Records in this series represent the functions and activities of the Director of Administration for the British Columbia New Democratic Party.

File 449-14, in the "Women's Rights Committee (WRC) records" series of this fonds, includes a document entitled "Provincial Office Staffing," that defines the Director of Administration's duties as pertaining to "Election finances, tax receipts and paper flow, Party finances, cash flow, accounting, budgeting, back-up to Provincial Secretary," as well as implying supervision of specific staff and projects. The Director of Administration would often join the Provincial Secretary as a member of the B.C. Council of Federal Ridings, and would manage records related to the Federal NDP, local constituency associations, clubs, and holding societies. The Director would also manage much of the correspondence sent to the Provincial Office.

The majority of records in this series have been created by two Directors; Lin Rubin, and Sherry Hyde, who took over the Director position ca. 1991. Records in this series include correspondence, memos, budget and finance documents, meeting agenda and minutes, notes, speech transcripts, clippings, and other related materials.

Contains predominantly copies of ingoing and outgoing correspondence to and from Ian Aikenhead, BC NDP President, as well as other related materials.

Contains correspondence related to a direct mail fundraising campaign letter sent out in November of 1990 to NDP members, purportedly from Dave Barrett, M.P., concerning a request for donations to the New Beginnings Appeal. The letter evidently angered many NDP members, prompting strongly worded responses, to which the Director of Administration and the Provincial Secretary had to craft an appropriate response.

Contains copies of both outgoing and incoming correspondence from Patrice Pratt, BC NDP President. Includes an exchange between Pratt and Dave Stupich, following the public controversy surrounding the Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society, and other related material.

Contains materials related to the Progressive Democratic Alliance, its leader Gordon Wilson who crossed the floor to join the BC NDP, and allegations of financial irregularities between the two parties that led to an investigation. File includes correspondence, clippings, financial documents, PDA platform materials, Elections BC documents, and other related materials.

Includes minutes and agenda, handwritten notes, correspondence and memoranda, media clippings (including some about the recall campagain against Paul Ramsey), notices of motion, updates and reports from the Provincial Secretary and various committees, budgetary and financial documents, convention booking arrangements, fact sheets and other public communications, and other related materials.

Contains copies of proposed budgets and other financial documents. These records are duplicated elsewhere throughout the series, but this file has been kept as a useful means of bringing various financial documents together. Includes as well a copy of "BC NDP Legal Expenditures 1996-1999", (reproduced in file 445-14) that outlines the amount of funds the Party has spent on various court cases since 1996, including the Stockell court case (Friesen v. Hammell), the Paul Ramsey libel case, other recall-related cases, and the Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society (NCHS) investigations.

Contains meeting agenda and minutes. Also includes a "Statement of outstanding external accounts payable as of June 13, 2000" financial document that indicates some of the costs associated with the Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society (NCHS) and the David Stockell case, Friesen v. Hammell

Includes meeting minutes, memos, public communications and promotional materials, including an "urgent message to NDP members" from Sue Hammell, MLA, regarding the NDP's court victory in the Friesen v. Hammell case and its related court motions, initiated by David Stockell.

Contains minutes of a Provincial Executive conference call.

Contains minutes of the NDP Table Officers, and related materials.

Contains meeting minutes and agenda, and related materials, including motions, memos, and other materials related to the upcoming NDP leadership campaign.

This series reflects the activities and functions of various of the standing and ad hoc committees of the BC New Democratic Party. Committees were a regular part of NDP organizational structure, most often mimicking the structure of the Party Executive, with elected Chairs, Secretaries, Table Officers, representatives and liaisons from other committees and organizations, Members-at-large, and in some cases, a paid Organizer who could devote all of their energy to accomplishing the objectives of the committee. Committees regularly prepared reports on their activities for convention (and sometimes to Provincial Council, just as each committee's Organizer would prepare reports on their activities between meetings. Most standing committees would articulate a mandate, mission statement, or constitution, and would prepare resolutions to be voted on at Convention.

This series contains the records of various committees of the New Democratic Party of British Columbia, including: the Computer Committee, the Constitution & Party Affairs Commitee, Labour Liaison Committee, the Democrat Committee, the Young New Democrats (YND), the Revenue Generation Task Force, the Standing Committee on the Environment, and more. Further subseries contain records relating to the Women's Rights Committee, the Policy Review Committee, and the Multicultural Committee are also included. Items include: meeting minutes and agenda, memos and correspondence, financial documents, clippings, strategy and constitutional documents, resolutions, notes, and other related material.

Files in this subseries reflect the activities of the Women’s Rights Committee of the BC NDP, including its various subcommittees, committee liaisons, and coordination with the federal NDP Participation of Women Committee.

According to a 1992 document prepared by Anne Frost, past WRC Chair, and Charley Bersford, WRC Chair (“Women’s Rights Committee: Herstory”, 1992, in file 450-12), the Women’s Rights Committee was officially made a standing committee of the New Democratic Party of BC by a motion passed at Convention in 1971, building on previous women’s councils and federal women’s committees in the BC NDP and the CCF. The Committee’s mission statement in 1992 was “To guarantee fairness and equality for women in British Columbia; to address the roots of systemic discrimination and initiate legislation, services and programs to ensure women equal participation in all aspects of society; and to ensure access for all women to social justice” (“Mission Statement & Goals for Women’s Equality in a New Democratic Government,” WRC, spring 1992; in file 455-04). The Committee sought to achieve these goals through a variety of activities reflected in the files contained within this subseries, including authoring white papers on women’s issues, producing handbooks (such as the “Winning Nominations” handbook, created to assist women seeking to run for and win nominations in provincial elections; found in files 449-17 and 449-20), organizing workshops, producing and distributing a publication focused on women’s issues (entitled “Priorities” and launched in 1972; see for example file 450-05), introducing motions on gender-related issues at Convention, and more.

The Committee has its own executive structure, including Table Officers (Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer), Past-Chair, Priorities Coordinator, Democrat Page, POW Representative (the federal NDP women’s committee, known as Participation of Women), a Women’s Rights Organizer (WRC paid staff position), as well as regional representatives for the electoral constituencies, members at large, and representatives from and to other committees, such as the Young New Democrats, the Policy Review Committee, etc. Further, the WRC also formed its own subcommittees to engage with particular issues, such as the Nomination Support Committee, or the Committee on Sexist Behaviour. Like the BC NDP itself, these positions were generally elected at Convention, and “all women who are members in good standing of the B.C. New Democratic Party are eligible to attend Women’s Rights Committee Steering Committee meetings and have both voice and vote, except on money matters.” (“Women’s Rights Committee – Membership & Structure,” June 24, 1992; in file 450-07).

File 449-18 contains a copy of the “WRC Objectives -1992/93,” which gives a general sense of the goals and strategies of the WRC at the time, while file 456-05 contains the most recent draft constitution of the WRC included in this accrual (January 2003). Other materials in this subseries include meeting minutes and agenda, handwritten notes, correspondence, financial documents, reports, convention materials, memoranda and public communications, clippings, and other related materials.

Contains meeting minutes and agenda, memos and correspondence, handwritten notes, financial and budget documents, resolutions, reports, discussion about the creation of a Women's Organizer for the NDP, and other related materials.

Contains meeting minutes and agenda, memos, reports,and other related materials, including a draft copy of the Nominations Support Committee's Manual, created "as part of its attempt to assist women to seek and win nominations leading up to the next provincial election" and to provide "women with information, advice, examples, and options to consider" when seeking nomination.

Includes meeting minutes and agenda, correspondence, memos, clippings, and other related materials, including a copy of the WRC's "Winning Nominations: A Handbook for New Democratic Women."