46-year-old MLA for Vancouver-Point Grey will be sworn in as premier in the coming weeks; no date has been set yet
Premier-elect David Eby has put B.C. civil servants on notice that he intends to shake up the often slow-moving government bureaucracy and set higher expectations for results on health care, public safety, affordable housing and climate action.
Eby’s picks for the premier’s office send a clear message that “the B.C. government cannot deliver what David Eby wants if government remains the way it is now,” said Jeff Ferrier, a public affairs analyst for Hill+Knowlton Strategies and longtime B.C. NDP volunteer. “So Eby has made some off-the-board picks for key roles. People with big skills, but also fresh eyes and an outsider’s perspective.
Eby’s campaign was criticized for getting a slow start and failing to sign up as many members as Appadurai, which led to accusations from the climate activist’s supporters that the party was intent on blocking Appadurai from running to ensure a coronation for the former attorney general and housing minister.
James retired from politics in October 2020 following her Parkinson’s disease diagnosis, but was tapped a month later to serve as special adviser to Horgan for $1 a year. She was appointed in 2021 to the Royal B.C. Museum’s board of directors to fix what was described as a toxic culture in the institution.
Eby acknowledged “these are not small matters that can be resolved overnight,” and said without the support of civil servants, “we won’t be successful in this effort.”