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2011 was an interesting year

This past year will go down as one of the most amazing years in B.C. political history.

This past year will go down as one of the most amazing years in B.C. political history.

A few highlights of 2011 saw governing and opposition parties change leaders, the referendum on the HST was defeated after the government had put the HST into law, lots of new legislation was introduced including the Family Law Act, and we saw improvement to the forest industry due to the Chinese markets. The Conservative party has emerged with a new leader, and three independent MLAs came back to the government after short absences All in all, 2011 was a very interesting year in B.C. politics and I am sure that we will see more interesting times in 2012.

In 2011 I was extremely involved with the great constituency of Cariboo-Chilcotin. A few highlights include the opening of Deni House, funding to upgrade and pave the Anahim Lake Airport, many rural roads were upgraded and capital work was completed on Highway 20 and the Cariboo Connector. I also had the pleasure of working with local governments, school boards and First Nations. I have had the opportunity of meeting and working with so many of you, and yes, we have solved many issues and still many issues remain unresolved. As parliamentary secretary for rural communities and responsible for the pine beetle coalitions, I have travelled throughout rural B.C.

It is very interesting to note that most rural communities have many of the same issues. A few identified issues that I am committed to working on are carbon tax, predator control, farm gate sales regulations (slaughter house issue), time frame to receive permits on the land base, rural schools, and tourism taxation policies. I will also continue to support Prosperity Mine as well as other investment projects for the Cariboo-Chilcotin and will work to bring all parties involved in land-use issues to the table to create positive solutions for all. Happy New Year!  My door is always open, and it is an honour to represent the people of my constituency.

Donna Barnett is the Liberal MLA for the Cariboo-Chilcotin.