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British Columbia — Debates (Hansard)

Fourth Session, 38th Parliament OFFICIAL REPORT OF DEBATES OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY (HANSARD) Wednesday, April 30, 2008 Afternoon Sitting Volume 31, Number 8 THE HONOURABLE BILL BARISOFF, SPEAKER ISSN 0709-1281

PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA (Entered Confederation July 20, 1871) LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR His Honour the Honourable Steven L. Point, OBC FOURTH SESSION, 38TH PARLIAMENT SPEAKER OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY Honourable Bill Barisoff EXECUTIVE COUNCIL Premier and President of the Executive Council ............................................................................................................Hon. Gordon Campbell Deputy Premier and Minister of Education and Minister Responsible for Early Learning and Literacy...................... Hon.

Shirley Bond Minister of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation ........................................................................................................ Hon. Michael de Jong Minister of Advanced Education and Minister Responsible for Research and Technology ........................................... Hon. Murray Coell Minister of Agriculture and Lands.......................................................................................................................................................Hon.

Pat Bell Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Multiculturalism............................................................................... Hon. Wally Oppal, QC Minister of Children and Family Development ................................................................................................................Hon. Tom Christensen Minister of State for Childcare ........................................................................................................................................................Hon.

Linda Reid Minister of Community Services and Minister Responsible for Seniors’ and Women’s Issues........................................... Hon. Ida Chong Minister of Economic Development and Minister Responsible for the Asia-Pacific Initiative and the Olympics.................Hon. Colin Hansen Minister of Employment and Income Assistance ...........................................................................................................Hon.

Claude Richmond Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources .......................................................................................................Hon. Richard Neufeld Minister of State for Mining......................................................................................................................................................Hon. Kevin Krueger Minister of Environment and Minister Responsible for Water Stewardship and Sustainable Communities ...............Hon.

Barry Penner Minister of Finance.......................................................................................................................................................................Hon. Carole Taylor Minister of Forests and Range and Minister Responsible for Housing ............................................................................. Hon. Rich Coleman Minister of Health ......................................................................................................................................................................Hon.

George Abbott Minister of Labour and Citizens’ Services ......................................................................................................................................Hon. Olga Ilich Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General and Minister of State for Intergovernmental Relations............... Hon. John van Dongen Minister of Small Business and Revenue and Minister Responsible for Regulatory Reform............................................ Hon.

Rick Thorpe Minister of Tourism, Sport and the Arts ......................................................................................................................................Hon. Stan Hagen Minister of State for ActNow B.C. ............................................................................................................................................ Hon. Gordon Hogg Minister of Transportation...........................................................................................................................................................Hon.

Kevin Falcon LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY Leader of the Official Opposition .........................................................................................................................................................Carole James Deputy Speaker ....................................................................................................................................................................................Sindi Hawkins Deputy Speaker ...........................................................................................................................................................................

Katherine Whittred Assistant Deputy Speaker.....................................................................................................................................................................Sue Hammell Deputy Chair, Committee of the Whole................................................................................................................................................. Harry Bloy Clerk of the Legislative Assembly .........................................................................................................................E.

George MacMinn, OBC, QC Clerk Assistant.........................................................................................................................................................................................Robert Vaive Clerk Assistant and Law Clerk .......................................................................................................................................................Ian D. Izard, QC Clerk Assistant and Clerk of Committees ....................................................................................................................................... Craig H.

James Clerk Assistant and Committee Clerk ..........................................................................................................................................Kate Ryan-Lloyd Sergeant-at-Arms............................................................................................................................................................................. A.A.

Humphreys Director, Hansard Services ...................................................................................................................................................................Jo-Anne Kern Legislative Librarian ..................................................................................................................................................................................Jane Taylor Legislative Comptroller...............................................................................................................................................................................Dan Arbic

Party Standings: Liberal 46; New Democratic 33 ALPHABETICAL LIST OF MEMBERS Abbott, Hon. George (L) .................................................................... Shuswap Austin, Robin (NDP)............................................................................. Skeena Bains, Harry (NDP).................................................................. Surrey-Newton Barisoff, Hon. Bill (L)..........................................Penticton–Okanagan Valley Bell, Hon.

Pat (L) .............................................................Prince George North Bennett, Bill (L) ........................................................................ East Kootenay Black, Iain (L) ............................................................ Port Moody–Westwood Bloy, Harry (L)................................................................................Burquitlam Bond, Hon. Shirley (L).....................................Prince George–Mount Robson Brar, Jagrup (NDP).....................................................Surrey–Panorama Ridge Campbell, Hon.

Gordon (L) .........................................Vancouver–Point Grey Cantelon, Ron (L)..............................................................Nanaimo-Parksville Chong, Hon. Ida (L) .................................................... Oak Bay–Gordon Head Chouhan, Raj (NDP) ...........................................................Burnaby-Edmonds Christensen, Hon. Tom (L) ................................................. Okanagan-Vernon Chudnovsky, David (NDP) ......................................... Vancouver-Kensington Coell, Hon.

Murray (L) .....................................Saanich North and the Islands Coleman, Hon. Rich (L)...........................................Fort Langley–Aldergrove Conroy, Katrine (NDP) .......................................... West Kootenay–Boundary Coons, Gary (NDP) ....................................................................... North Coast Cubberley, David (NDP)............................................................Saanich South de Jong, Hon.

Michael (L) ...................................Abbotsford–Mount Lehman Dix, Adrian (NDP) .........................................................Vancouver-Kingsway Evans, Corky (NDP).................................................................Nelson-Creston Falcon, Hon. Kevin (L) .......................................................

Surrey-Cloverdale Farnworth, Mike (NDP) ...............................Port Coquitlam–Burke Mountain Fleming, Rob (NDP) ..............................................................Victoria-Hillside Fraser, Scott (NDP) ..............................................................Alberni-Qualicum Gentner, Guy (NDP).......................................................................Delta North Hagen, Hon. Stan (L) ................................................................ Comox Valley Hammell, Sue (NDP) ................................................... Surrey–Green Timbers Hansen, Hon.

Colin (L) ..................................................Vancouver-Quilchena Hawes, Randy (L).......................................................... Maple Ridge–Mission Hawkins, Sindi (L) ............................................................... Kelowna-Mission Hayer, Dave S. (L) ................................................................ Surrey-Tynehead Hogg, Hon.

Gordon (L).....................................................Surrey–White Rock Horgan, John (NDP)......................................................Malahat–Juan de Fuca Horning, Al (L)........................................................... Kelowna–Lake Country Ilich, Hon. Olga (L)...............................................................Richmond Centre James, Carole (NDP).......................................................Victoria–Beacon Hill Jarvis, Daniel (L)..................................................

North Vancouver–Seymour Karagianis, Maurine (NDP) ........................................... Esquimalt-Metchosin Krog, Leonard (NDP)......................................................................... Nanaimo Krueger, Hon. Kevin (L) .....................................Kamloops–North Thompson Kwan, Jenny Wai Ching (NDP)........................... Vancouver–Mount Pleasant Lali, Harry (NDP)........................................................................

Yale-Lillooet Lee, Richard T. (L)....................................................................Burnaby North Lekstrom, Blair (L).............................................................. Peace River South Les, John (L)........................................................................ Chilliwack-Sumas Macdonald, Norm (NDP).................................... Columbia River–Revelstoke MacKay, Dennis (L)....................................................

Bulkley Valley–Stikine Mayencourt, Lorne (L).......................................................Vancouver-Burrard McIntyre, Joan (L).................................................West Vancouver–Garibaldi Neufeld, Hon. Richard (L) .................................................. Peace River North Nuraney, John (L).............................................................Burnaby-Willingdon Oppal, Hon. Wally, QC (L).......................................... Vancouver-Fraserview Penner, Hon. Barry (L)...........................................................

Chilliwack-Kent Polak, Mary (L) ....................................................................................Langley Puchmayr, Chuck (NDP)...................................................... New Westminster Ralston, Bruce (NDP) ............................................................. Surrey-Whalley Reid, Hon. Linda (L) ................................................................ Richmond East Richmond, Hon. Claude (L).............................................................

Kamloops Robertson, Gregor (NDP) ................................................Vancouver-Fairview Roddick, Valerie (L).......................................................................Delta South Routley, Doug (NDP)..................................................... Cowichan-Ladysmith Rustad, John (L) ........................................................

Prince George–Omineca Sather, Michael (NDP).........................................Maple Ridge–Pitt Meadows Simons, Nicholas (NDP) ...................................Powell River–Sunshine Coast Simpson, Bob (NDP)..................................................................Cariboo North Simpson, Shane (NDP) ....................................................Vancouver-Hastings Sultan, Ralph (L) ....................................................West Vancouver–Capilano Taylor, Hon.

Carole (L).....................................................Vancouver-Langara Thorne, Diane (NDP) .................................................Coquitlam-Maillardville Thorpe, Hon. Rick (L).......................................................Okanagan-Westside Trevena, Claire (NDP) ..................................................................North Island van Dongen, Hon. John (L)............................................ Abbotsford-Clayburn Whittred, Katherine (L)........................................

North Vancouver–Lonsdale Wyse, Charlie (NDP) .................................................................Cariboo South Yap, John (L)...................................................................Richmond-Steveston LIST OF MEMBERS BY RIDING Abbotsford-Clayburn....................................................Hon. John van Dongen Abbotsford–Mount Lehman .......................................... Hon. Michael de Jong Alberni-Qualicum..........................................................................

Scott Fraser Bulkley Valley–Stikine ...........................................................Dennis MacKay Burnaby North ...........................................................................Richard T. Lee Burnaby-Edmonds........................................................................Raj Chouhan Burnaby-Willingdon................................................................... John Nuraney Burquitlam.......................................................................................Harry Bloy Cariboo North..............................................................................

Bob Simpson Cariboo South..............................................................................Charlie Wyse Chilliwack-Kent ..................................................................Hon. Barry Penner Chilliwack-Sumas............................................................................... John Les Columbia River–Revelstoke................................................. Norm Macdonald Comox Valley........................................................................ Hon.

Stan Hagen Coquitlam-Maillardville..............................................................Diane Thorne Cowichan-Ladysmith ................................................................. Doug Routley Delta North ...................................................................................Guy Gentner Delta South ............................................................................. Valerie Roddick East Kootenay................................................................................

Bill Bennett Esquimalt-Metchosin.........................................................Maurine Karagianis Fort Langley–Aldergrove ..................................................Hon. Rich Coleman Kamloops.....................................................................Hon. Claude Richmond Kamloops–North Thompson ............................................Hon. Kevin Krueger Kelowna–Lake Country.................................................................. Al Horning Kelowna-Mission ......................................................................

Sindi Hawkins Langley ...........................................................................................Mary Polak Malahat–Juan de Fuca .................................................................. John Horgan Maple Ridge–Mission ................................................................ Randy Hawes Maple Ridge–Pitt Meadows ..................................................... Michael Sather Nanaimo......................................................................................

Leonard Krog Nanaimo-Parksville .....................................................................Ron Cantelon Nelson-Creston .............................................................................Corky Evans New Westminster .................................................................. Chuck Puchmayr North Coast....................................................................................

Gary Coons North Island ...............................................................................Claire Trevena North Vancouver–Lonsdale................................................Katherine Whittred North Vancouver–Seymour..........................................................Daniel Jarvis Oak Bay–Gordon Head ........................................................... Hon. Ida Chong Okanagan-Vernon......................................................... Hon. Tom Christensen Okanagan-Westside..............................................................Hon.

Rick Thorpe Peace River North.......................................................... Hon. Richard Neufeld Peace River South..................................................................... Blair Lekstrom Penticton–Okanagan Valley .................................................Hon. Bill Barisoff Port Coquitlam–Burke Mountain ............................................Mike Farnworth Port Moody–Westwood.................................................................... Iain Black Powell River–Sunshine Coast ...............................................

Nicholas Simons Prince George North.................................................................... Hon. Pat Bell Prince George–Mount Robson ............................................Hon. Shirley Bond Prince George–Omineca................................................................ John Rustad Richmond Centre......................................................................Hon. Olga Ilich Richmond East........................................................................Hon.

Linda Reid Richmond-Steveston...........................................................................John Yap Saanich North and the Islands ............................................ Hon. Murray Coell Saanich South ........................................................................ David Cubberley Shuswap............................................................................Hon. George Abbott Skeena.......................................................................................... Robin Austin Surrey-Cloverdale............................................................... Hon.

Kevin Falcon Surrey–Green Timbers ................................................................Sue Hammell Surrey-Newton............................................................................... Harry Bains Surrey–Panorama Ridge.................................................................Jagrup Brar Surrey-Tynehead ....................................................................... Dave S. Hayer Surrey-Whalley...........................................................................Bruce Ralston Surrey–White Rock ............................................................Hon.

Gordon Hogg Vancouver-Burrard..............................................................Lorne Mayencourt Vancouver-Fairview.............................................................Gregor Robertson Vancouver-Fraserview .................................................Hon.

Wally Oppal, QC Vancouver-Hastings .................................................................Shane Simpson Vancouver-Kensington.......................................................David Chudnovsky Vancouver-Kingsway ......................................................................Adrian Dix Vancouver-Langara ........................................................... Hon. Carole Taylor Vancouver–Mount Pleasant........................................ Jenny Wai Ching Kwan Vancouver–Point Grey ................................................Hon.

Gordon Campbell Vancouver-Quilchena.........................................................Hon. Colin Hansen Victoria–Beacon Hill...................................................................

Carole James Victoria-Hillside ...........................................................................Rob Fleming West Kootenay–Boundary........................................................Katrine Conroy West Vancouver–Capilano...........................................................Ralph Sultan West Vancouver–Garibaldi ........................................................Joan McIntyre Yale-Lillooet..................................................................................... Harry Lali

CONTENTS Wednesday, April 30, 2008 Afternoon Sitting Routine Proceedings Page Introductions by Members ....................................................................................................... ............................................ 11771 Introduction and First Reading of Bills........................................................................................ ....................................... 11772 Patient Care Quality Review Board Act (Bill 41) Hon. G. Abbott Insurance Amendment Act, 2008 (Bill 40) Hon. C.

Taylor Election Amendment Act, 2008 (Bill 42) Miscellaneous Statutes Amendment Act (No. 2), 2008 (Bill 43) Hon. W. Oppal The Grassy Plains Community Hall Association (Corporate Restoration) Act, 2008 (Bill Pr403) D. MacKay Bridge River Valley Flying Association (Corporate Restoration) Act, 2008 (Bill Pr401) H. Lali Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Amendment Act, 2008 (Bill M206) H.

Bains Tabling Documents.............................................................................................................. .................................................. 11774 Office of the Auditor General, report 2, 2008-2009, Strengthening Accountability in British Columbia Statements (Standing Order 25B) .............................................................................................................................. ........... 11774 Bountiful and polygamy issue C. Evans Errol Wintemute V. Roddick Mary Pichette and Servants Anonymous Society S.

Hammell Langley downtown ambassadors M. Polak Riverside Secondary School cancer awareness events M. Farnworth Support for speech and hearing disorders J. Rustad Oral Questions................................................................................................................. ....................................................... 11776 B.C. Place roof replacement N. Macdonald Hon. S. Hagen M. Farnworth Government action on forest industry C. Trevena Hon. R. Coleman D. Routley L. Krog B. Simpson Call for review of sewage regulations C. Wyse Hon. G. Abbott Respite services for disabled children N.

Simons Hon. T. Christensen Feed supply for hog farms C. Evans Hon. P. Bell

Second Reading of Bills........................................................................................................ ................................................. 11781 Medicare Protection Amendment Act, 2008 (Bill 21) (continued) M. Karagianis G. Gentner D. Thorne C. Puchmayr H. Bains J. Brar D. Cubberley S.

Simpson Proceedings in the Douglas Fir Room Committee of Supply............................................................................................................ ................................................. 11810 Estimates: Ministry of Community Services and Minister Responsible for Seniors' and Women's Issues (continued) M. Sather Hon. I. Chong C. Wyse M. Karagianis R. Fleming B. Simpson J. Horgan D. Thorne N. Macdonald M. Farnworth D. Routley S. Fraser

11771 WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 The House met at 1:34 p.m. [Mr. Speaker in the chair.] Prayers. Introductions by Members Hon. G. Campbell: It gives me great pleasure to introduce a very special group of visitors to the House today. In the members' gallery this afternoon is the Order of British Columbia Advisory Council. They have gath- ered in Victoria to review this year's nominations for the order and to select the recipients for this June's investiture.

I understand that this year there were 162 nominations, submitted by many members of both sides of the House, from every single corner of this province. [1335] The advisory council is chaired by the hon. Lance Finch, Chief Justice of the Court of Appeal of B.C. It includes our Speaker — a man of fine judgment, I might add; the president of the Union of B.C. Municipalities, Susan Gimse; the president of Royal Roads University, Dr. Allan Cahoon; Robert Lapper, Associate Deputy Minister for Intergovernmental Relations; and two mem- bers of the order, Sudarsha n Bakshi of Vancouver and Josephine Mills of Mill Bay.

I would like the House to make them welcome and give them thanks for the work that they're doing. R. Chouhan: It gives me great pleasure to introduce some of my friends from the B.C. Nurses Union. Please join me to welcome them: the pr esident Debra McPherson, Melanie Leckovic, Linda Pipe, Kathryn Dempsey, Joyce Procure, Sharon Costello, Wendy Strong and Kathy Turner. Hon. R. Coleman: I'd like to introduce to the House today a great person in my community — a volunteer, a leader, a mother, a friend. But most importantly, she's my wife of 33 years, Michele. My wife, Michele Coleman, is in the gallery today. Hon.

G. Campbell: Today we have in the House a number of young British Columbians. I know every political party is energized by the dedication of young British Columbians as they look to their future, as they suggest to us the ways that we can move forward. I'm pleased to welcome today, and I hope the House will join me in welcoming, members of the B.C. Young Liberals to the precinct this afternoon. M. Sather: I'm pleased to introduce today in the gallery 35 of the best young British Columbians. They're students from Thomas Haney Secondary School in Maple Ridge.

It's a self-directed program and really has a great reputation. They're here with their teacher Chris Connolly and are going to be spending three days in Victoria. Would the House please join me in welcoming them. Hon. J. van Dongen: Joining us in the members' gallery this afternoon are representatives from Hong Kong, one of British Columbia's most valued interna- tional partners with long-established cultural ties to our province. Ms. Maureen Siu is the director of the Hong Kong economic trade office in Canada. Mr. Y.C. Chan is deputy director, an d they are accompanied by Ms.

Catherine Yuen, principal consultant for western Canada. I ask the House to please make them all very welcome. B. Simpson: I would like to introduce my con- stituency assistant who is in the gallery today, Tobias Lawrence. Tobias just joined my office and is still full of enthusiasm and energy, and I'm sure that over the next few months, that will get mete red a little bit. I ask the House to please make her feel very welcome here today. Hon. R. Thorpe: Justin Shaw was born and raised in Victoria, playing community football since the age of six.

Justin is currently on a scholarship playing for the University of Manitoba. Today Justin was drafted by the B.C. Lions. Justin's mother, Judy, works in my deputy minister's office. I would ask all members of this House to join me in extending our best wishes to Justin on his return to British Columbia and an exciting career with the B.C. Lions. R. Fleming: I would like to introduce to the House a group of students and their teacher Miss Caitlin Schwarz — a class of 29 grade 5 students, boys and girls, from Northridge Elementary School in Saanich. Will the House please make them feel welcome. [1340] J.

Nuraney: In the gallery today I have two friends. O n e i s A z i z K a r a o f L i f e L a b s , w h i c h u s e d t o b e M D S , and another budding young hotelier called Karim Punja. Please help me make them both welcome in this House. N. Macdonald: I'd like to make an introduction. My constituency assistant Joy Orr is here. As with many people, if they tried to de scribe what the constituency assistant does, very often people are left wondering what we do. It's certainly the case with Joy. She does a tremen- dous amount of work and tries to make me look good.

I appreciate that very much, and I wonder if everyone else would join me in welcoming her to the House. Hon. G. Hogg: We are joined by 29 grade 5 students and their teacher Miss Thorvaldson from the wonderful elementary school that I attended. Please welcome these students from White Rock Elementary School. B. Ralston: I'd ask the House to welcome today Melissa Sanderson, who works as my constituency assistant. She deals with the varied demands of the job with great skill and aplomb, and I'm very lucky to have her working for me. Would the House please make her welcome.

11772 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES W EDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 Hon. K. Falcon: Mr. Speaker, as you know, there was an election a short ti me ago in Saskatchewan. They've now got a new Premier, a very dynamic Pre- mier, Brad Wall. I'm also pleased to say that we've got the new Saskatchewan Minister of Highways and In- frastructure and Minister Responsible for the Public Service Commission here with us today. I would ask the House to give a warm welcome to the new minister of transportation and high ways, Wayne Elhard, who is joining us today in the gallery. I.

Black: I stand today with some mixed emotions because my legislative assistant Sabrina Loiacono is leaving our fine place at the end of this week. I wanted to acknowledge the tremendous service that she has been to me and to others in the east annex. To mark the occasion, she's also got her mom and dad here today. I would be remiss if I didn't ask your assistance in giving a very, very warm welcome to Rosa and Giuseppe Loiacono, who are here to wish their daughter well as she goes on to the next phase in her career. Would you join me, please.

Introduction and First Reading of Bills PATIENT CARE QUALITY REVIEW BOARD ACT Hon. G. Abbott presented a message from His Honour the Administrator: a bill intituled Patient Care Quality Review Board Act. Hon. G. Abbott: I move that Bill 41, entitled the Patient Care Quality Review Board Act, be introduced and read for the first time now. Motion approved. Hon. G. Abbott: We're moving forward in meeting our 2008 throne speech commitment to establish new patient care quality review boards for each health au- thority.

The review boards will give British Columbians a clear, consistent and transparent quality assurance process in which to register concerns they may have on the quality of health service delivery they or a loved one received. Patients will have easy access to a complaint re- view process through the establishment of patient care quality offices in each health authority. If they're not satisfied with the results of the review by the care quality office in their health authority, they can ask the independent patient care quality review board to examine their complaint.

The boards will have the ability to make recom- mendations to the health authority and the minister on how to improve the future of our health care system from lessons learned. The board will also report annu- ally to the minister on thei r activities and on trends they see, again with the goal of improving health care for the future. Improving public confidence in the quality of the health care system should be a goal of government each and every day.

Through this new legislation we'll be able to examine concerns , address them at the local level where they occurred, an d also take those lessons and apply them across the province where necessary. In the Conversation on He alth the public told us that transparency and accountability are the two key principles of a world-class health care system. We en- shrined those principles in the Medicare Protection Act earlier this session, and we are putting those prin- ciples into action today wi th the Patient Care Quality Review Board Act — greater transparency and greater accountability for British Columbia.

I m o v e t h a t B i l l 4 1 b e p l a c e d o n o r d e r s o f t h e d a y for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today. [1345] Bill 41, Patient Care Quality Review Board Act, introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sit- ting of the House after today. INSURANCE AMENDMENT ACT, 2008 Hon. C. Taylor presented a message from His Honour the Administrator: a bill intituled Insurance Amendment Act, 2008. Hon. C. Taylor: I move that the bill be introduced and read a first time now. Motion approved. Hon. C.

Taylor: I am pleased to introduce amend- ments to the Insurance Act that will clarify the act's pro- visions and enhance consumer protection. The proposed amendments will protect consumers through improved coverage, better access to documents and enhanced dispute resolution mechanisms. The amendments strengthen the language on fire coverage and will provide consumers with more consistency across insurers. These changes are the result of a comprehensive review that included submissions from industry, consumers, the pub- lic and the legal community.

In addition, in reviewing and finalizing these amendments, we worked very closely with Alberta to develop harmonized legislation. This standardized approach will allow businesses to compete more ef- fectively in both of our jurisdictions. To highlight this harmonized approach, this cooperation between our two provinces, my counterpart in Alberta is today introducing their Insurance Act amendments in the Alberta Legislature. Mr. Speaker, I move that the bill be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Bill 40, Insurance Amen dment Act, 2008, intro- duced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES 11773 orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today. ELECTION AMENDMENT ACT, 2008 Hon. W. Oppal presented a message from His Honour the Administrator: a bill intituled Election Amendment Act, 2008. Hon. W. Oppal: I move the bill be introduced and read a first time now. Motion approved. Hon. W. Oppal: I am pleased to introduce Bill 42, the Election Amendment Ac t, 2008. This bill makes amendments to the act that governs provincial elections in British Columbia.

The bill strengthens voter identification require- ments to ensure that everyone who exercises their right t o v o t e d o e s s o i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h t h e l a w . I t e n c o m - passes a number of recommendations that have been made by the Chief Electoral Officer. In March 2006 the Chief Electoral Officer made a number of recommenda- tions to modernize the act. The bill regulates spending by parties and candidates during the period beginning 120 days before a scheduled general election.

As the Chief Electoral Officer noted in his report, currently that period is not regulated, and parties and candidates may spend whatever they like. To ensure fairness and balance, the bill also reintroduces spending limits for third parties, which would also apply to the 120- day precampaign period through to the general voting day. The bill also increases fines for all offences under the act. These fines have not changed since the last time the act was significantly amended in 1995.

Finally, the bill takes nume rous technical amendments on the recommendations of the Chief Electoral Officer to modernize and streamline the administration of the act. Hon. Speaker, I move that the bill be placed on the orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today. Bill 42, Election Amendm ent Act, 2008, 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. [1350] MISCELLANEOUS STATUTES AMENDMENT ACT (No. 2), 2008 Hon. W.

Oppal presented a message from His Honour the Administrator: a bill intituled Miscellane- ous Statutes Amendment Act (No. 2), 2008. Hon. W. Oppal: I move that the bill be introduced and read a first time now. Motion approved. Hon. W. Oppal: I am pleased to introduce Bill 43, Miscellaneous Statutes Amendment Act (No. 2), 2008.

This bill amends the following statutes: Employ- ment Standards Act; Final Agreement Consequential Amendments Act, 2007; Home Owner Grant Act; In- surance (Vehicle) Act; Judici al Compensation Act; Law and Equity Act; Local Government Act; Motor Vehicle Act; the Municipalities Enabling and Validating Act; Petroleum and Natural Gas Act; Private Career Training Institutions Act; Provincial Court Act; Representative for Children and Youth Act; Supreme Court Act; Trans- portation Investment Act; Tr eaty First Nation Taxation Act; Vancouver Charter.

In addition, the bill makes minor and technical amendments to a number of other acts. I move that the bill be placed on the orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today. Bill 43, Miscellaneous Statutes Amendment Act (No. 2), 2008, 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. THE GRASSY PLAINS COMMUNITY HALL ASSOCIATION (CORPORATE RESTORATION) ACT, 2008 D. MacKay presented a bi ll intituled The Grassy Plains Community Hall Association (Corporate Resto- ration) Act, 2008. D.

MacKay: I move that a bill intituled The Grassy Plains Community Hall Association (Corporate Resto- ration) Act, 2008, of which notice has been given on the order paper, be introduced and read a first time now. Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Members. Motion approved. D. MacKay: I move that the bill be referred to the Select Standing Committee on Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Standing Orders and Private Bills.

Bill Pr403, The Grassy Plains Community Hall Asso- ciation (Corporate Restoration) Act, 2008, introduced, read a first time and referred to the Select Standing Committee on Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Standing Orders and Private Bills. BRIDGE RIVER VALLEY FLYING ASSOCIATION (CORPORATE RESTORATION) ACT, 2008 H. Lali presented a bill intituled Bridge River Valley Flying Association (Corporate Restoration) Act, 2008.

11774 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES W EDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 H. Lali: I move that a bill intituled Bridge River Valley Flying Association (Corporate Restoration) Act, 2008, of which notice has been given on the order paper, be introduced and now read a first time. Motion approved. H. Lali: Some of the communities affected by this are Bridge River Valley, Gold Bridge, Bralorne, Tyax, Gunn Lake and also the Spruce Lake wilderness area. The benefits are to tourism, recreation and economic development and, especially now, trying to get the air ambulance in and out.

It's about a two-and-a-half-hour drive to Lillooet Hospital there. It will also increase tourism, economic and other opportunities. I want to point out that the society was struck off in No- vember of 1991, and it is not possible to carry on the business of the Bridge River Valley Flying Association. Obviously, it has to be a special act of the Legislature to revive this. I want to thank Donna James of the BRVFA, the Clerks of the House and also the Minister of Finance for helping to make this happen.

I move that the bill be refe rred to the Select Standing Committee on Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Standing Orders and Private Bills. Bill Pr401, Bridge River Valley Flying Association (Corporate Restoration) Act, 2008, introduced, read a first time and referred to the Select Standing Commit- tee on Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Stand- ing Orders and Private Bills. MANUFACTURED HOME PARK TENANCY AMENDMENT ACT, 2008 H. Bains presented a bill intituled Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Amendment Act, 2008. H.

Bains: I move introduction of the Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Amendm ent Act, 2008, for first reading. Motion approved. H.

Bains: The Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Amendment Act, 2008, amends sections 42 and 44 of the Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Act by (1) requiring that a park owner provide 12 months' notice of eviction when the park is redeveloped for uses other than a manufactured home park; (2) requiring that a park owner, at the time of eviction, pay a tenant 12 months' rent or $10,000, whichever is greater, for relocation ex- penses; and (3) requiring that a park owner pay those tenants who are unable to relocate their home because their home failed to meet the transportation safety standards or local building standards an amount equal to the fair market value of the manufactured home as compensation.

The current act has failed the manufactured home owners all across this province and has left many homeless. This bill is designed to provide protection to manufactured home owners — many of whom happen to be elderly and disabled — who worked hard, paid their taxes all their lives and helped build their com- munities and this province. [1355] By protecting their homes from land developers trying to cash in on high real estate values, this bill will provide respect and dignity and peace of mind in their retirement years. Further, th is bill protects the afford- able housing stock that this province badly needs.

We as a society have an obligation to not only say that we look after our seniors but back it up through legislative safeguards so that they can live and enjoy the last few years of their lives without the fear of becoming home- less. This bill does that, and it brings back fairness and balance in dealing with a situation where the park owner decides to develop the land for other use. I move that this bill be placed on the orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting after today.

Bill M206, Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Amend- ment Act, 2008, 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. M. de Jong: M r . S p e a k e r , j u s t t o a d v i s e t h e House that in accordance with the agreement reached between the government and the opposition to have government legislat ion tabled in its entirety prior to the end of April, the presentation of Bill 43 today does represent the completion of the government's legislative agenda for this spring session.

In the days ahead, in the next few days, the Opposition House Leader and I will endeavour to arrive at a

schedule that would see the work completed in a mutually agreeable fashion, and I'll report back to the House in due course. Tabling Documents Mr. Speaker: Hon. Members, I have the honour to present a report of the Auditor General, report 2, 2008- 2009, Strengthening Accountability in British Columbia. Statements (Standing Order 25B) BOUNTIFUL AND POLYGAMY ISSUE C. Evans: I'd like to use my two minutes of non- partisan time today to talk about Bountiful in my constituency in Creston.

The issue of polygamy at Bountiful is a huge issue for the people involved, for citizens generally, for the government of British Columbia and also for Canada. Canada has historically had a great deal of difficulty figuring out how to deal with polygamy within the law. Meanwhile, we have failed collectively for a quarter century, as far as I know, to find a single person living at Bountiful or elsewhere willing to make an accusation of abuse and then defend that accusation at court. Attorneys General of all parties would, I think, have liked to resolve the issue on their own, and thus far

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES 11775 they cannot. Thus the polygamy question must be seen as a societal conundrum that is in need of broad-based solutions that belong, essentially, to all of us. I ask that the federal, provincial and state governments from Canada and the United States meet to discuss the legal and societal issues related to polygamous communities in comprehensive and open dialogue. I ask that this happen now, while it is in the public's mind on both sides of the border by virtue of the seizure of the children in Texas.

Similarly, I ask that every ministry in British Columbia and all elected officials that are in any way connected with Bountiful at any level also meet here in British Columbia in open dialogue to discuss how we might end cross- border immigration that facilitates polygamous marriage, how we might actively assist citizens at Bountiful who are in need of services to assist them to leave the community, how we might assist those who are already expelled from Bountiful and, lastly, how we might use all the services and educational activities at our disposal to assist children at Bountiful to understand the greater society that lives outside their walls and to lose their fear of the outside world.

Hon. Speaker, I ask that we end partisan behaviour and blame on this subject now and that we deal with it together now. ERROL WINTEMUTE V. Roddick: The person of a man may leave or be taken away, but the best part of a good man stays. It stays forever. Delta South lost a pillar of the commu- nity recently, Errol Wintemute, at the age of 91. He was a quiet, respectable, nice man who was always there to help the community, particularly young people, and he got the job done. Errol was passionate about his work in the coastal lumber industry, specializing in yellow cedar.

His knowledge, vision, integrity and work ethic earned him the respect and admiration of colleagues throughout the Pacific Northwest. His last day on the job at Delta Cedar Products, which was founded in 1965, was Thursday, April 10 — the day before he died. [1400] Errol Wintemute was a man of immense energy and enthusiasm. He chaired and was a major contribu- tor to the capital campaign to build the Boys and Girls Club clubhouse in Ladner that bears his name. Delta Hospital benefited through an endowment fund from Delta Cedar.

In addition to promoting parks and play- grounds in Delta, he was also a founder of the Mount Seymour Ski Club. H e d i d s o m u c h f o r u s a l l . W e w i l l r e m e m b e r a n d , hopefully, learn from him the joy he took in life's simple pleasures. These pleasures he unfailingly welcomed with two words: "Oh boy." Errol Wintemute had a great run. MARY PICHETTE AND SERVANTS ANONYMOUS SOCIETY S. Hammell: I spoke this weekend with a woman whose name is Mary Pichette. Mary is a sexual assault survivor, a survivor of a drug addiction and a survivor of years on the streets during her youth.

Mary is now the executive director of Servants Anonymous Society, an organization dedicated to rescuing girls and young women from the sex trade. Mary told me that research suggests that one man out of ten buys sex from women, and approximately 100,000 purchases of women are made daily in B.C. from various outlets, including the Internet. Each woman on average is bought ten times a day. Hon. Speaker, 30 percent of the young women SAS serves are second generation homeless, and the remaining 70 percent come from every other walk of life imaginable. They are recruited from sc hools, campuses, churches and malls.

They are often vulnerable, with issues of self-esteem. Mary told me that none of the young women she has worked with have chosen to be prostituted. Mary and SAS — with the help of donors, business, govern- ment and the Surrey Firefighters Charitable foundation — provide a wraparound service of outreach, safe homes, education and ongoing support for the young women who want to escape life on the streets. They provide in-depth life training and mentors for the young women, mentors who themselves have exited the sex trade and gone on to successful careers. Education is central to Mary.

She understands that SAS is engaged in long-term change and that commit- ment sometimes takes years. Mary believes deeply that if you educate a woman, you change a generation. Mary has been nominated for the Making a Differ- ence award of Soroptimists International and will be competing with women nominated in North and South America. Will the House please join me in wishing her success in that competition. LANGLEY DOWNTOWN AMBASSADORS M. Polak: At the heart of downtown Langley city is a one-way

section of the Fraser Highway that has become a favourite spot for all manner of shopping or just a quiet cup of coffee. It is also the area of town that is home to my constituency office. Owing to our location, my office receives a high number of drop-in visits from constituents every day. I suppose I shouldn't have favourites, but I can't help it. I love it when the downtown Langley ambas- sadors drop by. With their distinctive blue shirts and smiling faces, these volunteers contribute their time to making downtown Langley a welcoming place for visi- tors and residents alike.

Today the downtown Langley ambassadors will launch their fourth season as some of the best examples of that well-known Langley hospitality. Last year they logged 1,366 hours between May and September. This year their 20-member-strong group will once again be touring the city streets, providing information and assistance to tourists as well as local people. Langley was among the first communities to have an ambassadors program, joining others such as Nanaimo, Kelowna, Prince George and Maple Ridge. The program began as an initiative of the Downtown

11776 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES W EDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 Langley Merchants Associatio n. It was an innovative way to add extra eyes and ears for the business com- munity in order to curb vandalism and prevent vehicle break-ins through a partnership with ICBC. As the ambassadors program evolved, it became apparent that due to their friendly nature, these volun- teers were providing far mo re than crime prevention.

These are people who love their city, and their enthusi- asm has led them to focus more and more on creating a downtown that lives up to Langley city's motto "The place to be." [1405] I'm proud to say that our downtown Langley am- bassadors have been recognized for their exceptional work in our community. In 2007 they were awarded the Business Improvement Area s of B.C.'s Best in the West Award for social and safety initiatives. They've also expanded their program to include heritage walking tours of Langley's historic downtown. RIVERSIDE SECONDARY SCHOOL CANCER AWARENESS EVENTS M.

Farnworth: Cancer is a disease that touches nearly everyone — in this chamber, in the province as a whole, even young people. That's why it's really terrific to see a high school in my community taking on this terrible disease and trying to raise public awareness. Riverside Secondary in Port Coquitlam, in the first two weeks of May, will be holding a cancer awareness two-week time. They'll be using that time to raise aware- ness among students and the public about cancer and the fight against cancer. They'll be doing it by the use of the school newspaper, by bulletin boards and in the class- room.

They'll be sharing stories about the fights against cancer and the victories against cancer. Truly remarkable. On the 8th of May they'll be holding a wear yellow day, in which the school will be encouraging all the students, teachers, parents and the public to wear yel- low to show support for the fight against cancer and to raise awareness about it. It truly is reflective of the initiative of our students in British Columbia and the students of Port Coquitlam, and I'm extremely proud of them.

I'd like to recognize three students in particular and their teacher, who have done an awful lot to get this initiative going and to organize it. They are Kate Olszewski, Carly Moy, Smruti Shah and their teacher Raquel Chin. I know the first two weeks in May are going to be a truly remarkable, successful event, and I know that May 8 will be a very special day when Riverside School and the community will be wearing yellow to raise awareness about the fight against cancer. I ask all of us in this House to congratulate the students of Riverside Secondary. SUPPORT FOR SPEECH AND HEARING DISORDERS J.

Rustad: I'd like to draw attention today to a topic that affects one in ten Canadians. These are people who have speech, language and hearing disorders. In this province alone there are 200,000 British Columbians with a hearing loss. As politicians, we rely on commu- nications. Imagine what it must be like to not be able to participate in this basic function. For some of us in this House, perhaps having a hearing challenge could be considered beneficial. But seriously, for many others, this can be a huge barrier in life.

To raise awareness of this situation, our government has proclaimed May as Speech and Hearing Awareness Month in B.C. This is one of two announcements the Min- ister of Employment and Income Assistance and the member for West Vancouver–Capilano made this after- noon. They also announced a one-time grant of $500,000 to the Western Institute for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. With this grant, the Western Institute will provide assistive equipment to ov er 400 low-income British Columbians who have a hearing loss. These low-tech devices range from vibratin g alarm clocks to visual signals devices for their phones.

I had the opportunity to participate in a ceremony at lunch today with some of the Western Institute's clients, and I saw firsthand how they're making a huge difference for the lives of British Columbians. Please join me in congratulating the Western Institute for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing for the great work they're doing in our province. Oral Questions B.C. PLACE ROOF REPLACEMENT N. Macdonald: For two years the B.C. Liberals have stonewalled questions about th e roof of B.C. Place to cover up their gross mismanagement of this file, and taxpayers are going to be left holding the bag.

My question to the minister responsible for this mess: will he finally release the report he's had for two years on the state of the B.C. Place roof — a complete, undoctored report — today, or is he going to continue to hide facts from British Columbians? [1410] Hon. S. Hagen: I would just like to inform the member that the report he's referring to is not a report referencing the roof at all. The report has been released. If he has a complaint about the way it's been released, he should contact the commissioner and take it up with the commissioner. Interjection. Mr. Speaker: Member. The member has a supplemental.

N. Macdonald: That's openness, B.C. Liberal style. I'll tell the public what that report looks like. It is 15 pages long, and 14 pages are stroked out with black pen. That is absolutely typical of every single docu- ment we get from this minister. In May 2006, 25 years after the original roof was built, the NDP asked if the roof was in need of

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES 11777 replacement. The B.C. Libe rals said: "Don't worry; everything is fine." The minist er said: "It will last up to the Olympics and well beyond." In January 2007 the world saw the roof collapsing. There are now 650 days until the Olympic opening ceremonies. It will be viewed by billions of people worldwide, and the Liberals are scrambling to replace it. British Columbians have a right to a very basic question. Let's put this in context. Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Members. N. Macdonald: The life span of the roof of B.C. Place was up — what? — two years ago.

That should have been a clue. The NDP asked about the roof two years ago: was it sound? That should have been a clue. A secret report on the state of B.C. Place was received by the minister over 20 months ago. The roof collapsed 15 months ago. That should have been a clue. The whole world saw that, but apparently none of those have triggered action from this government. The question is: why has it taken so long for this government to make any decision on the roof of B.C. Place? Explain that to the people of British Columbia. Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Members. Hon. S.

Hagen: Well, it is good to hear the member express concern about a building that the NDP were opposed to building back in 1983. Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Take your seat. Members. Member. Continue, Minister. Hon. S. Hagen: I can assure all members of this House and the public out there that safety is always a top priority, whether it's with PavCo or any other gov- ernment agency. Last Januar y I committed to releasing all roof inspection reports that have been done. I have done that. They're on the website. Mr. Speaker: The member has a further supple- mental. N.

Macdonald: Even in a building where the question and answer are linked very, very loosely, that must set a new standard. This minister's incompetence has left us with 650 days to plan and build a new roof on B.C. Place. We saw what happened with the convention centre expansion project when you set that deadline. Here's what the Auditor General said, and the Auditor General's report should be read so that you get some sense of where we're headed with this project.

He says that having to complete the project within a short time frame led to a procurement strategy that left the taxpayers with all the signific ant risks. To remind Brit- ish Columbians, that is $400 million worth of risk and counting. Again, to the minister: what will the taxpayers of this province be forced to pay because of this minister and this government's sheer incompetence? Hon. S. Hagen: I'm not sure I heard a question there, but I will make a few comments on what PavCo is doing. PavCo is working hard. They're working dili- gently to prepare a report for the government, and we want to do it right.

The other thing is that we will end up with a project that the people of British Columbia can be very, very proud of. [1415] M. Farnworth: Well, PavCo may be working dili- gently, but clearly this minister and this government haven't been working diligently on this issue. In 2006 the minister respon sible for B.C. Place said that it was not anticipated that a significant capital infusion was needed. Yet today at cabinet, the gov- ernment is talking about how to replace the B.C. Place roof.

So my question to the minister is clear: when will he come clean with the public, and when will he tell them what the options are and what the costs are going to be to replace the roof at B.C. Place? Hon. S. Hagen: I can assure the member opposite and all the people in Britis h Columbia that PavCo is doing their due diligence. They're bringing a report and a recommendation forward to the government. The government will look at those recommendations, will make a decision and will produce a product that the people of British Columbia will be proud of. Mr. Speaker: The member has a supplemental. M.

Farnworth: This government has known there's been a problem since 2006. Each day that goes by with- out a decision sees an increase in costs. Each day of delay sees more questions about uncertainty. With the Olympics closing in fast, the public and the world want to know what this government is going to be doing about B.C. Place. Will the minister commit to release the options to the public so that we know? Is it going to be a brand- new expensive roof because of the inflated costs that have been going on, or is it going to be the old roof flapping in the wind like a bad toupée? Come clean with the options.

Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Members. Members. Hon. S. Hagen: I would like to offer the opportu- nity for the Opposition House Leader to rephrase the

11778 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES W EDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 question. He might not want to talk about a toupée flapping in the wind. But having said that, I can assure the Opposition House Leader that we are doing our due diligence with the help of the PavCo staff. They will bring forward the recommendations. The government will make a deci- sion. As I've said, the people of British Columbia are going to be very, very happy when they see what we're going to deliver. I hope that the opposition, unlike what they did in 1983, will support that. GOVERNMENT ACTION ON FOREST INDUSTRY C.

Trevena: Yesterday we learned that the No. 1 paper machine at Elk Falls in Campbell River is closing permanently, so 145 jobs are lost in Campbell River, in my community — 145 well-paid jobs — because of this government's failure to take any action to respond to the largest crisis the forest industry has ever faced. That's on top of the 257 jobs being lost in ten days when the TimberWest mill next door closes down. This is a direct result of the minister's choice to sit on the sidelines rather than ensure that coastal mills have a secure supply of logs and chips. It isn't market conditions. It isn't just that.

It is government policy. I'd like to ask what the Mi nister of Forests and Range is going to do today to ensure that coastal mills have the raw materials they need to keep people employed. [1420] Hon. R.

Coleman: I j u s t w a n t t o r e a d t h e m e m b e r something: "While we knew 2008 was going to be one of the most difficult years in recent history for the for- est industry, the continued reduction of the United States housing starts due to the sub-prime mortgage fiasco, extremely depressed commodity lumber prices, continued strong dollar, the challenging Japanese mar- ket and high cost of harvesting on the coast are all contributing to a profoundly negative impact on our business." That was Western Forest Products today.

For a member opposite to get up and say that market conditions are not the problem here shows a complete lack of understanding. Housing sales in the United States are at a 16½-year low. Housing starts are down by 66 percent in the United States. The sub-prime mortgage market has tolled a disaster on the U.S. marketplace, and the Canadian dollar is up to par. I actually am concerned about the forest industry and its future. I believe that the industry is trying to make the adjustments so that it will be there to employ your people and your communi ties in the future. They have to do that in order to survive. D.

Routley: Mr. Speaker, I'll ask you to remember along with me when the Forests Minister told this House yesterday that there were 17 Western Forest Products logging sites in operation. Today we learned that 1,000 people lost their jobs overnight — 1,000 peo- ple; 1,000 families, 800 of them from those very logging operations the minister was referring to. Surely the minister must speak to people in the industry. Surely the minister must have known. It's bad enough that he admits he's just a spectator, but he's not even watching the game.

My question is: was this minister playing games with this House yesterday when he said that those sites were in operation, or is he completely out of touch with his file? One thousand families want an answer. Hon. R. Coleman: I'll just ignore the personal insults from the member for Cowichan-Ladysmith. Quite frankly, the company yesterday afternoon — probably because the markets close after or about the time question period starts — had not informed anybody, because they are a public company.

The reality is that six of their operations, which were on the list of 17 that I had yesterday, have now been curtailed for a couple of weeks — some for maybe 30 or 35 days. They made it very clear that their mills are continuing to operate and that they have lots of log supply. They have told people that they will go back logging when they need the inventory, as long as mar- kets stay steady. L. Krog: This Forests Minister has told us that sell- ing off B.C. forest lands is a strategy to protect jobs. Well, yesterday I think we learned that's a pretty dis- mal failure.

A thousand jobs lost — 1,000 people on this island who are not going to have their mortgage payments met or their rent payments made. They're going to be facing EI. The only thing that this govern- ment has delivered is a do-nothing round table. My question to the minister: were 1,000 jobs lost yesterday enough of a wake-up call? Finally, is it bad enough for this government to take some action today to protect those jobs? Hon. R. Coleman: Well, you know, on Vancouver Island there are seven sawmills and three reman plants run by Western Forest Products. They curtailed some of their logging yesterday.

Some of it is going to go back as early as May 20, some on June 2 and some of it as late as June 24. They have actually told the people what days they can expect to come back to go back logging. This is what happens in the marketplace, hon. Member. You actually log to fill up your inventory for markets you can sell product to, and that's what they're doing. They're managing their business, which I think is appropriate in a very tough and difficult market- place. Mr. Speaker: The member has a supplemental. [1425] L. Krog: You know, that's the feeblest excuse that we've heard from this minister.

The people who work in the industry understand that it's not just about ma rket conditions. They under- stand that it's government policy that encourages wood to be left on the forest floor instead of being taken to

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES 11779 the mills in the best pulp market we've ever seen. It's government policy to ship out raw logs in this prov- ince. It's government policy that's transforming forest companies into real estate companies. So I say to this minister: what's he going to do today to save those jobs? Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Members. Members. Hon. R.

Coleman: The member opposite may want to go to the quotes from the Leader of the Opposition on CHNL this morning, where the Leader of the Oppo- sition said this: "It's not go ing back to the old system where it's linked to mills, to cut licences. You know, the days of bailing out old mills are gone. I've been very clear about that. I've said that publicly." So you're actually thinking that we…. Interjections. Hon. R. Coleman: I know. I know what you're asking. Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Minister, just take your seat for a second. Members, ask the question and listen to the answer. Minister, continue. Hon. R.

Coleman: I know what you're advocating, hon. Members opposite. You' r e a d v o c a t i n g t h a t w e should say to some company: "Log when you can't sell the log, mill when you can't sell the product, and mill when you can't sell the product for a profit, be- cause we in the NDP would like to see every forest company in British Columbia go out of business be- cause we don't believe you should be allowed to manage your business." B.

Simpson: The sad reality is that overnight a thousand families found out that they're now part of the collateral damage of this minister doing nothing to address the deepening crisis in the forest sector. The minister answered a questi on about the pulp sector with an answer about the sawmill sector. He answered a question about the pulp se ctor with an answer about appurtenancy. The minister shows that every time he stands up, he doesn't understand the file he has in front of him. We need action now. This minister says that he can't take action. Here is my request to the minister.

For the sake of these families — particularly on the coast — who are struggling right now, will he take these two concrete actions? We're in the hottest pulp market we've ever seen. Will he keep pulp mills running on the coast by ensuring they can get the raw materials they need to keep people employed, and will he stop the export of logs from the coast so that other entrepreneurs can create jobs in the value-added and remanufacturing sector? Hon. R. Coleman: Maybe the member opposite could do his research with regards to the one line on the one pulp mill, which was actually shut down last September.

He might want to talk to the company and find out that the cost of actually chipping logs is too expensive for them to continue to operate. They've made that very clear on their fibre supply. The member might also want to look at the fact that someone like Western Forest Products, who seems to be the target of this partic ular opposition, actually ex- ported ²⁄₁₀ of 1 percent of the logs, which were logs that they couldn't put through a mill off the Queen Char- lotte Islands, in the first quarter of this year. Mr. Speaker: The member has a supplemental. B.

Simpson: What troubles me here is that, again, the minister stands up in defence of a company that we're not attacking. We're asking the minister…. Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Members. Members. B. Simpson: We're asking the minister to do his job. Public policy determines who gets access to public forests. Public policy determines at what price. Public policy determines if our pulp mill sector on the coast gets access to the logs that they need to employ peo- ple.

Public policy determines if other people, other than Western Forest Products, can get logs on the coast. [1430] All this minister has offered is a round table. At that round table are two people from TimberWest, a company that prides itself on being a land developer, a real estate company and a log exporter. Is that what's really going on here, Mr. Spea ker? Is that what's really going on — that this minister's vision for the coast is land development, real estate and no jobs? Is that the real agenda? Hon. R.

Coleman: That may be the vision for the NDP, but the vision is actually to have sustainable companies making products for a multitude of markets so that they have a sustai nable future for the employ- ees they employ. They empl oy thousands of them on the coast of British Columbia. Interjection. Hon. R. Coleman: You know, you get the catcalling from the other side. They don't want to actually recog- nize the marketplace. They could go and look at CIBC World Markets

summary of the future of forestry. They could go do a little research. The fact of the matter is that we are going to work with our industry to surv ive this downturn, because when it comes out, they will be in the most competitive place that they could possibly be for the future markets in British Columbia.

11780 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES W EDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 CALL FOR REVIEW OF SEWAGE REGULATIONS C. Wyse: John Wood of Hixon is out $25,000 as a result of his septic field failing after it had been installed for only one year. The new regulations authorize in- stallers to determine what is legal or compliant. The regulations do not allow a public health inspector to approve or condemn a system design. A coalition of professional organizations and indi- viduals has identified seven critical deficiencies with the 2005 sewage system regula tions.

These deficiencies include loss of public health protection, loss of over- sight and greater cost to the public. My question: will the minister commit to a com- plete review and rewrite of the sewage regulations to correct problems and deficiencies that have been noted since their approval in 2005? Hon. G. Abbott: I thank the member for his questions. I think the sewage regulations have worked generally very well. What we have is professional certification for systems. In virtually every case the system has worked well.

I think the case that the member is referencing is one that I'm familiar with, and I understand there are efforts underway to remedi ate the issues which the member has identified in a general way. RESPITE SERVICES FOR DISABLED CHILDREN N. Simons: Well, there's another sad day for families on the Island, and that's the closure of Corner House today — a respite house for kids with special needs. Unfortunately, this service is so important for families on the lower Island here. Families don't know what they're going to do.

One grandmother, who has proudly and happily raised her 16-year-old granddaughter, is now wondering what she's going to do in order to be able to continue to do that. A family with four children, two with special needs, wonders how they're going to get one weekend a month to be able to sleep through the night. Families with children with special needs need more options, not fewer options. So my question is to the minister. How can he justify to these families by taking away their choice and giving them an option of a little bit of money or this important resource? It's a choice of take it or leave it.

How can he explain that to the families affected? Hon. T. Christensen: The member is correct that respite services are an important part of a range of services that families with children with special needs require to give them a bit of a break. CLBC is mandated to deliver those services. They are looking at the ways that they can serv e the individual needs of children and families on the lower Island.

They're look- ing at how respite services are delivered across the province, and they have made some changes that will enable them to serve up to four times as many families in the Victoria area to ensu re that they are getting the respite services they require. [1435] They are working with ea ch of the families that were receiving service from Corner House, and 16 of the 18 families that were receiving service have new arrangements in place. My understanding is that one other family is considering a particular option, and the final family has been presented with two different options but has declined those.

In any event, CLBC will continue to work with them to ensure that they receive the respite services they require for their children. Mr. Speaker: The member has a supplemental. N. Simons: I met with three families earlier this week. If there were 18 families…. He says that they've all received options. They haven't. The three families I met with were not provided with options by this gov- ernment. I think this is a case where families across this province have to recognize that services to their vulnerable children are being cut by this government.

I'd like to know how he can justify saying that four families are going to be served where one was served before, when those services aren't even available in our communities. He is reducing the choice for families in this province. How can he explain that to families? Hon. T. Christensen: The fact is that today CLBC is serving 1,800 more children across the province than were served two years ago. CLBC is serving an addi- tional 1,200 adults across th e province than they were two years ago.

We will continue to work closely with CLBC to ensure that they're able to improve services, that they're able to serve more families across the province, and that the resources that are available are being used in a manner that best meet s the needs of children and families. FEED SUPPLY FOR HOG FARMS C. Evans: When the present outfit took office about seven years ago, there were 50 hog farms in British Columbia, and they've managed to reduce that to 32. The 32 are losing an average of $300,000 a year — $60 to $65 a carcass. Why are they losing money?

Because, of course, feed grain is now going into the production of ethanol to run cars. My question is: how can a government that is sub- sidizing the production of et hanol out of feed grain to the tune of $5 million a year let the 32 remaining hog farmers in the province go down the tubes because they can't use that grain to feed hogs? Hon. P. Bell: In fact, it is a very difficult market, particularly in the hog and beef markets right now across North America, but we're working very closely with the hog producers. I met as recently as last week with them. We're developing a strategic plan in con-

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES 11781 junction with the hog prod ucers across British Colum- bia to make sure that they have a long-term, viable industry. Mr. Speaker: The member has a supplemental. C. Evans: The government has expressed some interest in the hundred-mile diet. The 32 produce only about 40 percent of our consumption in British Columbia. If they go out of business, hogs will come from Idaho or from Alberta into British Columbia to make up for what we used to do when they took office.

My question to the minist er is: when they print the kilometres travelled on the package of bacon in British Columbia two years from now, how many thousands of kilometres will it take to make up for what you used to have when you took office? Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Members. Hon. P. Bell: I find it a little bit ironic. All the member has to do is look at his neighbour the member for Esquimalt-Metchosin, who's an active advocate for biofuels and likes to run her vehicle on biofuels all the time. So perhaps they should chat a bit back and…. Interjections. Mr. Speaker: Sit down. Members. Members.

Continue, Minister. Hon. P. Bell: Perhaps the member should just chat with his neighbour and get th eir position straight once and for all. [1440] [End of question period.] Orders of the Day Hon. M. de Jong: I call continued second reading debate on Bill 21 in this chamber and in Committee A continued debate on the estimates, Committee of Supply — for the information of members, the estimates of the Ministry of Community Services. Second Reading of Bills MEDICARE PROTECTION AMENDMENT ACT, 2008 (continued) M. Karagianis: I ' d l i k e t o r e s u m e m y d e b a t e f r o m last night on Bill 21.

It was with great interest that I read the minister's introduc tory remarks on this bill. The minister referred to the bill and to the change in language very distinctly by saying that the addition of these expanded

definitions will not change how the Medical Services Plan is administered nor how the Medical Services Commission functions. So one has to ask: why is the government introducing legislation that in fact doesn't change anything to do with this act? It is in fact an amendment act that the government has introduced. So going back to my remarks last night, there is obviously much more at work here than meets the eye. The government wouldn't be introduc- ing a bill unless it was going to significantly change the laws within this province around medicare protection.

This is an amendment to that act, and it's a very signifi- cant amendment. [S. Hammell in the chair.] I'd have to say that for the last seven years, I have watched the progress of the health care system here in British Columbia with great interest. It comes as no surprise that we are seeing some legislative changes that are the culmination of work that's been going on for seven years. In fact, for seven years I have watched this government dismantle the public health care sys- tem here in British Columbia piece by piece in a very stealthy way. It started out with actions like Bill 29.

In my commu- nity, that had a very serious effect and still continues to have a deep effect on not only jobs but the condition of the hospital. So when we look at Bill 29, which was one of the most immediate actions of this government in the slow and steady process of undermanaging, underfund- ing and dismantling the public health care system…. We e n d e d u p s e e i n g g o v e r n m e n t m o v e i n w i t h a f a i r l y a g - gressive privatization campaign and agenda on health services, including housekeeping and food preparation here in the province of British Columbia.

When we look at seven years, six years or five years down the road of seeing the results of Bill 29, what do we have now? Well, we have a continuing and grow- ing concern about dirty hosp itals. We certainly have notoriously bad food in hosp itals. Certainly many of the privatized services have tried in many ways to rectify some of that, because I think the issue around dirty hospitals and bad food became so pervasive and such a huge public concern that th e government had to take some kind of steps around rethermalized food.

Certainly there's an ongoing concern, a need now for steady audits, for oversight at all times by health districts around the state of dirty hospitals. We've seen a proliferation of things like superbugs. All of that has taken place hand in hand with this Bill 29 privatization and with the resulting dirty hospitals. [1445] Finally, it took a Supreme Court decision to force the government to acknowledge some of the errors of their ways in Bill 29. But th a t w a s n ' t t h e o n l y p a r t o f the health care system that they have undermanaged, underfunded and handled very poorly.

There is the infamous and ongoing debate around long-term care beds. I was fascinated today to see a story in the newspaper that said they're announcing, finally, that 4,000 long-term care beds have been built

11782 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES W EDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 — this from a government that promised many, many years ago that it would build 5,000 long-term care beds. Here we are seven years later, and the government has still not delivered on that promise. I n f a c t , i t ' s a s p e c i o u s a r g u m e n t w h e n w e s e e t h e m declare that 4,000 beds have been built. We look at the number of hospital beds that were closed down, and we look at all of the supporting systems around seniors health care that have also been underfunded, shut down or undermanaged in many ways.

We have seen the growing concern and the growing pressure on hospitals around emergency room cl osures, emergency rooms being packed and jammed and code purples and code oranges — all of that as a result of undermanaged health care provisions in the province of British Columbia. Frankly, I know there was the great purge that this government undertook in its first couple of years in office, where anything that had been built under the New Democrats in the '90s was fair game to shut down, to dismantle, to unde rmanage, to do away with. It was a purge that went on. We continue to hear it from the other side today.

Anytime you question them on the reality of the outcomes of the actions that this government has taken, they immediately go back to this purge mentality. I would say that the steady and incremental un- dermanaging and mismanaging of the health care system has in fact been part of a larger plan that we are beginning to see the culmination of here in the amendments to the Medicare Protection Act before us today.

The chronic underfunding that has gone on under this government has also borne out its own results and has steadily led us, step by step, towards this argument that the government has put before us today — that somehow we have to incorporate a sustainability clause in the act, that we have to amend the Medicare Protection Act to include this concept of sustainability. It's very interesting what that actually means.

What does that actually mean in terms of how the govern- ment has managed the health care system to date, how the government has performed as far as its promises and its actual outcomes, what it has said and what it has actually meant in terms of on-the-ground action? I would say that the chronic mismanaging and under- managing of the system is very purposeful. We've seen the government turn a complete blind eye to the growing concern around private clinics.

When the first issues in th e province of British Colum- bia came about — private clinics wanting to begin to charge patients fees to go to these clinics and get the kind of treatments they needed — we saw the government stall on any kind of action for a very long time. The government purposely stalled. They were not proactive in going in and saying, "No, we're not going to support this idea of fee-for-service private clinics. We're going to actually ignore that" — until the outcry from the public and from the opposition grew too great. Then the government reluctantly moved in and said: "No, wait.

You can' t do that in these private clinics." In fact, the government was prepared to ignore that for a very long time. Had there not been that outcry from opposition and from the public, I imagine we would have seen the kind of fee-for-service and "access to health care if you've got money" kind of privatiza- tion. We would have seen that escalated, I'm sure, at a greater rate than we've seen. Now we come to this need for the government to somehow rewrite the Medicare Protection Act and amend it with this new terminology around sustainability.

I know this is a real catchp hrase nowadays that's used for almost anything. It does have real meaning, and it does have real purpose, but its application here is highly questionable. I am not clear, from anything that the minister said in introducing this bill or from any indications that the government has given us, how they are defining this sustainability. But given their actions over the past seven years, given this sort of predetermination by govern- ment to mismanage and undermanage and underfund the system so severely…. [1450] We have seen the kind of backups in the system.

We have seen the public outcry about hallway medi- cine. We have seen the pro liferation of dirty hospitals and bad food. We have seen the number of seniors who have no access to long-term care beds and who become bed-blockers. We see this system beginning to reach some kind of maximum density, where now the government can come in and say, "Look at how unmanageable the health care system is. Look at how much it's going to cost us. Look at how unmanageable it is. We desperately need to include this concept of sustainability," to justify more invasion by privatization into the system.

I actually have seen the progress of this, seven years leading towards this. This concept of sustainability is a culmination of a plan that has been taking place for some time. I know there has been a great deal of fearmongering by this government on the cost of health care. We saw the Finance Minister tell us that in a few years, health care will gobble up all the money in the coffers. What complete nonsense is that? We also have a government that has been playing with huge surpluses.

Now, those of course are dwin- dling away, but certainly a government that has huge surpluses cannot be saying at the same time, "Health care is gobbling up everything," because the reality is that as a percentage of GDP, there's been very little change for 20 years in this province. What we have seen, though, very clearly is that a government that is spending less on non-health-care- related services in the province can certainly then say, "Health care is taking up a larger percentage," but those are misleading numbers.

If you want to play with numbers like that, that's fine, but come clean on what the agenda is for that. This fearmongering that has gone on around the cost of health care, I think, is completely inappropriate but, again, is driving us ever closer towards this ration-

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES 11783 ale for why the system has to be privatized. That is w h a t t h i s b i l l i s a b o u t . I t i s a b o u t a n e x c u s e f o r m o r e privatization. Frankly, across a number of bills over the last cou- ple of years we have seen this same steadfast forward movement to more privatization on every single front, whether it's in the Education Ministry, in post-secondary education, in transportation or now in health care. I would say that this is, very frankly, a political and ideological battleground. This has nothing to do with sustainability.

In fact, if you look at the real numbers, if you look at the percentage of our health care spending to GDP, there is no rationale whatsoever for us to be claiming that we are going to break the bank by our continued investment in health care. Much of the pressure of all of this undermanaging and underfunding and this steady move to create chaos within the health care system in order to legitimize the idea of privatizing — where is this being borne? This is being borne on the backs of ordinary working families. The fear is that health care spending will outstrip our ability to pay.

The fear of privatized clinics — very expensive, exclusive privatized clinics where you can go and pay extra money to get the kind of health care that you deserve — is creating a great deal of anxiety and fear in most working families. The reality is that working people in this province are just getting by. The cost of real estate, the ever- increasing cost of fees that this government has dumped on the backs of working families every single day, coupled with this concern around the growing pressures for privatized pay-for-service health care, is going directly onto the working people of this prov- ince.

I would say that it is a completely unacceptable endeavour by this government to continue to create an atmosphere where it legitimizes a health care system where the wealthy will get better health care than the rest of the people in this province. Frankly, Madam Speaker, I include myself in that.

I do not consider myself to be wealthy, yet like many members of this House, I make more than most British Columbians who are working right now trying to raise a family, trying to pay the mortgage and trying to feed their kids, keep shoes on their feet, get them to school and keep their lives going. [1455] We know that in this city it takes a minimum of two incomes earning at least $15 an hour each in order to meet the needs of a lifestyle here in my constituency.

So the concept that in the future, public health care will not be there for future generations or that you will have to be rich in order to afford it is just appalling. I am so suspicious about this sustainability concept that's now being forced as an amendment to this act. I'm suspicious as to what the motivation is for that. I am suspicious as to what the outcomes will be for that, and I am darn sure, standing here today, that it will be on the backs of working families in my community that any kind of sustainability will occur. We've actually had a very interesting recent experi- ence with privatization.

The provincial government has demanded that any projects over $20 million are required to go through Part nerships B.C. We have recently had a hospital project here in this city, at the Royal Jubilee Hospital, wher e there's been an ongoing need, we know, for at least 650 new beds in this region here in the south Island, in greater Victoria. Rather than allow the hospital board, made up of elected officials, made up of individuals here within the city of Victoria who have been responsible for hos- pital expansion in the past….

Instead, the government imposed on us the requiremen t to go to a privatized tower at the Royal Jubilee Hospital. As is very typical with privatized projects, it has morphed into some- thing entirely different than what the region needs. We need 650 new beds. But under this privatized model, as it morphed its way through the process of being forced down the throats of our elected officials and our hospital board here in British Columbia, what are we going to end up with? We're going to end up with a hospital tower that doesn't even deliver 500 beds. That is very typically wh at happens with privatiza- tion.

Because there is not a big profit to be made, the project gets downsized, gets scaled back. In order for profit to be made by a private contractor and a private partner, our need in greater Victoria has now suddenly been sacrificed to the business case and profitability of a tower for the private partner. So where we need 650 beds right now, by the time the tower is built and pro- duces fewer than 500 beds, our need will be all the greater. This is very typical of the kind of thing that happens in privatization.

We also know the pay-as-you-go kind of mentality of privatization that we've seen at private clinics, where if you've got money, you can enrol for $3,800 a year and get preferential health care. I can tell you right now that most of the constituents in my community of Esquimalt-Metchosin sure as heck cannot scrape up $3,800 so that they can get the kind of health care services they deserve. In fact, this dismantling of the public health care system, I think, is the biggest tragedy of our time.

This ideological drive to privatize — that som ehow by im - posing a for-profit private partner into the health care delivery system between patients and their health care is a good move, is a sound business move and is in any way serving the public — is complete nonsense. I would say that we are fighting right now the bat- tle of our lives against privatization.

I know that the government, because of all their enamoured behaviour with privatization through every single one of the other ministries that we deal with here, whether we see it in transportation, whether we see it in education, and now we're seeing it in health care…. I know there will continue to be this drive. It is unacceptable. The people don't want it. The people of British Columbia understand that privatiza- tion will cost them more. They will get less service. We will see exactly what we saw when privatized services came in for cleaning and for food services — dirty hos- pitals and bad food.

In the case of the Royal Jubilee tower, we need 650 beds. But it's not profitable for the

11784 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES W EDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 private partner, so they're going to build only 475 beds. There is a vivid example of what you get. [1500] So when the minister stands up and says that this is not going to change anything and that this bill is simply a little bit of administrative language of sustainability, be highly suspicious. We should all be very highly suspi- cious, and we should vote this down with every ounce o f p a s s i o n w e h a v e l e f t i n u s . I u r g e e v e r y o n e i n t h i s House to vote no to this bill. G.

Gentner: I rise to urge all members of the House to defeat this draconian bill, Bill 21, the Medicare Pro- tection Amendment Act. It is going to have profound, fundamental changes, as we know, to our medicare system, which has been built primarily by the hard work of many British Columbians and, of course, most Canadians who have worked very hard. Their families, grandparents have fought ha rd and long to establish high-quality health care in Canada and this province.

The fundamental changes that are being posed here today will of course affect my community south of the Fraser, an area that is un der massive cutbacks and is well beyond the averages proposed by Canadian health authorities. We probab ly have the largest health authority in all of Canada, yet per capita we have the least amount of funding being spent in that area. This bill, Bill 21 — it's called the Medicare Protection Amendment Act — is really one to protect the interests of profit-making.

It's a bill that's going to see massive expan- sion of the private health care sector at the expense of the public health care sector. We have to stand steadfast in our resolve to defeat what this government is proposing with all the power we can muster as an opposition. It's interesting that these fundamental changes being proposed in this bill are not supported by the federal gov- ernment and are not supported by any province. They are constantly opposed, and they don't understand, frankly, where this province is going.

Sustainability, which the Liberal government defined, defies the notions of medi- care — universality, accessibility, comprehensiveness and portability. Again, when you look at these fundamental changes, they really fly in the face of the results of the Premier's own Conversation on Health. This bill was to respond, we thought, to at least 1,200 British Columbians who par- ticipated. They spent good time and measure. Papers were introduced. There were many submissions made by organizations and associations who were very, very concerned.

Those who did participate in that discussion never, in their wildest dreams, thought we'd be here today with the complete upheaval of public health care as we know it in the province of British Columbia. The Premier of the province had a very different vision. He had his mind made up before he even began his Conversation on Health. The Conversation on H e a l t h i n m a n y w a y s w a s a s n o w j o b . I t w a s a b i g show — lots of airs about nothing but to pre-empt con- cerns about the real intent of what we saw in the throne speech. This is not about sustainability, however defined.

It's a very vague discussion or understanding. It is about a restraint program on public health. It's going to tighten the noose; it's going to tighten the budget on health expenditures. It's going to be a program of re- straint. It's going to curtail and suppress health care as we know it in the province of British Columbia. Sustainability is about curtailing spending. On pub- lic health care, it's forcing British Columbians to spend more on privatized medicine. You know, this bill is using sustainability to change th e meaning and the value of medicare itself.

Bill 21 represents a continued erosion of medicare in the province of British Columbia. [1505] I'm proud to sit on this side of the House, because it was the NDP that championed the notion of medicare. Yes, we'll share all the assets and all the credibility. Everybody wants to stand up and pound their chest and say: "It was us." We'll certainly say, "Lester B. Pearson, kudos to you; you went ahead and did it," even though we introduced it in Saskatchewan. We don't care; that's great. When W.A.C. Bennett came forward way back in the '60s, he called it dealing with what he called the little people.

Well, I don't think the members opposite care about the little people anymore. They care about the profits that we're seeing for those who are investing in private medicine and private health. You know, we're seeing a shifting of the health care costs now — user pay — to British Columbians. That's where we're going. Gone will be the progressive tax shelter that we've enjoyed in this province relative to health care. The Liberal government's record has driven B.C. from second to sevent h in health care spending among all Canadian provinces. It's deplorable, absolutely deplorable.

The acute care bed ratio in British Columbia is 1.8 a c u t e c a r e b e d s p e r t h o u s a n d . I n C a n a d a t h e g o a l i s pretty close to 3.0. When you look to forecasts and what the expectations are, the expectation when it comes to primary acute care beds is 2.8 per thousand. It's quite dismal south of the Fraser. When you look at Surrey Memorial Hospital, for example, it's the worst — close to 1.4 acute care beds per thousand. Talk about a squeeze we're going to see now in the province of British Columbia from this government.

The current rate of bed capacity at Surrey Hospital is 610, including 216 extended care beds, 45 psychiatric beds and ten psychiatric assessment beds. According to the Fraser Health final report a few years ago, Building for the Future , it suggests a shortfall of 50 beds to meet existing demand. Even then, a few years ag o, Surrey Hospital should have been operating with acute care bed capacity of 462 beds. So what do we have today? A growing num- ber of alternative levels of care — ALC — patients, primarily in need of residential care beds, occupying scarce acute care beds.

This further reduces acute care bed capacity at Surrey Memorial Hospital. We can go through my community and throughout the community of Surrey and Delta. We look at what's

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES 11785 happening in long-term care beds. We can talk about the new emergency care facility where patients are now going to have to be moved into another private care facility, basically those of the friends of the government. That's the government's rationale of restraint. It's called sustainable health care, privatized health care. Home support and residential care resources in Surrey have not kept pace with the population growth. Could this inability to keep up with the pace of population growth have anything to do with the fact that Fraser Health and the B.C.

Liberal government actually closed almost 600 long-term care nursing home beds in 2001? Yes, that's called sustainability in the eyes of the government. Chaos is what we have seen in the health care delivery system at Surrey Memorial Hospital, a lack of available medical beds creating backlogs in the emergency department. This is crucial, because the crisis in health care is the need for acute care medical beds that are full. Therefore, we have a backlog at the emergency wards. Thus we have something known in today's lingo as code orange in our hospitals. That is the government's view of sustainability.

We can talk about, in th e report that was delivered a few years ago, an additional 112 acute care beds that would be available to Surrey Hospital, but the gov- ernment hasn't delivered on that. It keeps delaying and evading, and the rationale on ce again is based on the need to suppress, quell and program a restraint. The question remains: how long will it take the Fraser Health Authority and the B.C. Liberal govern- ment to plan and build the acute care beds required to meet the needs of the rapi dly growing population in the North Delta–Surrey area?

It is the fastest growing and has the lowest per-capita ratio of acute care beds anywhere in Canada. [1510] What do we find in Bill 21? A fundamental shift of more privatization, not giving the people south of the Fraser their due. Now Surrey patients are faced with the unprecedented health care delays and wait-lists. I refer again to code orange alerts that cancelled surgeries while the government continues to delay action on expanding the hospital.

Despite being told by the health authority in 2001 that the emergency ER needed future expansion and again being told in 2004 that the hospital's ER was in a crisis situation, the government still hasn't dealt with the severe bed shortage at Surrey Memorial Hospital and in the Fraser region. The Fraser region has major acute care bed shortfalls estimated to be more than 550 beds, growing to at least 700 beds by 2010. That's a very important year in the history of British Columbia, because we're going to be embracing the world.

But in 2010, wher e I live, we'll be 700 beds short as a result of the growing population and the government's severe cutbacks in its first term. That's the vision of sustainability. Despite promising to fix the problems at Surrey Memorial Hospital before the election in 2005, the problems worsened, and critic al expansions have been delayed until at least — now we're told — 2011. Just before the 2005 election the Premier promised action by as early as 2008 at the latest. It's now looking like, again, it will be 2011 at the earliest.

In the meantime the Health Minister is telling peo- ple to get used to the problems. The only solution we have is privatized health. I'm going to quote the minis- ter. He said in the Globe and Mail : "But a lot of this de- mand is driven by a society that gets older. Year over year it is going to continue to do so, so anyone who thinks that the problem is going to go away is dream- ing." That's the view. Innovation, according to the government, is not a matter of dealing with the issue, but one of privatiza- tion.

The government's broken promises at Surrey Memorial Hospital include a new out-patient facility, day surgery and diagnostics at the Green Timbers site. What we're going to see possibly is a P3 at a cost of $151 million, which could be increased by 20 percent or $30 million. This project will not be completed until 2011 at the earliest, despite it being initially planned for 2009. An expanded emergency centre at Surrey Memorial Hospital at an estimated cost of $88 million has once again been pushed back to 2011.

The 62 new acute care beds and five critical care beds that were to be in place for the end of 2007 have not been delivered on yet. In November 2004 a report was submitted to the Min- ister of Health stating that Surrey Memorial Hospital's emergency ward was truly in a crisis situation. The gov- ernment did nothing, absolutely nothing. Its solution is that now we're in such a crisis, created by this govern- ment, that we have to introduce more privatization. This study built on another done in 2001, which recommended the expansion of the emergency de- partment at Surrey Memorial Hospital.

No action was taken by the minister on that report. Just before the 2005 election as concerns reached a boiling point, the Premier promised to fast-track the review on Surrey Memorial Hospital. This move ignored the many reviews which had been completed previously pointing to the massive and growing bed shortage. At the same time the Premier promised the con- struction of a new facility that was imminent, stating: "The money will be in our budget, and the shovels will be in the ground as quickly as possible.

I should tell you that in terms of 'as quickly as possible,' that proba- bly means 2007 or 2008 — early 2008." That was the promise — didn't deliver. No, didn't deliver. We have a different plan for the people of Brit- ish Columbia. It's called privatized health. You know, in 2007 the opposition obtained a leak the planning department authored by the FHA and the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority confirming that the lower region is currently short 550 acute care beds. The health authority estimated that the shortfall will be more than 700 beds by 2010.

By 2020 the shortfall will grow to 2,600 beds, the equivalent of six to eight acute care hospitals. [1515] Now we have a bill stating that it's not sustainable. Well, it's been driven that way by the Liberal govern-

11786 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES W EDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 ment. The B.C. Liberals reduced the number of acute care beds between 2001 and 2004 by 457 beds in Fraser Health and 158 in Vancouver Coastal for a total of 615 beds in the Lower Mainland, and 45 of these beds were in Surrey. So 300 to 500 patients leave the Surrey Me- morial emergency ward each month after waiting but not being seen by a doctor. There's the rationale for privatized health clinics. It's a deliberate attempt. There's no attempt here by the government to put in the proper money and the proper funding.

On the evening of March 12, 2008, Surrey Memorial Hospital again declared th e infamous code orange, which lasted until the following day and left 41 pa- tients without a bed on the morning of the 13th. All the booked surgeries for the day were cancelled. Surrey Memorial Hospital is the second-largest hospital in British Columbia, with the second-busiest emergency. I hate to say this, but maybe we're being punished for voting for the NDP. The emergency depart- ment was built to serve a ma ximum of 44,000 people. It now sees more than 70,000 patients a year and more than 200 patients on an average day.

Surrey-Delta is Canada's fastest-growing area, with a hospital opened way back in 1959. It served 75,000 people. Today over half a million people depend on one hospital, primarily Surrey Memorial Hospital. The last major expansion of Surrey Memorial Hospital was the creation of a $62 million new wing completed in the spring of 2001 by — guess who — the NDP government. Let's talk about the dyna mic '90s. Let's talk about Liberal restraint on health care. We can talk all about it, but let's talk about the ND P systems of universality, accessibility and comprehensiveness. The NDP walked the walk.

What did we see in the '90s south of the Fraser? The new south building at Surrey Memorial Hospital was built and opened, which included…. Interjection. G. Gentner: "Whoopee," the minister opposite announces. No big deal, huh?

It included a state-of-the-art operating theatre including expanded surgical services, such as thoracic surgery; a new children's health centre; new state-of- the-art single-room maternit y units; a new adolescent psychiatric unit; a new specia l care nursery; a new cen- tral processing department; 300 spaces of underground parking; government funding, including both capital costs and additional operating dollars, to support the new and expanded programs; increased services for seniors; additional fundin g for long-term care beds; increasing funding for community mental health ser- vices; the first MRI for Su rrey Memorial Hospital; and expanded renal dialysis services, just to name a few.

Those were the dynamic '90s, and there was no need for any privatization. There certainly was no need for this vision of what the Liberal government calls sustainability. Sustainability is really the public health care in repression. This is a health care repression. We're going into a restraint program never seen before per capita by the government of British Columbia. The Liberals reduced beds from 1,279 between 2001 and 2004. The government, frankly, was looking at core studies, core reviews. That's all they did for the first f o u r y e a r s .

T h e y s a i d : " W e l l , p u b l i c h e a l t h c a r e i s e x - pendable." They peeled away the onion so far that in the end they've taken away all the essential assets of this province. It's a hollow province now. There's not much left. What's left now is to rip apart our public health care system. What did we find, when they became government, south of the Fraser? What's the first thing they did? They increased administration — this elephant they created, huge elephant, south of Fraser, and 12 vice- presidents never seen before.

Throwing money out left, right and centre, not to the delivery of health care. You know why? Because how they manage health care is called crisis management. [1520] You move the chairs around on the Titanic. You create a new org model, a new organization. You move people around. You say: "Look at us; we've done something new, innovative." But they've done nothing, absolutely nothing. You know, hon. Speaker, th is bill about future cuts doesn't have to happen. We can be innovative. There's nothing wrong with surgical clinics, but why not surgi- cal public clinics? They work. They work in Winnipeg.

Doctors are very successful at surgical public clinics. They've worked everywhere else in this country. But they certainly are going to work now only for the rich. That is what this bill is all about. W h e n I g o t o m y c l i n i c o n S c o t t R o a d i n N o r t h Delta, you know, there's a cutoff a day of 100 patients. Once those hundred patients are there, it's cut off. Then you get to go back in line at Surrey Memorial, the worst place you want to go. I tell my people in North Delta: "Don't go to Surrey Memorial Hospital; go to Delta Hospital in Ladner." I can tell you, hon.

Speaker, that when my daughter had a broken arm, I took her to Delta Hospital, because the backlog at Surrey Memorial Hospital is absolutely terrible. Let's talk about the sustainability. This is really the slop test for food that we're going to continue to see in our hospitals. The minister was asked some time ago, last session, by the member from Maple Ridge to go do the taste test. "Let's go on a taste test. Let's go check it out." I don't think the minist er really took him up on that offer.

What happens when you talk about privat- ized health, when it comes to delivery of food at some of the facilities, is that they basically water down the soup, they water down the or ange, all in the need of profit-making. That is exactly what we're going to now see more and more with the delivery of health services, accord- ing to Bill 21 — food services now compromised under Liberal budget targets. Newspapers refer to it as dis- gusting, deplorable. Deloitte did a study in the Fraser Health Authority, and they certainly did report on the food services.

They talked openly of the Liberals' fail- ure and the poorly planned and implemented…. It was a disaster. It was a disaster then; it's a disaster now.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 2008 B RITISH COLUMBIA DEBATES 11787 That is the record of this government, and it's going to get worse. It's going to get worse after Bill 21. And now we're going to see more. Sustainability means the cu ts to health care deliv- ery. Fees are going to go up. It's a means of apology for what was happening and readdressing what had hap- pened with Bill 29. We're go ing to see that infections are up like they never have been before in this prov- ince. It's really frightful when you go to the hospital. Don't go to the hospital.

If you have a virus, don't go to the hospital, because there's another superbug waiting for you. Norwalk is breaking out. We're seeing it over a n d o v e r a g a i n . T h i s g o v e r n m e n t ' s s o l u t i o n i s t o s u p - press, to restrict funding, to withhold and to crush the medical system as we know it today. Now, sustainability in the Liberals' eyes is more downloading of health care onto individuals, the indi- viduals who have the money to pay. You know, the question about the bill is reasonable access to medically necessary service. Really, there's the rub, isn't it? I mean, what is arbitrary?

How is it going to be defined? The government talks about value for money for tax- payers, but where is the mone y for preventative health services? It's not there. No, it's not there. Will we see more eye care for seniors? No. More naturopathic alternatives? No. Easier access to drugs or pharmacy for the needy? No.

Then, of course, this is another ability for the government to slip in something they call medical savings ac counts, the ability we saw happen in the good old U.S.A. with George Bush — first, of course, initiated in part by our friend Bill Clinton. [1525] Unfortunately, it's a system that is creating a two- tier system of Medicare deli very in the States, and now the government's doing something similar with what they call ILSA, this RRSP approach for long-term care for the rich. Consequently, unfortunately, on the health care act, there are two rules.

There's a rule here for the delivery of health care, but there's a different one here for the seniors' rights to delivery of health, particularly when we are seeing an economy today at $800,000 to buy a home — where I live in North Delta, $600,000. There's the inability to save money for an RRSP, and now you're told that you'd better sock more money away for delivery of your medical savings accounts. Do you know what we're seeing? We're seeing that the Health Act does not recognize the seniors' rights to care.

We're going to see dental care eroded, and we're now going to see, under this act, the beginning of Visa card medicine. This is what the government feels. They can pro- mote it. Hospitals can compete with one another. You can get your travel miles now by using your credit card. That's what this government is employing. The marketing strategy of the government is to provide more Air Miles to provide sustainability that specifi- cally works for the rich. I talk to a lot of members at long-term care facilities. You know, in many ways it's cheaper to go on a cruise. The meals are better for the same price.

The recreation i s b e t t e r . W h e n i t c o m e s t i m e t o c o m e b a c k h o m e t o B.C., you'd better jump off the boat. You'd better jump off the boat because — you know what? — we're com- ing back home to privatized medicine. Jump off the boat. Deputy Speaker: Member, through the Chair. G. Gentner: Thank you, hon. Speaker. What is most important here is that sustaining life is now arbitrary under the Liberals. Life is all you have, and if you believe in the higher entity — spiritual, your own assessment of what it means, is based on…and others. But how you treat people is how you treat yourself.

We are based on a society that's built on the principles of medicare an d delivery of which…. And now we're going to see this individuality that's been created through Bill 21. I also talked to a lady, Verna Demille. I'll give you an example. She had a stroke. She didn't ask for it, but she was put on the DNR list. She had a real problem with that. You know, those situations do happen, and it's really very troublesome. When you read George Bernard Shaw — I know that the minister has spent some time reading good old George — read The Doctor's Dilemma.

The doctor's dilemma is that when you have limited resources, you have to make decisions. It's a great play. Go read it. He had to make a decision on how he should save some- body's life. Who should he save, and who shouldn't he? He had to also think about the role of the private prac- titioner as a trusted authority that is somewhat com- promised by the financial incentives of keeping pa- tients ill for longer. It's an interesting play, and that is a view to which I think we're heading. You know, we look at the burden on seniors, the costs upon them.

They do a lot of good things with their lives, but really, what do they spend their money on? Do they tax the system on education or legal ser- vices or even going to jail? No. But for some reason, the government opposite is suggesting that they are a bur- den, and they're going to cost us more money, and there's the problem. Well, you know what? We put more money per day into the convicted, the felon. They get more money in jail than those in senior ho me care, and they get better food in jail. They get better recreation. They get better education. They get better health. They also probably get better drugs.

This is where this government is going. We're going to have more social problems, more people thrown in jail, greater costs. When it comes down to the delivery of the health care system, we are going to contain, sup- press, and we'll confine health care in order to smother their right for public, open, accessible health care. [1530] As time is waning, I do have to quote one interest- ing comment from the minister opposite regarding improvements for seniors health care. The minister said to Gary Mason of the Globe and Mail : "Once gu

Document details

Collection	British Columbia — Debates (Hansard)
Citation	H0430pm 08
Type	hansard
Volume / chapter	H0430pm 08
Language	en
Format	pdf
Source	PROVINCIAL
Identifier	22c5e886b2fe8712cdb4b9a8b05677d6566aef70

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