Editing Rob Fleming (section)

==Provincial politics==
With the [[2005 British Columbia general election|2005 BC general election]] still a year away, Fleming declared his interest in seeking the [[British Columbia New Democratic Party|NDP]] nomination in the [[Victoria-Hillside]] riding.<ref>{{cite news |first=Malcolm |last=Curtis |title=Councillor seeks provincial NDP nomination |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= July 23, 2004 |page= B2}}</ref> Within a few months, former [[Member of the Legislative Assembly]] (MLA) [[Steve Orcherton]], who had won the riding in [[1996 British Columbia general election|1996]] but lost in [[2001 British Columbia general election|2001]], declared his candidacy for the NDP nomination. The primary was billed as a contest between the hard line "old-school union man" Orcherton versus the "new wave" moderate Fleming which was seen as the symbolic struggle that was occurring throughout the party.<ref>{{cite news |first=Michael |last=Smyth |title=Can comeback kids shake off their hardline past? |newspaper=[[The Province]] |location=[[Vancouver]] |date= July 23, 2004 |page= A10}}</ref> Fleming won the NDP nomination in January and began campaigning in April for the general election. Fleming was one of five candidates across the province who were endorsed by the Conservation Voters of British Columbia.<ref>{{cite news |first=Malcolm |last=Curtis |title=A return to NDP roots |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= May 18, 2005 |page= B3}}</ref> In the May general election Fleming defeated the incumbent [[British Columbia Liberal Party|BC Liberal]] [[Sheila Orr]] and [[British Columbia Green Party|Green Party]] candidate and small business owner Steve Filipovic. Fleming resigned from his position as Victoria city councillor to become a New Democratic MLA, as part of the Official Opposition.

===38th Parliament===
In the [[38th Parliament of British Columbia|38th Parliament]], Fleming and chaired the Select Standing Committee on Public Accounts and part way through the 2nd session he was assigned to the Select Standing Committee on Education which focused on adult literacy. He introduced several pieces of legislation, including the ''Payday Lending Act, 2006'', which sought to license payday lenders and regulate the conditions of [[payday loan]]s, including [[plain language]] rules, rights to cancellation, signage requirements.<ref>Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (2006). [http://www.leg.bc.ca/38th2nd/1st_read/m206-1.htm Bill M 206 — 2006] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110219030805/http://www.leg.bc.ca/38th2nd/1st_read/m206-1.htm |date=2011-02-19 }} Payday Lending Act, 2006. Queen's Printer, Victoria, BC. Retrieved December 24, 2010.</ref><ref>Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (2007). [http://www.leg.bc.ca/38th3rd/1st_read/m209-1.htm Bill M 209 — 2007] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110219015449/http://www.leg.bc.ca/38th3rd/1st_read/m209-1.htm |date=2011-02-19 }} Payday Lending Act, 2007. Queen's Printer, Victoria, BC. Retrieved December 24, 2010.</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=John |last=Bermingham |title=Changes eyed for payday loans |newspaper=[[The Province]] |location=[[Vancouver]] |date= May 9, 2006 |page= A28}}</ref> While Solicitor General [[John Les]] stated he was in favour of many of the regulations, he felt the bill was premature and that changes to the federal ''[[Criminal Code (Canada)|Criminal Code]]'' were required before proceeding with such regulations, despite other provinces already having passed similar legislation.<ref>{{cite news |first=Jeff |last=Rud |author2=Lindsay Kines |title=Regulate payday loans, NDP tells government |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= May 9, 2006 |page= A4}}</ref> The bill was granted first reading on May 8, 2006, but without the government support the bill was not adopted. However, a year later, a similar bill, introduced by Les, the ''Business Practices and Consumer Protection (Payday Loans) Amendment Act, 2007'' was introduced and adopted concurrent with federal amendments to the Criminal Code.<ref>{{cite news |title=Payday lenders targeted |newspaper=Victoria News |date= April 25, 2007 |page= 6}}</ref>

Fleming was assigned the role of critic for advanced education. He introduced the ''Private Post-Secondary Accountability and Student Protection Act, 2007'' which was intended to increase the accountability of private career training institutions and increasing the enforcement abilities of the Degree Quality Assessment Board.<ref>Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (2007). [http://www.leg.bc.ca/38th3rd/1st_read/m217-1.htm Bill M 217 — 2007] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110807101751/http://www.leg.bc.ca/38th3rd/1st_read/m217-1.htm |date=2011-08-07 }} Private Post-Secondary Accountability and Student Protection Act, 2007. Queen's Printer, Victoria, BC. Retrieved December 24, 2010.</ref> He spoke out against deregulation that allowed [[diploma mills]] like [[Rutherford University]] and [[Kingston College (British Columbia)|Kingston College]] which advertised to foreign students.<ref>{{cite news |first=Janet |last=Steffenhagen |title=B.C. 'will protect' foreign students from scams |newspaper=[[The Vancouver Sun]] |date= January 10, 2007 |page= B5}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Janet |last=Steffenhagen |title=NDP calls for tough action against owner of closed private post- secondary schools |newspaper=[[The Vancouver Sun]] |date= February 21, 2007 |page= B3}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Janet |last=Steffenhagen |title=B.C. blacklists private university |newspaper=[[The Vancouver Sun]] |date= June 11, 2008 |page= B1}}</ref> He introduced the ''Restoring Credibility to Universities Act, 2008'' which sought to repeal the ''[[World Trade University|World Trade University Canada Establishment Act]]'' and portions of the 2007 ''Education Statutes Amendment Act'' concerning private post-secondary institutions.<ref>Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (2008). [http://www.leg.bc.ca/38th4th/1st_read/m225-1.htm Bill M 225 — 2008] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110218234910/http://www.leg.bc.ca/38th4th/1st_read/m225-1.htm |date=2011-02-18 }} Restoring Credibility to Universities Act, 2008. Queen's Printer, Victoria, BC. Retrieved December 24, 2010.</ref> Fleming also took on the role as the NDP tourism critic and objected to Tourism Minister [[Bill Bennett (politician)|Bill Bennett]]'s decision not to participate in the National Vigil Project (a light display honouring Canadians killed World War One) due to costs<ref>{{cite news |title=B.C. balks at international tribute to WW1 soldiers |newspaper=[[The Province]] |location=[[Vancouver]] |date=November 9, 2008 |page=A18 |url=http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=399f78be-4d47-441f-a3e8-7a11b44e4e8c |access-date=December 24, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121109150749/http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=399f78be-4d47-441f-a3e8-7a11b44e4e8c |archive-date=November 9, 2012 }}</ref> and, in response to funding cuts to [[Tourism British Columbia|Tourism BC]], he criticized government self-promotional advertising.<ref>{{cite news |first=Lindsay |last=Kines |title=Tourism agencies brace for cuts |newspaper=[[The Vancouver Sun]] |date= December 29, 2008 |page= A2}}</ref>

===39th Parliament===
While his riding was re-aligned to create [[Victoria-Swan Lake]], Fleming easily won re-election facing no opposition for the NDP nomination<ref>{{cite news |title=Fleming receives NDP nod again |newspaper=Victoria News |date= February 16, 2009 |page= 1}}</ref> and receiving 61% of the votes in the [[2009 British Columbia general election|May 2009 general election]]. In the [[39th Parliament of British Columbia|39th Parliament]], his party once again formed the Official Opposition to a BC Liberal majority government. Party leader [[Carole James]] assigned him the role of environment critic with the intent of re-casting the party's image on environmental issues following the party's negatively received campaign plank of repealing the [[carbon tax]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Rob |last=Shaw |title=Few changes in NDP's critic shuffle |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= June 12, 2009 |page= A3}}</ref> Fleming, and the party, stopped calling for a repeal of the carbon tax and instead emphasized a more nuanced position in providing alternatives which would improve the tax.<ref>{{cite news |first=Jonathan |last=Fowlie |title=Carbon tax to rise by 50 per cent |newspaper= [[The Vancouver Sun]] |date= June 30, 2009 |page= C2}}</ref> He linked planned increases in transit fares to global warming and spoke out against fee increases at provincial park campsites.<ref>{{cite news |first=Rob |last=Fleming |title=Higher transit fares promote global warming |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= October 31, 2009 |page= A15}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Rob |last=Shaw |title=Fee increases follow 2 years of park cuts |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= March 20, 2010 |page= A3}}</ref>

In November 2009, and again in April 2010, he introduced the ''Cosmetic Pesticide and Carcinogen Control Act''<ref>[http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th2nd/1st_read/m203-1.htm (Bill M-203)]</ref> which would have prohibited the sale or use of cosmetic [[pesticide]]s, other than those deemed low-risk.<ref>Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (2009). [http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th1st/1st_read/m206-1.htm Bill M 206 — 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320063139/http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th1st/1st_read/m206-1.htm |date=2012-03-20 }} Cosmetic Pesticide and Carcinogen Control Act, 2009. Queen's Printer, Victoria, BC. Retrieved December 24, 2010.</ref><ref>Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (2010). [http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th2nd/1st_read/m203-1.htm Bill M 203 — 2010] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120202034514/http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th2nd/1st_read/m203-1.htm |date=2012-02-02 }} Cosmetic Pesticide and Carcinogen Control Act, 2010. Queen's Printer, Victoria, BC. Retrieved December 24, 2010.</ref> The Special Committee on Cosmetic Pesticides was struck, with Fleming as deputy chair, to investigate the potential for regulating or banning the use or sale of pesticides used for cosmetic purposes. They first convened in July 2011 and reported in 2012.

In the August 2009 [[Speech from the throne|Throne Speech]] the BC government committed to striking a task force on the topic of [[List of wildlife species at risk (Canada)|species-at-risk]], but with no action since then, Fleming introduced his own ''Species at Risk Protection Act''<ref>[http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th2nd/1st_read/m207-1.htm (Bill M-207)]</ref> in May 2010, based on similar legislation in [[Ontario]].<ref>Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (2010). [http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th2nd/1st_read/m207-1.htm Bill M 207 — 2010] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120202023813/http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th2nd/1st_read/m207-1.htm |date=2012-02-02 }} Species at Risk Protection Act, 2010. Queen's Printer, Victoria, BC. Retrieved December 24, 2010.</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Judith |last=Lavoie |title=Species-at-risk bill introduced; Victoria NDP MLA Fleming hopeful Liberals will support his initiative |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= June 1, 2010 |page= A4}}</ref> The Minister of Environment [[Barry Penner]] responded in June by striking a ten member species-at-risk task force consisting of academics and representatives of industry and non-profit organizations, who were told to make recommendations to directly [[Executive Council of British Columbia|cabinet]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Judith |last=Lavoie |title=Species-at-risk task force appointed |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= June 11, 2010 |page= A4}}</ref> The task force report was submitted in January 2011 but, with the government not making the report public, Fleming re-introduced his legislation <ref>[http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th3rd/1st_read/m211-1.htm (Bill M-211)]</ref> in June 2011 the report was made public less than a month later<ref> ([http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/sartaskforce/Documents/SpeciesAtRisk_report.pdf the report]</ref>).

In addition, Fleming participated in two committees. In the first two sessions he was deputy chair of the Select Standing Committee on Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Standing Orders and Private Bills, which met once in each session to review [[private bill]]s. He was member of the Select Standing Committee on Legislative Initiatives, the committee that only met twice, both times in September 2010, to deal with a petition seeking the repeal of the [[Harmonized Sales Tax]]; Fleming and the three other New Democratic Party members voted to recommend introducing the draft ''HST Extinguishment Act'' into the Legislative Assembly, while the five BC Liberal members voted to initiate the [[2011 British Columbia sales tax referendum]].

During the [[2011 British Columbia New Democratic Party leadership election|BC NDP leadership election]] to replace Carole James, Fleming supported [[Mike Farnworth]],<ref>{{cite news |first=Kyle |last=Slavin |title=Saanich NDP MLAs support Farnworth for party leader |newspaper=Saanich News |location=[[Saanich, British Columbia]] |date=March 16, 2011 |url=http://www.vicnews.com/news/118107589.html |access-date=June 10, 2015 |archive-date=June 11, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150611035041/http://www.vicnews.com/news/118107589.html |url-status=live }}</ref> though [[Adrian Dix]] eventually won. Dix kept Fleming as the critic for Environment. When Parliament re-convened for a fourth session Fleming introduced another private member bill, the ''Sustainable Development Indicators and Reporting Act, 2011''<ref>[http://www.leg.bc.ca/39th4th/1st_read/m207-1.htm (Bill M-207)]</ref> which sought to create a Sustainable Development Board to measure and report on indicators of BC's economic, environmental and social sustainability.

===40th Parliament===
With the [[2013 British Columbia general election|May 2013 election]] approaching, the 41-year-old Fleming sought re-election in the [[Victoria-Swan Lake]] riding. He defeated the BC Liberal candidate, small-business owner Christina Bates, and the BC Green candidate Spencer Malthouse.<ref>{{cite news |title=Fleming keeps his riding in NDP column once again |last=Arrais |first=Pedro |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date= May 15, 2013 |page= B4}}</ref> Despite his win and favourable polling, Fleming's party lost the general election and again formed the official opposition. Fleming was critical of party leader Adrian Dix's positive-only campaigning during the election, partly blamed for the upset loss, saying that it allowed their opponents to define who they were and then attack that without response.<ref>{{cite news |title=Dix insists nice guys finish first |first= Ian |last=Bailey |newspaper=[[The Globe and Mail]] |date=September 20, 2013 |page=S1}}</ref> Dix appointed Fleming to the role of education critic, moving his previous role of environment critic to [[Spencer Chandra Herbert]].<ref>{{cite news |title=New Democrats settle back into role of opposing government; Liberals provide ready-made material for the opposition in the form of staff pay hikes and wheelchair fees |last=Palmer |first=Vaughn |newspaper=[[The Vancouver Sun]] |date= June 15, 2013 |page=A5}}</ref>

Upon Dix's resignation as leader of the BC NDP, Fleming was considered as a potential candidate<ref>{{cite news |title=Victoria MLAs eye NDP leadership |last=Wells |first=Kyle |newspaper=Victoria News |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date=September 23, 2013 |page= 1}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=NDP leader race to heat up in 2014 |last=Meissner |first=Dirk |newspaper=[[The Globe and Mail]] |date=December 24, 2013 |page=S2}}</ref> and actively considered seeking the role.<ref>{{cite news |title=Victoria-Swan Lake MLA Fleming considering NDP leadership |last=Slavin |first=Kyle |newspaper=Victoria News |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date=January 21, 2014 |page= 1}}</ref> However, after both [[John Horgan]] and [[Mike Farnworth]] announced their intention to run, Fleming decided he would not;<ref>{{cite news |title=Rob Fleming decides not to run for NDP leadership |last=DeRosa |first=Katie |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date=March 23, 2014 |page=A2}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=2014-03-22|title=MLA Rob Fleming won’t run for leadership of B.C. NDP|url=https://www.timescolonist.com/local-news/mla-rob-fleming-wont-run-for-leadership-of-bc-ndp-4607046|access-date=2023-02-11|publisher=[[Times-Colonist]]|language=en-CA|first=Katie|last=Derosa}}</ref> he later endorsed Horgan's candidacy.<ref>{{cite news |title=Greater Victoria MLAs, MPs line up behind Horgan in B.C. NDP leadership bid |newspaper=Victoria News |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date=April 17, 2014 |page=1}}</ref> Horgan went on to become the leader and kept Fleming in his education critic role.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Opposition prepares to join legislative fray; Portfolio shuffle |last=Palmer |first=Vaughn |newspaper=[[The Vancouver Sun]] |date=July 24, 2014 |page=B6}}</ref>

In December 2015, Fleming fired his constituency assistant who was subsequently arrested, in July 2016, for defrauding the Victoria-Swan Lake constituency office of $120,420 since March 2009.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Ex-constituency aide gets house arrest; Stole $120,420.61 from office of NDP MLA Rob Fleming |last=Dickson |first=Louise |newspaper=[[Times-Colonist]] |location=[[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date=March 16, 2017 |page=A3}}</ref> Fleming sponsored the private member bill ''Youth Voter Registration Act, 2015''<ref>[https://www.leg.bc.ca/Pages/BCLASS-Legacy.aspx#%2Fcontent%2Fdata%2520-%2520ldp%2Fpages%2F40th4th%2F1st_read%2Fm205-1.htm (Bill M-205)]</ref> which sought allow provisional voter registration of people between the ages or 16 and 18, one of the recommendations of a 2011 report by the Chief Electoral Officer.<ref>{{cite book |url=http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2011-CEO-Recommendations.pdf |publisher=Elections BC |title=Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on Recommendations for Legislative Change |date=November 2011 |access-date=April 26, 2017 |isbn=9780772665416 |archive-date=March 25, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170325010801/http://www.elections.bc.ca/docs/rpt/2011-CEO-Recommendations.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The bill was not advanced and he re-introduced it in February 2017 as the ''Election (Increasing Youth Participation) Amendment Act, 2017''.<ref>[https://www.leg.bc.ca/parliamentary-business/legislation-debates-proceedings/40th-parliament/6th-session/bills/progress-of-bills (Bill M-218)]</ref> The measure was eventually adopted during the 41st Parliament as part of the ''Election Amendment Act, 2019''.

===41st Parliament===
For the [[2017 British Columbia general election|2017 general election]] Fleming was challenged by digital media management consultant Stacey Piercey for the BC Liberal Party, Vancouver medical researcher Chris Maxwell for the Green Party, and David Costigane for the [[Vancouver Island Party]].<ref>{{cite news |title= Meet The Candidates; Election May 9 |newspaper=[[Times Colonist]] |location= [[Victoria, British Columbia]] |date=April 30, 2017 |page= D1}}</ref> Fleming was again re-elected with his party forming the Official Opposition, but this time in a BC Liberal minority government. However, in the first session of the [[41st Parliament of British Columbia|41st Parliament]] the BC Liberal government lost a confidence vote and the second session began with the BC NDP forming a minority government. In July 2017, Premier [[John Horgan]] appointed Fleming Minister of Education in the [[Executive Council of British Columbia]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.timescolonist.com/news/b-c/rob-fleming-b-c-s-new-education-minister-diving-into-urgent-priorities-1.21237366 |title=Rob Fleming, B.C.'s new education minister, diving into urgent priorities |first=Cheryl |last=Chan |newspaper=Times Colonist |date=July 19, 2017 |access-date=December 29, 2019 |archive-date=December 29, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191229202924/https://www.timescolonist.com/news/b-c/rob-fleming-b-c-s-new-education-minister-diving-into-urgent-priorities-1.21237366 |url-status=live }}</ref> In that role he oversaw the suspension of in-class learning in the province's schools during the initial months of the [[COVID-19 pandemic in British Columbia|COVID-19 pandemic]] in 2020;<ref>{{Cite news|date=2020-04-28|title=No plan to reopen B.C. schools yet, says education minister|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-schools-update-education-minister-rob-fleming-covid-19-1.5547878|access-date=2023-02-11|publisher=[[CBC News]]|language=en-CA}}</ref> that August he announced the re-opening of schools on September 10, 2020 for the new school year.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2020-08-12|title=B.C. students will be back in class by Sept. 10|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/b-c-students-will-be-back-in-class-by-sept-10-1.5683534|access-date=2023-02-11|publisher=[[CBC News]]|language=en-CA}}</ref>

===42nd Parliament===
In the [[2020 British Columbia general election|October 2020 snap election]] called by Premier John Horgan, Fleming handily won re-election with more than 59% of the vote.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2020-10-25|title=B.C. students will be back in class by Sept. 10|url=https://globalnews.ca/news/7335962/bc-election-2020-victoria-swan-lake/|access-date=2023-02-11|publisher=[[Global News]]|language=en-CA|first=Richard|last=Zussman|first2=Simon|last2=Little}}</ref> Following a [[Cabinet reshuffle|cabinet shuffle]] on November 26, 2020, he was reassigned to the position of the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, replacing [[Claire Trevena]], the incumbent minister who declined to seek re-election.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-cabinet-announcement-1.5816947 |title=New faces join B.C.'s new cabinet, while stalwarts stay on in key roles |publisher=[[CBC News]] |first1=Bethany |last1=Lindsay |date=2020-11-26 |accessdate=2022-04-24 }}</ref> He was in turn replaced by [[Jennifer Whiteside]] as Minister of Education.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2020-11-26|title=B.C. premier announces new NDP cabinet, replaces education minister|url=https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/b-c-premier-announces-new-ndp-cabinet-replaces-education-minister-1.5205604|access-date=2021-02-05|website=[[CIVI-DT|CTV 2 Vancouver Island]]|language=en-CA|archive-date=2021-01-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210127141816/https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/b-c-premier-announces-new-ndp-cabinet-replaces-education-minister-1.5205604|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the new cabinet announced by Premier [[David Eby]] on December 7, 2022, Fleming retained the post of Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure.<ref>{{Cite web |title=B.C. Premier David Eby unveils new cabinet with Niki Sharma, Katrine Conroy and Ravi Kahlon in top posts |url=https://vancouversun.com/news/politics/bc-premier-david-eby-new-cabinet |access-date=2022-12-07 |newspaper=[[Vancouver Sun]] |language=en-CA}}</ref>

On July 5, 2024, Fleming announced that he would not run in the [[2020 British Columbia general election|2024 election]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Harnett |first=Cindy E. |date=July 5, 2024 |title=Fleming one of three cabinet ministers not running in fall provincial election |url=https://www.timescolonist.com/local-news/fleming-one-of-three-cabinet-ministers-not-running-in-fall-provincial-election-9177354 |access-date=April 2, 2025 |website=[[Times Colonist]] |language=en}}</ref>