William Vander Zalm

Bill Vander Zalm (center) inspects construction at Whistler Village

William Nick Vander Zalm, commonly known as Bill Vander Zalm (born 1934) became British Columbia's 28th Premier in 1986. He was succeeded as Premier of B.C. by Rita Johnston in 1991.

He is widely regarded as being one of the worst premiers British Columbia has ever had.

Before becoming premier, Vander Zalm served as mayor of Surrey, British Columbia from 1969 to 1975. His tenture there was marked by his crackdown on welfare "deadbeats" (at the time, welfare in BC was a municipal responsibility).

He was first elected MLA in 1975, and joined the cabinet of William R. Bennett as Minister of Human Resources from (1975 - 1978), where he continued his crusade against welfare "fraud". He also served as Minister of Municipal Affairs (1978 - 1981). His short tenture as Minister of Education (1981 - 1983) resulted in him forced from cabinet after he called Bennett and his ministers "gutless".

In 1984, he bought Fantasy Garden World. That same year, he ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Vancouver.

In 1986, premier William R. Bennett announced he was retiring. Instantly, Vander Zalm was thrust into the spotlight, as he waffled on whether he would run for the leadership of the Social Credit Party of British Columbia. He generated more press out of the race than the other candidates did in it.

At a conference centre in Whister, British Columbia, he won the leadership easily.

From around just after he became premier, to about one month into the 1986 election campaign, "Vandermania" swept BC. Bill and his wife Lillian Vander Zalm attracted public adoration with their high-voltage smiles and charisma. This allowed the couple to enjoy what they liked doing best: being celebrities. Indeed, the only plan for the election was simply to get Bill and Lillian into as many BC communites as was possible, their charm would do the rest.

Indeed, the party or even its leader had no fixed plan for when they were elected for the long term. However, the main clear goal was to have a "fresh start" after the confrontational Bennett years.

Once elected with a majority, Vander Zalm selected his cabinet, mostly backbenchers who had lingushed under Bill Bennett. Oddly, Vander Zalm decided to release the normally secret list of cabinet appointments to two Vancouver Sun reporters hours before the official announcement was to be made. It is clear that Vander Zalm didn't take being premier as seriously as he should have. Because he did not employ image consultants, his right-wing views on subjects such as abortion got through to the public unfiltered, alienating many voters. As well, negotiations with forestry workers broke down when he didn't understand what he was negotiating about. As well, on the same token, his good relationship with the press (giving out sensitive information on whims, etc.) earned him positive media coverage, even if the people hated him.

The 1989 Fantasy Gardens affair in which Vander Zalm attempted to sell the flower garden/theme park, which he owned, to a Taiwanese tycoon, which did eventually did go through, but, at the cost of his public reputation. The confict of intrest arose because the Taiwanese buyer, Tan Yu was provided with VIP treatment and lunch with the Lieutenant-Governor prior to the sale, as well, Vander Zalm claimed that control over the theme park was his wife's responsibility.

It was proven in BC Supreme Court that he was in fact intimately involved in the sale. The implication was that Vander Zalm used his position as Premier to gain access to cabinet ministers for Tan Yu and himself, to promote his own business transactions. Vander Zalm was forced to resign over the scandal.

Reccommended reading