamloops to train for the 2010 Winter Olympics
), and to Sri Lanka in January 2008 as part of a volunteer organization re-building homes lost in the 2004 tsunami. Lake would return to Sri Lanka in January 2011 to continue his volunteer work.
MLA Claude Richmond
announced he would not seek re-election in the May 2009 provincial election. Consequently, Lake announced that he would not stand for re-election as mayor but would instead seek to replace Richmond. With MLA Kevin Krueger
moving to the new Kamloops-South Thompson
riding, Lake was unopposed for BC Liberal nomination in the Kamloops-North Thompson. The election was expected to be close but Lake ultimately defeated the NDP candidate Doug Brown, student April Snowe for the Green Party, Clearwater
resident Wayne Russell of the Refederation Party
, and the Work Less Party
's Keston Broughton. Lake's BC Liberals won the election and formed a majority government under Premier
Gordon Campbell
. In the first two sessions of the 39th Parliament
Lake was appointed to the Select Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and the Select Standing Committee on Health, however neither of those committees held any meetings. Premier Campbell did not include Lake in the cabinet
but he was appointed as the Parliamentary Secretary for the Ranching Task Force under the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands. The Ranching Task Force began its work in July to review the province's role in the ranching industry, an industry which had been facing setbacks such as declining cattle prices and fewer exports following a Bovine spongiform encephalopathy
outbreak and a strengthen currency value (relative to the US dollar). The task force's final report and recommendations were sent to the Minister of Agriculture and Lands in November 2009.
Lake was also appointed as the convener the Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives, which had not met in over a decade and was not expected to meet any time soon. However, Lake was forced to convene the committee after a petition against the provincial government's intentions to switch the sales tax
system to the Harmonized Sales Tax
system successfully collected the required 10% of voters in every riding. Lake was supportive of the new Harmonized Sales Tax, even though more people in the Kamloops-North Thompson riding signed the anti-HST petition than voted for Lake. Lake caused controversy in May 2010 when he misspoke saying that the Committee on Legislative Initiatives had the power to refuse the petition based on unclear wording and in August when he refused to accept the petition as delivered by the proponents (Lake would only accept it from the Chief Electoral Officer who was holding it pending the resolution of a court challenge by pro-HST consortium). The petition was forwarded to the committee in September and the committee met twice to decide whether to forward the petition to the legislative assembly
or call a provincial referendum on the question. At the same time as the HST petition was circulating, the Fight HST group was soliciting input on whether to launch a recall campaign against Lake. In June 2010, Lake was included on their list of potential recall candidates which also included 23 other BC Liberal MLAs. Lake aggressively responded to the recall challenge by calling its organizer a "bully" and "petulant child" and issuing news releases quoting derogatory comments made by others involved in the Fight HST group. The recall campaign occurred in February–March 2011; the group had 60 days to collect signatures of 40% of the 38,246 voters but were only able to collect 26% (10,087 signatures). Afterwards, the Chief Electoral Officer offered his suggestions for reform of the recall legislation, to which Lake emphasized the ability of organizers to destroy petitions should be amended as he was unable to verify the number of signatures claimed by the organizers. Lake was a member of the Special Committee to Appoint a Chief Electoral Officer, which met in May 2011, but upon advice from the Conflict of Interest Commissioner, Lake withdrew due to his involvement with the Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives, the referendum, and the recall campaign.
Premier Campbell's October 2010 cabinet shuffle created for Lake the role of Parliamentary Secretary for Health Promotion as his old position as Parliamentary Secretary for the Ranching Task Force was eliminated. Following the revelation of the Whistler sled dog cull
, Campbell appointed Lake to head the Sled Dog Task Force, consisting of two other people (representative from the Union of BC Municipalities and the BC SPCA
) to review the provincial government's role in the dog sledding industry and the responses made by agencies to the cull. The task force was given until March 25 to provide a report and recommendations to the Ministry of Agriculture, however there were complications as the delays occurred as an unexpected volume of public input from around the world had to be considered and the criminal RCMP
investigation made key evidence and witnesses unavailable. All the recommendations from the task force were eventually enacted in the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Amendment Act, 2011.
After Campbell announced his resignation the BC Liberal Party leadership election
began, the winner of which would become premier. In mid-December 2010 Lake endorsed George Abbott
, citing Abbott's "collaborative and engaging style to governing" and his profile as a fellow Interior
and rural MLA. Christy Clark
would eventually win the leadership race. When the 39th Parliament
resumed with a third session and Clark as premier, she promoted Lake to Minister of Environment and made him the deputy government house leader. Clark and Lake committed to continue with the carbon tax and a carbon neutral public service. The issue about BC's participation in the Western Climate Initiative
was reviewed by the entire cabinet, who decided to continue with WCI's planned cap-and-trade system. An emphasis in the Ministry of Environment was placed on BC Parks with announcements by Clark and Lake on the elimination of parking fees at parks, a one-year youth passport program, new online tools to facilitate park usage, a park bench sponsorship program, and a $500,000 program to celebrate B.C. Parks' 100th-anniversary. Lake came under criticism for not publicly releasing the report and recommendations of the Species at Risk Task Force. To compensate for the slow action on the task force, the opposition environment critic Rob Fleming
re-introduced his own Species at Risk Protection Act in June 2011. Lake released the task force report in July for a public comment period. As the Minister of Environment, Lake had to defend the Environmental Assessment Office
following a review by the Auditor General
who identified short-comings and continued criticism regarding the rigorousness of the environmental review process as a proposed copper-gold mine, which was approved by Lake's predecessor, was refused by the federal government. Lake came under criticism from fellow BC Liberal MLAs John Les
, John van Dongen
, and Donna Barnett
after Lake approved Metro Vancouver's waste-management plan which included proposals to incinerate garbage; Les and van Dongen felt the plan would significantly lower air quality in their Fraser Valley
ridings and Barnett advocated for continuing the hauling of garbage to the Cache Creek
landfill
in her riding.
| style="width: 130px" |BC Liberal
|Terry Lake
|align="right"|9,830
|align="right"|47%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$108,572
|New Democrat
|Doug Brown
|align="right"|9,320
|align="right"|45%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$84,848
|Green
|April Snowe
|align="right"|1,418
|align="right"|7%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$1,010
|BC Refederation
|Wayne Russell
|align="right"|251
|align="right"|1%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$260
|Work Less
|Keston Broughton
|align="right"|124
|align="right"|0.6%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$550
|- style="background:white;"
! style="text-align:right;" colspan="3"|Total Valid Votes
!align="right"|20,943
!align="right"|100%
|- style="background:white;"
! style="text-align:right;" colspan="3"|Total Rejected Ballots
!align="right"|112
!align="right"|0.5%
|- style="background:white;"
! style="text-align:right;" colspan="3"|Turnout
!align="right"|21,055
!align="right"|55%
|}
Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is one of two components of the Parliament of British Columbia, the provincial parliament ....
and a member of the BC Liberal Party
British Columbia Liberal Party
The British Columbia Liberal Party is the governing political party in British Columbia, Canada. First elected for government in 1916, the party went into decline after 1952, with its rump caucus merging with the Social Credit Party for the 1975 election...
. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly from the riding of Kamloops-North Thompson in the 2009 provincial election
British Columbia general election, 2009
The 39th British Columbia general election was held on May 12, 2009 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The BC Liberal Party formed the government of the province prior to this general election under the leadership of Premier Gordon Campbell...
. In the 39th Parliament of British Columbia
39th Parliament of British Columbia
The 39th Parliament of British Columbia is the current Parliament of British Columbia and composes of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, as elected by the general election of May 12, 2009, and Her Majesty The Queen represented by the Lieutenant-Governor Steven Point...
, Lake was not named to Premier Gordon Campbell
Gordon Campbell
Gordon Muir Campbell, is a Canadian diplomat and politician, who is currently serving as Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. He previously served as the 34th Premier of British Columbia from 2001 to 2011...
's cabinet
Executive Council of British Columbia
The Executive Council of British Columbia is the cabinet of that Canadian province....
, but he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for the Ranching Task Force and, following that task force's work, Lake was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Health Promotion. Lake also chaired the Sled Dog Task Force
Whistler sled dog cull
The Whistler sled dog cull was a controversial cull of 100 sled dogs in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, that prompted investigation by the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Royal Canadian Mounted Police...
. Once Christy Clark
Christy Clark
Christina Joan "Christy" Clark, MLA is a Canadian politician, the 35th and current Premier of British Columbia, Canada...
became premier she appointed Lake,on March 14, 2011, the Minister of Environment.
Lake gained media attention when chaired the Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives. When the provincial government announced the intention to introduce the Harmonized Sales Tax
Harmonized Sales Tax
The Harmonized Sales Tax is the name used in Canada to describe the combination of the federal Goods and Services Tax and the regional Provincial Sales Tax into a single value added sales tax in five of the ten Canadian provinces: Ontario, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, British...
, a petition against the tax was circulated across the province, gaining the requirement number of signatures to force Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives to either order a referendum on the tax legislation or forward the issue to the Legislative Assembly. Lake's involvement with the HST led to a recall campaign against him in early 2011, but which failed.
Pior to being elected as a MLA, Lake was elected to one term (2005–2008) as mayor of the City of Kamloops and one term (2002–2005) as a councillor of the city. In Kamloops, Lake made priorities of developing a convention centre and expanding the airport. He was also involved is passing citywide vicious dog bylaw and regulations on performances by exotic animals. He served on the executive of the Union of British Columbia Municipalities in 2005 and on the board of BC Transit
BC Transit
BC Transit is a provincial crown agency responsible for coordinating the delivery of public transportation within British Columbia, Canada, outside of Greater Vancouver...
from 2006 to 2008.
A veterinarian by training, he was an animal health technology instructor at Thompson Rivers University
Thompson Rivers University
Thompson Rivers University is a comprehensive university located in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada. It offers students a broad range of courses, career streams, and the ability to ladder credits from diploma programs into full degrees...
in Kamloops from 1997 to 2005. He had an early career in broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
, but eventually became a veterinarian
Veterinarian
A veterinary physician, colloquially called a vet, shortened from veterinarian or veterinary surgeon , is a professional who treats disease, disorder and injury in animals....
. He owned Coquitlam Animal Hospital from 1989 to 1996, before moving to Kamloops with his family. He is a past vice-president and treasurer for the World Small Animal Veterinary Association.
Background
Lake was born in OdihamOdiham
Odiham is a historic village and large civil parish in the Hart district of Hampshire, England. It is twinned with Sourdeval in the Manche Department of France. The current population is 4,406. The parish contains an acreage of 7,354 acres with 50 acres of land covered with water. The nearest...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, to a father, Morris, who worked as an electrician in the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
. Morris moved his family, which included two daughters and two sons, to numerous air force bases around the world, including Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Germany and Saudi Arabia. They moved, in 1972, to the Okanagan area
Okanagan
The Okanagan , also known as the Okanagan Valley and sometimes as Okanagan Country is a region located in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. As of 2009, the region's population is approximately 350,927. The...
of British Columbia where Terry graduated from high school. He attended Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, where he studied journalism and worked for Broadcast News. He went on to the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon
Saskatoon
Saskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344....
where he graduated with a doctorate degree in veterinary medicine
Veterinary medicine
Veterinary Medicine is the branch of science that deals with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, disorder and injury in non-human animals...
. He then moved to Coquitlam, British Columbia, where he opened his own veterinary practice, in 1989, called the Coquitlam Animal Hospital. He became active in the B.C. Veterinary Medical Association serving as a councilor and secretary-treasurer. He was recognized by Tourism Vancouver with a "Be a Host Legacy Award" in 1997 for his efforts in attracting the World Small Animal Veterinary Association to hold their annual world congress in Vancouver. Lake went on to serve as a board officer, vice-president and treasurer for that Association.
After several visits to friends who lived Kamloops, Lake and his wife, along with their three daughters, decided to move there. He got a teaching position at Thompson Rivers University
Thompson Rivers University
Thompson Rivers University is a comprehensive university located in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada. It offers students a broad range of courses, career streams, and the ability to ladder credits from diploma programs into full degrees...
's animal-health technology program beginning in 1997. He became active in the community, playing in the soccer league, coaching youth soccer and lobbying to ban performances by exotic animals within the city, like during a circus or rodeo. In 1999, he sought to be elected to the city council. During the campaign, he noted that he was in favour of installing residential water meters, a moratorium on new big-box stores until an impact assessment was completed, and he was opposed to using referendums to make tough decisions. With eight council seats in contention, Lake finished in ninth place with 5,400 votes and claimed $4,562 in election expenses. Lake complained afterwards, and sough legal advice, regarding illegal advertising by the third place finisher, Brian Husband, who ran radio ads on election day. Lake continued to help organize the World Small Animal Veterinary Association's annual (2001) conference which he helped attract to Vancouver. He returned to Kamloops advocating that the city develop a modern conference centre.
Municipal politics
He sought election to the same city council in 2002, advocating for a new conference centre. He finished third with 9,477 votes and claimed $2,609 in election expenses. As a councillor he led the development and implementation of a vicious dog bylaw which allows the city to designate dogs which bite or threaten people without provocation as 'dangerous' and place restriction on their containment and public handling. He differed from the rest of council by resisting the $3-million commitment to build the Kamloops Wildlife Park, opposing the renaming of Overlander Bridge to the Phil Gaglardi Bridge (which approved by the rest of council but later rescinded), and favouring higher parking fees in the downtown area. He took time in 2004 to work as LiberalLiberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
John O'Fee's campaign manager in the federal election
Canadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...
which they lost to Conservative
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
Betty Hinton
Betty Hinton
Betty Zane Hinton is a Canadian politician, previously representing the constituency of Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo in the federal parliament....
. In 2005 he was elected to board of the Union of B.C. Municipalities, attended the Federation of Canadian Municipalities convention in St. John's, Newfoundland
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
St. John's is the capital and largest city in Newfoundland and Labrador, and is the oldest English-founded city in North America. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. With a population of 192,326 as of July 1, 2010, the St...
, and visited Aichi, Japan
Aichi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region. The region of Aichi is also known as the Tōkai region. The capital is Nagoya. It is the focus of the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area.- History :...
as part of a cultural exchange with Kamloops's sister city.
With the incumbent mayor retiring, Lake sought to be elected as mayor in the November 2005 election. He faced two others: public relations worker Al McNair and crime-prevention officer Pete Backus. City debt emerged as a primary point of contention during the campaign, with Lake arguing that the debt is an investment in the community and was at a manageable level, and McNair arguing it was too high and uncontrollable. Lake won the election with an unexpectedly high number of votes (11,727) while spending $38,564. He identified airport expansion as his top priority. However, WestJet resisted flying to Kamloops by demanding guaranteed revenue and federal MP Betty Hinton and provincial MLA Kevin Krueger
Kevin Krueger
Kevin Krueger is a BC Liberal Member of the Legislative Assembly, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. He represented the riding of Kamloops-North Thompson from 1996 to 2009, and currently represents Kamloops-South Thompson as of 2009....
both saw highway upgrades as higher priorities. In 2006, Lake was appointed to the board of governors for B.C. Transit. Also in 2006, Lake opposed his council who voted in favour of sending a letter to the province requesting a ban on uranium exploration and mining and Lake sought reforms to the Agricultural Land Commission
Agricultural Land Reserve
The Agricultural Land Reserve is a collection of land in the Canadian province of British Columbia in which agriculture is recognized as the priority use. Farming is encouraged and non-agricultural uses are controlled. In total, the ALR covers approximately and includes private and public lands...
(via a motion to the Union of B.C. Municipalities) after they refused two Kamloops development applications. As a board member of the Thompson-Nicola Regional District, Lake suggested the province should enable local governments (outside of Metro Vancouver) to levy a gasoline tax so that local public transit could be removed from property taxes. While Kamloops was struggling with a bylaw to ban cosmetic pesticides, Lake advocated for a province wide ban. Lake traveled to Japan and China in October 2007 promoting Kamloops (and resulted in Chinese speed skaters using facilities in Kamloops to train for the 2010 Winter Olympics
2010 Winter Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
), and to Sri Lanka in January 2008 as part of a volunteer organization re-building homes lost in the 2004 tsunami. Lake would return to Sri Lanka in January 2011 to continue his volunteer work.
Provincial politics
In July 2008, KamloopsKamloops (provincial electoral district)
Kamloops was a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada from 1903 to 2009. The provincial constituency should not be confused with the former federal electoral district of Kamloops, which encompassed a much larger area.For other ridings named Kamloops...
MLA Claude Richmond
Claude Richmond
Claude Richmond is a former BC Liberal Member of the Legislative Assembly in the Canadian province of British Columbia. He represented the riding of Kamloops from 1981 to 1991 and from 2001 to 2009....
announced he would not seek re-election in the May 2009 provincial election. Consequently, Lake announced that he would not stand for re-election as mayor but would instead seek to replace Richmond. With MLA Kevin Krueger
Kevin Krueger
Kevin Krueger is a BC Liberal Member of the Legislative Assembly, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. He represented the riding of Kamloops-North Thompson from 1996 to 2009, and currently represents Kamloops-South Thompson as of 2009....
moving to the new Kamloops-South Thompson
Kamloops-South Thompson
Kamloops-South Thompson is a provincial electoral district in British Columbia, Canada established by the Electoral Districts Act, 2008. It will come into effect upon the next dissolution of the BC Legislature, currently scheduled for April 2009, and will first be contested in the ensuing...
riding, Lake was unopposed for BC Liberal nomination in the Kamloops-North Thompson. The election was expected to be close but Lake ultimately defeated the NDP candidate Doug Brown, student April Snowe for the Green Party, Clearwater
Clearwater, British Columbia
Clearwater is a district municipality in the North Thompson River valley in British Columbia, Canada, north of Kamloops. The largest community in the valley, with a population of 4,960, Clearwater is predominantly employed by the forestry industry. Tourism is also a major industry, with Wells Gray...
resident Wayne Russell of the Refederation Party
British Columbia Refederation Party
The B.C. Refederation Party is a provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada advocating direct democracy and reform to Canadian federalism...
, and the Work Less Party
Work Less Party of British Columbia
The Work Less Party is a political party in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The party was founded in 2003 by Conrad Schmidt. It has a federal wing and also participates in municipal politics...
's Keston Broughton. Lake's BC Liberals won the election and formed a majority government under Premier
Premier of British Columbia
The Premier of British Columbia is the first minister, head of government, and de facto chief executive for the Canadian province of British Columbia. Until the early 1970s the title Prime Minister of British Columbia was often used...
Gordon Campbell
Gordon Campbell
Gordon Muir Campbell, is a Canadian diplomat and politician, who is currently serving as Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. He previously served as the 34th Premier of British Columbia from 2001 to 2011...
. In the first two sessions of the 39th Parliament
39th Parliament of British Columbia
The 39th Parliament of British Columbia is the current Parliament of British Columbia and composes of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, as elected by the general election of May 12, 2009, and Her Majesty The Queen represented by the Lieutenant-Governor Steven Point...
Lake was appointed to the Select Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and the Select Standing Committee on Health, however neither of those committees held any meetings. Premier Campbell did not include Lake in the cabinet
Executive Council of British Columbia
The Executive Council of British Columbia is the cabinet of that Canadian province....
but he was appointed as the Parliamentary Secretary for the Ranching Task Force under the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands. The Ranching Task Force began its work in July to review the province's role in the ranching industry, an industry which had been facing setbacks such as declining cattle prices and fewer exports following a Bovine spongiform encephalopathy
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy
Bovine spongiform encephalopathy , commonly known as mad-cow disease, is a fatal neurodegenerative disease in cattle that causes a spongy degeneration in the brain and spinal cord. BSE has a long incubation period, about 30 months to 8 years, usually affecting adult cattle at a peak age onset of...
outbreak and a strengthen currency value (relative to the US dollar). The task force's final report and recommendations were sent to the Minister of Agriculture and Lands in November 2009.
Lake was also appointed as the convener the Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives, which had not met in over a decade and was not expected to meet any time soon. However, Lake was forced to convene the committee after a petition against the provincial government's intentions to switch the sales tax
Sales taxes in British Columbia
Sales taxes in British Columbia are levied via the Harmonized Sales Tax , which replaced the separate Provincial Sales Tax and federal Goods and Services Tax on 1 July 2010...
system to the Harmonized Sales Tax
Harmonized Sales Tax
The Harmonized Sales Tax is the name used in Canada to describe the combination of the federal Goods and Services Tax and the regional Provincial Sales Tax into a single value added sales tax in five of the ten Canadian provinces: Ontario, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, British...
system successfully collected the required 10% of voters in every riding. Lake was supportive of the new Harmonized Sales Tax, even though more people in the Kamloops-North Thompson riding signed the anti-HST petition than voted for Lake. Lake caused controversy in May 2010 when he misspoke saying that the Committee on Legislative Initiatives had the power to refuse the petition based on unclear wording and in August when he refused to accept the petition as delivered by the proponents (Lake would only accept it from the Chief Electoral Officer who was holding it pending the resolution of a court challenge by pro-HST consortium). The petition was forwarded to the committee in September and the committee met twice to decide whether to forward the petition to the legislative assembly
Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is one of two components of the Parliament of British Columbia, the provincial parliament ....
or call a provincial referendum on the question. At the same time as the HST petition was circulating, the Fight HST group was soliciting input on whether to launch a recall campaign against Lake. In June 2010, Lake was included on their list of potential recall candidates which also included 23 other BC Liberal MLAs. Lake aggressively responded to the recall challenge by calling its organizer a "bully" and "petulant child" and issuing news releases quoting derogatory comments made by others involved in the Fight HST group. The recall campaign occurred in February–March 2011; the group had 60 days to collect signatures of 40% of the 38,246 voters but were only able to collect 26% (10,087 signatures). Afterwards, the Chief Electoral Officer offered his suggestions for reform of the recall legislation, to which Lake emphasized the ability of organizers to destroy petitions should be amended as he was unable to verify the number of signatures claimed by the organizers. Lake was a member of the Special Committee to Appoint a Chief Electoral Officer, which met in May 2011, but upon advice from the Conflict of Interest Commissioner, Lake withdrew due to his involvement with the Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives, the referendum, and the recall campaign.
Premier Campbell's October 2010 cabinet shuffle created for Lake the role of Parliamentary Secretary for Health Promotion as his old position as Parliamentary Secretary for the Ranching Task Force was eliminated. Following the revelation of the Whistler sled dog cull
Whistler sled dog cull
The Whistler sled dog cull was a controversial cull of 100 sled dogs in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, that prompted investigation by the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Royal Canadian Mounted Police...
, Campbell appointed Lake to head the Sled Dog Task Force, consisting of two other people (representative from the Union of BC Municipalities and the BC SPCA
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a non-profit animal welfare organization originally founded in England in 1824 to pass laws protecting carriage horses from abuse. SPCA groups are now found in many nations, where they campaign for animal welfare, assist in cruelty to animals...
) to review the provincial government's role in the dog sledding industry and the responses made by agencies to the cull. The task force was given until March 25 to provide a report and recommendations to the Ministry of Agriculture, however there were complications as the delays occurred as an unexpected volume of public input from around the world had to be considered and the criminal RCMP
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
investigation made key evidence and witnesses unavailable. All the recommendations from the task force were eventually enacted in the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Amendment Act, 2011.
After Campbell announced his resignation the BC Liberal Party leadership election
British Columbia Liberal Party leadership election, 2011
The British Columbia Liberal Party leadership election of 2011 was prompted by Gordon Campbell's announcement on November 3, 2010 that he would be resigning as Premier of British Columbia and had asked the BC Liberal Party to hold a leadership convention "at the earliest possible date." The...
began, the winner of which would become premier. In mid-December 2010 Lake endorsed George Abbott
George Abbott (politician)
George Abbott is a BC Liberal Party Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada. He represents the riding of Shuswap, which he has held since 1996...
, citing Abbott's "collaborative and engaging style to governing" and his profile as a fellow Interior
British Columbia Interior
The British Columbia Interior or BC Interior or Interior of British Columbia, usually referred to only as the Interior, is one of the three main regions of the Canadian province of British Columbia, the other two being the Lower Mainland, which comprises the overlapping areas of Greater Vancouver...
and rural MLA. Christy Clark
Christy Clark
Christina Joan "Christy" Clark, MLA is a Canadian politician, the 35th and current Premier of British Columbia, Canada...
would eventually win the leadership race. When the 39th Parliament
39th Parliament of British Columbia
The 39th Parliament of British Columbia is the current Parliament of British Columbia and composes of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, as elected by the general election of May 12, 2009, and Her Majesty The Queen represented by the Lieutenant-Governor Steven Point...
resumed with a third session and Clark as premier, she promoted Lake to Minister of Environment and made him the deputy government house leader. Clark and Lake committed to continue with the carbon tax and a carbon neutral public service. The issue about BC's participation in the Western Climate Initiative
Western Climate Initiative
The Western Climate Initiative, or WCI, is an initiative—started by states and provinces along the western rim of North America—to combat climate change caused by global warming, independent of their national governments....
was reviewed by the entire cabinet, who decided to continue with WCI's planned cap-and-trade system. An emphasis in the Ministry of Environment was placed on BC Parks with announcements by Clark and Lake on the elimination of parking fees at parks, a one-year youth passport program, new online tools to facilitate park usage, a park bench sponsorship program, and a $500,000 program to celebrate B.C. Parks' 100th-anniversary. Lake came under criticism for not publicly releasing the report and recommendations of the Species at Risk Task Force. To compensate for the slow action on the task force, the opposition environment critic Rob Fleming
Rob Fleming
Rob Fleming is a Canadian politician who represents the riding of Victoria-Swan Lake in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Fleming was elected the British Columbia New Democratic Party Member of the Legislative Assembly for the district of Victoria-Hillside in the 2005 British Columbia...
re-introduced his own Species at Risk Protection Act in June 2011. Lake released the task force report in July for a public comment period. As the Minister of Environment, Lake had to defend the Environmental Assessment Office
Environmental Assessment Office
The Environmental Assessment Office is a Crown Agency of the provincial government of British Columbia, Canada.Its mandate is to coordinate assessments of major development proposals in British Columbia.It reports to the provincial Minister of Environment....
following a review by the Auditor General
Auditor General of British Columbia
The Auditor General of British Columbia is an independent Officer of the Legislature of British Columbia, responsible for conducting audits of the government reporting entity which consists of ministries, Crown corporations, and other government organizations such as universities, colleges, school...
who identified short-comings and continued criticism regarding the rigorousness of the environmental review process as a proposed copper-gold mine, which was approved by Lake's predecessor, was refused by the federal government. Lake came under criticism from fellow BC Liberal MLAs John Les
John Les
John Les is a Canadian politician and member of the Legislative Assembly for British Columbia.He is currently the Parliamentary Secretary to the Premier...
, John van Dongen
John van Dongen
John van Dongen is a Member of the Legislative Assembly, representing the riding of Abbotsford South, in the province of British Columbia , Canada. Mr. van Dongen is one of the longest serving BC Liberal MLAs in the BC Legislature...
, and Donna Barnett
Donna Barnett
Donna Barnett is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2009 election. She was elected as a BC Liberal member, representing the newly created riding of Cariboo-Chilcotin....
after Lake approved Metro Vancouver's waste-management plan which included proposals to incinerate garbage; Les and van Dongen felt the plan would significantly lower air quality in their Fraser Valley
Fraser Valley
The Fraser Valley is the section of the Fraser River basin in southwestern British Columbia downstream of the Fraser Canyon. The term is sometimes used to refer to the Fraser Canyon and stretches upstream from there, but in general British Columbian usage of the term refers to the stretch of the...
ridings and Barnett advocated for continuing the hauling of garbage to the Cache Creek
Cache Creek, British Columbia
Cache Creek is a junction community northeast of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. It is on the Trans-Canada Highway in the province of British Columbia at its junction with northbound Highway 97...
landfill
Cache Creek landfill
The Cache Creek landfill is a landfill in British Columbia, Canada.In 1989 Cache Creek became a landfill site for garbage shipped by truck from BC's Lower Mainland. It is permitted to receive up to 500,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste annually. For more information, go to...
in her riding.
Election history
|-| style="width: 130px" |BC Liberal
British Columbia Liberal Party
The British Columbia Liberal Party is the governing political party in British Columbia, Canada. First elected for government in 1916, the party went into decline after 1952, with its rump caucus merging with the Social Credit Party for the 1975 election...
|Terry Lake
|align="right"|9,830
|align="right"|47%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$108,572
|New Democrat
New Democratic Party of British Columbia
The New Democratic Party of British Columbia is a social-democratic political party in British Columbia, Canada. The party currently forms the official opposition to the governing British Columbia Liberal Party following the 2009 provincial election in British Columbia.The BC NDP is the provincial...
|Doug Brown
|align="right"|9,320
|align="right"|45%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$84,848
|Green
Green Party of British Columbia
The Green Party of British Columbia is a political party in British Columbia, Canada. It is led by former Esquimalt municipal councillor, university professor and businessperson Jane Sterk, she was elected by the party in 2007. Penticton realtor and columnist Julius Bloomfield serves as the deputy...
|April Snowe
|align="right"|1,418
|align="right"|7%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$1,010
|BC Refederation
British Columbia Refederation Party
The B.C. Refederation Party is a provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada advocating direct democracy and reform to Canadian federalism...
|Wayne Russell
|align="right"|251
|align="right"|1%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$260
|Work Less
Work Less Party of British Columbia
The Work Less Party is a political party in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The party was founded in 2003 by Conrad Schmidt. It has a federal wing and also participates in municipal politics...
|Keston Broughton
|align="right"|124
|align="right"|0.6%
|align="center"|n/a
|align="right"|$550
|- style="background:white;"
! style="text-align:right;" colspan="3"|Total Valid Votes
!align="right"|20,943
!align="right"|100%
|- style="background:white;"
! style="text-align:right;" colspan="3"|Total Rejected Ballots
!align="right"|112
!align="right"|0.5%
|- style="background:white;"
! style="text-align:right;" colspan="3"|Turnout
!align="right"|21,055
!align="right"|55%
|}
External links
- Legislative Assembly of British Columbia - Terry Lake
- Member of the Legislative Assembly - Terry Lake (Kamloops-North Thompson)
- BC Liberal - Terry Lake (Kamloops-North Thompson)