2001 Legislative Session: 5th Session, 36th Parliament

HANSARD

The following electronic version is for informational purposes

only.

The printed version remains the official version.

Official Report of

DEBATES OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

(Hansard)

THURSDAY, MARCH 15, 2001

Afternoon Sitting

Volume 22, Number 3

[ Page 17343 ]

The House met at 2:08 p.m.

Oral Questions

GOVERNMENT SUPPORT FOR

CHILD SERVICES

G. Campbell: Hon. Speaker, on Tuesday the child advocate released the

last report of her term. In her report she says: " . . . it is

with deepest regret that I report to the Legislature and to British Columbians

that there has been no substantial improvement in services for children and

youth." Every year we come into this House and hear this government's

pledge that they intend to help children. Yet according to the youth and child

advocate, they have failed to deliver on that promise. Since the Minister for

Children and Families is not accountable in this House, I have a question for

the Premier: why, after ten years, are the children of British Columbia still

being failed by the NDP government?

Hon. J. MacPhail: We appreciate the report of the child advocate. It

is a thoughtful report, and she continues, in her final moments, to serve the

province well. It was this government that, actually for the very first time in

Canada, brought in a child advocate on behalf of the children of British

Columbia.

[1410]

There is no question that there are difficulties that our families face

across British Columbia. But I think we do have to stop for a moment and

understand that there have been changes and that there has been an investment in

our children and our families by our government. I would also say that Grand

Chief Ed John, the Minister for Children and Families, is accountable. He's

accountable morally and he's accountable through his heritage to the children of

this province, and he is doing an excellent job. The Ministry for Children and

Families is moving forward on the changes advocated by Ms. Preston, the

children's advocate. There have been tens of millions of dollars invested in

programs, and there will be more news today. But we are also working in

collaboration with the advocate as well as others throughout the community.

G. Campbell: The NDP has had ten years to get its act together. The

children's advocate's report is very clear: you have failed. The government has

failed consistently. The minister responds that there have been changes.

Correct. We've had six Children and Families ministers and four Deputy Ministers

for Children and Families -- three Children and Families ministers under this

Premier alone, in just a little over a year -- and still the children's advocate

says it has been all talk and no action. Reflecting exactly the policies that

have been articulated by the Minister of Health, the NDP have made announcements

about things they weren't even going to do.

Will the Premier tell us why, after wasting half a billion dollars on three

boats that nobody wanted and $73 million on a convention centre that will never

be built, the children are the only megaproject in this province that this

government hasn't been willing to fund?

Interjections.

The Speaker: Order, members.

Hon. J. MacPhail: Hon. Speaker, it is interesting that on a day when

we are actually going to compare our respective commitments to the people of

British Columbia, on budget day, this opposition leader would have the gall to

stand up and somehow suggest that the Liberal one-point plan would in any way

serve the needs of the children of this province, because he is dead wrong.

But we shall see at the end of today, when the Minister of Finance stands up

and tables our government's record and our government's commitment to the

children and families of today, what the Leader of the Liberal Opposition can do

after he's given away $3 billion of tax cuts and after he's cut health and

education. Let's see what he'll do for the Ministry for Children and Families.

But here are the commitments we have made. We are working hard to get a

stable and experienced workforce in face of pressures all across North America

in this area. The Minister for Children and Families has an excellent plan in

place on this. And we're making solid commitments to an early development fund,

working with the child advocate.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members, order, please.

BUDGET SURPLUS PROJECTIONS

M. de Jong: I wouldn't ordinarily do this in question period, but

there's been a terrible mistake involving the Premier's office that I want to

address now. The document that we FOI'd was the Premier's briefing book, but

they sent us something very different, actually.

The Speaker: Order, member.

M. de Jong: It's the Premier's scrapbook.

Interjections.

The Speaker: The member will state his question.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Will members take their seats, please.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members, take your seats, please. All members know the

rules of the House. They're your rules; let's try and stick to them as much as

we can.

I'm going to recognize the member for Matsqui and ask him to state his

question, please.

[1415]

M. de Jong: Well, let's see what's in the Premier's little book of

memories here. There's a letter from just a couple of weeks ago that he wrote to

his constituents. It's the last line that I find interesting, where he talks

about forecasting a $625 million budget surplus for 2000-01. But just a few days

before that, he was on TV talking about a $725 million budget sur-

[ Page 17344 ]

plus. I'm a bit confused -- or maybe I'm just being too picky. How do you

account for a $100 million discrepancy in just a couple of days, Mr. Speaker?

Hon. U. Dosanjh: The economy is sound in British Columbia, and the

surplus is going to be larger than $725 million. I want to say to the member who

stood up and asked that question in his role as comedian of the Legislature:

there are a lot of jobs available in the film industry in British Columbia,

which is booming.

The Speaker: The hon. member for Matsqui has a supplemental question.

M. de Jong: Ouch, Mr. Speaker.

Here's what's really interesting about what the Premier wrote to his

constituents. It's all about tax cuts. It's all about tax cuts. He writes about

how his constituents have told him that they'd like to see their income taxes

cut. He talks about how his government has responded to those concerns and cut

personal income tax. He says: "Your income taxes have gone down over the

past five years, and they're going to go down some more." And he's going to

throw in a brochure entitled -- I found this hard to believe -- "B.C. Tax

Cuts for 2001." That's the headline on the brochure.

Now, I know they're in disarray over there. But am I missing something here?

Why is the Premier, who's saying this week, "Read my lips; no more tax

cuts," writing to his constituents at exactly the same time pretending that

that's what he's going to do -- cut their taxes?

Interjections.

The Speaker: Order, members.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Order.

Hon. U. Dosanjh: I believe that there are two distinct visions of

British Columbia present in the Legislature today -- two distinct visions of

British Columbia. One of those visions is a one-point plan of a dramatic tax cut

and, according to the Leader of the Opposition last night on CBC, an even more

dramatic tax cut -- period.

On the other hand, there's a vision of British Columbia that says we will

reinvest in health care, that we will reinvest in education and have people

trained for the twenty-first century, protect our environmental heritage,

provide good child care. That's our ticket to the new economy in British

Columbia: with an educated and healthy workforce and protecting our environment.

That's why people like myself immigrated to this great land. That's why we

created 40,000 jobs in British Columbia last year. In the Ontario land of the

Leader of the Opposition's guru, they lost 38,000 jobs this month, and we

created 7,000 jobs this month in British Columbia.

CARRIER LUMBER CASE

G. Plant: Well, I enjoyed having a chance to read the Premier's

scrapbook. You'll be interested to know that the longest

section in the

scrapbook is entitled "Meetings the Premier Never Attended," and that

list just goes on and on and on and on. But then you get to the

section entitled

"Carrier Lumber," and sadly, all the pages have been torn out.

So I have a question for the Premier: what is it that he is going to remember

most about the Carrier Lumber fiasco? Was it (

a) when he said that he hadn't

read the judgment at all, (

b) when he said he hadn't read the judgment except

the bits he'd seen in the newspaper accounts, (

c) when he said he hadn't read

the judgment except for the bits that he was talking about in a long, careful

conversation with his staff, or (

d) when he said that the inexactitude of his

statements was present?

[1420]

Hon. U. Dosanjh: We are committed to reaching a fair settlement with

Carrier Lumber. That process is underway. There will be a full review of the

matter once the court is no longer seized of it and once the criminal review by

the police is finished. I have personally apologized to the Kordyban family

about the entire issue.

But here is the issue: at the end of the day there were statutory obligations

imposed on the licensee, Carrier Lumber, by a piece of legislation that was

passed in 1987. I received thorough and comprehensive advice from the Ministry

of Attorney General, with full briefings which indicated to me there were good

grounds of appeal on that question of law as well as on findings of fact. I made

that decision, and I stand by that decision. It was the right decision to make.

The Speaker: The hon. member for Richmond-Steveston with a

supplemental.

G. Plant: From a Premier that wants the public to believe he's sorry

for something, that sounded like a pretty long-winded defence of the most

inexcusable conduct I have seen from a government. Maybe in that context it's

not a surprise that the news reports are telling us that the Premier's own

caucus members are starting to boycott his caucus meetings. I just wanted to

give the Premier a chance, because I have heard it suggested that the real

reason . . . . I want to ask the question of the Premier: is it true

that the real reason why his caucus members are boycotting his caucus meetings

is because they've been told that they have to show up with a glue stick, a pile

of news clippings and some paper scissors to help fill in the scrapbook?

LIONS GATE BRIDGE CLOSING

C. Clark: I have a question for the Minister of Transportation and

Highways. His predecessor said that there was no way that the work on the Lions

Gate Bridge was going to mean the government closed it. Guess what. The

government has broken its commitment. This minister has told us now that that

bridge is going to be closed in April, it's going to be closed through May, and

it's going to be closed in parts of June. But guess what. It's going to be

closed on the spring break weekend, the busiest weekend of the year for all the

ski operators on the North Shore. So my question for the minister is this: we're

used to this government breaking its commitments, but when he put on his

thinking cap and decided they were going to close the bridge, why did he choose

the busiest weekend of the year for every ski operator on the North Shore?

[ Page 17345 ]

Hon. H. Giesbrecht: Thank you, hon. Speaker. It's really nice to be

back. [Applause.]

The Lions Gate project, as all of the members here know, is one of those

projects where it's been difficult, in the sense that you haven't been able to

do anything with both approaches. You've got to keep 80 percent of the traffic

flowing at the same time, and so you have to work within certain constraints

that are there.

In the discussion around whether or not to close this following weekend, it

was either a choice of this end-of-the-spring-break weekend, or we would be

getting into construction during the height of the tourist season in the summer.

And that was the decision that had to be made. It was a tough choice, and I

difficult choices. I'm not going to get into semantics about whether or not it's

a long weekend with a holiday on either end. It's the end of spring break, and

it was a decision that was made to do this rather than cut into the tourist

season.

[1425]

The Speaker: The bell ends question period.

Orders of the Day

Hon. P. Ramsey: Hon. Speaker, I move that this House at its next

sitting resolve itself into a committee to consider supply to be granted to Her

Majesty.

Motion approved.

ESTIMATES OF SUMS REQUIRED

FOR THE SERVICE OF THE PROVINCE

Hon. P. Ramsey presented a message from His Honour the Lieutenant-Governor:

Estimates of Sums Required for the Service of the Province for the fiscal year

ending March 31, 2002, and a supplement to the estimates for the fiscal year

ending March 31, 2002, recommending the same to the Legislative Assembly.

Hon. P. Ramsey moved that the said message and the estimates accompanying the

same be referred to Committee of Supply.

Motion approved.

Hon. P. Ramsey: Hon. Speaker, I move, seconded by the Minister of

Advanced Education, Training and Technology, that the Speaker do now leave the

chair for the House to go into Committee of Supply.

Budget Address

Hon. P. Ramsey: Hon. Speaker, it is my pleasure to present to this

House our government's balanced budget for the year 2001-02.

In beginning this speech, I want to thank all members of the House for the

opportunity to work with them over the years. It has indeed been a pleasure and

a privilege to be a member of this Legislative Assembly. As I've prepared this

budget, I've had the privilege of speaking with British Columbians from all

walks of life. I've also read with care the report of the all-party committee of

this Legislature which, for the first time, visited communities across our

province to hear from citizens about Budget 2001.

This budget is about the choices that our government has made, based on what

we have heard and the values we share with British Columbians -- choices about

our future, choices about the kind of province we want to live in. We believe in

compassion and fairness, in the dignity and worth of every person and in a

strong and dynamic economy. These are the values that British Columbians want

reflected in the decisions we make and the priorities that we set.

Hon. Speaker, this budget finds B.C. at a crossroads. We face two clearly

different approaches to governing and setting priorities. One approach puts

dramatic tax cuts ahead of everything else, including the needs of today's

families. But the only way to achieve those dramatic tax cuts with a balanced

budget is by slashing health and education programs. That's a simple fact. This

government has a very different approach. It's an approach that puts the needs

of today's families first with a balanced budget, a growing economy, and a focus

on health care and education.

We understand that meeting the needs of today's families also meets the needs

of today's economy. In this new economy, the quality of life we share and enjoy

in our province is a critical competitive edge. For example, a strong commitment

to the environment helps secure the international markets for our forest

products. Excellence in education means B.C. can offer the skills and talent

that attract employers and investment to our province.

A clean and green British Columbia ensures we remain a world-class

destination and a place where entrepreneurs and skilled workers want to live and

raise families. Quality health care is a crucial part of economic stability for

communities right across our province. We need healthy, productive workers and

low costs to industry for injury and illness. And helping the most vulnerable in

our society means we will make full use of our most valuable resource: the

people of British Columbia.

[1430]

Because of the choices in this budget, hospitals across British Columbia will

have more funding to hire nurses. Colleges and universities will have more

resources and student spaces to train them. Children in aboriginal communities

will have a better start in life with the new commitment to early childhood

development services. More kids across British Columbia will have access to a

school meal program in more schools. Thousands of British Columbians will find

the door open to new opportunities in post-secondary education, with the price

of tuition -- already frozen for five years -- actually falling. And finally,

more of our parents will be able to live in the comfort of their own homes

rather than in institutions, because there will be more community care and more

home support services right across the province.

These are the results of the choices we've made. We can balance the budget

and achieve these results. But we can only do so because we have put health and

education and basic social justice first and rejected dramatic tax cuts.

This budget is built on a foundation that has grown stronger over the past

year. The Premier said from the outset that he would change the way we do

business in B.C. and get our financial house in order. His first direction to me

was to

[ Page 17346 ]

introduce a new piece of legislation, the Budget Transparency and

Accountability Act. Soon after, I introduced the Balanced Budget Act, requiring

us to balance the budget and keep it balanced. With these two pieces of

legislation, B.C. has the most open, accountable, transparent budget framework

in Canada.

As one of B.C.'s leading political observers recently wrote: "When the

government financial reporting is this thorough, the numbers can be allowed to

speak for themselves." This is why I can tell British Columbians with

confidence: the budget is balanced -- last year, this year and next year.

The auditor general of British Columbia has confirmed that we not only

reduced the deficit in fiscal year '99-2000; we eliminated it. The reports I'm

tabling today for the current budget year confirm the trend we saw in our second

and third quarterly reports for Budget 2000-01. We are on track to balance the

budget again this year. The estimates I am presenting today for the coming year

are sound. Our key assumptions are clearly disclosed. We are projecting a

balanced budget for the third year in a row.

Let's look first at last year's economic and fiscal results. The province we

live in today is a strong one. It is moving forward; it is growing steadily.

Now, that may come as a surprise to people who have heard so much negative

commentary on B.C.'s economy, but the fact is that our economy performed well

last year. And while we expect some modest slowing, it's poised to do well in

the coming year too.

British Columbia's economy started the new millennium on a positive note. Our

economy grew by 3.4 percent in the year 2000. Exports grew by 13 percent. Our

retail sales grew by more than 6 percent. The unemployment rate last year was

the lowest it's been in 20 years, and there were 43,000 more jobs in B.C. at the

beginning of this year than there were at the beginning of last year. More

British Columbians were working in the year 2000 than ever before in our

history.

[1435]

As our economy gathered steam, the government's finances also improved. Over

the past year we saw revenues increase as the economy grew and energy prices

rose. Revenues from our strengthening economy exceeded forecasts by $810

million. Natural resource revenues -- principally oil, natural gas and

electricity -- added another $1.6 billion. All told, revenues will exceed our

targets by $2.5 billion, or 11.8 percent.

The result is that for 2000-01, we are forecasting a surplus of $1.3 billion.

This compares to the billion-dollar deficit I projected in the last budget.

B.C.'s fiscal turnaround has been very substantial. As a result, our debt

picture is also considerably healthier than I forecast at the beginning of the

year. Taxpayer-supported debt will be $24.5 billion at the end of the fiscal

year. That's $3.4 billion less than I forecast in Budget 2000. For total debt,

the target was $36.5 billion. We beat that target by $2.7 billion, for a final

figure of $33.8 billion.

In fact, I can report to you that at the end of the fiscal year, British

Columbia's debt will be lower than it was at the start. We will pay down British

Columbia's debt by more than $400 million.

I'm also very pleased to report that B.C.'s taxpayer-supported debt-to-GDP

ratio remains very healthy at 19.6 percent, the second lowest in the country.

B.C. taxpayers saved $114 million in interest payments in 2000-01 because of

lower debt.

Hon. Speaker, the province we live in today is a strong one. It's moving

forward; it's growing steadily. The economy performed well last year. While we

do expect slowing, it's poised to do well in the coming year too. The strengths

we saw last year, along with our diversified export economy, will help B.C. ride

out the downturn from south of the border.

In January I met with the 16 independent economists of the Economic Forecast

Council to discuss the coming year. Their average prediction for economic growth

for 2001 is 2.4 percent and for 2002, 2.9 percent. My forecast is consistent

with those figures.

As our economy grows, it's also changing. Newer sectors of our economy --

knowledge-based sectors like high-tech and film -- are taking on a greater and

greater role, encouraged in part by our government's incentives and

partnerships. The value of film and TV productions alone grew by 10 percent last

year. That's an additional $100 million injected into B.C.'s economy. The

high-tech sector continues to show strong growth as well. High-tech employment

has doubled in the last decade. It now accounts for more than 52,000 jobs in our

province.

B.C. can also look to our energy sector for economic growth. Our natural gas

industry has made the most of the recent rise in export prices, helped in part

by the new regulatory structure that we introduced in 1998.

But we are taking nothing for granted. I want to assure British Columbians

that we are watching U.S. and Canadian economies carefully. Partly because of

recent developments in the U.S., I have built a prudence allowance of $300

million into this budget forecast. That prudence is crucial. It means that

British Columbians can remain confident that the choices we are making in this

budget are affordable. We will maintain a course of financial prudence in the

coming year.

[1440]

Government revenues are expected to total $24.6 billion. Government

expenditures are expected to total $24.3 billion. There will be a positive

balance of $300 million in direct government operations. This is offset by a

projected net loss from Crown corporations in the coming year. In addition, the

budget reflects a positive one-time impact of changes in how pension plans are

governed, totalling $1.4 billion. I've also included a prudence allowance of

$300 million in the fiscal plan. The net result is a forecast $1.1 billion

summary account surplus for the year 2001-02.

We've chosen in this budget to fund the key priorities of today's families,

and that includes not only services but also facilities -- the schools and

hospitals, the post-secondary institutions and the transportation networks that

are crucial to the success of B.C. As a result of this choice, using the same

cautious approach from last year, I am projecting an increase in the province's

debt. Total debt is expected to rise by $800 million, to $34.7 billion. That

also includes the $300 million prudence cushion. However, if we're able to

repeat the performance of the year now ending, we may well beat those targets.

Once more, let me remind members that this third projected balanced budget

has been developed in accordance with some of the strictest accounting and

reporting practices in the country. If, like last year, we beat our targets,

then we will continue the balanced approach we've taken: looking to the needs of

British Columbians while keeping our finances in firm control.

[ Page 17347 ]

Over the coming three years we project government revenues to increase by

approximately 2.5 percent per year. To balance the budgets in each of those

years, we must live within those amounts. That means making some difficult

choices and getting it right. We forecast that balanced budgets can continue

beyond this year. Our fiscal framework includes balanced budgets through to

2003-04.

When the auditor general confirmed our balanced books for fiscal '99-2000,

the Premier said that this must not be a one-time event but the start of a

trend. The trend is now clear, hon. Speaker. The books are balanced -- last

year, this year, next year.

Budgets aren't just about numbers, though. They're about people, and they're

about choices and about how we can improve the lives of British Columbians. The

economy continues to grow, and the books are balanced. Now is the time to focus

on improving our key social programs and to choose our quality of life as a

competitive tool.

There are some, including my colleagues across the way, whose first priority

would be to spend billions of dollars on dramatic tax cuts. It seems that for

every issue that arises, for every problem that crops up, the members opposite

can reply with only two words: tax cuts. They will tell you that they can do

this without slashing services or running deficits because, they say,

broad-based tax cuts pay for themselves. Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad

news, but it just doesn't work that way.

Let me be clear. We believe in balanced budgets. We believe in strategic

targeted tax relief, and we've introduced many tax measures over the past few

years: research and development credits for the high-tech sector, competitive

credits for our film industry, a streamlined regulatory and royalty system for

the oil and gas sector. Our taxes for small business, the entrepreneurs who

create the majority of new jobs, remain the lowest in Canada, and we have

secured our position as having the second- or third-lowest overall taxes in

Canada for most families.

[1445]

However, when it comes to broad-based dramatic tax cuts, I've looked at the

evidence. I've looked at impartial economic studies on the impact of tax cuts,

and the cold, hard truth is: you can't have it all. Broad-based dramatic tax

cuts will mean lower government revenues. It's like anything else that sounds

too good to be true. From pyramid schemes to e-mail get-rich-quick promises to

tax cuts without consequences, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Interjections.

Hon. P. Ramsey: You know . . . .

Interjections.

The Speaker: Order, members.

Hon. P. Ramsey: You know, even the economists advising the Leader of

the Opposition acknowledge freely that dramatic tax cuts have a price. The

Investment Dealers Association has called for dramatic tax cuts and running up a

deficit. David Bond -- remember that name? -- has called for dramatic tax cuts

and deep cuts in service to pay for them. I'm grateful to them for laying out so

clearly and honestly, and in some cases at a serious personal cost, exactly what

the effect of dramatic tax cuts would be.

I want to tell B.C. families: our choices are very clear. We won't run a

deficit. We will balance the books. We won't bring in broad-based dramatic tax

cuts. We will keep B.C.'s taxes among the lowest in the country. We won't cut

services. We will improve health care and expand education opportunities. This

is the way forward. Choices like these will ensure that the quality of life we

enjoy that's so important to our economic success is maintained and improved for

all British Columbians in the years to come.

Last fall, Maclean's magazine called B.C. Canada's education province.

This is the area of our government achievements that makes me proudest

personally. I was an instructor in our college system before I entered politics,

and when I leave politics, I'll be returning to the education system. But it's

an education system that is immensely improved compared to the one I left. When

I return to Prince George, I may be teaching a course or two at a university

that didn't even exist when I was elected. I'll be in a community where young

people no longer have to leave their homes and families in order to complete a

degree. I'll be working with students who are paying the second-lowest tuition

fees in all of Canada.

When this government was elected, it inherited an education system that had

sat on the back burner for decades. Our schools were underfunded. We had

children jammed into more than 3,000 portables. Our colleges and universities

had high tuition fees and the second-lowest participation rate in the country.

Today our public schools get more money per student than in any other province.

Full-time university enrolment is growing at nearly ten times the national

average. Tuition fees have been frozen for five straight years, making them the

second lowest in Canada.

Our government came to office determined to make B.C. the education province,

with both high quality and open access, and, Mr. Speaker, we've done it.

[1450]

This budget, Budget 2001, devotes 28 percent of total spending to meeting the

needs of students -- to funding teachers, schools, colleges, universities, and

skilled trades and training opportunities in our publicly funded education

system. Next year our government will increase funding to education in B.C. by

$312 million. We will also invest $505 million in capital funding to build and

improve schools, colleges, universities and institutes.

Why have we made education such a priority when other provinces have not? We

have done so because education is the key to ensuring that our daughters and

sons can succeed and make good lives for themselves and also because when we

invest in education, we invest in our future. Education is simply the best

economic investment a government can make.

As I said to our university presidents at the University of B.C. last

September, our goal isn't just to teach facts and formulas. We have a larger,

often unspoken, goal of teaching young people how to think critically, how to

think for themselves, because only those who are capable of critical,

independent thought are capable of moving us forward as an economy and as a

society.

Today in B.C. we need those critical thinkers more than at any time in our

history, and here's why. A strong resource sector will always be an important

part of our economy and part of our identity as a province. But the world around

us is changing. Technology advances so quickly that even our brightest

innovators don't truly know where the future will take us.

[ Page 17348 ]

But one thing is certain. Today our natural resources -- the keys to our

future, to prosperity in British Columbia -- are not just trees and minerals but

knowledge and skills and ideas. The place where those resources first develop --

the incubator for innovation, for the new technology, for the future itself --

is our education system: our schools, universities, colleges and institutes.

That's why we've made such a concerted effort to drive up the quality of

education from kindergarten to the post-secondary level.

In British Columbia over the past nine years we've built new schools at the

rate of one every 19 days. We've cut class sizes in the early grades to give

young children the individual attention they need in those critical years. We've

hired 4,000 new teachers over the past ten years and replaced 658 portables with

permanent classrooms just since 1998.

We've created six new career technical centres, where young people are

allowed to kick-start their training and access up to one year of tuition-free

study in a trade or technology while they complete their high school diplomas.

We've wired every public school and every campus in this province to the

Internet and connected many remote communities for the first time as well.

We've opened three new universities and created 40,000 post-secondary spaces

across B.C., including 2,000 spaces earmarked for high-tech. And we've done

something that no other province in the country has done: frozen those college

and university fees for five years. Today, as a result, a B.C. student graduates

with at least $7,000 less debt than the average Canadian student.

But we haven't opened those doors at the expense of quality. The latest Maclean's

survey of universities ranks B.C. institutions at or near the top in every

category in the country. We refuse to put that record at risk and close the door

on our economic future for the sake of dramatic tax cuts. Now is simply not the

time to stop the teaching and learning. Now is the time to build on our success

and invest in our young people.

[1455]

Today I am increasing funding to B.C.'s elementary and secondary schools by

$169 million -- our government's tenth straight year of increased education

funding. This will allow our schools to meet our classroom commitment: no more

than 20 students in every kindergarten class; no more than 22 in grades 1, 2 or

3. It also means we can expand or replace 22 schools and make improvements to

another 190 this year.

As well, schools that need seismic upgrading will have access to a $123

million fund over the next two years to make public facilities safer. Last week

B.C. hosted a meeting of North American seismic experts, and I'm pleased to tell

you that they confirmed that the approach B.C. is taking is the right one in

dealing with this issue.

This budget also funds five additional career technical centres in Vancouver,

the Okanagan, north Vancouver Island, the Pacific Northwest and the Fraser

delta. And this budget takes a visionary step forward in post-secondary

education. Instead of freezing tuition fees for a sixth year, we're cutting

tuition fees by 5 percent.

We understand that this initiative must not come at the expense of quality.

The tuition cut won't take a single dollar out of the system, because I'm

raising post-secondary funding by 8 percent -- an increase of $143 million. It

will mean more than 5,000 new student spaces in our universities and colleges.

It will continue to support an expanded package of financial aid that allows

B.C. students to graduate with some of the lowest debt loads in the country.

The demand for skilled workers in Canada is growing. In the next ten years 60

percent of the jobs will be in skills, trades and technology. There are already

vacancies in our province, and I believe -- this government believes -- that

those B.C. positions should be filled by skilled B.C. workers.

With this budget, B.C. will embark on a plan to double the number of

apprenticeships and skilled trades training spaces over the next four years to

50,000 spaces. That's our assurance that when the skill shortage hits -- and we

know it will -- B.C. will be ready not just to ride it out but to thrive and

prosper. The Premier set our sights high with his call to make B.C. a home of

opportunity for everyone. But I know that with the talent and energy and

determination of our young people, along with the support of a government that

believes in them, it's a challenge that we will meet.

It's been said that the quality of a society is judged by how it treats those

citizens who need help most. That's both a social and an economic imperative --

social because fairness is one of our defining values as Canadians and as

British Columbians, and economic because when we fail to use the talents and

imagination of every member of our society, we sell ourselves short, and we all

lose out. Anyone who isn't prepared to address the needs of the least advantaged

and the least fortunate simply isn't prepared to govern. Government must not

walk away from its social responsibilities.

That is why we introduced the B.C. family bonus a few years ago, an

innovative program to help low-income working families and reduce child poverty.

That program has now become the model for all of Canada. It's why, in the last

budget, I announced the groundbreaking new approach to providing parents with

safe, affordable before- and after-school child care. We are now in the second

year of the Premier's four-year program to increase the number of child care

spaces in our province to 85,000 -- double what it was in 1992.

[1500]

In this budget, I've set aside an additional $45 million for Child Care B.C.

The expansion means their program will find spaces for nearly 33,000 children in

before- and after-school care and save their parents up to $1,100 per child each

year. We are also offering a modest improvement in the combined B.C. family

bonus and national child benefit. It will increase by $72, to $1,332 per child

per year.

We've put a special focus on children living in poverty. The budget sets

aside an additional $3.5 million for our in-school meal program for children in

need -- a first step in meeting the Premier's commitment to double that program

in four years. We're increasing funding by $27 million -- one half of which has

been provided by the federal government -- for early childhood intervention

initiatives, so we can address minor problems in children's lives before they

become major ones. Roughly half that amount will help aboriginal children, both

on and off reserve, to get a good start in life.

The budget also includes an additional funding of $60 million to assist

British Columbians living with disabilities. This means more people with

disabilities will receive benefits.

Hon. Speaker, I believe that one of the great things about this province is

our commitment to a society where we can all

[ Page 17349 ]

make a contribution, where we all have opportunities to succeed and prosper.

This budget moves us closer than ever to achieving that goal.

Our highest priority in this budget is health care. Our public health care

system has long been one of the best things about being Canadian. I know that

from difficult personal experience. I was 22 years old. I was a student in the

United States, newly married, trying to get a start in life. One night I doubled

over in pain and ended up in hospital. It was acute appendicitis, and I had

emergency surgery. There were complications. I spent three weeks in hospital.

But I was young, and I recovered fairly quickly from the surgery.

What I did not recover from, for a long time, was the hospital bill. It

nearly bankrupted Hazel and me, just as we were starting out. I nearly had to

abandon my education. It's all too easy to find Americans who tell you similar

stories. Today, as we speak, more than 40 million of them lack any sort of

health insurance. But it doesn't happen in Canada -- not anymore, not since

medicare.

That's why it's crucial to make the choices that improve our publicly funded

health care and don't put on us on the slide -- intended or otherwise -- towards

the American private health care model. Our publicly funded health care system

is the most important service we have. But I know there are places where we have

to do better. Years of federal cuts on top of rising costs for new treatments

and prescription drugs have taken a serious toll, and health care is under

stress, not just in B.C. but right across Canada. Even though we've increased

health care spending every year since we were elected by a total of $3.8

billion, we haven't been able to keep up with growing needs.

Nothing is more important to this government than improving health care. No

priority is higher in this budget. This budget devotes 52 percent of new program

spending to meeting the needs of patients, to funding doctors and nurses,

hospitals and services in our public health care system. This year our

government will increase funding to health care in B.C. by $959 million. I want

British Columbians to know that more than two-thirds of this increase is

dedicated to regional programs in their communities.

That's $681 million for services that include everything from new

continuing-care beds in Port Hardy and Keremeos to home support services in the

North Okanagan, funding and operating a new MRI machine in Prince George and a

CT scanner in the Comox Valley, more cardiac care in Kelowna, more renal

dialysis in Victoria and more cancer treatment on Vancouver Island. Good,

reliable public health care is part of being a British Columbian, and that must

hold true no matter where you live in this province.

[1505]

This budget funds the largest capital investment in health care in the

history of British Columbia -- more than $1.6 billion over the next four years.

That will mean new and expanded hospitals, a new cancer agency in the Fraser

Valley and more facilities in communities right across B.C. These are the

choices this government has made, and that's why broad-based dramatic tax cuts

are the wrong direction for British Columbia.

The past year has seen real progress on health care. In the spring the

Premier went to work with the other provinces to convince Ottawa to restore some

of the funding that had been cut, and that effort has produced positive results.

In September we put that money directly into hospitals and medical equipment,

and in December we launched the health action plan to train and hire more

nurses, buy critical equipment and provide more community and long-term care.

All told, last fall we invested $130 million from the federal government for

equipment and added $370 million from provincial surpluses this year. Now, with

the resources this budget makes available, we can make continued progress

towards the level of quality and service that British Columbians deserve.

Let me be clear. I firmly believe that if we do not do this, if we fail to

invest the funds that health care needs, then we will open up the back door to

U.S.-style private care. As long as we sit on this side of the House, that must

never happen in British Columbia.

Our first priority must be to solve the nursing shortage. Every province in

Canada is facing it, but that's no excuse. We have to act, and act now. The

health action plan includes a strategy to attract more British Columbians to the

nursing profession, to educate and retain more of the nurses who are already on

the job and to bring in more nurses from elsewhere. This budget will provide the

necessary funding to meet those commitments and to pay nurses what they're

worth.

In Budget 2000, we funded 400 new post-secondary spaces for training nurses.

We delivered on that commitment, and now we're going further. Next year we'll

create a further 400 spaces for nurses, and in addition, funding of $12 million

will increase the number of nurses working in B.C. and help us educate and

retain existing nurses. That's a direct boost to front-line care in communities

right across B.C.

Families in those communities also deserve to have doctors ready and willing

to help them if the need arises. It doesn't matter if you live in Cranbrook or

Kitimat or Kelowna. I know, as you do, that doctors, especially in the north

where I live, are looking for more compensation. This budget funds the health

action plan commitment to B.C. doctors, and that includes doctors in B.C.'s

rural and remote communities.

Not only does this plan offer incentives to attract and keep doctors in those

communities, it creates new residencies for physicians and other health care

professionals. Our goal is more doctors with more skills helping more B.C.

families.

But nurses and doctors aren't the only care providers that we need to

consider. Our health system relies on dedicated, caring people at all levels,

and I challenge the members opposite to recognize that those contributions do

include everyone from orderlies to specialists and, yes, to housekeeping staff

and toilet cleaners.

We designed the B.C. health action plan to address bottlenecks within the

system, bottlenecks that can delay care. This budget provides $2.8 million for

additional intensive care and critical care beds and $8.9 million for

transitional or flex beds in acute care. It makes a further investment of $70

million to continue our program of renewing and purchasing vital twenty-first

century diagnostic and treatment equipment.

[1510]

There's more to the health action plan than increasing resources. It's also

about making every health care dollar go further and do more. That means

preventing illness and injury wherever possible. To that end, the budget

provides $2.2 million for increased vaccination and immunization, and it funds

our innovative new "B.C. HealthGuide" program,

[ Page 17350 ]

including the NurseLine and on-line services. This gives people the

information they need to make informed decisions about their own health.

It also means enhancing home support and nursing for the elderly, the

chronically ill and the disabled. This budget provides a 10 percent increase in

home support and nursing. That's $39 million more to help British Columbians

live independently in their own communities surrounded by the people who love

them. It increases funding for enhanced palliative home care by $2.9 million, to

help those whose illnesses cannot be cured live in comfort and dignity.

We are investing, as well, in health knowledge with the creation of the Dr.

Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research. Our investment of $110 million

from the 2000-01 surplus will enhance the cutting-edge medical research being

conducted here in B.C. and will help B.C. attract more of the brightest research

minds in the world.

Let me make something else clear. Access to health services in B.C. means

access to a complete range of services, and that includes access to therapeutic

abortion services for women who choose to use them. It also includes new

developments in reproductive health, such as the morning-after pill. We must

never go back to the days when politicians used public policy to impose their

private views on the women of this province. Those services must be safeguarded,

they must be expanded, and they will be funded in this budget and in every

future budget this government has the privilege to bring before the House.

Hon. Speaker, I want to address another issue where there is a growing need

for services. This budget includes funding for B.C.'s mental health plan. It

increases it to $31.5 million. That's more than triple last year's investment

and will mean real and immediate improvements in the level of mental health care

in communities throughout B.C.

Hon. Speaker, this budget puts more nurses, more doctors, more beds, more

equipment and more services in B.C.'s hospitals and communities. It respects the

differing needs of our regions. It reaffirms that in B.C. we're strengthening

public health care, not sliding toward an American-style two-tier system. The

Premier has put it best: "As long as we have anything to say about it, B.C.

will never have a health system that checks your credit rating before it checks

your pulse."

The province we live in today is a strong one. It's moving forward; it's

growing steadily. I believe government has a responsibility to meet the needs of

a growing and innovative economy and to support continuing prosperity and

opportunity for every British Columbian, no matter who you are or where in B.C.

you call your home. That means better education and training. It means ensuring

a skilled creative workforce. The commitments in this budget to education and

training, along with the investments we've already made, will provide

world-class skills and education opportunities for British Columbians, and they

will build on our impressive strengths and emerging technologies. It means a

fair and equitable B.C. We must ensure that all British Columbians have an

opportunity to participate in and benefit from our economy.

This budget's commitments to expanded and improved child care, to support for

families through the B.C. family bonus and to assistance for people living with

disabilities mark our determination that no one should be left behind. It means

supporting public health care. Our publicly funded and publicly run system is a

competitive advantage to every business located in Canada. This budget invests

nearly $1 billion in additional funding to ensure that communities right across

our province can offer high-quality health services to the workers who live

there.

[1515]

It means protecting our competitive energy prices -- electricity prices. B.C.

has enjoyed, for the past seven years, stable prices for our electricity, prices

that are the third-lowest in North America, prices that offer an important

competitive edge for our businesses. Our government is committed to maintaining

that advantage, so that businesses in B.C. never face the kind of crisis

currently affecting companies in Alberta and California. Only by maintaining a

strong public utility and rejecting both privatization and deregulation can we

ensure that B.C. continues to have the power to grow.

We must also commit ourselves to sustainability. Finding the balance between

protecting our environmental heritage and addressing the needs of the working

forest is critical, both to ensuring the health of our forests and to reassuring

our markets. Our forest industry faces tough competition, no question about it.

The Forest Practices Code is an environmental warranty that we offer to our

customers. Gut it and you gut our forest industry as well. Keep it strong, and

we hold onto those markets, we build customer confidence, and we ensure that our

forests are producing timber and creating jobs forever.

There are other economic benefits to protecting the environment. It gives us

new opportunities in the emerging field of environmental technologies. Our

world-class parks and wilderness areas have become prime destinations, and they

attract not only visitors but high-tech workers and employers who come to stay

and put down roots. Good environmental policy is good economic policy, and this

budget is firmly grounded in the value of sustainability.

We must have economic certainty around our land base, and that means settling

the historic question of the claims of B.C.'s first nations. This is

fundamentally a matter of justice, but it is also vital to the future of our

regional and resource economies. An independent accounting firm has calculated

that unsettled land claims create enough uncertainty to cost up to $1 billion in

lost investments and jobs. That billion-dollar shadow cast by the risk of

confrontation and division darkens the future of communities of every part of

B.C.

Fair and balanced land claims can lift that shadow. They can offer the kind

of certainty that encourages investment for the future. They can bring

opportunities for growth and self-reliance to aboriginal and non-aboriginal

communities alike. And they mean that tax dollars that British Columbians have

contributed to our federal government can, at long last, come back to our

province to be invested in our regions and communities.

Finally, we come to our quality of life, which has long been a source of

pride to British Columbians, and it's also a source of real economic strength.

We have healthy, safe and vibrant communities, and there are places where

talented workers want to live and raise children. They're in places where

employers want to invest and locate.

[1520]

And we build those communities. We build them with hospitals and schools,

with safe drinking water, and this bud-

[ Page 17351 ]

get funds legislation to ensure a safe, healthy supply of drinking water

throughout B.C. We build those communities with physical infrastructure. In the

new economy, we also build them with digital infrastructure, and this budget

includes a $1.4 million initiative to include public access to the Internet in

rural B.C. We build those communities with environmental infrastructure, like

the $10 million this budget invests to upgrade trails, roads and campsites in

B.C.'s parks.

Mr. Speaker, this budget -- like the government -- takes a comprehensive view

of a modern, dynamic economy. We choose to see the big picture in all its

dimensions instead of the narrow view that sees dramatic tax cuts as the one and

only priority. That narrow view would see the chaos of deregulation and

privatization. It would see quality education restricted to those who can afford

to buy it. It would see our markets vanish as we gut the environmental

guarantees our customers seek. It would see regional economies adrift in turmoil

and division as land claims go unresolved. Our government has made a different

choice, a better choice, a choice for today's families.

This budget presents a vision of a province British Columbians have told me

they want to live in. It's a province where the air and water are clean, where

our forests are healthy. It's a province of mountains and valleys so beautiful

they take your breath away even after you've seen them a thousand times. It's a

province of diversity, a growing place of opportunity, of hope. It's a province

of compassion that cares for the least fortunate and protects the vulnerable, a

province of the future -- modern, forward-looking, confident. This is our

British Columbia.

Hon. Speaker, members of the House, we've balanced the books -- last year,

this year and next year. We've kept personal income taxes among the lowest in

Canada. We've put new resources into health care as our top priority. We're

making B.C. the education province and cutting tuition. We're making social

justice for all an important part of the social fabric of the province -- a

province of diversity and opportunity for all. I'm proud to table the 2001-02

budget -- a budget for today's families.

G. Farrell-Collins: Before I start, I want to warn the party president

for the NDP that I'll be briefer than my predecessor. So if you doze off, well,

don't be very long. [Laughter.]

Mr. Speaker, every year I prepare a speech in response to the government's

budget, which is normally presented at this time. This year was no different. I

was preparing a speech that I had hoped to deliver today. Unfortunately, I have

some unfortunate news that I am about to present to this House, which precludes

me from giving that speech. Information and documentation have come into my

hands that must be laid before this House and before the eyes of the public. But

before I do so, let me put my comments in context.

Within weeks British Columbians will go to the polls in an election. They

will give their verdict on this government's record over the last nine and a

half years, and a key factor in their decision will be an evaluation of the

government's fiscal record. They will want to know what the government's

priorities are and what their choices are, and to do this, they need to know

that the numbers contained in the budget are real and truthful. They need to

know that the government is telling them the truth.

Nothing could be more important. Nothing is more fundamental to our privilege

and duty to vote than the government's duty to tell the truth about the budget.

Nowhere in Canada is this more important than here in British Columbia, where

our history on this issue has been less than glorious.

[1525]

In the spring of 1996 the NDP government, on the eve of calling an election,

introduced a budget that they said was balanced but wasn't. The government

misled the people with "inappropriate estimates of revenue." The

Minister of Finance and Corporate Relations introduced her budget when she knew

there was way too much revenue optimism in it. She was assured by the Premier

that they could always make up a shortfall somewhere else.

Here's what happened in the words of the auditor general, as contained in his

report into the inquiry that followed: "A projected operating surplus of

$16 million for 1995-96 was overstated by up to $272 million in each tabling of

the estimates." He also said: "I concluded that the estimates of

revenue for the 1996-97 fiscal year carried with them a disproportionate risk .

. . . " On page 140, he said: "Considering the information

available to her, Minister Cull's decision to include in the revised forecast a

revenue projection that was $156 million over and above the secretariat's

optimistic forecast was inappropriate."

On page 180, the auditor general said: "Clearly tabling the 1996-97

estimates before an election would only have made sense if those estimates were

likely to confirm the administration's success in managing provincial finances

during 1995-96 and its intention to continue managing public resources prudently

in 1996-97. In other words, for the NDP government, Budget '96 was an important

political document."

In his press conference where he released this report, he said: "Did

budget 1996 include complete and reliable information? My answer is no."

Interjections.

G. Farrell-Collins: And if members opposite want to wait about one

minute, they'll find out the relevance of all this to today. "In the April

tabling, the result was overstated . . . . I considered this

decision . . . to have been inappropriate."

Mr. Speaker, the comments of the media were much stronger at the time.

Headlines read: "Fun with Figures," "Abracadabra: How the NDP Got

the Budget Figures It Wanted" and "NDP's Credibility Under Fire."

The voters were even less forgiving. Their comments were scathing and

justifiably so. But I think my former colleague Fred Gingell, who was the

Finance critic at the time, said it best. When confronted by pledges of

innocence from the NDP, Fred in his straightforward way said: "It's a load

of nonsense, absolute nonsense."

The NDP fought the claim of a fudge-it budget with everything they had, from

threats to court cases. They fought the auditor general, and they swamped him

with lawyers. They fought the public and the voters and the recall campaigns.

One of those was in Prince George.

After the auditor general's report closed the file and passed judgment, the

new Premier said they would be different. He was going to make sure it didn't

happen again. In last year's throne speech the government said:

[ Page 17352 ]

"My government recognizes the fundamental importance of transparency

in budgeting. It is critical that British Columbians have the highest

confidence in the budget numbers. Citizens may argue about the choices made in

the budget, but they must have confidence that these choices and the facts and

assumptions behind them are fully and fairly presented.

"My government has accepted a broad range of advice on the

budget-making process. The auditor general, the Enns panel, the official

opposition and individual British Columbians have all been heard and heeded.

In this session, my government will introduce a new law: the budget

transparency and accountability act. The aim of this act is to give British

Columbians the facts, all the facts and nothing but the facts."

The Minister of Finance said last year, in discussing that legislation:

"The Budget Transparency and Accountability Act will place British Columbia

at the forefront of open government. The people of British Columbia expect and

deserve nothing less."

The now Attorney General said the following: "I am hoping that people

will see that this legislation will amount to our guarantee to British

Columbians that we're trying very hard, in view of past mistakes, to correct

those mistakes, to make sure they're not repeated again. Because it will become

a law of this province, it will ensure that no future government will make those

mistakes."

The Premier, in response to that piece of legislation, said the following:

"This bill is about strengthening our commitment to keeping our

government's finances open, honest and transparent . . . . The buck

stops here."

[1530]

Well, Mr. Speaker, I have come into possession of documents and information

that show a very different intent in this year's budget. I have ten documents

from B.C. Hydro. They're financial documents that were sent to the Minister of

Finance in preparation for this year's budget. In the first set of financial

documents, the net income before profit-sharing and transfer to the rate

stabilization account shows a deficit of $100 million. On March 2 of this year

there was an e-mail sent from Hydro to the government which says: "As

discussed, attached are the revised numbers."

There is another set of financial documents for B.C. Hydro for this year. In

that one, the same figure, instead of being a $100 million deficit, is a $100

million surplus. But, Mr. Speaker, that wasn't good enough. That still wasn't

enough optimism for the NDP, because the government didn't like those numbers.

The Minister of Finance summoned the chair of B.C. Hydro to his office, and that

meeting took place at 1 p.m. on Monday, March 5. I am told that he directed the

chairman to find more optimism. On March 9, four days later . . . .

I have an e-mail, again from Hydro to the government, and it says: " .

. . as requested, we have reviewed the table of risks and sensitivities

and made some changes . . . . "

That was 9:30 a.m. At 11:20 a.m., less than two hours later, another e-mail

was sent to the Minister of Finance. In it, it says: " . . . as

requested" -- this is Hydro speaking -- "we have reviewed your budget

briefing document and have made some small changes. Could you please check the

operating income figures on the table in the attached document? I'm not sure how

you calculated this figure."

It goes on to say, and this is the key point, Mr. Speaker: "Please note

that the fiscal 2002 forecast submitted by B.C. Hydro to the government on March

2 . . . had net income forecast at $100 million . . . .

As a result, I cannot confirm the fiscal 2002 budget figures on your

table." That table includes a budget figure of $300 million, the figure

that's contained in the budget today.

So in exactly the same fashion that the 1996 budget contained $156 million of

revenue optimism, this budget contains $400 million of revenue optimism. I think

it's time that the people of British Columbia were told the truth.

Hon. J. MacPhail: How about telling us what you'd do.

G. Farrell-Collins: We'd tell the truth, minister.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Order, members.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Order, members.

G. Farrell-Collins: Mr. Speaker, remember the words of the throne

speech: "The aim of this act is to give British Columbians the facts, all

the facts and nothing but the facts." Remember the words of the Minister of

Finance: "The Budget Transparency and Accountability Act will place B.C. at

the forefront of open government. The people of British Columbia expect and

deserve nothing less." Remember the words of the Premier: "This bill

is about strengthening our commitment to keeping our government's finances open,

honest and transparent . . . . The buck stops here."

What are the people of this province to believe? Do they believe the

estimates of B.C. Hydro when they state them over and over again? Or are they to

accept and believe the revised and optimistic revenue estimates of the Minister

of Finance?

In 1996 civil servants protested when the NDP did just this same thing. The

NDP drove those civil servants out of office. When civil servants see the NDP

trying again to mislead the people, they're faced with an amazing, difficult

choice. Do they do as they are ordered? Do those civil servants do as they are

ordered, despite what their conscience tells them? Or do they tell the truth to

the people to whom they really owe their loyalty, the people of British

Columbia?

[1535]

I take great pride in the fact that there are still civil servants in British

Columbia who put the people ahead of the New Democratic Party. I want to say

here today that if the NDP goes on a witch-hunt to punish those who tell the

truth, we will protect them. If the NDP fires them, a new government will rehire

them. They have nothing to fear from the truth; they have nothing to fear from

the NDP. The NDP's time is up.

I also want to speak briefly to the people of British Columbia directly. This

budget is a fraud. This NDP government is a disgrace and a disappointment. It is

a real tragedy that this NDP government would once again present a false budget

to the voters on the eve of an election.

But I want to tell you here today that not all governments behave this badly.

The NDP in Saskatchewan have told the truth to their voters every single time.

The Tories in Alberta, as

[ Page 17353 ]

much as the NDP hate them, tell their voters the truth every single time. And

a B.C. Liberal government may make mistakes, but we will always tell the people

of this province the truth.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Order, members.

G. Farrell-Collins: But as for this NDP government, I say shame on

you. How could you do this to the people of British Columbia yet again? Why

would any voter -- any woman, any man, any child in the province, whether they

need health care or education or any services of government -- believe a word

any of the people on that side of the House have to say?

Let me ask the members of the NDP this: did Tommy Douglas ever, ever table a

fake budget? Did Allan Blakeney ever lie to the people of his province? Did Roy

Romanow or Howard Pawley ever introduce fake budgets to their people? Did any

NDP government anywhere in Canada ever stoop this low?

Mr. Speaker, if the members of the NDP think that the fury and the anger .

. . .

Interjections.

The Speaker: Order, members.

G. Farrell-Collins: It's amazing how sensitive they are this close to

an election.

Mr. Speaker, if the NDP didn't like or appreciate the fury that descended

upon them the last time they misled the people of British Columbia, that's

nothing compared to what they're about to see in this election.

Not only does this NDP government not have the right to govern; it doesn't

even have the right to bear the name New Democrat. The people of British

Columbia are ready to deliver their verdict. They're ready to pass judgment on

ten years of deceit, deception and decline.

Mr. Speaker, you have lost the right to lead the people of this province. The

people of this province deserve better than you. There is only one thing left to

do, and that is for the Premier to go to the people. Let the people speak; let

the people vote. Let's have an election.

I move adjournment of the debate.

Motion approved.

Introduction of Bills

INCOME TAX AMENDMENT ACT, 2001

Hon. P. Ramsey presented a message from His Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: a

bill intituled Income Tax Amendment Act, 2001.

[1540]

Hon. P. Ramsey: Hon. Speaker, the Income Tax Amendment Act, 2001,

implements two initiatives which were announced in the past year. As announced

last August, effective January 1, 2001, the small business corporate income tax

rate in B.C. falls to 4.5 percent, the lowest rate in Canada. It's the fourth

cut in two years, lowering the small business rate by 50 percent since July '99.

This bill also implements the B.C. energy rebate, an income-tested rebate of

$50 per single person or $100 per family. The rebate was announced on February

7, 2001, as part of a package of measures to assist British Columbia families

with high energy costs.

I move first reading of Bill 3.

Motion approved.

Bill 3 introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of

the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

BUDGET MEASURES

IMPLEMENTATION ACT, 2001

Hon. P. Ramsey presented a message from His Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: a

bill intituled Budget Measures Implementation Act, 2001.

Hon. P. Ramsey: The Budget Measures Implementation Act, 2001, provides

legislative authority for many of the changes described in the budget speech and

reports. It amends nine provincial statutes for taxation purposes. They're

designed to improve and streamline administration and clarify the application of

taxes in certain areas.

The Income Tax Act is amended to maintain legislative and administrative

consistency with the federal Income Tax Act to permit sharing, in limited

circumstances, among British Columbia government ministries that administer

provincial tax credit programs; clarify under what circumstances the government

may release taxpayer information; improve the operation of B.C.'s film tax

credit; and allow early payment of income tax refunds for certain corporate tax

credits. Other taxation statutes are amended to clarify the application of the

tax, allow new service delivery models and streamline administration.

The bill also amends two statutes for non-tax initiatives. The Special

Accounts Appropriation and Control Act is amended to add up to $2 million to the

First Citizens Fund special account. A technical amendment to the Financial

Administration Act clarifies language with respect to the amortization of

prepaid capital advances.

I now move first reading of Bill 4.

Motion approved.

Bill 4 introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of

the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Hon. P. Ramsey: Hon. Speaker, I rise to reserve the right to raise a

matter of personal privilege in regard to the comments of the opposition critic.

The Speaker: Thank you. I'll take note of that.

[ Page 17354 ]

Reports from Committees

D. Lovick: Pursuant to the committee's terms of reference, I have the

honour to present the report of the Select Standing Committee on Finance and

Government Services for the fourth session of the thirty-sixth parliament on the

matter of the prebudget consultation in British Columbia. I have the report

here. Shall I give the motion now, Mr. Speaker?

The Speaker: Please.

D. Lovick: The motion is simply that the report be taken as read and

received.

Motion approved.

[1545]

Tabling Documents

Hon. I. Waddell: I'd like to table two reports, hon. Speaker. I have

the pleasure of tabling the annual report of the environmental assessment office

for the period April 1, 1999, to March 31, 2000. I also have the pleasure of

tabling the annual report of the Muskwa-Kechika Advisory Board for the period

April 1, 1999, to March 31, 2000.

Hon. G. Janssen: I move that this House at its rising stand adjourned

until 2 p.m. on Monday next. I move that the House do now adjourn.

The Speaker: We'll do the first question.

Motion approved.

Hon. G. Janssen: I move the House do now adjourn.

Motion approved.

The House adjourned at 3:46 p.m.

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