OPINION: Politics is becoming a blood sport again

The legislature is wrapping up its fall sitting this week, and one side in that conflicted house is leaving with a much bigger smile on their collective faces.

That would be New Democratic Party MLAs, who used their time during the short session to effectively drag the B.C. Liberals through various shards of glass, most of which emerged courtesy of the government's curious inability to not destroy public records (or to even create them in the first place).

During the session, the B.C. Liberals seemed well, bored, for the most part. There was certainly nothing on the legislative agenda to create much interest or fiery debate.

When the government side dreams up a law to formally create a "red tape reduction day" (and precious little of other legislation), that kind of tells you there's not much gas left in the tank.

Throw in the fact the MLAs spent several days talking about how scenic or historic or just plain nice their home ridings are (part of a motion on redrawing the electoral map) and it becomes abundantly clear that sometimes, the legislature really doesn't need to be recalled.

But yet it does.

However bereft of ideas the government seems to be right now, the legislature is also there to allow the Opposition an opportunity to hold the government's feet to the proverbial fire.

And, through the theatrical tool of Question Period, the NDP did just that on a daily basis. The scandalous details of the improper deletion of government emails (which arrived courtesy of a deliciously timed report from the province's privacy commissioner) provided the NDP ample fodder to lay the lumber on the government benches over and over again.

Other issues emerged occasionally, but the email scandal alone was enough to award this session to the New Democrats, hands down.

The recent session also showed very clearly that the NDP has adopted a much more aggressive tone in its attacks on the B.C. Liberals in general and on Premier Christy Clark in particular.

The civil, almost polite tone that characterized the reigns of both Carole James and Adrian Dix is gone. The new strategy matches the in-your-face, fiery manner of the current leader, John Horgan. Horgan used this session and almost every question period to hone his attacks on the government and on the premier, usually to great effect. As much as Clark used question period firefights in the past to prepare for squaring off against her opposite leader, Horgan is employing the same tactic.

The two adversaries know the next election outcome could very well hinge on how well each of them do in the televised leaders' debate. Policies matter as well (and the NDP may have some trouble ahead as it tries to piece together an election platform), but many voters cast their ballot after taking measure of the leaders.

To that end, Horgan is offering a completely different personality  than his predecessor, Dix. Whereas Dix was low-key, cerebral and stand-offish, Horgan is energetic, quick-witted (although his temper can sometimes get the better of him) and he loves to work a crowd.

Clark was able to contrast herself against Dix quite favourably, but it's an open question whether she can match the same success against Horgan.

Considering the NDP's old soft-pedalled approach resulted in it losing three consecutive elections, it's hard to fault the new one. In some ways, we are seeing a return to the days when B.C. politics really was a kind of blood sport.

That would be the time when the NDP and its arch foe, the Social Credit Party, would rather spit in each other's faces than have a decent conversation with each other. The animosity between the two sides was very real.

Of course, the NDP rarely won elections with that approach either. But it came very close to winning several  times.

Horgan and the NDP have served official notice: the run-up to the next election is going to be rough going, and I suspect Clark and her caucus won't shy away from what's shaping up to be an old-fashioned brawl.

Buckle up. It's going to be a bumpy ride.

Keith Baldrey is chief political reporter for Global B.C.