2017 Legislative Session: Sixth Session, 40th Parliament

HANSARD

The following electronic version is for informational purposes only.

The printed version remains the official version.

official report of

Debates of the Legislative Assembly

(hansard)

Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Afternoon Sitting

Volume 42, Number

ISSN 0709-1281 (Print)

ISSN 1499-2175 (Online)

CONTENTS

Page

Routine Business

Introduction and

First Reading of Bills

Bill M228 — Energy and Water Efficiency Act, 2017

A. Weaver

Orders of the Day

Budget Debate (continued)

J. Tegart

M. Mungall

Point of Privilege

(Reservation of Right)

Hon. R. Coleman

Budget Debate (continued)

Hon. T. Stone

J. Rice

J. Thornthwaite

S. Simpson

M. Dalton

A. Dix

Hon. N. Yamamoto

J. Wickens

L. Larson

Hon. C. Oakes

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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2017

The House met at 1:32 p.m.

[Madame Speaker in the chair.]

Routine Business

Introduction and

First Reading of Bills

BILL M228 — ENERGY AND WATER

EFFICIENCY ACT, 2017

A. Weaver presented a bill intituled Energy and Water Efficiency Act, 2017.

A. Weaver: I move that a bill intituled the Energy and Water Efficiency Act, 2017, of which notice has been given, be introduced and read a first time now.

Motion approved.

A. Weaver: I’m pleased to introduce a bill intituled the Energy and Water Efficiency Act, 2017. This bill was originally tabled by the Liberal government in 2012. This is a bill that the Minister of Energy and Mines, at the time, said would reduce consumers’ energy bills and lower operating costs for B.C. businesses.

This legislation would replace the current Energy Efficiency Act. It would enable administrative penalties to ensure manufacturers, distributors and retailers comply with energy efficiency guidelines, broaden the scope of energy efficiency requirements to include commercial energy systems, industrial reporting and water efficiency and enable the minister responsible to enact regulations for technical standards.

It was a good and widely supported piece of legislation. It seems that the only reason it went to second reading and wasn’t taken to committee was the fact that the official opposition supported it.

I move that the bill be placed on the orders of the day for the second reading at the next House after today.

Bill M228, Energy and Water Efficiency Act, 2017, 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.

Orders of the Day

Hon. M. Polak: I call continued debate on the budget.

Budget Debate

(continued)

J. Tegart: I’ll continue with my comments on the budget.

[R. Chouhan in the chair.]

We are the only province with a triple-A credit rating, meaning that we have lower borrowing costs. Without our triple-A credit rating, if we instead had the credit rating of the other provinces, we would be paying an additional $2.23 billion in annual debt-servicing costs.

What does all of this mean? It means that we will save more than $500 million in interest costs by the end of the fiscal plan. It means that there’s an additional $500 million that can be used to fund health care, education and infrastructure. It can build schools, hospitals, hire more rural doctors and create jobs. That means that our children and our grandchildren won’t have to deal with the burden of debt run up by irresponsible government spending.

By committing to strong fiscal discipline while maintaining our high level of service in priority programs, our government has managed to have some of the highest outcomes in Canada, while providing efficient and effective programs.

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But that’s not all. As a government, we are also working hard to ensure our businesses are competitive. On October 1, 2017, we’re going to phase out the PST on electricity, starting with a reduction to 3.5 percent of the purchase price and moving to full exemption on April 1, 2019. That is half of what it was a year ago. This reduction will save small and medium businesses $50 million a year.

Small businesses are the engine of the B.C. economy. There are almost 400 small businesses in B.C., and they contribute almost a third of our total exports and our GDP. We want small businesses to benefit from our strong fiscal position, so we’re cutting $213 million in taxes for small business by reducing the small business tax rate from 2.5 percent to 2 percent. This reduction in taxation means that B.C. will have the second-lowest small business tax rate in the country.

For those of us who live in small, rural British Columbia, we know the importance of our small businesses in our downtown cores. Contrary to popular belief, often our business people are not our richest people in the community. They are often struggling, but they provide the jobs for people who live in our community. Often our high school students get their training there. It’s really important that we have a budget that supports small business.

Some of the measures include an enhancement to the buy-local program so that we can continue to have high-quality agrifoods on our tables that are grown right here in B.C.

There are also important measures in the budget for smaller rural communities across the province, like those in my riding. I’d like to highlight those investments.

Rural schools receive special consideration in the budget. We are investing $9 million over three years to

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the rural education enhancement fund. That will keep schools, which are often the centre of our communities, open. Of course, keeping a school open doesn’t make sense if children can’t get there, so we are investing $45 million to ensure that virtually all students can take a bus to school at no cost.

In my riding, we’ve made significant investments in school district No. 58, Nicola-Similkameen. Schools that saw funding out of that are Diamond Vale Elementary School and Collettville Elementary.Both received funding for high-efficiency boiler replacements. Merritt Secondary also saw an investment of $663,000 to upgrade their lighting and dust-collection systems.

We’re also working to help rural communities diversify their economies and working hard to support vibrant and healthy rural communities that attract businesses and individuals.

In this budget, we are adding $40 million to extend the availability of rural broadband service, $15 million for a new community gaming grants capital program and many other initiatives.

We’re also committing another $25 million to continue the rural dividend program. The B.C. rural dividend is designed to help eligible rural communities diversify and strengthen their economies and contribute to their overall wellness and sustainability. It is one of those programs that, as an MLA, I am so proud to support. It emphasizes the importance of rural British Columbia to the whole picture of British Columbia. It gives us, sometimes, that little hand up that our communities need when they’re looking at projects and how to kick-start those.

Our province relies on rural communities for a strong and diversified economy. That’s why we’re making significant investments in rural economic development through the rural dividend program. With these investments, we’re securing stable and sustainable future economic growth for these regions of the province. I’m proud of these investments.

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I’m also quite pleased to have been able to support other important initiatives and projects in my riding, like the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology.

You’ve heard me speak many times in this House about how proud I am that we host NVIT in Merritt. Nicola Valley Institute of Technology is the only aboriginal public post-secondary institute in B.C. It offers a range of education and training programs for both aboriginal and non-aboriginal students.

By 2025, B.C. is projected to have up to one million job openings, many of which will require training in the skilled trades. By supporting post-secondary education at places like NVIT that provide learning opportunities in trades and clean technology, we are ensuring that British Columbians will be first in line for those jobs.

Total government funding for NVIT is $4.79 million.

Here’s a brief breakdown on how we’ve supported this fantastic organization: $2 million for the new Centre of Excellence in Sustainability; $1.8 million for a new trades training building; $450,000 for programs and activities that enhance aboriginal learners’ experiences; $207,000 for 52 critical trade seats since the launch of B.C.’s skills-for-jobs blueprint in 2014; $100,000 for new industry-standard trades equipment; $75,000 for programs to support students who face barriers to education; $50,000 for programs to support people with disabilities to access and succeed in training aligned with in-demand jobs; $75,000 to NVIT to partner with the University of the Fraser Valley to pilot innovative training and initiatives to increase the success of persons with disabilities; and $36,000 in 2015, for 15 trades discovery programs to introduce high school students and young adults to a variety of high-demand trades.

I’m so proud that NVIT is in my riding and so proud of all the work they do to improve our provincial and local economies. Providing this type of training to our youth is essential in meeting our skilled labour targets for the future. These investments ensure an even brighter future for our youth and for our province.

Our government has made other significant investments in my riding to improve services and programs. In the last year, we’ve provided over $5 million to various organizations that provide essential services for my communities. Some of those investments include $235,000 to the Merritt Youth and Family Resources Society to create 28 spaces; ten spaces at the Nicola Valley extreme weather shelter; six new support recovery beds at the ASK Wellness Society; $100,000 to the Nicola Valley Theatre Society for architectural design costs from the rural dividend fund; and another $100,000 to the city of Merritt to undertake business retention and attraction initiatives from the rural dividend fund.

I’ve also had the pleasure of making local investments in health care for my community when we announced $5.6 million for the Merritt emergency department upgrade and expansion, bringing it to five times its original size.

My region has also benefited from another $2.8 million invested in health care in order for 14 internationally trained physicians to begin practising in rural and remote communities. This included two new family doctors in Lillooet. The practice-ready assessment program assesses internationally trained physicians for practice in B.C. As part of the program, doctors undergo a rigorous assessment process, spending three months with a B.C. physician who evaluates their skills as they care for patients. Physicians successfully completing the program commit to practise for at least three years in a designated rural community in need.

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The program is funded for a total of $7.6 million through March 2018 by the Joint Standing Committee on Rural Issues, a collaborative committee of the Ministry

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of Health and the Doctors of B.C. Health initiatives like these have a clear and meaningful impact on our health care system across the province and for people in my riding. Here are a few stats that show that.

According to the College of Physicians and Surgeons of B.C., as of February 2016 there were 6,042 family doctors registered to practise in B.C., an increase of 9 percent over the previous five years. According to the latest figures available from the Canadian Institute for Health Information, as of 2014 there were 125 family doctors per 100,000 people in B.C., compared to the national average of 114.

The provincial government has more than doubled the number of first-year undergraduate medical school spaces in B.C. from 128 to 288 between 2003 and 2011. The number of entry-level postgraduate residency positions increased from 134 in 2003 to 348 positions in 2016, almost half in family medicine. More than 500 additional family physicians have graduated from UBC as a result of the medical school expansion.

Statistics from the Canadian community health survey show that, year over year, more and more British Columbians have continued access to a regular physician, with their most recent study stating that well over four-fifths of individuals are covered.

In the latest agreement with the Doctors of B.C., the province committed $67 million in new funding toward ongoing support of the work of A GP for Me and other primary care–focused programs. More than 10,000 previously unattached patients with complex care needs are now matched with a family doctor or belong to a primary care clinic thanks to this work. A further 60,000 were matched with a new doctor when their family doctor retired or moved.

Nurse practitioners were introduced as an important part of health care teams in B.C. in 2005, helping to meet the growing need for primary and community health care. Since B.C.’s first group of nurse practitioners graduated in 2005, 397 nurse practitioners have been licensed to practise in the province.

Before I conclude, I would like to mention some of the significant infrastructure projects we’re investing in, in my riding. I’ve had the privilege of helping to deliver crucial local infrastructure investments for my communities. These investments include $4.8 million to resurface and realign a 4.8-kilometre stretch of the Douglas Lake Road. Although that sounds like a pavement announcement, I have to share the experience of the opening of that road and the First Nations that welcomed us into their community.

There were seven past chiefs there. Many talked about the 30-year process it took to get to the place where we actually laid down pavement. It was important for all of us to be there. It was important for us to hear from the chief whose grandmother stopped the B.C. surveyors from coming on reserve and said: “Never in my lifetime.” That chief talked about the struggle of looking towards the future for his band but also remembering to listen to the elders and the past. It was very interesting for all of us to hear of the struggles within, when we often think that a highway project is something you just welcome.

As we moved through the history of that process, I think all of us came away with a much better understanding that it’s much more than a road to our communities, whether you’re a First Nations community or any other rural community. There are many things to think about when we look at those kinds of infrastructure projects.

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I have to say that that was one of the most interesting processes and sharing of the difficulties of a community transitioning into 2017. All of us who were there were touched by the conversation.

I also have been able to bring forward a $2.8 million project to resurface a ten-mile stretch of Highway 5 between the Coldwater Interchange and Comstock Road. But I am most proud of the $60 million investment I was able to deliver for stabilization work on Highway 99 on the area known as the ten-mile slide.

Emergency stabilization work at the ten-mile slide on Highway 99 northeast of Lillooet is now underway, providing immediate short-term stabilization that will allow the highway to be open to two lanes, improving safety and mobility for the local communities and the travelling public. We know that this highway is an important link for commercial traffic and for the efficient transport of goods in and out of the area. This initial work to install soil anchors is the first step in stabilizing the slope and road base to eventually allow the safe passage of commercial vehicles.

The ten-mile slide is approximately 200 metres wide, 300 metres long and contains over one million cubic metres of rock and earth. Since 1988, this slow-moving slide has periodically made the road unstable and unreliable for travelers. Accelerated slide movement occurred last fall and resulted in a full closure of Highway 99 for eight days. Highway 99 has since reopened but only to single-lane, alternating traffic, with a 50 percent legal-load restriction at the slide site. Final designs for the major capital project are expected to be completed by this spring.

Our government is able to make these types of investments in our province because of our sound fiscal management and highly productive economy. Without either of these, we would not be able to make these investments. It should go without saying that I will be voting in support of balanced budget 2017.

Within our fifth consecutive balanced budget, we see almost $3 billion over three years in enhanced programs and services in addition to health care increases, reducing the tax burden for B.C. families and supporting job growth by about $3 billion over three years, and record levels of infrastructure investment. All this comes

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while we’re maintaining debt affordability and staying on track to eliminate our operating debt.

Truly, balanced budget 2017 is a budget for a province poised to take advantage of our opportunities — five successive balanced budgets, strong economic growth, on track to eliminate our direct operating debt, services that support citizens across the province, and a plan to enhance and continue diversifying and growing our economy to create good, family-supporting jobs.

British Columbia is in a position of economic strength, and as a government, we will continue to build on this success to create an even stronger future for B.C. Because B.C.’s economy is strong and because we controlled spending, we’re now able to make investments in the priorities of British Columbians, like health care and education, and put significantly more money back in the pockets of our citizens.

When the plan is working and we are seeing results, this is not the time to veer off course. As I have stated, the proposals and policies promoted on the other side of the House would very much take our province in the wrong direction, in my view. I am so proud of this budget, and I’m proud of the accomplishments of the government and what the decisions are on this side of the House.

On behalf of my constituents, I will be voting in support of this budget for an even stronger and more prosperous British Columbia.

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M. Mungall: Before I commence my remarks on the B.C. Liberal government’s budget, I just want to pay a few thank-yous to my staff, both here in the Legislature in Victoria and in my Nelson-Creston community office in Nelson. I am so fortunate to have the support of such amazing people, allowing me to do the work that I do every single day and serving our community.

Laurie Langille has been my constituency assistant since the very beginning. She and I have worked together since my first election in 2009 and in the nomination process to become the candidate for the New Democrats in 2008. Laurie is just absolutely amazing in her ability to serve the people in the West Kootenays and throughout B.C., really. People call from all over this province, seeking help and advice, and Laurie is always there, ready and able to help people out.

Right now in my office, covering for a mat leave, is Jesse Pineiro. He actually did his practicum as a Selkirk College human services student in my office last spring. What a talented young man; he’s just absolutely amazing. His passion and dedication to serving the public is so apparent that when my regular CA, Tessa Bendig, announced that she was going to be welcoming a new little member to their family, it was great that Jesse was available and able to start up working in my office last fall.

Of course, Tessa Bendig is just phenomenal. She is another person who’s passionate and dedicated to our region and works on behalf of the citizens every day — except right now, while she’s on a maternity leave after she and her husband, Curtis, welcomed new baby Orson — Orrie for short — into the world, back in the fall. Yeah, he’s about four months right now and just as cute as a button.

Of course, here in the Legislature there are so many people that I can thank, but I want to just point out my legislative assistant, Robert Hill. I’ve really enjoyed getting to know him and working with him in the last few months. Somebody I’ve worked with for many, many years in doing communications and research from our caucus services is Jennifer Jones. She’s now in a different part of our caucus services. I don’t get to work with her every single day anymore, but I appreciate all the time I’ve had with her in the last several years. Now I’m working with Veronica Harrison regularly, and she’s just a superstar as well.

Then, hon. Speaker, if I can beg your indulgence before I go directly on to my comments on the budget, I want to acknowledge that there are six members from this side of the House who are retiring this year. I’ve had the honour of working with them for the last eight years, and I’ve learned so much from each and every one of them. I have absolutely enjoyed getting to know them, not just as colleagues but as friends. To see the things that they do for the people of British Columbia and the communities that they represent really is amazing.

Retiring are the member for Columbia River–Revelstoke, the member for Cowichan Valley, the member for Skeena, the member for Burnaby–Deer Lake, the member for Esquimalt–Royal Roads and the member for Surrey–Green Timbers — all truly amazing people. I do want to just say that I’m really, really going to miss my sisters in the women’s caucus who are retiring. The members for Burnaby–Deer Lake, Surrey–Green Timbers and Esquimalt–Royal Roads are truly sisters. It’s been such a wonderful eight years working with all of them, and I’m going to miss them very, very much.

Moving on, though, to the topic at hand: the B.C. Liberals’ budget for 2017, which essentially is their budget of what they want to run on in this upcoming election. We do have an election right around the corner here. What’s interesting about this budget…. I’ve heard my other colleagues call it this, and I have to say it’s aptly named as the forget-everything budget: “Forget what we’ve done for the last 16 years to this province. We’re going to try and make nice.”

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The Liberal member before me who spoke said, repeating a phrase that we hear a lot every four years from the B.C. Liberals: “We have to save up so that we can spend later.” Let’s just break that down a little bit.

They say that when they deliver a budget that looks like they’re going to be spending on British Columbians. But what happens right after the election? Well, they go and they cut. They cut services. Meanwhile, they jack up fees for British Columbians.

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What they’ve done with health care services is just one of the best examples of that. We’ve seen a reduction in services. Nine in ten seniors residential care homes aren’t meeting minimum standards, yet MSP premiums have gone up for the last 16 years. It was this government — it was this Premier — that doubled them. That’s what their legacy actually is. But they want you to forget that, right? They want to pretend that that never happened and that’s not what they really do after an election. They want to have everybody just forget that they’ve hiked MSP.

They want to forget the fights that they’ve picked with teachers for over a decade. They want everybody to forget that the only reason why we’re seeing funding increases in this budget is because of decades-long court cases, where teachers refused to back down for our children’s well-being and the public education system that they deserve.

Because they refused to back down, we’re finally seeing an appropriate investment into public education — not because they valued it but because the courts told them that they had to do it. That’s what they want people to forget. They want everybody to just think that: “Oh, we value public education, really. Honestly, as B.C. Liberals, we value public education.”

They want everybody to think that, but the reality is that no one is going to forget because so many of them were at rallies, were at demonstrations. So many of them have taken their kids to school for the last 12 years and have known that their children weren’t getting all the supports that they needed, that they weren’t getting all the attention they needed to meet their full potential. Things in our classrooms were not the best they could possibly be. We’ve seen schools close. That’s the reality. That’s the legacy of this government.

What else have we seen in the last 16 years? I already mentioned about MSP premiums being hiked — more than doubled since 2001. We’ve seen hydro rates go up year after year after year. ICBC rates go up year after year after year. All that included — hydro, MSP, car insurance…. On average, families are paying an extra $1,000 a year for these three things than they were before the Liberals became government in 2001. People are paying more, and they just want everybody to forget about it. That’s what they want to do with their lofty promises.

The thing is, as much as this government wants them all to forget, I don’t think they will. We have a real affordability crisis on our hands in this province, where people are struggling more and more. While many people are now struggling more and more just to pay the bills at the end of the month, some people aren’t even able to pay those bills anymore. Food bank use is way up, way up. In fact, there’s an

article from CBC. The headline reads: “Food Bank Use in B.C. at an All-Time High.”

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Now, I know that the members opposite would love that this headline came from their favourite decade of the 1990s, but it actually doesn’t. It comes from November 14, 2016. Food bank use is at an all-time high in B.C. under their watch. That’s the result. That’s the legacy of this government’s budgets. That’s the legacy of how they govern this province, that 103,400 people are receiving assistance from Canada’s food banks in B.C.

Now, I think what’s important to note is there are also numerous other food programs around the province that are not captured in this count. I myself was the manager for the Nelson Food Cupboard from 2003 to 2005. We were not part of the B.C. food banks umbrella. We were serving 1,000 people every month — 1,000 people every month. The entire West Kootenay population is 55,000. We were serving 1,000 people every month, and 25 percent of them were children, when I was there.

Has that number gone down? Has that percentage gone down? No, it’s gone up. Nowadays, 32 percent of food bank users are children. That’s the legacy of these B.C. budgets. That’s what this government has delivered on. Increased food bank usage in this province, most notably by children, because poverty has gone up.

When the middle class is squeezed more and more, more of them drop off and start living in poverty and start having to use food banks. Or even worse, they lose their homes. What has happened in this province under this government? Homelessness has gone up 26 percent every year in Vancouver.

I remember that when I was working in my community as the coordinator for the Nelson Committee on Homelessness, it was a new thing. People hadn’t really understood that homelessness had existed in their part of the world. It was a new phenomenon. Most people were always able to access housing. But what was happening was that as costs were going up, people were falling through the cracks. There was more demand for social housing than there was supply.

There’s a variety of reasons for that, but one of the biggest reasons is that is this government deprioritized social housing. It focused a lot on the Lower Mainland and forgot about the rest of British Columbia. We’ve see some increases in units over the years, but not enough to actually maintain an affordable housing market, because the number of social housing units actually impacts the overall affordability of the private market too.

Sadly enough, because this government hasn’t prioritized social housing, that’s been part of the reason why we have an affordability crisis right now in housing. What

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is the result? More people end up homeless, and then we have these huge numbers in Vancouver.

This is about ten years ago that I was a coordinator for the Nelson Committee on Homelessness. Bring us to today. Homelessness isn’t a new phenomenon that people aren’t too sure what to do about. People know what the solutions are. They know that affordable housing is the solution, not tent cities. Yet tent cities seem to be what we have.

What has been counted in the Lower Mainland alone is 70 homeless camps — 70 camps. You’d think: “Oh, well that wouldn’t happen maybe outside the Lower Mainland. This is just an urban issue.” It’s spreading to the suburbs, and it’s been in my community for the last ten years.

We all know where people who are homeless go to camp. We all know where they are just down the railroad tracks. They didn’t used to be there; 16 years ago they weren’t there. But they’re there every year, all year long. It started off with just the summer, and now it’s all year long. That’s the reality of 16 years of this government’s budget. People are worse off.

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I thought it was really interesting. Those are the numbers that we see as homelessness is increasing. Food bank usage is way up. We’re seeing an increase of homelessness camps. While some people can’t even get their basic needs met, our Premier has public dollars for a lawyer to defend her getting a $300,000 stipend from her party for her fundraising activities. She’s got money from the public purse to pay for her lawyer, but somehow, we don’t have money for some of the basics that we need in classrooms.

We don’t have money for housing. We don’t have money to ensure that there are enough social workers on the front lines for kids like Alex Gervais, but let’s make sure that the Premier’s stipend is defended. Talk about mixed-up priorities. It shows who this government is really working for. They’re working for the wealthy and well connected. There’s no doubt about it. That’s who they’re working for.

The kids who get shut out in the cold for the last two years in Maple Ridge because Iron Horse Youth Safe House is closed, because this government wouldn’t give it a dime, are not who this government is working for. That’s just not okay.

One of the things I noted in the budget is something that I’ve been working on the last four years, and that’s all the clawbacks that people with disabilities and people on income assistance experience from this government.

What this government has been doing in each one of their budgets over several years — and they continue to do this in this budget as well — is treat people on income assistance as though they’re a revenue source. These are some of the most vulnerable people, the poorest people in our society, and somehow they’re more of a revenue source than the top 2 percent, who get a billion-dollar tax break.

But if you’re on disability, and you have a child — you’re a single parent — and you’re getting child support from the non-custodial parent, this government was taking away that child support. If it wasn’t for single parents coming forward to this place, to this building here in Victoria, and speaking up for themselves, that would never have changed.

I’ve got to say that I will thank the government for actually listening to the single moms who came here and the dads who came here and the children who came here to speak out for their rights to their child support. But that’s how things happen in this province right now. You have to fight tooth and nail with this government to keep $120-$300 a month that’s supposed to go to feeding your kid. That’s how things are going, and that’s not okay.

From there, once the single parents were able to keep their child support, we learned about a lot of different clawbacks. It was really amazing how many there were. One of the things that we brought up in this Legislature, one of those clawbacks that we brought forward in this Legislature following the end of the child support clawback, was the maternity and parental leave.

Again, this is parents calling me up, telling me what was going on in their lives and saying: “This is wrong. I’ve been working. I have a disability, and I’ve been working. I’m allowed to keep my earnings under the earnings exemption. But I’m about to have a child, and I’m not allowed to keep my maternity and parental leave right when I need it the most. I have a new little one in my life.” They require all kinds of things. They need bottles, diapers, bibs, cribs.

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I know that one little one that I was looking after loved her bouncy chair. All these things cost money. At a time when these parents, who were already struggling to make ends meet, needed money the most, this government was taking it away. It made no sense. This was an extra tax on poor, young, new parents, and they started to speak out.

One, Jessica Alford…. I just admire her so much. She knew that going to the Human Rights Tribunal was risky for her and her family. She knew that they might not even hear her case. But most importantly, she knew that even if her case did get heard and was found in favour of her, it wouldn’t impact her anyway because she already had to go back to work. Her maternity and parental leave were over. She knew that she personally wouldn’t benefit at all by speaking out, but she did it anyway, because it was the right thing to do.

She is a force to be reckoned with, because she wouldn’t back down. I’m really glad that she didn’t, because this government — I will commend them for actually listening, once again — ended the maternity and parental leave clawback as well. But this is another story of a family who’s struggling, who’s stressed out financially, and they have to fight. They have to fight for their $500 a month in EI benefits for maternity and parental leave from this government. They have to fight for it.

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This isn’t part of a poverty reduction plan. I mean, B.C. is the only province in the entire country that doesn’t have one, for some reason. Oh, I know that reason: because they’re too busy listening to their wealthy and well-connected friends and too busy playing partisan politics to actually do the right thing when it comes to reducing poverty.

Plans work. We’ve seen that all over the country. We’ve seen that in other jurisdictions around the world. But no, no. They put their head in the sand on that.

But I digress there, because the point of the story is that we have people coming forward. They have to fight tooth and nail with this government for a few hundred extra dollars a month — a few hundred dollars that they are entitled to, that is theirs by right. Meanwhile, the richest 2 percent get a $2 billion tax cut, and they don’t even have to ask. Well, that’s just completely the definition of injustice in this province.

Why is it like that, though? Why is this the legacy of this government’s budget? Why is that what they’ve been doing for the last 16 years?

Well, I think something that’s been said in this House kind of highlights that. We have to understand how they view the world — why people living in poverty are so deprioritized, why they’re not even an issue for this government.

You know, I hate to say this quote, but I think we have to talk about it a little bit, because it really offended a lot of people in British Columbia. It offended me as well. It’s when the Minister for Housing got up and, in a bit of a rant, dropped this sentence: “We have to remember that a single person on social assistance in British Columbia gets double the annual income of a person in the Third World.”

This statement is incredibly dismissive of the real lived experiences that happen here in British Columbia of people struggling just to feed themselves. It shows a real lack of understanding of what’s happening for people around this province.

The minister was going on about a trip that he had taken to Costa Rica and Nicaragua and, from there, seemed to have an understanding of poverty and how much worse it is there, so we should all just be grateful here in British Columbia.

Interjection.

M. Mungall: I’ll let the Minister for Housing know that I’ve read and re-read the Hansard transcript of his little rant. I’ve even gone on to the video and taken a look at it. I mean, it’s there in black and white — what he said.

[1420]

People were listening at home, and they were deeply offended by it. I was offended, because I’ve also travelled to Nicaragua. I’ve travelled to Costa Rica. I’ve backpacked through Cuba, through Peru. I lived in Zambia and worked there. I did part of my masters program in Uganda, where I did analysis of programs that were assisting development in the place where AIDS was first diagnosed on that continent, and we know that AIDS is a pandemic in Africa. I was an election observer in rural Ukraine. I have travelled extensively throughout Southeast Asia and was just recently on a volunteer project doing community economic development in northern Thailand.

I’ve seen poverty all over the world. As I mentioned, I ran a food bank in Nelson, here in British Columbia. I was the coordinator for the Nelson Committee on Homelessness. I was also a coordinator for a women’s microfinance organization in Nelson.

I’ve seen poverty all over the world, and to compare, as though we should be grateful because it’s not as bad here in B.C. as it is in other parts of the world, is absolutely atrocious.

Interjection.

M. Mungall: I will read my quote again for the minister. He seems to be confused. What he said is: “We have to remember that a single person on social assistance in British Columbia gets double the annual income of a person in the Third World.” That’s what he said. As I mentioned….

Interjection.

M. Mungall: He keeps telling me to read the rest. I mentioned that I did. I read it over and over and over again. I suggest he go back and do the same. We all have access to actual paper copies of Hansard right here in this chamber, but it’s also available on line. He’s more than welcome to go back and read the words that he said if he doesn’t remember them. But the point is….

Interjection.

M. Mungall: I did read the whole thing. I don’t know how many times I need to tell the minister that.

Deputy Speaker: Minister, the member has the floor.

Please continue.

M. Mungall: Thank you very much, hon. Speaker.

My point is that when you make these types of statements, it really is indicative of your world view and why you may not value or prioritize people living in poverty here in British Columbia or why you might not value or prioritize preventing that poverty from actually happening.

I see the green light has already gone on, and I could go on and on about this budget.

The issue around MSP, for example, and that it’s a maybe situation. “Only if you apply, maybe you’ll actually see a cut to MSP.” Do you know what I think is a

[ Page 13922 ]

better idea? Let’s just eliminate MSP right now. That’s the type of thing that British Columbians want to see. That’s the type of investment, that’s the type of money in their pocket that they actually want to see.

They want to see some justice, they want to see some fairness, and they want to see a budget that’s actually based on what British Columbians need. They want to see a budget that’s going to build this province, that’s not just going to try to make them forget everything that has gone on in the last 16 years — the 16 years of neglect by this government that has seen poverty rise in this province, that has seen food bank use rise in this province, that has seen a housing affordability crisis in this province.

That’s the legacy of the B.C. Liberals. That’s the legacy of this Premier. It’s time that British Columbians got something better from this government. They will have their chance to get something better in B.C., no doubt about it. That opportunity is right around the corner.

Point of Privilege

(Reservation of Right)

Hon. R. Coleman: Since this is my first opportunity, I would like to state a matter of personal privilege relative to the comments of the member that just spoke.

Debate Continued

Hon. T. Stone: I certainly am honoured to stand and take my place in the debate on Budget 2017.

[1425]

Listening to the members opposite, one wonders what province they’re actually talking about. It’s like a parallel universe. Then I remember their close cousins in Alberta. That might be the province that they’re talking about, all this doom and gloom.

I rise in support of British Columbia’s fifth consecutive balanced budget, and I do so on behalf of the hard-working men and women of Kamloops–South Thompson, a constituency that I have been so proud to represent for the last 3½ years. This is a budget that is focused on jobs, tax cuts and strategic investments in the services that people need. It’s a budget that reflects B.C.’s strong and diverse, growing economy. It’s a budget that builds upon the fiscal foundation we’ve built in our province and for which our province is admired across Canada.

It is a good time, a really good time, to be in British Columbia, the strongest and top-ranked economy in the country. We are a bright spot in Canada. Last year’s growth rate, at close to 3 percent, led the nation. We’re expected to continue to lead the nation in the years ahead with growth double the Canadian average. We have been a back-to-back leader in growth for several years, the first time since 1961.

During the last five years — since 2011, since our Premier launched the B.C. jobs plan — 202,000 jobs have been created for British Columbians in every corner of our province, and 81 percent of those jobs have been full-time. B.C.’s unemployment rate is the lowest in Canada, the first time since 1976. A record 2.4 million British Columbians are working. And 60,000 people have actually moved into the province of British Columbia over the last year alone.

On trade diversity, ten years ago 80 percent of our exports went to the United States. Today that number is around 55 percent, with about 40 percent of our exports going to Asia. There has been tremendous diversification of our economy, which is really important when the United States enters a downturn or when Asia enters a downturn.

I’m very proud of the fact that our government has negotiated settlements with 99 percent of the public service, including the longest period of labour peace in our schools, at six years. We have signed approximately 485 economic and reconciliation agreements with First Nations in all corners of the province. We’re poised to eliminate B.C.’s operating debt soon. This will be the first time that British Columbia has not had an operating debt since 1975. We have one of the lowest debt-to-GDP ratios in the country, at 16.1 percent. Contrast that with other jurisdictions. Contrast that with Ontario’s at 40.3 percent or Quebec’s at 48.1 percent or the Canadian debt-to-GDP ratio of 31.8 percent.

Let’s talk about the Alberta government. The NDP government in Alberta will soon have a higher debt-to-GDP than British Columbia will, and they had no debts only a number of years ago.

We do still borrow, but we borrow to build. And building we are: $13.7 billion over the next three years for schools, hospitals, universities, roads, bridges; an additional $10 billion if you include the self-supporting projects — the George Massey Tunnel replacement and Site C. With respect to roads and transportation, I’m very proud of the fact that we’re going to spend about $4.5 billion over the next three years on transportation projects all across our province. That $4.5 billion spend over three years is up from the $2.8 billion spend over three years that was provided for in last year’s budget.

We continue to be the most competitive tax jurisdiction in Canada as well. This is part of British Columbia’s success, with the lowest personal income taxes on the first $125,000 of income anywhere in Canada. To put this in perspective, if you were in Ontario, you would pay approximately $2,200 more in personal income tax. If you were in Quebec, you would pay over $8,000 more in personal income tax. Of course, we have amongst the most competitive corporate and small business taxes in the country as well with this budget, including our small business tax rate reduction from 2.5 percent to 2 percent. That is good for our economy.

We’re the only province to get an A grade from the CFIB for success at cutting red tape, and small business

[ Page 13923 ]

confidence is at or near the top here in British Columbia when you compare it with all other provinces.

[1430]

Of course, British Columbians are very proud of the fact that we are the only province with a triple-A credit rating. This saves British Columbians hundreds of millions of dollars in reduced interest payments, which frees up resources for services that British Columbians need. It’s about providing less money to bankers and bondholders and more investments for British Columbians.

Now, let’s contrast that with what we know we would get from the opposition. This is a group, the opposition, that was responsible for eight consecutive deficits in the 1990s. Does everyone remember the NDP’s fudge-it budget which left British Columbians with a structural deficit of $3.8 billion back in 2001? How about debt servicing. Do you remember that? It’s a terrible hangover that British Columbians have. Debt-servicing costs increased 60 percent, and the debt-to-GDP rose to 24 percent under the NDP.

There were six credit downgrades under the NDP. We had the weakest export growth of any province and the highest unemployment across western Canada under the NDP, and 50,000 people left our province in the last four years of the NDP government. In fact, the only companies that were doing well in the late 1990s were moving companies, so many British Columbians were leaving their home province.

It’s also useful to mention just how proud British Columbians were that day when the Premier of the day — NDP Premier Glen Clark, who was chased from office under a cloud of endless scandals — was awarded the distinction of Business Person of the Year from the Calgary Chamber of Commerce.

The current NDP….

Interjections.

Hon. T. Stone: I’m touching some nerves on the other side, folks. I’m getting under their skin a little bit here. It must be resonating. It must be hitting home.

Interjections.

Deputy Speaker: Members.

Interjection.

Hon. T. Stone: That’s fine, hon. Member. That’s fine.

The current NDP hasn’t changed much at all. The current NDP leader and his MLAs and those that are seeking election with the NDP continue to espouse policies which are really all about reckless spending and increasing taxes and building massive amounts of debt.

Balanced budgets. The NDP leader says: “Maybe not.” He says: “Politics is changing, and the focus on the annual budget is changing.” A balanced budget may not be part of the NDP election program. Oh, that’s a big surprise.

On how we’d pay for $10-a-day daycare or the billions of promises that the NDP have made and not costed, he says: “How’s this going to be paid for? It starts with a tax investment.” Oh, that’s a big surprise, coming from the NDP. Make no mistake about it. The NDP’s reckless spending can only be achieved by increasing taxes or running deficits. We’d probably get both if there were an NDP government, and that means more debt on the shoulders of our kids and our grandkids.

[R. Lee in the chair.]

Now, beyond the financial attributes, why is sound financial management so important? The answer is quite simple. It’s one that is completely unknown to the members opposite. The reason you balance your budget, the reason you respect the taxpayers’ dollars is because of what it enables you to do. What it enables you to do is it enables you to invest in people. It enables you to invest in the services that people need. It enables you to look after your communities, your families and your loved ones.

How do we go about doing that? The first major theme of this budget — in fact, it’s been an overriding theme of our economic policy in this province for a number of years now — is to continue to be laser-focused on creating good-paying, family-supporting jobs across the economy and in communities across British Columbia.

That’s where the B.C. tech strategy and the $85 million included in the budget comes in. That’s why the rural dividend, the $25 million investment there, is so important. That’s why it’s good news that PST on electricity for commercial customers will be phased out, 50 percent now and the balance eliminated entirely by April 2019.

There’s lots of chirping from the other side. I know that talking about jobs is a touchy subject for the members opposite. We know why they’re sensitive, and that’s because the NDP’s record on jobs is abysmal. It is abysmal. B.C. was one of the worst-performing jurisdictions when the NDP last had a chance to govern in this province.

[1435]

Where is the NDP’s job plan today? It’s kind of like looking for Waldo. Where is the NDP’s job plan? Oh, I know where it is. It’s to jack up the minimum wage faster than small business can sustain it, and it’s to say no to every single job-creating project in the province of British Columbia. All we’ve seen from the NDP in the form of a jobs plan is no to this, no to that, no to this, no to that.

Every opportunity that the members opposite have had to embrace economic development, to get behind jobs in this province — they have said no. Take Kinder Morgan as an example. The Leader of the Opposition apparently was opposed at one point, and then he was open-minded about it and willing to entertain it, and then he

[ Page 13924 ]

was opposed again. I think that’s where they are today, but who really knows.

Let’s talk about LNG, the $20 billion that’s already been invested in this industry across British Columbia, the fact that we already have a final investment decision with Woodfibre down in Squamish. Let’s talk about the fact that this industry has the potential to be a generational game changer for British Columbians. Let’s talk about the fact that the members opposite actually signed a letter opposing Pacific NorthWest LNG. They actually opposed fracking. They oppose the creation of tens of thousands of jobs in this particular industry.

Or let’s talk about Site C. The members opposite have had an opportunity to get behind a clean, affordable, reliable source of power in this province that will create thousands of jobs and provide energy security for this province for another hundred years, and what is their answer? What is their answer? No. Their answer is a resounding no — no to the project but, more importantly, no to the jobs that are created with that project.

They had said no to every major infrastructure project that we have advanced in this province, whether that’s the Port Mann Bridge, the South Fraser Perimeter Road, Sea to Sky, Evergreen, Trans-Canada. On and on and on the list goes. No, no, no from the members opposite.

On technology, they’ve made clear that they would kill our tech strategy. Not that the tech strategy isn’t working well: we now have over 100,000 jobs, 100,000 British Columbians working in the technology sector. The members opposite….

Interjections.

Deputy Speaker: Members. Members. Members.

Hon. T. Stone: Wow.

Deputy Speaker: Members. Members. Members.

Address it through the Chair, please.

Hon. T. Stone: They have said they would kill the strategy. The first thing that they would do to kill the strategy is to raise personal income taxes. The worst thing you could possibly do to stifle growth in the tech sector would be to increase personal income taxes, and that’s what the members opposite have said they intend on doing.

How about the forest industry. I’m proud of the fact that $13 billion of B.C. forest products were exported in 2015. That’s about 35 percent of all goods exported from British Columbia. I’m proud of the fact that this budget provides for the resources that we are going to need to continue to assist the industry in dealing with the headwinds that are coming at it, whether it’s with respect to fibre supply or whether it’s with respect to the protectionist winds coming from the United States.

The NDP sits here and lectures us day in, day out on the forest industry, but they don’t remind British Columbians that they did nothing in the ’90s to open up new markets for British Columbia’s forest industry. They did nothing, absolutely nothing. They don’t point out that big day in 1996 when the NDP Premier of the day ordered the forest industry to create 21,000 new jobs over five years or lose their timber-cutting rights. What was the result of that initiative? Hon. Speaker, 12,000 jobs were lost across British Columbia.

Or how about mining. The 30,000 direct jobs in the mining sector is really a comeback story in British Columbia after coming into government in 2001, after the policies of the members opposite. The average salary in the mining sector is $120,000. There have been five new mines that have opened since 2011, including New Afton, adjacent to my community in Kamloops. There are more mines under construction and/or permitted. There are nine others that have been approved for expansion.

[1440]

How did the mining sector fare the last time the members opposite were in office? Not very well. I believe for every mine that opened up in British Columbia in the ’90s, there were two that closed. Mineral exploration and development activity has hit an all-time low. British Columbia, under the NDP, was known worldwide for its anti-mining tax and regulatory policies.

Bottom line is you can’t say yes to workers, you can’t say yes to jobs, but say no to the work that these workers would actually do. And they say no to every project that would create those jobs.

Interjection.

Hon. T. Stone: Yes, all the demovictions that the city of Burnaby has been responsible for. That’s right.

The second theme of this budget I’m very proud of is with respect to taxes and the decision that was taken to leave more money in British Columbians’ pockets. This is a fundamental difference between our view of the world and the NDP’s view of the world. We actually happen to believe that British Columbians are better positioned to make decisions about how to spend their money, not government.

That’s why I’m proud of the fact that we have the lowest personal income taxes up to $125,000 in the country. That’s why I’m proud of the competitiveness of our small business and our corporate tax rates, which have helped fuel economic growth in this province. That’s why I’m proud that we’re going to leave almost $1 billion in the pockets of British Columbians with the 50 percent reduction in MSP premiums, as provided for in this budget.

We are resolved to eliminate MSP premiums, and this measure is an important first step. Now, prior to Budget 2017, two million British Columbians paid no MSP, including all children. With Budget 2017, an additional

[ Page 13925 ]

two million British Columbians will pay 50 percent less for their premiums.

Now, again, it’s hard to pinpoint the NDP’s view of the world on this. We know that when it comes to taxes generally, the NDP have never met a tax hike they don’t like. We saw that through the 1990s. They have hinted already, as we lead up to this next election, of their appreciation for and their interest in tax increases. The tax burden increased dramatically under the NDP. We were one of the highest-taxed jurisdictions in all of Canada under the NDP. Take-home pay dropped almost 9 percent under the NDP as a result of that.

How about the carbon tax — the carbon tax which they voted against and they campaigned against? Suddenly, now they’re in favour of it, but they want us to have one of the highest carbon taxes in the country. They want to, essentially, undermine the competitiveness of industry in British Columbia, which would cost thousands of jobs.

I’ll tell you, hon. Speaker. I’m proud of the leadership position that we have taken in British Columbia with the carbon tax. It’s one thing to be at the front of the parade; it’s another thing to be in a parade that no one else is in with you. Their plan on the carbon tax — to increase it dramatically, all the while not ensuring that in doing so, we maintain our competitiveness in British Columbia — will cost tens of thousands of jobs.

On MSP, the Leader of the Opposition and the NDP have said, apparently, that they will move MSP into British Columbians’ income tax returns. Essentially, the NDP position on the MSP is to hide it, to bury it in income tax. That’s a stark contrast to our plan to reduce premiums by 50 percent. Essentially, they’re not prepared to give people back their hard-earned money.

Of course, we know that taxes will be a battle line between our government and the NDP. We’ve heard as much from the members opposite. The member for Victoria–Swan Lake said only days ago: “We’re going to have to fight tax cuts.” So there we are. The contrast is very clear.

The third theme in this budget is the investments that we’re making in the services that people need, making sure that government is there for British Columbians, especially families and the most vulnerable. The budget includes $3.8 billion more over three years for strategic investments and services, plus an additional $800 million more for health and $147 million more for mental health.

[1445]

We are training more doctors, more nurses and more nurse practitioners than ever before in British Columbia. The budget provides for billions in investment to expand hospitals, like the $417 million expansion of the new patient care tower at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops. And British Columbia continues to have amongst the best health care outcomes in the country.

Again, where were the NDP on health care in the 1990s? The NDP did not build….

Interjections.

Hon. T. Stone: Listen for it. I know the hon. member doesn’t like to face the facts, but the NDP did not build a new hospital in ten years. They didn’t build a new hospital anywhere in British Columbia in ten years.

They eliminated 1,600 full-time nursing positions across British Columbia. The NDP closed 3,500 hospital beds in British Columbia through the 1990s. The per-capita number of long-term-care beds for seniors actually fell by 18 percent in the last four years. I can say, coming from Kamloops, that not a single new long-term-care bed was opened in Kamloops in the entire decade of the 1990s.

To compound that, there were no net new medical school spaces created under the NDP. There were 120 first-year medical training spaces in 1991. There were 120 first-year medical training spaces in 2001. Yet they stand in this House day in, day out and criticize the government of British Columbia for the investments that we have made — record levels of investment year over year in health care. I’m proud of those investments.

How about the post-secondary sector? A budget that provides for $1.8 billion, about $5 million per day. That’s up 45 percent since 2001. We’ve added 32,000 seats at institutions all across British Columbia. We’ve created numerous new universities, including Thompson Rivers University up in Kamloops. Over the next three years, we will also invest another $95 million in capital across B.C.’s post-secondary institutions — institutions like North Island College in Campbell River or the $30 million industrial training and trades building up in Kamloops.

Of course, one of the most significant challenges we had when we came into government in 2001 was to address the reality that the post-secondary system had been starved of resources under the NDP. They don’t want to talk about that. They don’t want to talk about the fact that they froze tuition, and all the while, they didn’t actually put additional resources in to make up the gap. What was the result of that? There were fewer classes. There were fewer seats. There were long wait-lists. There was outdated equipment. British Columbians don’t want to go back to those days when it comes to post-secondary education. I think they’re proud of the investments that our government has made.

How about affordable housing? We’re investing $920 million for 5,300 rental units. We have created 3½ times more affordable housing units than the NDP ever did — 3½ times and 24,000 to date versus 6,500 or so under the NDP.

It’s hard to figure out where the NDP, again, are on the issue of affordable housing. When it comes to the 15 percent foreign buyers tax, they stand in this House and they vote in favour of it, and then they go out and tell British Columbians that they oppose it. Again, talking out of both sides of their mouth.

[ Page 13926 ]

The B.C. HOME partnership program, which I’m very proud of — $703 million in loans for 42,000 first-time homebuyers. We also increased the threshold of the first-time homebuyers program exemption to $500,000 from $475,000.

I’m very proud of the fact that this budget includes an additional $800 million to increase the supports for families and the most vulnerable. We often talk about the single-parent employment initiative, saying that single parents on income assistance…. To help them get off that assistance, it covers costs like transportation, child care costs, up to 12 months funded training for in-demand jobs, health supplements, and so forth.

This very strategic investment has enabled 4,400 British Columbians to register for this program, to engage in the training. To date, over 800 have completed the training and are gainfully employed, paying taxes. They’re off assistance. They look their kids in the eyes every day now and say: “This is what it looks like when you work hard and your government gives you a hand up.”

How about the $147 million to reduce wait-lists and bolster children and youth programs contained in the budget? Or the additional 2,000 child care spaces on top of the 4,300 spaces that we’ve created since 2014?

[1450]

The budget includes $250 million more to support adults in need, $135 million for community living services, $199 million more for persons with disabilities and an overall increase in investments for B.C. Transit services across the province. This is all good stuff, and these are details that you don’t hear the opposition mention in their comments to the budget.

Now, this budget also provides for record levels of investment in infrastructure — $13.7 billion over the next three years across government. As taxpayer-supported projects, transportation will see an additional $4.5 billion invested. We will have invested in transportation, very, very soon, over $20 billion since 2001 — in every facet of transportation and in all corners of the province. Of course, we’re moving forward with the Site C project, and we’re very proud of the George Massey Tunnel replacement project as well.

This record level of infrastructure spend is enabling us to build dozens of new schools and new hospitals across B.C. It’s enabling us to move forward with capital projects at universities and colleges across B.C. It’s enabling us to move forward with critical transportation investments, like the Broadway and Surrey rapid transit lines or the George Massey Tunnel replacement. Or how about six-laning from Langley all the way out to Abbotsford?

How about the $200 million that’s being invested in interchanges to uncork the congestion in North Vancouver? How about continuing to four-lane from Kamloops to the Alberta border, like the recent $469 million investment we announced with our federal partners in Kicking Horse Canyon, phase 4, and Donald to Forde four-laning? Or the McKenzie interchange right here in greater Victoria, which was in the original scope of the Island Highway. The NDP had to take it out because they were so grossly over budget on that project. We’re getting on with that project.

We’re also getting projects done with respect to airports, with respect to cycling, with respect to ports, with respect to ferries all across British Columbia.

Now, we know what the NDP’s position is on infrastructure, at least the projects that we have advanced. I mean, they continue to say no. They said no to Site C, no to George Massey. They would drive a stake through the heart of LNG if they were given an opportunity. They’d kill mining project after mining project across British Columbia, and for the third time in their party’s history, they would essentially kill the mining industry. They would destroy the thousands of jobs that come from these projects.

Interjections.

Hon. T. Stone: I’m glad that the members opposite are laughing, because British Columbians are going to have the last laugh, and that’s not going to be elect the members opposite.

It is a great time to be British Columbian. We have the strongest economy in the country. Whether forestry, tourism, tech or construction, every single one of these jobs represents a paycheque that’s helping to provide for a family, giving them an opportunity to achieve the life they want and to look after the people they love.

Now, I go to work every day to be part of a team that’s focused on creating jobs and investing in these opportunities for British Columbians. You do that by balancing your budget, keeping taxes down and generally getting government out of your way.

That said, balancing your budgets and worrying about triple-A credit ratings are the means to the end. The end is to have that strong financial foundation because of what it enables you to do, and that’s invest in people. This budget does that. Our government continues to do that. British Columbians have worked very hard to make this happen. But there is more to do. There is more to fight for. There is more to accomplish with British Columbians.

The people of B.C. want their government to keep the momentum governing and to continue to deliver strong leadership and proven results. At the end of the day, we will continue to grow our economy, create opportunity and jobs across B.C. and help folks look after their families and achieve their dreams. This is all about putting British Columbians first.

It is my privilege to represent the people of Kamloops–South Thompson, and it is my privilege to stand today in support of Budget 2017.

J. Rice: It’s very interesting that in that elaborate and dramatic speech from the Transportation Minister that he not once mentioned B.C. Ferries in his speech.

[ Page 13927 ]

I’d like to start out by just acknowledging that it’s been a wonderful almost four years being the MLA for North Coast and representing the many communities that make up my riding. It’s been a challenge, and it’s been an honour, and it’s been so rewarding.

[1455]

I’d like to talk about the budget, the forget-everything budget. This government wants us to forget, well, their track record for the last 16 years. They want you to forget that this Premier has been working at the top while making life worse for ordinary families.

She wants families to forget that her government doubled MSP premiums. Only now, in the lead-up to this election, she is saying: “Oh, we’re going to undo all of that.” She wants people to forget that their hydro bills and their car insurance are still going up, forget about our housing costs that are skyrocketing, that there’s a crisis in child care affordability, and forget that B.C. has the worst wage growth in Canada.

She wants the people of Bella Coola and the central coast to forget that they cancelled their ferry and they starved out coastal communities. The Premier wants the municipality of Prince Rupert to forget — while they’re facing over $300 million in infrastructure deficits, including threats to our water supply — that they are not included in any of these LNG funding agreements. Nothing to buffer any increase in pressure from the industry that that would bring to our community. Is it because they actually don’t think that the industry will come to fruition?

She wants you to forget that families are paying $1,000 a year more for just Hydro, car insurance and MSP premiums since she became Premier. She wants people to forget that she took a second salary of $300,000 from her wealthy friends and gave a $1 billion tax break to the top 2 percent of income-earners. The only thing this Premier cares about is winning the next election. After years of neglect, why would anyone believe that she’s going to change now?

There’s nothing in this budget for senior citizens, nothing in the forget-everything budget; 91 percent of publicly funded residential care homes fail to meet the minimum staffing benchmarks. Last year it was 88 percent, and that was atrocious then. Now it’s worse.

We have the second-worst wait-lists for hip and knee replacement surgeries in Canada. Nothing for knees and hips in this forget-everything budget. More concerning is the lack of specific mention of long-term fixes to problems with surgery wait times, which for hip and knee replacements, like I said, are second worst.

In a pre-election budget, the lack of specifics of these funding increases…. The increase to the health budget represents 78 percent of the increases to the overall provincial budget. I’m guessing we’ll see a number of announcements in the coming weeks while the government parcels out spending increases for political gain — those of their choosing. “Why would we mention it in the budget?”

It’s worth pointing out that the word “senior” doesn’t even appear in the budget speech, nor does the word “surgery.”

The Premier is now also saying she will fix mental health and addictions that her and her team have neglected for a greater part of a decade. Weeks ahead of a provincial election she’s now going to fix it, and seven years into the B.C. Liberals’ ten-year mental health and addiction plan for the province, a plan which has left children and adults struggling with debilitating addictions and mental health problems without the immediate access to treatment that they need.

People have suffered, and now it’s election time and, oops, they suddenly care about people with mental health and addictions.

I don’t think many people are going to forget that despite many warnings, this government was very slow to react to the fentanyl overdose crisis.

Going back to the residential care standards, the minimum staffing requirement of 3.36 hours per resident per day dropped from an already-low 18 percent in 2016 to a paltry 9 percent in 2017. Despite that, there’s no mention in the budget for new funding or programs to address our seniors in long-term care facilities.

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In Acropolis Manor in Prince Rupert, the staff are burned out. Residents are waiting hours to be toileted. The seniors that built this province are being woken up early in the morning, sitting there waiting for hours before breakfast because there’s not enough time for the care aides to help them with their activities of daily living.

Seniors are most likely to be impacted by the long wait-lists for hip and knee replacements and for cataract surgeries, each of which is the second worst in Canada for their category. There is no specific mention of measures to address these shortfalls in this forget-everything budget.

A recent study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives showed that there’s available capacity at existing operating rooms in B.C. Eighteen percent of operating rooms in B.C.’s public hospitals are not regularly staffed, and none of them have extended hours.

Let’s talk about the MSP. It’s only a promise. The Premier wants people to forget that she and her government have more than doubled the MSP premium since 2001 — doubled it. Also, this won’t be implemented until after the election. After all of the broken promises, why would anyone believe the B.C. Liberals now?

B.C. renters are facing a housing affordability crisis, but this budget doesn’t offer any help. In fact, this government is cutting funding to the residential tenancy branch by 2 percent, at a time, in my area, where renovictions and other tenant issues are skyrocketing and people desperately need help.

Justice services received a modest increase in this budget, but there’s no concerted effort to address the ongoing staff shortages and safety issues in corrections and

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sheriff services. The Liberals refuse to invest in the legal aid system they decimated over a decade ago or to properly resource the courts and Crown prosecution service to protect against the staying of criminal cases.

Debt. Debt is going way up. The total debt is forecast to go up by $11 billion over the three-year fiscal plan, from $66.7 billion as of March 31, 2017, to $77.7 billion as of March 31, 2020.

Total government debt has doubled under the B.C. Liberals. It rose by $32.9 billion between 2001 and 2017. In her six years as Premier, the Premier has added $21.5 billion to the debt, the biggest increase in B.C.’s history. And this is the government that prides itself on its fiscal record.

Cuts to treaty funding. Budget 2017 cuts funding to treaties by 2 percent. This funding cut, together with the Premier undermining the treaty process altogether and refusing to appoint a chief treaty commissioner for nearly two years now, shows that this government isn’t working for First Nations engaged in the treaty process.

MCFD, the Ministry of Children and Families. After ignoring child and youth mental health services for years — for example, only 0.2 percent of an increase in last year’s budget to MCFD — the government is investing $45 million now. That’s a 20 percent increase in this budget, the pre-election budget, the forget-everything budget.

The increase should not make people forget the damage done by years of government neglect. People will not forget the children that have been seriously injured or who have died because of the shortage of front-line social workers in the Ministry of Children and Families.

Child care. A one-time $20 million earmark will go to help child care providers expand their spaces. The government says this will create up to 2,000 new child care spaces. Well, B.C. has the second most expensive child care in the country. This will do nothing for affordability. This measure is only in response to our plan, the NDP’s plan, for universal $10-a-day child care.

Small business tax cuts. The B.C. Liberals are reducing the small business tax from 2½ percent to 2 percent, effective April 1.

Interjections.

Deputy Speaker: Members, order in the House.

Continue.

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J. Rice: Note that this is well short of what they promised in the 2013 election, which was: “lowering the small business tax rate from 2.5 percent to 1.5 percent no later than the 2017-18 fiscal year, with at least a 0.5 reduction by 2015-2016.”

Not only did they do nothing last year in the 2015-2016 fiscal budget; they have not reached the promised 1½ percent rate that they promised in the last election. It’s another example that proves you can’t believe anything this Premier says, anything that she promises.

The elimination of the so-called direct operating debt will be slower because of this budget. As recently as September 2016, they were saying it would be gone by 2019-2020, but that has been pushed back one year to 2020-2021. The direct operating debt is the measure the government uses to try to get us to forget about their “Debt-free B.C.”

Remember the “Debt-free B.C.” bus that toured around the province? In the last election, they were telling us that B.C. would be debt-free within 15 years. But in the last four years, the total debt has gone up by $10.9 billion.

The difference between direct operating debt, taxpayer-supported debt and Crown corporation self-supported debt is somewhat arbitrary. Direct operating debt is vilified because it is incurred as a result of government maintaining social programming, such as health care and education, during economic downturns,

whereas capital-related and Crown corporation debt has been incurred for such projects as the northwest transmission line, the Vancouver Convention Centre, the Port Mann Bridge, countless IT boondoggles, the Site C dam — for the energy we don’t need — and so on.

After 15 years of cuts and underfunding B.C.’s public education system, the budget finally provides desperately needed funding, but only because the Supreme Court of Canada forced the Premier to do so. We only need to look at Budget 2016 to see what this government really had planned for B.C.’s kids and classrooms.

For instance, Budget 2017 boosts public school funding to $5.4 billion for the next three years, while Budget 2016 planned to keep it flat at $4.7 billion. Furthermore, most budget areas do receive a funding boost in 2017, but this either flattens out or decreases in 2018-2019.

Lastly, Budget 2017 sets out $320 million over three years to fund the agreement with the B.C. Teachers Federation but doesn’t include figures for the costs of the final settlement.

The government says they plan to invest $2 billion over the next three years to maintain, replace, renovate or expand K-to-12 facilities. This figure includes seismic upgrading and replacing of schools. The budget fails to mention that 35 percent of B.C. schools are still waiting for seismic upgrades, including schools like the Prince Rupert Middle School, which is sinking because it sits on a former garbage dump site, a landfill.

The environment. There’s a lot of new funding for the environment in the forget-everything budget 2017, most of which is welcome news. But it comes after those very same programs were cut drastically by this government over the last 16 years.

Cuts include…. In 2009, the government made a huge, 40 percent cut to B.C. Parks auxiliary staff. During the same time period, the contingent of regular staff, legally designated as park rangers, had also been eroded, from

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88 positions in 2008 to 77 in 2016 — a further 11.4 percent reduction in staff. Between 2008 and 2016, the number of full-time park rangers went from ten to seven — a 30 percent reduction. The staff cuts outlined above are in addition to cuts made to B.C. Parks staff before 2008.

There are still a lot of unaddressed environmental issues, such as the village site of Namu on the central coast, in the territory of the Heiltsuk First Nations. It’s a rapidly decaying old cannery falling into the ocean.

Let’s not forget — and I don’t think the people of Bella Bella will forget — that the Premier comes to visit when royalty is in town but fails to even pick up the phone when a major oil spill is happening in the Heiltsuk territory, contaminating their clam beds and their food sources — not a phone call, not a visit then. I don’t think the people of Bella Bella will forget.

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LNG is barely mentioned in Budget 2017. It’s on page 50, but it wasn’t even included in the budget speech. And the prosperity fund? Even less so. There’s no revenue shown from LNG — no revenue. No revenue was added to the prosperity fund from LNG.

Is this Premier hoping that British Columbians will just forget her 2013 election promises? Let’s not forget that prosperity fund. The broken promises on the prosperity fund include that it would contribute to making B.C. debt-free. In fact, under this government, British Columbians’ public debt has increased 45 percent — the largest increase under any one Premier in B.C.’s history.

Let’s not forget that the prosperity fund included $100 billion that would flow directly into the prosperity fund. In fact, the Premier has taken $400 million from MSP premiums, which she took from average working people and put into her prosperity fund. And her real estate — don’t forget her real estate market to create a pre-election slush fund.

That prosperity fund could eliminate the sales tax. That was another promise. In fact, the government took $6.5 billion from PST this year.

Don’t forget that she said that the prosperity fund would accelerate the paydown of B.C. Hydro and pay for the Port Mann Bridge. In fact, B.C. Hydro’s debt has grown from $11.7 billion to $19.5 billion under this government.

The B.C. government has significantly scaled back their LNG expectations. They want us to forget that the Premier promised 100,000 jobs from LNG, a plant up and running by 2015 and five by 2020. The Premier promised a $100 billion prosperity fund from LNG revenues. This Premier and this government want us to forget that LNG was to eliminate our debt, eliminate the PST, create 100,000 jobs and $1 trillion in economic activity.

In 2014, LNG was a chance, not a windfall. In 2015, LNG was still a generational opportunity but barely mentioned otherwise, in an effort to change the channel. In 2016, the B.C. Liberals finally admitted that their timelines would not be met. But they whined that the government has done all that they can, that global conditions are posing new challenges. The Premier touted that success is not for quitters.

This year it’s: “LNG needs global markets to thrive but unforeseen headwinds have created challenging conditions” and reminding us that “world markets may go up and down.” The very best that they can do is insist that “bringing home the generational opportunity of LNG remains within reach.”

Does this government honestly think that people in my riding will forget the promises this Premier made in regards to LNG? Does she honestly think that the businesses that started or the small businesses that hung on by a thread, hoping for the LNG windfall she promised, are going to forget? Does she think that the people in my riding who had concerns about the siting of one LNG project…? They were labelled a ragtag group of people. Real people with reasonable concerns were labelled a ragtag group of people. These were hereditary and elected chiefs and matriarchs and citizens.

Let’s talk about housing. Aside from making a small change to the property transfer tax, the exemption threshold, the Premier’s government didn’t announce anything new for affordable housing in this forget-everything budget. Their desperate attempts to convince people that they care about affordability, after ignoring the housing crisis for years, were all announced prior to this election.

B.C. Housing is in the process of selling off all its social housing projects. In forget-everything budget 2017, they expect to generate a total of $344 million in revenue by 2020. The only new housing measure in Budget 2017 is an increase to the property transfer tax threshold for the first-time-homebuyers exemption.

Forget-everything budget 2017 rolls the Premier’s housing announcements together by saying that this government committed $855 million for the construction of 4,900 units of affordable housing across the province.

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In reality, much of this funding is spread out over five years. Many of the units won’t be new but rather renovated, and the earliest new-housing projects won’t be ready till 2018 — too late for the people most hurt by this housing crisis that we’re in right now.

I will acknowledge that recently, as part of some LNG agreements, we’re going to see some housing in the northwest. There’s new seniors housing in Port Edward, and two local First Nations will see provincial funding for housing. But I remind this government that this is only the tip of the iceberg in addressing the northwest’s housing needs. I would like to outline some of these issues. It’s unfortunate that the Minister for Housing has just left the House, because I would like to outline the issues in a letter I wrote to him.

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Deputy Speaker: Member, the absence of any member should not be mentioned in the House.

J. Rice: My apologies, hon. Speaker.

I’d like to outline some issues in a letter I wrote to the Housing Minister seven months ago, which I have yet to receive a response to.

“Dear Minister:

“I am writing today to outline a variety of the housing issues that residents in Prince Rupert are currently facing. My constituency office continues to see an increase in the number of requests for assistance in finding affordable and appropriate housing in Prince Rupert. Service providers in Prince Rupert also report an increased demand for housing support services. With the province’s financial update indicating a significant surplus, my recommendation is to immediately invest in Prince Rupert’s housing infrastructure.

“Although the much-promised LNG industry has yet to result in a single project coming to fruition, rampant speculation has created dramatic changes in the local real estate market. Unprecedented pressure has been put on the limited rental housing sector, resulting in people being put out on the street, especially those who have limited or fixed incomes.

“Prince Rupert has some of the oldest housing stock in the province. We have a large quantity of wartime homes, which used to be affordable homes for renters. Currently I am witnessing a trend where longtime tenants in these homes are being renovicted, with the homes being subsequently rented out at much higher rates, well beyond the reach of the previous renters.

“The average age of homes in Prince Rupert, compared to the rest of the province, is significantly older. Approximately 24 percent of the housing stock in Prince Rupert was built prior to 1945, with 6 percent of that being built prior to 1920 — compared to the rest of the province, where only 14 percent of the housing stock was built prior to 1945 and less than 2 percent of the housing stock was built before 1920. We have seen minimal new builds in the last few decades, and with almost half of the housing stock being half a century old or older, the options for safe, affordable and appropriate housing are limited.

“The majority of social housing stock in Prince Rupert is in a state of disrepair. In a coastal temperate rainforest with some of the highest amounts of precipitation in North America, housing maintenance is an ongoing challenge. Chronic mould and rot from the relentless damp climate are just some of the problems faced by all homeowners, as well as property managers, including those of the M’akola Housing Society, who are now responsible for managing B.C. Housing properties.

“Many social housing units are uninhabitable and sit vacant. The housing replenishment regime is inadequate and lacks sufficient funding. Service providers are unable to afford the much-needed upgrades and improvements required to properly maintain properties to a habitable state.

“Additionally, this spring, I tested selected B.C. Housing units for lead in their water pipes and discovered elevated lead levels in the drinking water. As a result, a whole

section of B.C. Housing units in Prince Rupert is currently on a water-flushing regime.

“My constituency office, social service providers and poverty advocates in Prince Rupert are reporting an increase in requests for assistance with regard to tenants being renovicted or evicted for other illegal reasons. One service provider in particular reports a noticeable difference between 2015 and 2016 with regard to the number of clients who are homeless and/or have been evicted. Local service providers and the resources available to them are being stretched to the limit while they attempt to find housing solutions for people in need.

“In 2015, an entire community of mobile home owners and renters were evicted from the Port Edward trailer park because a speculator purchased the property in order to capitalize on a potential LNG boom. The initial plan was to develop housing for LNG workers at the expense of these local tenants.

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“All the tenants have left or have been removed. Some have gone to homeless shelters in other communities; others are couch-surfing. Yet the property sits undeveloped.

“There are little to no options for single occupants on social assistance. The shelter amounts provided by the Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation are not sufficient to allow people to afford the rental rates in Prince Rupert. Aside from the price, the availability of single-occupant rental units is extremely limited. In 2004, 100 low-rent apartments were lost to a fire and were never replaced. While the available housing stock has shrunk significantly over the years, the wait-list for low-rent and subsidized single units grows each year.

“There is a lack of seniors housing and wheelchair-accessible units in Prince Rupert. Many seniors and persons with disabilities are living in unsafe conditions while they wait for appropriate units to become available. Many of these individuals are waiting in earnest for units that seldom become available, and often they give up before finding appropriate housing.

“There is no men’s shelter in Prince Rupert, which has long been identified as a need in this community. The pseudo–homeless shelter that does operate is limited to just eight beds and faces ongoing issues with bedbugs and violence among tenants, such that individuals avoid sleeping there.

“The North Coast Transition Society operates a transition home for women fleeing abuse. However, it has become a de facto homeless shelter for women and their children. The transition house operates 20 short-term beds, and they turn women away every day due to overcapacity.

“The housing squeeze has been steadily tightening over recent years. However, it has been further exacerbated and accelerated by the speculation resulting from the anticipated but not yet realized LNG industry. Market rental rates are now at Vancouver prices, but Prince Rupert still lacks the services, amenities and availability found in the Lower Mainland.

“The housing challenges in Prince Rupert are impacting families, single people, working professionals, aboriginal and non-aboriginal citizens, seniors and persons living with disabilities. Essentially every demographic of our population has been affected one way or another by a declining housing inventory and declining investment.

“The issues I outlined above are just a brief

summary of the housing issues facing the people of Prince Rupert and the surrounding communities. These issues are varied and diverse; therefore, solutions must be as well. I draw your attention to these challenges and urgently request that you consider the needs of Prince Rupert citizens for affordable housing and housing supports.

“I look forward to your prompt response and to working with you to address the escalating problems facing Prince Rupert and other northwest communities.”

B.C. renters are facing an affordability crisis, and this budget doesn’t offer any help for that.

I see that I’m running out of time, so I’ll just conclude. I believe that after years of neglect, the recent random acts of funding displayed by this government are an attempt to make British Columbians forget everything. They want people to forget that for the last 16 years this government has dipped into the pockets of working and middle-income people while they gave their millionaire friends a tax break.

There is a clear choice between a government that works for ordinary people and a government that works for the wealthy and the well connected.

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J. Thornthwaite: I’m very proud to be able to stand here and support the budget on behalf of my constituents in North Vancouver–Seymour.

All of us here come to the Legislature from different walks of life and with different points of view, but the one thing that we all have in common is a desire to make a difference in our own communities. We all want to contribute to making a better life for people and to create a brighter future for our province, and that’s exactly what this budget is all about.

We want to keep our fiscal house in order by balancing the budget, but we also want to use the precious financial resources that we have to their greatest effect. We cannot be all things to all people. The demands on the public purse will always exceed what money is actually available.

We must remember that there is just one taxpayer, so we owe it to the public to spend their money wisely and, if we can, to give the taxpayer a break when the budget is balanced and the economy is doing well. That’s what’s happening with this budget.

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In the past, we have all seen the results of reckless spending by government. Governments that allow their operating budgets to exceed the money they take every year from taxpayers eventually establish a structural deficit. That’s a hard cycle to break. Year after year of consecutive deficits accumulate into a huge public debt, and before you know it, vast portions of the annual budget go just towards the interest payments.

Worse still, all of the money that goes into paying interest is no longer available to provide public services or to provide any return to the taxpayer in the form of lower taxes. The biggest consequence of government swallowing all that debt is that it removes capital from international markets. This makes money less available and more expensive for the private sector to borrow and invest.

That’s not what’s happening here in British Columbia. In 2016, Standard and Poor’s provided an independent assessment of the way British Columbia handles its finances. “We find B.C.’s financial disclosures transparent, comprehensive and timely. In our view, its financial management practices are the best among Canada’s provinces.”

It should be noted here that B.C.’s debt-to-GDP ratio, a key measure of debt affordability, is forecast to decline to 16 percent, down from 17.9 percent in 2013-2014. Compare this with other provinces, like Ontario at 40.3 percent and Quebec, which is now reaching a 48.1 percent debt-to-GDP ratio. You can see why British Columbia is seen as the most stable and well-managed jurisdiction in the country.

By controlling spending and balancing the budget, British Columbia has once again maintained its triple-A credit rating. B.C. is, in fact, the only province in Canada that enjoys the highest credit rating. Why does this matter? Well, in his budget presentation last week, the Finance Minister pointed out that if we compare ourselves to other provinces with lower credit ratings, British Columbia would be paying, on average, an additional $2.23 billion in annual debt service costs. Not being an expert in math, that would be equivalent to, say, $796 million in the budget for Children and Families, $740 million for Education and $700 million for the first-time-homebuyers program.

In my own riding, $100 million for the HOpe Centre for Psychiatry and Education, $45.7 million for Argyle Secondary, $2.5 million for the Foundry North Shore and $76.7 million for the lower Lynn interchange improvement project. That’s provincial government investment. And $147 million to reduce wait-lists and to strengthen child and youth programs; $120 million for family supports and reunification programs, which were based on the Chief Ed John report on indigenous child welfare; $20 million for new child care spaces, up to 2,000; $199 million to increase assistance rates for people with disabilities; and $175 million to provide income assistance supports for those in need.

I could go on, but you get the idea. With the debt that we are not paying, we are able to invest in these programs for British Columbians.

The Finance Minister also made note of the fact that British Columbia has the lowest personal income tax rate in the country. Any individual earning up to $120,000 a year enjoys lower taxes compared to any other province. In Ontario, you would have to pay an additional $2,819 in income tax. My friend Dan Meadowcroft from Ontario is certainly familiar with that. In Quebec, you would have to pay an additional $8,645 in tax. So it’s no wonder that investors favour British Columbia.

Greg D’Avignon of the Business Council of B.C. agrees. He said: “Delivering a balanced budget within a climate of modest economic growth and a mixed outlook for commodities sets B.C. apart and signals that the province is a stable place to invest and do business.”

Employers know that they can attract the best employees if a jurisdiction like British Columbia lets people keep more of their paycheque.

We are also making our private sector more competitive by reducing the small business tax rate to 2 percent from the current 2½ percent rate. When you consider that small business makes up 98 percent of the business community in British Columbia, this is a smart thing to do.

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Another measure is eliminating the PST on electricity for businesses. Small businesses employ over one million people in our province, and lower taxes on business make our private sector more competitive.

Val Litwin, the president and CEO of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce, had this to say: “We’re pleased the government is heeding the collective perspective of both the commission and what’s on the minds of businesses by removing the PST on electricity bills for business. This targeted tax relief will put hard-earned dollars back into

[ Page 13932 ]

the pockets of business owners, both big and small, so that they can make bolder investments and hire more British Columbians.”

We have a plan to eliminate the MSP. Today, as a result of the improvements made in last year’s budget, approximately 40 percent of B.C.’s families are paying a reduced MSP premium or no premiums at all. In fact, now that MSP premiums no longer apply to children, an estimated two million British Columbians pay no premiums whatsoever. However, Budget 2017 is going to cut MSP premiums in half. This will represent significant savings.

We were given a chart. For instance, a single individual making $60,000 would be paying $900 in MSP in 2017. Next year that will be cut to $450. For a couple with two children who make $80,000, $1,800 would be what they would be paying in 2017. In 2018, it will be $900. The MSP is cut in half. For some seniors…. I just took a chart. For those that are making $51,000 to $120,000, in 2017, they would have paid $150, but in 2018, that will be cut to $75.

In fact, Jordan Bateman of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation said about the MSP announcement: “I actually did a little happy dance in the budget lockup over the news. In fact, this is my fifth budget lockup, and I’ve never seen a significant tax cut like this before. This is the biggest tax cut since Gordon Campbell cut income taxes in 2007.” Once again, British Columbia is able to do this because our province hasn’t run a deficit over the last four budget cycles.

During his budget presentation, the Finance Minister also indicated that the global economy is still fragile, and we are now facing the potential of protectionism south of the border. This should be of concern to provincial economies like Ontario, where 81 percent of the merchandise exports head to the United States. Alberta is also vulnerable at 86 percent.

[R. Chouhan in the chair.]

However, we in British Columbia have transformed our economy by diversifying our industries and made a concerted effort to seek out new markets for our products. In 2001, 70 percent of our exports went to the U.S. Through our efforts to assist the private sector with business-friendly practices, now 54 percent of B.C. exports head to the United States. In other words, almost half our economy is geared toward exports abroad, particularly in key markets in Asia.

Make no mistake: the United States still remains an important trading partner and probably will for the foreseeable future. This is especially true of our softwood lumber industry. In 2016, B.C. accounted for 61 percent of Canada’s $7.5 billion softwood lumber trade with the United States. That’s why the Premier recently announced the appointment of David Emerson as B.C.’s trade envoy to the United States.

Mr. Emerson is a former federal trade and foreign affairs minister and the former CEO of Canfor, one of B.C.’s largest lumber producers. In addition to serving in Washington, D.C., Mr. Emerson will be joining the new federal-provincial task force. Reaching a new softwood lumber agreement is our government’s top priority, especially for the 140 communities in B.C. that rely on our cornerstone forest industry.

British Columbia’s technology sector is another facet of our diversified economy.

Hon. A. Virk: I seek leave to make an introduction.

Leave granted.

Introductions by Members

Hon. A. Virk: I’ve had the pleasure of having two classes from Pacific Academy in the precinct today. One of them was just in my office today. We had 54 students, 26 parents and two teachers, Ms. Nancy Bakken and Ms. Chelsea Johannesson.

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Would the House please make these students so welcome. They asked some excellent questions in my classroom, and they’re going to learn about how we do business here. Would the House please join me in making my guests welcome.

Debate Continued

J. Thornthwaite: With regard to the technology sector — that’s what I was talking about — it is currently breaking record levels of employment with more than 101,000 British Columbians working in the booming industry.

B.C.’s tech sector, which represents more than 9,900 companies, also leads the country in terms of job growth. Today the technology sector employs approximately 4.9 percent of B.C.’s workforce — more than the mining, oil, gas and forestry sectors combined.

Last month the Premier and the Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training visited my riding to provide an update of the government efforts to support the tech industry through the B.C. jobs plan. The five-year update indicates that British Columbia has progressed from the fourth-lowest unemployment rate to the lowest unemployment rate at 5.8 percent. This is the lowest unemployment rate we have had compared to the rest of the country since 1961.

Technology is certainly playing a big

part in the success of the jobs plan. DarkVision is a prime example of a tech company that is located in my riding of North Vancouver–Seymour. This company specializes in something called downhole imaging, technology that gives oil and gas operators a set of eyes inside their wells. This is a great example of how our tech sec-

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tor is helping other industries gain a competitive edge in British Columbia.

I should mention here that the B.C. Tech Summit is coming up March 14 to 15. The B.C. Tech Summit is the largest technology conference in British Columbia, showcasing the province’s whole technology industry.

Talking about technology, I would be remiss without mentioning an event that I was at last night celebrating the creative industries, as well as today in the front halls of the Legislature. Our government has proclaimed February 27 to March 5, 2017, as Creative Industries Week. This year’s theme is “The Next Generation of Talent.”

The creative industries are major contributors to the province’s economy, helping to keep B.C. diverse, strong and growing. B.C.’s growing creative industries include music, film, television, interactive digital media, magazine and book publishing and are responsible for more than 85,000 jobs and over $4 billion in GDP per year. In film and television, with over 60 studio facilities, B.C.’s motion picture industry can service over 45 productions at once and accommodate all sizes and types of production.

The $2 billion film and TV industry creates major economic benefits for residents and businesses. Warner Brothers’ Supernatural, filmed in British Columbia over 11 seasons, supported more than 9,600 full-time-equivalent jobs and was responsible for $509 million in direct production expenditures.

We have over 60 domestic and foreign-owned visual effects and animation studios in our province. B.C. offers highly competitive, easy-to-access and reliable provincial tax credit programs. This provides significant cost savings to domestic and international producers who do production, visual effects, animation and post-production work in British Columbia.

The basic production services tax credit rate is set at 28 percent, and the digital animation or visual effects — DAVE — tax credit is also highly competitive at 16 percent. A couple of years ago in one of our other budgets, we extended the DAVE tax credit to post-production. This is what it has done for British Columbia’s economy. Collectively, Deluxe Entertainment Services Group has invested millions in infrastructure in British Columbia and employs 500 British Columbians thanks to DAVE being expanded to post.

Doctor Strange , which is a feature film nominated this year for an Oscar in VFX, was primarily done at Method Studios in Vancouver. Lots of amazing talent. Four TV series had their posts completed at Encore Vancouver this past year — Van Helsing , Travellers , Dirk Gently , Haters Back Off , all airing on Netflix — and Lemony Snicket’s had their VFX completed by Encore post TV VFX team. Finishing these series in British Columbia is a direct result of the DAVE tax credit being expanded to post.

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With regards to Deadpool ’s North American debut, the Motion Picture Association estimates that this superhero film spent $40 million of its budget in B.C. alone and employed 2,000 local cast, crew and extras through its two-month shoot last spring. Those workers brought home total wages of $19 million, or a weekly average of almost $2,000.

The production also gave a boost to workers outside the film industry. The Motion Picture Association said about $1 million was spent on location costs; $815,000 on hotels, catering and restaurants; $735,000 on construction; and $780,000 on transportation and car rentals.

We just found out today at noon, at the announcement, that according to the Motion Picture Production Industry Association economic impact report, one production in British Columbia, called Arrow , provides 7,000 jobs for British Columbia and $360 million spent in B.C. over five seasons. That’s significant. We thank the film industry for their positive contribution to B.C.’s economy and jobs.

When asked what the single most important service is that government operates or funds, the Finance Minister stated in his remarks that education is chief among them. Education is empowerment, and our government is making that a top priority. That’s why we are providing an additional $740 million over the next three years to the education budget. That translates into spending almost $9,000 per student in British Columbia.

In addition, we announced the $29.4 million student learning grant, which is to allow schools to purchase a wide range of supplies for schools and classrooms. Individual school boards will also be able to decide what types of learning supplies to purchase, giving them flexibility to meet the local needs of parents, students and teachers.

Parents and educators are welcoming these investments. In fact, the president of the School Trustees Association, Teresa Rezansoff, said: “I am pleased to see that government has recognized the need for significant further investments in public education. A robust and effective K-to-12 education system is critical to the health and prosperity of the province.”

Naturally, any education system needs to house students, and British Columbia is making the right capital investment in school infrastructure, including new buildings, renovations and seismic upgrades. One new building that we announced last year is coming to my riding — $47.7 million to replace Argyle Secondary. It’s worth noting that North Vancouver has benefited tremendously from significant capital investments in new schools, even since I became an MLA in 2009.

Brand-new schools that were built in partnership with municipalities or significant renos and seismic upgrades — I’m just going to list a few: Lynn Valley Elementary, Windsor Secondary, Westview, Carson Graham, Ridgeway, Queen Mary, Highlands and Sutherland. All happened while I’ve been an MLA.

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2017 to 2018 will support the creation of up to 2,000 new additional child care spaces. These spaces are in addition to the government’s current goal of creating 13,000 new licensed child care spaces between 2014 and 2020, announced as part of the B.C. early-years strategy.

B.C. is placing an emphasis, also, on post-secondary. More than 426,000 students are enrolled in at least one course at one of the 25 public post-secondary institutions in British Columbia, including the one in my riding, Capilano University.

Budget 2017 is making it more affordable too. Effective August 1, the interest rate on student loans will be reduced from prime plus 2.5 percent to just prime. This will save people repaying student loans $11.3 million this year and $17 million over the next two years.

I would also like to add that parents should be taking advantage of the B.C. training and education savings grant. By opening a registered education savings plan, eligible parents and children will receive a grant of $1,200 to put toward that child’s education later on in life. Only about two-thirds of eligible children in B.C. have RESPs, so I encourage everyone to look into how a B.C. training and education savings grant could change the life of your child.

To make life more affordable for B.C. families, the provincial government has made unprecedented investments to increase the supply of new units of affordable housing. This includes committing $500 million to fund 2,900 new affordable rental units across the province.

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This comes in addition to $355 million promised in Budget 2016 to build 2,000 new units that will house people who need it most, including seniors and the disabled.

Young families who want to achieve the dream of home ownership can now take advantage of the B.C. home owner mortgage and equity partnership. This program will match the down payment of a home up to $37,500, or up to 5 percent of the purchase price.

British Columbia also has the first-time-homebuyers program, which reduces or eliminates the amount of property transfer tax that qualified purchasers pay when they buy their first home. We increased the threshold for this program to $500,000, allowing first-time buyers to save up to $8,000 in property transfer tax.

In 2016, the first-time-homebuyers program helped almost 21,000 families save an average of $4,000 on the purchase of their first home. Anne McMullin of the Urban Development Institute said: “Increasing the property transfer tax exemption threshold to $500,000…for first-time homebuyers will enable more locals and families to get onto the first rung of the property ladder.”

Also in 2016, we introduced a newly built home exemption that fully exempted newly built homes, including condominiums, priced up to $750,000 from property transfer tax. That helped more than 9,100 families save an average of $7,400 on the purchase of their home.

We’ve been working with local governments to help make housing more affordable. The provincial government is working with municipal leaders and regional directors who are responsible for planning, zoning and development regulations to use the tools at their disposal, to support the province’s efforts and further the creation of the new housing supply. This is the kind of cooperation that people want us to do.

We had an unprecedented meeting. The North Shore MLAs, the North Shore MPs and the North Shore mayors all met a couple of weeks ago with our Minister Responsible for Housing and our Minister Responsible for TransLink to recognize the connection between transportation, public transportation and housing affordability. I’m looking more for how those meetings will progress.

Speaking of transportation, I was pleased to take

part in an announcement regarding the fourth phase of the work being done along the Highway 1 lower Lynn corridor in North Vancouver, also known as The Cut.

This project is a partnership between the provincial government, federal government and the district of North Vancouver and recognizes how partnerships can make stuff happen in our communities. Work includes the construction of the westbound collector lane from Mount Seymour Parkway to Mountain Highway. It will also include a new two-lane bridge on each side of the existing Lynn Creek bridge and an eastbound on-ramp from Mountain Highway onto Highway 1.

Once complete in spring 2021, the entire project, which is four phases worth $198 million, will greatly improve traffic flow on this heavily used stretch of Highway 1 and improve the connections between east and west of North Vancouver. This was the number one reason why I ran in 2009, and I’m so happy to see this progress. I’ve been able to attend a couple of open houses on the new project. There are maps in my office, if anybody wants to see it, but people are generally quite pleased that this is moving along.

With regards to health and mental health investment, the North Shore is also benefiting extremely from health care. This month it was announced that a new acute care

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facility at Lions Gate Hospital is one step closer. A concept plan is being developed, and details of the new facility will be finalized over the next 18 months. During the business planning phase, the new acute care tower at Lions Gate Hospital will have 108 beds on six to eight floors, encompassing an area of approximately 200,000 square feet. The number of operating theatres will be increased from nine to 12 in comparison with the present facilities.

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This comes on the heels of the new Greta and Robert Ho HOpe Centre for psychiatry and education, where we previously announced a dedicated ten-bed unit specifically for youth aged 13 to 18 and will focus on assessment and stabilization.

As Chair of the Select Standing Committee on Children and Youth, I was able to be part of a special project examining child and youth mental health in our province. Last year the committee released the final report, titled Concrete Actions for Systemic Change , which had been a project of several years of consultations with experts in the field of mental health, families and children.

In response to some of the recommendations contained in the report, I was able to announce the launch of Foundry North Shore, a new, integrated youth service centre hub in lower Lonsdale. Foundry North Shore will bring existing services under one roof so families and young people can access a one-stop shop for primary care, mental health, substance use, social services, employment services and much, much more. The centre for youth between the ages of 12 and 24 years is hosted by Vancouver Coastal Health and is expected to be fully operational and accepting clients by late spring this year.

Foundry North Shore is one of the five centres announced in June 2016 as part of a provincial network of easily accessible youth service centres hosted by local organizations. This budget just increased that to 11 sites. As a matter of fact, Jonny Morris of the Canadian Mental Health Association remarked on our efforts in this budget by saying: “I haven’t seen a budget over the past couple of years that has made such explicit mention of priorities around mental health and addiction.”

With respect to community living services, primarily operated through Community Living B.C., this budget will also see an increase of $135 million to continue to provide support for individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. As Parliamentary Secretary for Child Mental Health and Anti-Bullying for the Minister of Children and Family Development, I, like most British Columbians, welcome the increase of $287 million over the next three years to the budget of MCFD.

Bernard Richard, our new B.C. Children and Youth Representative, commented: “A 9 percent increase for the ministry. A lot of it focused on prevention, early intervention, permanency planning and youth mental health. These are all issues that we’ve raised and that other voices in B.C. have raised.” This is especially true with respect to the $120 million contained in the budget to address all of the recommendations of Grand Chief Ed John in his report on indigenous child welfare.

Last but not least, I would like to put in a little plug for the investments in parks. There was an announcement at the end of last year: $23 million over five years for 1,900 new campsites, an additional $35 million over three years for more full-time park rangers and new programs, plus a $10 million endowment to the new B.C. Parks Foundation.

The SPCA is very happy with us too. They’ve got an extra $10 million over two years. Again, the announcement that I was part of yesterday proves that our government is working with responsible breeders, veterinarians as well as the SPCA on bringing forward legislation to shut down puppy mills once and for all.

With that, I’m very, very pleased to put my support for this budget.

S. Simpson: I’m happy to join in the debate about Budget 2017.

Just before I begin to make comments about the budget, I do want to again thank the people of Vancouver-Hastings, who have sent me here three times. I will be back asking them to do that again, for a fourth time here, in a couple of months.

I especially, though, want to say thanks to the people who help me to do the job that I do. Having been here for 12 years, I’ve just gone through a transition of a number of my staff who had been with me for a long time, and I have some new people with me. I’m very excited about that, having new energy and people who have a real commitment. In my Vancouver office, Anne Vavrik has joined me, and Sherrill Gullickson. Theresa Ho has been with me for quite a number of years and provides support with the Chinese community in Cantonese and Mandarin.

Of course, here in Victoria, we all have our staff and people who help us. I’m very happy to have Jared Butcher as my legislative assistant, who supports me in a wide range of ways with the work that we do here.

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The people of Vancouver-Hastings…. I’ve talked to them. We’ve been talking a lot over the last couple of months. Increasingly, as we know, as we get closer to the 9th of May, they’re starting to become more engaged in the notion of the upcoming election. I hear from the people in my constituency that they’re excited to come to an election, excited to get to vote again, and they will be voting to support provincial change. I’m pretty confident that the people of Vancouver-Hastings reflect the view of most British Columbians, who will be voting for a change.

We know, though, that the government side, the Liberal side, probably also knows that. That’s why we see in this budget a government that is trying desperately, I believe, to change the channel — a budget that has been coined by many, and I hear it more everywhere, the forget-about-

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everything budget. “Forget about what we’ve done for the last 15, 16 years” — especially the last five years — “and only think about what it is that we’re promising now.” Not much of it’s actually locked-in commitments, but there are a lot of promises, and we’re hearing about that.

Well, people are a little cynical, to say the least, about the forget-about-everything budget and about the promises of the Premier and the promises of the B.C. Liberals. There’s good reason for that