Adrian Dix made two moves this week that should make Christy Clark feel more antsy than ever about next month's election.
The NDP leader closed the door on an invitation to debate Premier Clark one-on-one during the election campaign that gets underway next week - an invitation that the BC Liberal leader had already accepted.
And Dix also made a bold promise to increase provincial tax subsidies to the film industry "when" he becomes premier.
In regards to the (non-)debate, both leaders made the right decision. Clark needs to assert herself as the only alternative to a swing to the left in B.C. politics.
But with opinion polls already heavily in Dix's favour, there was no way for him to win, and Clark only stood to gain in a debate that precluded involvement of a BC Conservative party that is likely to siphon votes from the BC Liberals' apparently dwindling supply. The Greens would also have been left out, and while they typically draw from the NDP's store of votes, they're not likely to figure as significantly this time around.
The decision to increase subsidies to the province's "creative" industry - actually referring to movie and television production - also sets Dix apart from Clark, who is seen (legitimately or not) as having sat on her hands while other parts of Canada and the United States have sweetened the pot for filmmakers, impacting negatively on B.C.'s billion-dollar share of that industry.
Those who oppose the subsidy hike - from about 35 up to 40 per cent on wage costs - on the grounds that taxpayers shouldn't have to shoulder those costs might note that it's miniscule compared to the subsidies annually poured into resource industries and other corporate recipients.
Dix's decisions were good, both economically and politically. Now it's Clark's turn.
