Liberals release terms of reference for ethnic vote plan probe

VICTORIA – The B.C. Liberals have promised to get to the bottom of whether public resources were used for political purposes, but it appears answers won’t come as fast as the deputy premier suggested.

Rich Coleman read an apology from Premier Christy Clark in the legislature Thursday, saying the leaked strategy document that laid out plans to woo the province’s ethnic communities appeared to cross the line.

Coleman said then he should know within 24 hours what went wrong and how, but today, the premier’s office issued only the terms of reference for the review.

They include a pledge to conduct interviews and review all documents related to the leaked strategy paper, which the Liberals refer to as a draft.

Those involved in the investigation include the premier’s deputy minister, the deputy ministers of finance and open government and the head of the B.C. Public Service Agency.

Also today, the Liberals were forced to explain that two of three riding presidents who resigned recently quit their jobs weeks ago, though a spokesman said it’s unclear why the third quit.