I would like to thank long-time NDP member Lowell Paulson for the opportunity to discuss the primary reason why I left the NDP to seek the federal Liberal nomination for Kootenay-Columbia.

As far back as 2002, Mr. Paulson, President of the Kootenay Columbia NDP Riding Association and myself, as the aspiring NDP candidate, tried in vain to determine the NDP's position regarding the long-gun registry. No one in the Party could or would, tell us.

Yet running as the federal NDP candidate in 2004, I had my primary election pamphlet censored by the BC wing of the federal Party for expressing my belief (and that of a majority in the Riding) that the long gun registry should be scrapped.

During the 2006 federal election, when I wrote that the root cause of Canada's illegal handgun problem originates with smuggled guns coming across the U.S. border and that honest, law abiding gun owners were not the source of the handgun "problem", I felt a distinct chill from the Party.

Finally, in the Spring of 2006, now as the President of the Riding Association, I wrote to NDP Leader Jack Layton asking him to allow candidates the ability to vote the wishes of their (potential) constituents on the issue of the long gun registry.

On July 27th, 2006 , this was Jack's reply;

"Thanks again for registering your views on allowing MP's to vote according to the wishes of their constituents, as opposed to espousing the policies and platform of the NDP as established at our national conventions".

The truth at last! What Jack Layton is saying is that he's not interested in listening to the constituents of Kootenay Columbia and that NDP candidates must vote the Party line!

In a July 5th, 2007 response to Jack, I wrote the following, " If as I believe, Convention references to the issue of gun control policy have been left intentionally ambiguous to avoid a split between the rural and urban sections of the Party, then it should come as no surprise to you that rural NDP members should question the basis on which current NDP gun control policy has been made".

Which takes us back to Mr. Paulson's remark that I will have a hard time explaining myself during candidate's debates, having switched from the NDP to the federal Liberals. As Mr. Paulson knows, for the last 4 years every senior member of the Kootenay-Columbia NDP Riding Association was made aware of my deep reservations regarding Jack Layton's "position" on the long gun registry.

Whenever the next federal election occurs it will be a time for NDP members and supporters alike to ask themselves whether or not they can follow Jack Layton's vision of the NDP. I know exactly where I stand.

For those of us who aspire to represent the constituents of Kootenay-Columbia, we need to remind ourselves that the people come first. Jack Layton seems to have forgotten this principle.

Brent Bush

Kimberley, B.C.