Bob Mackin
A look back at the top stories of the year in British Columbia.
The Times Square 2025.
A is for axe. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre promised to axe the carbon tax. Mark Carney re-set it to zero and David Eby did the same in B.C.
B is for bourbon. As inJack Daniels and Jim Beam. Eby yanked them from B.C. government liquor store shelves in the trade war with Donald Trump.
C is for Charleigh. Charleigh Pollock, a Langford 10-year-old, needs expensive medication to treat the rare Batten disease. But the NDP government cut funding. About a month later, it had a change of heart after new evidence and public pressure.
D is for Dobrovolny. Metro Vancouver Commissioner Jerry Dobrovolny is in the hot seat because of multiple scandals at the regional district. From the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant’s $3 billion cost overrun to expensive junkets for politicians and staff.
E is for Elbows Up. The rallying cry for Carney’s winning campaign to save the Liberal Party, with an assist from expat Mike Myers.
F is for fentanyl and FBI. Canada got its first fentanyl czar in 2025, former B.C. RCMP officer Kevin Brosseau, after Trump demanded Canada crack down on the deadly drug. Cocaine kingpin Ryan Wedding, a former Canadian Olympic snowboarder, became one of the FBI’s most wanted.
G is for Gregor. As Vancouver Mayor, Gregor Robertson was a flop on the housing file. But that’s the cabinet portfolio that Carney gave him after making a comeback as the Vancouver Fraserview-South Burnaby MP.
H is for Hogue. Commissioner Marie-Josee Hogue’s public inquiry warned that China, India, Russia and Iran are scheming to interfere in Canadian democracy. Canadians continue to wait for the promised registry of foreign lobbyists.
I is for India. The source of a spate of extortion-related shootings that keep Surrey Police and Mayor Brenda Locke up at night. Ottawa declared the Bishnoi Gang a terrorist entity.
J is for John. Conservative leader John Rustad survived a summertime leadership review. But not the fall session of the Legislature. At the last minute, the caucus revolted and the party board said Rustad had to go. Trevor Halford became interim leader.
K is for Kushner. Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and his Affinity Partners became a part-owner of Electronic Arts and its Burnaby studio.
L is for Lapu Lapu Day. The Filipino street party in South Vancouver became the most-tragic day in Vancouver history when a mentally ill driver mowed down 11 people on food truck row. There was no rigid barrier at either end of the street.
Vancouver Police officers after the Lapu Lapu Day massacre. (Mackin)
M is for Musqueamview. The new English name for Trutch Street. It is officially šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm, a gift from the Musqueam Nation that cost Vancouver taxpayers at least $33,500.
N is for Northern Super League. The six-team Canadian women’s pro soccer circuit kicked off at B.C. Place Stadium. The Burnaby-based Vancouver Rise won the first championship in Toronto and hoisted the Diana Matheson Trophy. Meanwhile, the Vancouver Goldeneyes joined the Professional Women’s Hockey League at the Pacific Coliseum.
O is for out-of-business. Death of a department store. The 1670-founded Hudson’s Bay Company went bellyup. All the stores, including the century-old B.C. flagship in downtown Vancouver, closed for good on June 1. A judge rejected Tsawwassen Mills owner Weihong Liu’s bid to take over more than two dozen store leases.
P is for Park Board. The NDP government resisted Mayor Ken Sim’s demands to phase out the Vancouver institution, which had a love-hate relationship with the popular Harry Potter exhibit that replaced the broken-down Stanley Park mini railway.
Q is for Qatar. The national team from the 2022 World Cup host country was drawn to play Canada at B.C. Place in FIFA 26 action next June. It’s also the country where one of Canada’s most-wanted, Coquitlam jailbreaking gangster Rabih Alkhalil, was arrested.
R is for Richmond. Private property was off-limits for aboriginal land claims until the Cowichan Tribes won title to 800 acres of Richmond farm and industrial land in August. The NDP government vowed to appeal the result of the decade-long legal battle.
S is for strike. The B.C. General Employees’ Union’s two-month strike was the longest in its history. Miracle-making mediator Vince Ready came to the rescue and the NDP gave workers a 12% raise over four years.
T is for trophies. In the same August week, Florida Panther Sam Reinhart paraded the Stanley Cup along the West Vancouver waterfront and the FIFA World Cup trophy came to Jack Poole Plaza.
U is for United States. Trump returned to the White House, declared a trade war and mused about Canada becoming the 51st state. Canucks’ fans booed the “Star Spangled Banner” — despite American players forming the core of the team.
Mark Carney (left) and Donald Trump. (The White House)
V is for vessels, BC Ferries is getting four new ones. But they’re coming from a Chinese state-owned shipyard called CMI Weihai. The June announcement did not amuse the NDP’s blue collar base or those concerned about China’s threats to invade Taiwan.
W is for Whitecaps. It took 14 years, but they’re finally an elite squad. The club-for-sale went to two North American championships. Trounced in Mexico City by Cruz Azul in the CONCACAF Champions League, but Jesper Sorensen’s squad should have won the other in Fort Lauderdale, the MLS Cup Final against Inter Miami.
X is for Elon Musk’s social media network and son’s shortened name. The richest man in the world showed up in Bella Bella, believed to have been visiting Rupert Murdoch’s son James.
Y is for Yesavage. If you predicted in June that Toronto Blue Jays’ 2024 first rounder Trey Yesavage would climb the ladder from Nat Bailey Stadium to the World Series, you may collect your prize. The former Vancouver Canadian set rookie pitching records in Toronto’s valiant fall classic loss to the L.A. Dodgers.
Z is for zero. Zero means zero, don’t ya know! Mayor Ken Sim’s tax freeze slogan for the $2.4 billion, election year budget. His ABC majority also voted to slap a $10 tax on freedom of information requests, to make it harder for citizens to know how much city hall is spending on FIFA World Cup tickets.
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Bob Mackin
A look back at the top
