Mining company under fire for Kamloops election letter – by Pauline Holdsworth (Globe and Mail – November 14, 2014)

The Globe and Mail is Canada’s national newspaper with the second largest broadsheet circulation in the country. It has enormous influence on Canada’s political and business elite.

VANCOUVER — The company behind a proposed open-pit gold and copper mine that will fall partly within Kamloops city limits has waded into the waning days of the civic election campaign, sending a letter to voters listing candidates who oppose the mine.

The letter has increased tensions ahead of Saturday’s vote. KGHM International’s Ajax mine project, which would be within three kilometres of a school, has emerged as a divisive issue, even though the province, not municipal leaders, will decide whether it goes ahead.

The company sent the letter late last week, and KGHM registered with Elections BC as a third-party sponsor on Monday. According to Elections BC rules, a company must register before sending such information to voters.

Kamloops resident Michael Crawford, a former federal NDP candidate, complained about the letter to Elections BC. “Whatever social licence or trust this company has in this community I think has been shaken,” Mr. Crawford said.

The letter included a list compiled by the Facebook group Support Ajax Mine that categorizes candidates as either “opposed to Ajax” or “waiting for scientific studies.”

In a copy of the letter obtained by The Globe and Mail, Yves Lacasse, the external affairs manager for the Ajax project, wrote: “While we encourage everyone to vote, we would never tell anyone how to vote.

“At the same time, we support transparency, and trust that with factual information in hand, Kamloops residents will make good decisions about the future.”

City council candidate Dustin McIntyre said he was surprised to see the letter – especially since it put him on the wrong side of the list.

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