Back on July 15 — the one-month anniversary of the 2011 Stanley Cup riot — I told you on this blog that Premier Christy Clark did not have a briefing note about the Stanley Cup riot. She didn’t order one, nor did her staff see fit to produce one proactively.
A briefing note is a standard, internal analysis of an issue relevant to government. They’re dime a dozen. It’s often the first step or last step in the journey of decision-making. If you don’t believe me, read more about briefing notes on the B.C. government website.
In a Vancouver Courier story, I listed all the reasons why a briefing note should have been produced after the Stanley Cup riot. It wasn’t just a problem for Mayor Gregor Robertson and the City of Vancouver. It was a problem for the British Columbia government, too.
Well, wonders never cease. On Aug. 25, I learned that there is another dearth of post-riot paperwork. This time, it has to do with the co-chairs of the Vancouver Riot Review, former Nova Scotia deputy minister Doug Keefe and VANOC chief executive John Furlong.
Their review of the events of June 15, ordered by Clark, is due Aug. 31. As of Aug. 24, they had no contract! It appears that they were simply handed a copy of the June 20 press release and told they’d be reimbursed for their time and costs later.
This is contrary to the way a sophisticated, business-like government normally works. Government normally “papers” everything, with agreements of all sorts. Signatures, witnesses, etc. Not so anymore?
Maybe this is simply the way the Christy Clark Show works.
Read more below.
News and views on Vancouver 2010 (and beyond) from Bob Mackin.