Gary Coons

Gary Earl Coons is the current Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the North Coast riding of British Columbia, Canada. He currently acts as Critic for Ferries and Ports for the New Democratic Party of British Columbia opposition.

Coons is a former math teacher, having worked in the Prince Rupert area for 25 years. He was a teacher at Charles Hays Secondary School. He was also more recently the president of the Prince Rupert District Teachers Union, a local of the British Columbia Teachers' Federation.

While playing on a Western Ontario hockey team, Coons claimed a university league record for penalty minutes.

Personal History

Coons was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba on August 13, 1951. Soon after he was born his family moved to Lachine, Quebec, which was, at that time, a city outside of Montreal.

In 1967 he moved to Burlington, Ontario where he began his lifelong love affair with hockey, playing junior "B" with the Burlington Mohawks. He graduated from Nelson High School which he attended from grades 11 to 13.

After graduating Gary attended the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario where he received his BA in Mathematics and his Bachelor of Education, with specializations in Math and Physical Education.

Throughout his school years Gary continued playing hockey, playing junior "A" hockey with the St.Thomas Elgins from 1970-71 before moving up to the Mustangs university team.

In 1976, after completing his education, Coons moved to Prince George where he worked for a juvenile detention center with kids in need. This marked the beginning of his life in Northern British Columbia.

Coons left Prince George when he was hired as a special education teacher at Prince Rupert's Booth Memorial Junior Secondary school in 1977. He worked as a teacher for three years before he resigned, in 1980, to co-ordinate the 1981 Northern BC Winter Games, which were held in Prince Rupert.

Once the games were completed Coons tried his hand in the commercial fishing industry, working on a gill-netter for a short time.

It was in 1981 that Coons married, Lois Elliot, another teacher in Prince Rupert. She currently teaches at Pineridge school. Together, they have two children, Hannah and Breton.

In 1982 Coons returned to teaching at Booth Memorial Junior Secondary, this time as a math teacher.

In 1986 Coons became the head instructor at Kaien Alternate school, this continued until 1992, when he went on a teaching exchange to Australia.

In 1993 Coons was back in Prince Rupert, teaching, this time at Charles Hays Secondary School. He taught the subjects of math and physical education.

His love of sports led Coons to coach many recreational activities on a community level, including baseball, soccer and hockey.

Throughout this time Coons was very active in the British Columbia Teachers' Federation. His strong commitment to social justice and activism led him to sit on many committees and to participate in many roles in the BCTF from 1983-2005.

His first experience with a major political movement was in 1983, when the Solidarity Coalition rallied against twenty-seven Bills the provincial legislature had introduced. Coons joined more than 50,000 unionists and other demonstrators in protesting the Bills, which attacked human rights, labour, education, and social programs in British Columbia.

Coons served as president of the Prince Rupert District Teacher's Union from 2001-2004.

During his time as president of the union Coons participated in many political actions; this led him to put his name forward as a nominee for the NDP for the 2005 election. He won the nomination, and, eventually, the seat.

Quotes

Although Coons is the New Democrat Critic for Ferries and Ports he is outspoken on many other issues as his numerous statements in the house as well as the large number of news stories published about his work attests.

On Ferries

"I just want to look at the amounts in the core business estimates that were given. I can see that in '06-07 there was approximately $130 million given to B.C. Ferry Services, and this year it's $144 million — an 11-percent increase approximately. Back in '04-05 the amount was close to $127 million, and again it's a 14-percent increase.

The minister was talking about one of the objectives of the transformation of B.C. Ferries was to have less cost to the taxpayer and a better quality of service. But when we look at those increases, I also see in the performance 2 submission from B.C. Ferries to the commissioner that back in the years prior to 2006-2007 — actually, in 2006 and 2007 — the taxpayer subsidy was $91.8 million, and that was contractual. B.C. Ferries says it's going up to $105.2 million; then in 2008-2009, $123.4 million. In 2009-2010 it's going up to $146.5 million; in 2010-2011, $146 million.

Finally, in 2011-2012 in B.C.'s performance 2 submission to the commissioner, they're saying that they are anticipating getting $152.9 million, which from the current contract is a 67-percent increase — from the current contract to what B.C. Ferries is expecting.

I'm just wondering if the minister agrees with those numbers that over the next three or four years there's going to be a 60-percent, 60-percent and then eventually a 67-percent increase in the taxpayer subsidy to B.C. Ferries." [THURSDAY, MARCH 15, 2007, Morning Sitting, Volume 16, Number 8 http://www.leg.bc.ca/hansard/38th3rd/h70315a.htm#6290]

"The Auditor General says, though, that the negative side of this increased independence is that the Ferry Authority is not answerable to anybody. With no owners, no shareholders, no financial stake in the company, there's no person or agency that controls B.C. Ferries or its board of directors. The Auditor General says that this new governance structure is a hybrid that has yet to prove itself." [THURSDAY, MARCH 15, 2007, Morning Sitting, Volume 16, Number 8 http://www.leg.bc.ca/hansard/38th3rd/h70315a.htm#6290]

"They transferred over our vital, essential marine highway to be flipped over in a profit-over-service scheme — no business plan, no written objectives, no observable objectives, no criteria for how the objectives are being met. I hope the minister writes down the five objectives from the Auditor General's report so he has them all in one spot. His staff can say — instead of me or the public going to documents willy-nilly — that they are put out there for the public to see." [THURSDAY, MARCH 15, 2007, Morning Sitting, Volume 16, Number 8 http://www.leg.bc.ca/hansard/38th3rd/h70315a.htm#6290]

On Forestry

"Log exports exchange short-term gain for long-term pain." [Queen Charlotte Islands Observer November 5, 2007 http://www.qciobserver.com/Article.aspx?Id=2977]

"The expansion of log exports to the Queen Charlottes coupled with the continuation of old-growth logging will lead to the devastation of our vulnerable coastal forests. This plan once again offers little hope for workers and communities and we need to press for the necessary transition programs and funding for both workers and communities." [Queen Charlotte Islands Observer November 5, 2007 http://www.qciobserver.com/Article.aspx?Id=2977]

On the Moratorium on Oil Tanker Traffic on the North Coast

"There is a moratorium on oil and gas activities in B.C.'s offshore waters. That means there isn't supposed to be any exploration activity and tanker traffic along our coastline. Frankly, I find it disturbing that traffic has begun without even the most cursory of public discourse from the government." [May 16, 2007 The Daily News retrieved from http://www.dogwoodinitiative.org/sneakydenial]

"The moratoria have not been lifted, and they need to be for this tanker traffic to legally go ahead. If the moratoria are, indeed, going to be lifted, there must be debates on both the federal and the provincial levels, as well as consultation with the First Nations Peoples whose territories are affected by this change in policy." [May 16, 2007 The Daily News retrieved from http://www.dogwoodinitiative.org/sneakydenial]

"If governments are unwilling to act to protect the interests of communities like Hartley Bay in the event of a small spill like that caused by the sinking of the Queen of the North, how can the communities of the North Coast feel secure in the face of the possibility of a major spill?" [May 16, 2007 The Daily News retrieved from http://www.dogwoodinitiative.org/sneakydenial]

"The sneaky approach both the federal and provincial governments have taken on the issue of tanker traffic doesn't inspire much confidence in their commitment to the environmental health of the North Coast." [May 16, 2007 The Daily News retrieved from http://www.dogwoodinitiative.org/sneakydenial]

References

Reflist

External links

* [http://garycoons.ca Gary Coons's Official Website]
* [http://www.bcndpcaucus.ca/en/mla/gary_coons Gary's NDP Caucus Page]
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/garycoons/ Gary's Flickr Picture Page]