The Honourable
Selina Robinson
MLA
Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills of British Columbia
In office
December 7, 2022 – February 5, 2024
PremierDavid Eby
Preceded byAnne Kang
Succeeded byTBD
Minister of Finance of British Columbia
In office
November 26, 2020 – December 7, 2022
PremierJohn Horgan
David Eby
Preceded byCarole James
Succeeded byKatrine Conroy
Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing of British Columbia
In office
July 18, 2017 – November 26, 2020
PremierJohn Horgan
Preceded byEllis Ross (Minister of Housing)
Succeeded byDavid Eby (Minister Responsible for Housing)
Josie Osborne (Minister of Municipal Affairs)
Minister of Citizens' Services of British Columbia
In office
October 4, 2019 – January 22, 2020
PremierJohn Horgan
Preceded byJinny Sims
Succeeded byAnne Kang
Member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly
for Coquitlam-Maillardville
Assumed office
May 14, 2013
Preceded byDiane Thorne
Personal details
Born
Selina Dardick

1963 or 1964 (age 59–60)[1]
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Political partyNew Democrat
Residence(s)Coquitlam, British Columbia
Alma materSimon Fraser University

Selina Mae Robinson (born 1964) is a Canadian politician who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2013 provincial election.[2] She represents the electoral district of Coquitlam-Maillardville as a member of the British Columbia New Democratic Party (BC NDP). She served in the cabinet of British Columbia between 2017 and 2024.

Biography

Born in Montreal as Selina Dardick, she moved with her parents to Richmond, British Columbia, in 1978.[3][4] After graduating from Simon Fraser University with a master's degree in counselling psychology,[2] she joined the Jewish Family Service Agency, eventually becoming its associate executive director.[3] A resident of Coquitlam since 1994, she worked as a family therapist before entering politics as a member of Coquitlam City Council.[5]

In September 2012, Robinson announced her intention to seek the BC NDP nomination for Coquitlam-Maillardville in the next provincial election;[6] she was acclaimed the NDP's candidate for the riding in November that year.[7] She was initially declared defeated on election night in 2013, with Steve Kim of the BC Liberals deemed winner by 105 votes. However, once absentee ballots were counted, she pulled ahead to win the riding by a 35-vote margin over Kim.[8] A judicial recount confirmed Robinson's victory by a final margin of 41 votes.[9] She served as critic for mental health and addictions, seniors, local government and sports in the NDP shadow cabinet.[10]

In the 2017 provincial election, Robinson once again faced Steve Kim, this time winning by more than 2400 votes.[11] She was subsequently appointed Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing in the new BC NDP government under Premier John Horgan.[12][13] Following the resignation of Jinny Sims from cabinet in October 2019, Robinson briefly assumed the role of Minister of Citizens' Services,[14] until Anne Kang took over the position in January 2020.[15]

Following her re-election in 2020, she was appointed Minister of Finance.[16][17] After Horgan announced his retirement as premier and party leader in 2022, Robinson considered running to replace him before deciding otherwise.[18][19] On December 7, 2022, she was appointed Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills by Premier David Eby.[20]

Following October 7th, Robinson claimed that Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth called her "every single day from Oct. 7 for about 10 days, to report in to me about what was happening on the ground".[21] Robinson worked with B'nai Brith to mandate Holocaust education in the school curriculum which would be organized by CIJA, an organization that has been pivotal in lobbying Canadian politicians to support Israel.[21]

In early 2024, Robinson faced criticism for comments made during an online event hosted by B'nai Brith Canada, claiming that Israel was founded on "a crappy piece of land with nothing on it – you know, there were several hundred thousand people but other than that, it didn’t produce an economy. It couldn’t grow things it didn’t have anything on it".[22] Adel Iskandar, a professor at Simon Fraser University, stated that "There’s absolutely no history book that would affirm Minister Robinson’s articulation of that period in time... Obviously it was not a 'crappy piece of land'. It is the land that has had over 15,000 years of human habitability", and describing the suggestion that the land was empty as a "fundamentally colonialist narrative". Federal NDP MP Matthew Green characterised Robinson's comments as historically inaccurate and "deeply derogatory and insensitive", and called on Eby to reconsider Robinson's ministerial position.[23] Robinson apologised for the comments later that week, calling them "disrespectful," continuing to clarify "I was referring to the fact that the land has limited natural resources". In a statement, Eby said that Robinson's claim was "wrong and unacceptable... I thank her for withdrawing the comments and apologizing unreservedly", though Selina did not publicly withdraw the comment.[22]

On February 1, 2024, the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of BC (FPSE) alongside the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) released a statement calling on David Eby to call for the immediate resignation of Robinson.[24] FPSE also describe Robinson as undermining "the democratic principles of freedom of expression, academic freedom, and a college and university system free of direct manipulation by the provincial government" given that Robinson had been directly involved in pressuring Langara College to fire Dr. Natalie Knight regarding her comments on October 7. [24] They cite Robinson, retweeting a call by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) for Langara to fire Dr. Knight and that Robinson had later met with the College to express concerns about Dr. Knight’s reinstatement.[24]

On February 5, 2024, she was dismissed from her position as Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills.[25] Following her dismissal, she announced she would not seek re-election as an MLA at the 2024 election.

Electoral record

2020 British Columbia general election: Coquitlam-Maillardville
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
New Democratic Selina Robinson 12,278 59.70 +9.09 $42,824.64
Liberal Will Davis 5,882 28.60 −9.10 $17,661.62
Green Nicola Spurling 2,405 11.69 +0.77 $3,326.81
Total valid votes 20,565 100.00 –
Total rejected ballots    
Turnout    
Registered voters
Source: Elections BC[26][27]
2017 British Columbia general election: Coquitlam-Maillardville
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
New Democratic Selina Robinson 11,438 50.61 +4.87 $68,146
Liberal Steve Kim 8,519 37.70 −7.85 $76,040
Green Nicola Eyton Spurling 2,467 10.92 +2.21 $843
Libertarian Jesse Velay-Vitow 175 0.77 – $0
Total valid votes 22,599 100.00 –
Total rejected ballots 99 0.44 −0.41
Turnout 22,698 61.57 +4.88
Registered voters 36,865
Source: Elections BC[28][29]
2013 British Columbia general election: Coquitlam-Maillardville
Party Candidate Votes %
New Democratic Selina Robinson 9,930 45.74
Liberal Steve Kim 9,889 45.55
Green Edward Andreas Stanbrough 1,891 8.71
Total valid votes 21,710 100.00
Total rejected ballots 186 0.85
Turnout 21,896 56.69
Source: Elections BC[30]

References

  1. ^ It's a two-way race in this riding; Reporter John Kurucz profiles Frontrunners in Coquitlam-Maillardville. The Tri - Cities Now [Port Moody, B.C] May 3, 2013: page 4.
  2. ^ a b Smith, Charlie (May 27, 2013). "NDP candidate Selina Robinson wins in Coquitlam-Maillardville after final votes tallied". The Georgia Straight. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "NDP values in kishkes". The Jewish Independent. April 28, 2017. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  4. ^ "JHSBC Oral History Collection: Selina Robinson". Jewish Museum and Archives of BC. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  5. ^ "Coquitlam MLA's role is building strong communities". Tri-City News. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  6. ^ Warren, Janis (September 24, 2012). "Robinson to run provincially". Tri-City News. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  7. ^ Warren, Janis (December 18, 2012). "MLA, councillor acclaimed". Tri-City News. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  8. ^ "NDP takes lead in Coquitlam-Maillardville final count". CBC News. May 28, 2013. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  9. ^ Warren, Janis (June 5, 2013). "UPDATED: Selina Robinson wins MLA seat". Tri-City News. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  10. ^ "MLA: Hon. Selina Robinson". Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  11. ^ "#bcelxn17: Coquitlam-Maillardville: NDP's Robinson avoids repeat of 2013 recount with win over Kim". Tri-City News. May 9, 2017. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  12. ^ Zussman, Richard; McElroy, Justin (July 18, 2017). "B.C.'s new NDP government sworn into office". CBC News. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  13. ^ "Premier John Horgan announces new cabinet to build a better B.C." (Press release). Office of the Premier of British Columbia. July 18, 2017. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  14. ^ "B.C. cabinet minister Jinny Sims resigns amid RCMP investigation". CBC News. October 4, 2019. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  15. ^ "B.C. premier fills Jinny Sims vacancy, swaps jobs in cabinet tweak". The Canadian Press, via CBC News. January 22, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  16. ^ "Breaking - Selina Robinson has been named BC's Minister of Finance". Twitter.com. Retrieved November 26, 2020.
  17. ^ Lindsay, Bethany (November 26, 2020). "New faces join B.C.'s new cabinet, while stalwarts stay on in key roles". CBC News. Retrieved April 24, 2022.
  18. ^ Strandberg, Diane (July 14, 2022). "Coquitlam's most powerful female politician thinking about NDP leadership bid". Tri-City News. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  19. ^ Zussman, Richard (July 18, 2022). "B.C. Finance Minister Selina Robinson won't seek BC NDP leadership". Global News. Retrieved December 15, 2022.
  20. ^ "B.C. Premier David Eby unveils new cabinet with Niki Sharma, Katrine Conroy and Ravi Kahlon in top posts". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved December 7, 2022.
  21. ^ a b Saks, Arly (November 13, 2023). "Students to learn of Holocaust". B'nai Brith Canada. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  22. ^ a b Wadhwani, Ashley; Collins, Lauren (February 1, 2024). "Selina Robinson under fire for calling Gaza 'a crappy piece of land'". Chilliwack Progress. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  23. ^ "Selina Robinson apologizes after 'disrespectful,' historically inaccurate comments about Israel". CityNews. February 2, 2024. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  24. ^ a b c "FPSE Calls for Immediate Resignation of the Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills". fpse. Retrieved February 3, 2024.
  25. ^ "Senior B.C. minister Selina Robinson removed from cabinet by premier for saying Israel founded on 'crappy piece of land'". The Globe and Mail. February 5, 2024. Retrieved February 5, 2024.
  26. ^ "2020 Provincial General Election Final Voting Results". electionsbcenr.blob.core.windows.net. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
  27. ^ "Election Financing Reports". Elections BC. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
  28. ^ "2017 Provincial General Election - Statement of Votes" (PDF). Elections BC. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  29. ^ "Election Financing Reports". Elections BC. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  30. ^ "Statement of Votes - 40th Provincial General Election" (PDF). Elections BC. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
British Columbia provincial government of David Eby Cabinet post (1) Predecessor Office Successor Anne Kang Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future SkillsDecember 7, 2022 – February 5, 2024 TBD British Columbia provincial government of John Horgan Cabinet posts (3) Predecessor Office Successor Carole James Minister of FinanceNovember 26, 2020 – December 7, 2022 Katrine Conroy Jinny Sims Minister of Citizens' ServicesOctober 4, 2019 – January 22, 2020 Anne Kang Ellis Ross Minister of Municipal Affairs and HousingJuly 18, 2017 – November 26, 2020 David Eby Josie Osborne
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