Records of the Deputy Minister to the Premier
- GR-3664
- Series
- 1990-2006
The series consists of correspondence, reports, presentations, Treasury Board and Cabinet submissions, planning and task force records, and meeting minutes and agendas, created by the Deputy Minister’s office within the Office of the Premier and Cabinet Office. The records were created between 1990 and 2006 by Deputy Ministers to the Premier and provide evidence of the decision-making function of the Deputy Minister’s office, as well as of the relationship between the Office and other branches of government. The records are generally arranged first by ARCS number and then alphabetically within each ARCS section. Several accessions consisted of records with just one ARCS number, and in those instances, records are arranged alphabetically by file title. These accessions form a sort of subseries dealing with legal opinions, although their filing structure and apparent administration mirrors that of the broader series.
The series includes records dealing with administration and organization, legislation, letters of appreciation and complaints, associations, clubs and societies, committees and commissions, cooperation and liaison, information services, legal opinions and conflicts of interest. Accession 93-5635 deals almost exclusively with conflict of interest files. Files in the last two boxes in this accession were created to outline and document potential conflicts of interest of Ministers and MLAs. The existence of these files for specific individuals should not be taken as an indication that an actual conflict of interest existed, as the files largely appear to have been created as a matter of course.
Many of the records in this series address major legal and societal issues of the day and reflect actions discussed in government. Such societal issues include the “Fast Ferry” incident and First Nations land issues. Records in this series also document changes and amendments to the terms of agencies, boards, and commissions across the province, as well as the privatization of former government functions such as BC Ferries.
Records in accessions 93-7701 and 94-7289 were scattered and out of order when they arrived at the Archives. Some records had fallen out of files, and the files generally were out of order. The archivist has recreated the original filing structure, based on transferred box content lists, which mirrored that of other records in the accession. It appears that at least some of the records were subsequently used in a legal challenge and were likely replaced incorrectly in the box. Stickers were placed on the outside of files used in legal challenges and provide evidence of their usage in that instance.
British Columbia. Office of the Premier