Vander Zalm's anti-HST petition hits Vancouver

An army of canvassers led by former premier Bill Vander Zalmis hitting the streets across B.C. cities Tuesday morning, armed with a petition aimed at killing the harmonized sales tax.

Vander Zalm plans to take his campaign against the HST right to Premier Gordon Campbell's home riding of Vancouver-Point GreyTuesday night, hosting a kickoff rally at Kitsilano High School.

Under B.C.'s Recall and Initiative Act, the canvassers have 90 days to collect the signatures of 10 per cent of registered voters in each of the province's 85 ridings.

With about three million voters in the province, that means the campaign has until July 5 to collect about 300,000 signatures.

If they succeed, the government could then be required to hold a referendum on the new sales tax. That could not only challenge a major government program it would also be the first time a petition effort under the act has succeeded.

Campaign crosses political lines

B.C.'s chief electoral officer has approved six initiative applications since 1995, from electoral reform to budget-balancing, but none has gathered the required number of names.

Vander Zalm said this campaign is different because it draws support from across the political spectrum.

"We have NDPers. We have Liberals. We have former Liberals. We have Conservatives," he said.

More than 2,000 canvassers have been recruited and organizers hope to enlist another 3,000.

The former Social Credit premier has said the HST is unfair and must be halted.

"We're showing Victoria that they must listen to the people," he said at a September 2009 rally in Vancouver.

B.C.'s Liberal government introduced legislation for the HST March 30. It is due to come into effect on July 1.

The new law would eliminate a seven per cent provincial sales tax and impose a new seven per cent tax that will be blended with the five per cent federal GST.

It would mean B.C. consumers will pay more tax on items that were previously exempt from the provincial sales tax, such as haircuts and restaurant meals, and also put a levy on big-ticket items like real estate.

Vander Zalm launched the initiative when B.C.'s Liberal government announced the new tax shortly after the May 2009 election.