2003 Legislative Session: 4th Session, 37th Parliament

HANSARD

The following electronic version is for informational purposes

only.

The printed version remains the official version.

Official Report of

DEBATES OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

(Hansard)

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2003

Afternoon Sitting

Volume 11, Number 4

CONTENTS

Routine

Proceedings

Page

Introductions by Members

Tributes

McBride peewee hockey team

Hon. S. Bond

Statements (Standing Order 25 B )

Arnold Patrick Recalma

G. Trumper

Chinese New Year

P. Wong

War against Iraq

J. MacPhail

Oral Questions

Impact of Olympic Games on Vancouver rental market

J. Kwan

Hon. R. Coleman

Gasoline tax

J. MacPhail

Hon. G. Collins

Monty Little

R. Visser

Hon. R. Thorpe

James Bay Community Project health clinic

J. Bray

Hon. C. Hansen

Collection of unpaid sales taxes

J. Kwan

Hon. B. Barisoff

Reports from Committees

Select Standing Committee on Public

Accounts

J. Kwan

Throne Speech Debate (continued)

T. Christensen

B. Kerr

Hon. R. Coleman

Hon. R. Neufeld

H. Bloy

Hon. S. Bond

D. Chutter

I. Chong

J. van Dongen

[ Page 4759 ]

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2003

The House

met at 2:04 p.m.

Introductions by Members

Nuraney: I have great pleasure in recognizing some of the very distinguished

guests with us today in the gallery, starting from our new police complaint

commissioner who got sworn in this morning. I'm happy to welcome Dirk Ryneveld

and his wife, Fiona; his son, Michael; and his daughter, Susan.

[1405]

We also

have in the gallery Barbara Murphy, the deputy commissioner; Mr. Ben Casson, who

very ably fulfilled the duty and deputized the role of the deputy commissioner;

the chief officer, Dave Douglas, of the Organized Crime Agency of British

Columbia; Kevin Begg, the director of police services, Ministry of Public Safety

and Solicitor General; Derek Egan, president of the B.C. Association of

Municipal Chiefs of Police. Will the House please make them all welcome.

Lekstrom: It is my pleasure to welcome to British Columbia and to our House

a delegation of visitors from the Western Cape Provincial Parliament in South

Africa. Joining us in the gallery this afternoon are Mr. Nicholas Isaacs and Mr.

Archie Lewis, both members of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament, South

Africa; and Mr. Mario Sassman, senior committee coordinator, Western Cape

Parliament.

As well, they

are accompanied by staff from the Parliamentary Centre in Ottawa, Ms. Tania

Wallace and Ms. Kim Caldwell. Would the House please help make me make them feel

welcome.

Hon. J.

Murray: It's my great pleasure to introduce Daniel Fontaine, who is joining

us today in the gallery. Daniel is a tireless volunteer, a key executive member

of my B.C. Liberal Riding Association in New Westminster, and I'm very pleased

to have him here today. Please make him welcome.

MacPhail: I, too, join with my colleagues in the Legislature to welcome

guests from the Western Cape of South Africa. My colleague met earlier with

them, and I will be meeting with them later today. It is in a true spirit of

international friendship and collegiality that we welcome them today. I join

with everybody else in doing so.

Hon. S.

Bond: I am pleased to make an introduction in the gallery on behalf of my

colleague from Prince George North. We're pleased to welcome today a constituent

of his and also a resident of my community, Iris McIntyre. We want to welcome

her to the precinct. I would ask you to help me make her welcome.

Tributes

McBRIDE PEEWEE HOCKEY TEAM

Hon. S.

Bond: You'll be thrilled to know I have somebody else. I was just following

my colleague over there from Peace River. It gives me great pleasure today to

acknowledge an outstanding group of young athletes from one of my communities,

who are going to enjoy an exciting slice of Canadiana. The McBride peewee hockey

team is going on the road with the Vancouver Canucks.

This coming

Saturday is Hockey Day in Canada, and teams across B.C. were invited to

participate in the Canucks' peewee road trip contest. All they had to do was

explain why they loved hockey. Explaining something that seems genetically

programmed into Canadians is not an easy task. However, the McBride peewee boys

won it with their poster entitled "We Fit Together as a Team."

As a hockey

mom who has spent countless hours in a hockey rink, I know it is the dream of

Canadian children everywhere to grow up and play in the big leagues. This team

will have many sleepless nights until Friday, when the bus arrives and picks

them up. They will travel to Calgary. They will eat with the Canucks. They will

skate with them and then watch a hockey game. I can tell you, I want to

congratulate them. It is a dream come true for a wonderful group of young people

in my constituency. Congratulations to the McBride peewee hockey team.

Introductions by Members

Roddick: In the gallery today from Delta South are three dedicated teachers

— Connie Matisz, Nancy Gamlin and Mary Hodgson — with 59 very enthusiastic

students from grades 6 and 7 accompanied by ten wonderful, long-suffering

parents from Hawthorne Elementary in beautiful, historic Ladner. Please give

them all a desk-thumping welcome.

Suffredine: In the gallery today we have one student from Camosun College

who has an interest in criminology and political science. He came to the throne

speech debate, and that wasn't enough for him, so he came back today to watch

question period. He's also my son, James. Would the House please make him

welcome.

[1410]

Hon. G.

Abbott: Among the many people in the gallery today who are here to witness

the drama and splendour of question period are two constituents of mine from

Shuswap. William and Sybil Pringle are here from Salmon Arm. I'd like the House

to join with me in making them welcome.

Statements

(Standing Order 25

b) ARNOLD PATRICK RECALMA

Trumper: I rise today to pay tribute to Arnold Patrick Recalma, who is known

as Buddy to his friends

[ Page 4760 ]

and family. He died just before Christmas. Buddy was the head of a family

that made up some of the last survivors of the Penlatch people and was a

well-respected leader in the aboriginal community. He was born in Victoria in

1930, at a time when even the right to assemble for reasons other than Christian

purposes was denied to status Indians in Canada.

As a teenager

he joined the Native Brotherhood of B.C., North America's oldest aboriginal

organization. This was an underground organization that organized for treaty

rights, fishing rights, old age pension and the right to vote. Because the

federal government outlawed the ability to organize politically, they opened

their meetings with a hymn, Onward Christian Soldiers , which served as a

decoy for the brotherhood's activities.

Many of the

people who knew Buddy experienced the generosity of his open-door policy,

whether he found them a job, gave them a place to sleep or offered them a meal.

He was a hereditary chieftain, a fisherman and a strong advocate for the rights

of his people. He was a friend not just to me but also to nearly every person

who met him. Perhaps more than anything, Bud Recalma was a man of his people and

lived to the best of his ability with his large family, both past and present.

His presence will be greatly missed. To his family, it was a privilege to have

known him.

CHINESE NEW YEAR

P. Wong:

As today is Chinese New Year, I would like to wish my constituents, my

colleagues and guests in this House and all British Columbians gung hay fat

choy . From February 1, I have attended many Chinese New Year's celebrations

and on February 2 had the pleasure of accompanying the Premier and Mrs. Campbell

at the Vancouver Chinatown New Year parade.

For over one

million Canadians of Chinese heritage, Chinese New Year marks the beginning of

another year filled with prosperity and happiness. Much emphasis is placed on

the importance of family, hard work, social tolerance and awareness. The Chinese

lunar calendar is represented by 12 animals each year as the symbol for Chinese

New Year. The qualities that the symbol represents are what guides us through

the year. This Year of the Ram represents accommodation of others, peace,

compassion, tolerance and humility. Given the uncertainty facing our world, the

Year of the Ram is very appropriate to reflect upon these values and to make

them a part of our everyday lives.

I am very

pleased that the city of Vancouver has proclaimed February 1 as Chinese New Year

day in the city. This is welcome news to all the Canadian Chinese living in

Vancouver, and it marks a significant step in recognizing the importance of this

celebration to the Chinese population. Through you to all British Columbians,

may the Year of the Ram bring peace and happiness to everyone's lives, and may

we all find the balance and humility we are striving for.

WAR AGAINST IRAQ

MacPhail: As we meet this session to debate the future of our province and

the security and well-being of our citizens, the possibility of a new war in the

Middle East hangs over our deliberations. A comprehensive weapons inspection

regime is in place, which needs more time to determine compliance with the UN

resolution 1441. There is widespread public opposition to a war in Canada and

amongst our European allies.

[1415]

Nevertheless,

Washington looks to be intent on a predetermined and unilateral course of

action. It seems that war is coming, whether we like it or not.

Although

British Columbians and, through them, this Legislature can do little to quiet

the drumbeat in Washington, the war will affect our lives in ways that we cannot

predict. There is the possibility that young Canadians will be asked to

participate and be put in harm's way. There is the possibility that it will

trigger the use of weapons whose destructive force is impossible to contemplate.

There is the possibility that it will dramatically disrupt the global economy,

destroying the chance a small, open economy like ours has of recovery. Already

we're seeing the impact on gas prices. Of course, if an invasion begins, there

is the potential that thousands will die and more will be hurt.

British

Columbia may be a small province, but we can and must be a strong voice for

peace. With people from every corner of the globe living side by side within our

borders, British Columbia stands as a testament to the values of tolerance,

civility, dialogue and understanding, values that now more than ever need to

find expression in our own politics and in international relations.

The Iraqi

regime is a pariah. It brutalizes and oppresses citizens, but it is also a weak

and broken regime. In Canada we need to propose alternatives, because

pre-emptive unilateral war will only reinforce divisions, uncertainty and

hatreds. For the sake of peace, for the sake of future generations and for the

security of the world, let us speak and work for peace, not war.

Oral Questions

IMPACT OF OLYMPIC GAMES

ON VANCOUVER RENTAL MARKET

J. Kwan:

New provincial rent legislation announced last fall appears to violate a key

guarantee in the Vancouver 2010 Olympic bid and could threaten the city's bid as

it heads into a plebiscite next week. Legislation which would allow landlords to

retroactively apply rent increases for up to three years would compromise a

promise made at the International Olympic Committee. In a tight housing market

like Vancouver, this will have devastating consequences for renters, seniors and

people living on social assistance. Will the Solicitor General agree to shelve

the legislation

[ Page 4761 ]

until a more comprehensive consultation can take place?

Hon. R.

Coleman: First of all, through to the member opposite, we do have controls

built into this legislation and into the regulations that will be coming

forward. She knows that. She debated the legislation with me last fall.

In reviewing

the bid book from Salzburg, there is no mention whatsoever about anything to do

with rents with regards to them. They only refer to bed-and-breakfasts and

hotels relative to what they have in that category of their bid book.

In addition to

that, stability in the rental housing market will bring more rental

accommodation investment into British Columbia so we don't face a rental crisis

by the time we get to the 2010 Olympics. In addition to that, the government of

the day will be able to moderate whatever increases could be done by regulation,

because that's the way we structured it.

Mr.

Speaker: The member for Vancouver–Mount Pleasant has a supplementary

question.

J. Kwan:

During Expo 86 over 1,000 people were evicted by greedy landlords putting in

unreasonable rent increases. Several people died as a result of those evictions.

We have an

opportunity to do things differently. The mayor of Vancouver, staff at the

Olympic bid corporation, the Tenants Rights Action Coalition, the West End

Residents Association — as the member for Vancouver-Burrard will certainly

know — have all requested that these changes to the Residential Tenancy Act be

shelved.

The minister

says: "Don't worry. Everything will be fine." The minister won't

listen to the people who experienced the deaths in the community. Again, to the

Solicitor General: will he announce today the delay of the changes to the

Residential Tenancy Act which will gouge renters and undermine the Olympic bid?

[1420]

Hon. R.

Coleman: It would be well for the member opposite to, first of all, quit

fearmongering with regards to how rent controls…. The member opposite might

also want to look at the bid book…

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please.

Hon. R.

Coleman: …and look at the legacy that's being built with regard to several

hundred rental housing units that would be available for social housing as a

result of the Olympics coming to British Columbia and the fact that — for the

first time ever, I am told by the industry — when they see there's actually

going to be stability…. We are actually building today new rental housing for

the first time in many years in British Columbia.

GASOLINE TAX

MacPhail: Yesterday the Premier announced an annual $200 million,

3.5-cent-per-litre gas tax hike. That's on top of over $800 million in new tax

increases and countless new fees. This tax comes at the worst possible time for

low- and middle-income British Columbians, just when gas prices are going

through the roof.

To the

Minister of Finance: can he please table the economic impact study that he must

have undertaken to determine the effect of this new tax on the economy of the

interior?

Hon. G.

Collins: I can tell the member opposite that every single penny of the gas

tax revenue is going to go back into the infrastructure that British Columbians

from one end of the province to the other have been asking for and demanding for

over ten years. We're going to deliver it. The economic benefits of that

improved infrastructure will be monumental to every single community in British

Columbia.

Mr.

Speaker: The Leader of the Opposition has a supplementary question.

MacPhail: For the last 12 years the full gas tax has gone into

transportation infrastructure — the only province in all of Canada that has

done that. I might remind the minister that it was his government that outlawed

the business lens that the former government put in.

Now, on the

lower mainland this government put…

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please. Order, please.

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order. The Leader of the Opposition has the floor.

MacPhail: …in a 2-cent-per-litre increase in the gas tax last April. This

March they're putting a 3.5-cent-per-litre increase on the lower mainland

citizens, and now we hear that the citizens of the lower mainland are also going

to have to pay tolls. It couldn't come at a worse time than now — a

5.5-cent-per-litre increase and tolls in the lower mainland.

Will the

Minister of Finance commit to doing an economic impact study on the economy of

the lower mainland before he imposes tolls on the lower mainland?

Hon. G.

Collins: Perhaps she should ask the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

to do that. They gave them $200,000 to do just that sort of thing.

All you

have to do is look at the infrastructure benefits to the people of the lower

mainland, to the

[ Page 4762 ]

transportation network of the lower mainland. If we can twin the Port Mann

Bridge, if we can improve border crossing infrastructure, if you can do a South

Surrey perimeter road, the benefit to the shipping industry and the trucking

industry in British Columbia…

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please.

Hon. G.

Collins: …when they can get their goods to market faster…. They're not

paying people to stay in traffic, to stop in traffic and to idle in traffic —

something I know was never a issue to the NDP. But think of the improvement in

the air quality when we relieve the gridlock in the lower mainland and we can

start to see improvements in the air quality for the people of British Columbia.

Interjection.

Mr.

Speaker: Member, order, please. The member for North Island has the floor.

MONTY LITTLE

Visser: I stood in this House yesterday and spoke about 270 North Island

folks, their families and their community and the devastating fire that they had

last weekend. I asked that we as legislators and all British Columbians rise

above the ill-informed rhetoric of the critics of aquaculture and remember the

real people that depend on us to bring balance and substance to the debate.

[1425]

No sooner

had I sat down than the member for Vancouver-Hastings was on her feet levelling

accusations at the industry that sustains those very people I was talking about.

How disappointing.

MacPhail: Really. And how did you get that from my question — that you're

on the take…?

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please.

Interjection.

Mr.

Speaker: Order.

Visser: My question is for the Minister of Competition, Science and

Enterprise and minister responsible for the B.C. Science Council. Could he

please tell this House… .

MacPhail: I'm in favour of jobs, in the wild stock.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please. Order, order.

Please

continue.

Visser: Could the minister please tell this House and this province the real

facts about Monty Little and his appointment to the Science Council?

Hon. R.

Thorpe: You know, one of the great things about the member for

Vancouver-Hastings is that when she was in government, she didn't get the facts

right. She's in opposition, and she doesn't get the facts right. So let me share

the facts with the House.

On March 21,

1996, Mr. Monty Little was appointed to the Science Council and signed by Mr.

Dan Miller, former Premier of British Columbia. On October 5, 1999, an

order-in-council appointed….

Interjection.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please.

Please

continue.

Hon. R.

Thorpe: On October 5, 1999, Mr. Little was once again appointed to the

Science Council, signed by the former minister, Andrew Petter, of the NDP

government. And on January 12, 2000, former minister Petter of the NDP

government appointed Mr. Little once again. Then, in the dying days of their

government, on May 25, 2001, that member for Vancouver-Hastings, the Deputy

Premier of the province, formalized the appointment of Mr. Little to the B.C.

Aquaculture Research and Development Committee.

These are the

facts. The member for Vancouver-Hastings should stand in this House and

apologize to Mr. Little, a very credible scientist, volunteer and businessman in

British Columbia.

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please.

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please.

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order.

The member

for Victoria–Beacon Hill.

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please.

JAMES BAY COMMUNITY PROJECT

HEALTH CLINIC

J. Bray:

My question is to the Minister of Health Services. Recently I attended a public

meeting organized by citizens concerned about the status of the James Bay

Community Project health clinic. At the meeting a motion was passed asking for

my assistance. Of particular concern to the citizens is the current funding

model that funds medical practices like the James Bay

[ Page 4763 ]

Community Project based on the number of patients cared for and not the

number of services provided.

These citizens

have raised concerns about the ability of this funding model to meet the needs

of seniors locally. Can the Minister of Health Services tell us what steps his

ministry has taken to address this issue?

Hon. C.

Hansen: I guess, first of all, I want to acknowledge the hundreds of hours

that this member has put into this particular issue and the time he's taken to

develop an understanding of the challenges that the James Bay clinic is facing.

As a direct

result of the various meetings I have had with this member, we have gone back

and reviewed the formula. What is obvious from the material he has provided me

is that the James Bay clinic has an inordinate number of seniors on their

patient list, and we have now made a decision that we will adjust the funding

formula to reflect the increased number of seniors. That will be retroactive to

last April 1. In addition to that, increased money will also flow to the clinic

as a direct result of the increase in physician compensation in the province. So

as a result of those two sources, they will see additional funding flow

retroactive to April 1 of last year.

Mr.

Speaker: The member for Victoria–Beacon Hill has a supplementary question.

J. Bray:

I would hope that the Leader of the Opposition would actually watch MLAs do

their job and see how it's actually done in this House.

[1430]

I am

pleased that the ministry has recognized a need to increase the funding formula,

to better recognize the specific needs of seniors in this type of health clinic.

However, many of my constituents are concerned that staffing levels, especially

among physicians, are not adequate to deal with existing patients or new

patients as they get registered in the clinic.

To the

Minister of Health Services: this is an issue of significant concern. Can he

answer my constituents' concerns about the staffing levels at the clinic?

Hon. C.

Hansen: I think what's important to understand here is that this particular

clinic is funded based on the number of residents that register with the clinic.

It is a pilot project that was put in place a number of years ago. It's a

demonstration project around the primary care demonstration project that was in

place a while ago. Their funding mostly flows as a direct result of how many

residents of the community sign up for care from that clinic.

I know there

is a significant recruitment drive that is being developed now to get more

residents of the James Bay community to sign up at the clinic. The concern that

has been expressed to me via the MLA for Victoria–Beacon Hill is that they

need assurance that the additional dollars will flow as patients are registered,

because we can't have this new influx of patients to the clinic and not have the

dollars to match. I can give the member assurance that as new residents of James

Bay sign up for the clinic, we are able to ensure that those dollars will flow

from the day that they are registered, and we can also assist them in moving new

physicians into that clinic as those new patients come to seek that care.

COLLECTION OF UNPAID SALES TAXES

J. Kwan:

To the Minister of Provincial Revenue: the Minister of Forests says he was

wrongly named in the judgment in writ of seizure for unpaid PST filed in the

Supreme Court in July of last year. We know that the judgment was very

efficiently cancelled on his behalf.

Yesterday I

asked the question: has the $12,500 owed to the Crown by the minister's former

partner been paid in full? The question remains unanswered. If not, I'd like to

ask the minister this question: why hasn't the government re-filed the judgment

using the correct names?

Mr.

Speaker: I believe the question was taken on notice, but the minister may

answer if he wishes.

Hon. B.

Barisoff: Due to taxpayer confidentiality, the member knows full well that I

can't comment on that. But I will assure the members that we treat all taxpayers

equally and fairly.

Interjections.

Mr.

Speaker: Order, please.

[End

of question period.]

Reports from Committees

J. Kwan:

I have the honour to present the report of the Select Standing Committee on

Public Accounts for the third session of the thirty-seventh parliament.

Hon. Speaker,

I move that the report be taken as read and received.

Motion

approved.

J. Kwan:

I ask leave of the House to suspend the rules to permit the moving of a motion

to adopt the report.

Leave

granted.

J. Kwan:

I move that the report be adopted. In so moving the report, I would simply like

to advise that members of the committee have completed the review of the reports

of the auditor general of B.C. deposited with the Speaker of the Legislative

Assembly during the last 12 months, with the exception of the following new

reports: Managing Contaminated Sites on Provincial Lands , which was

delivered on December 2002; Review of Estimates Related to

Vancouver's Bid to Stage the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and Paralympic Winter

Games , January 2003; Building Better Reports: Our Review of the

[ Page 4764 ]

2001-02 Reports of Government , which was deposited on January 2003; Follow-up

of Performance Reports , deposited January 2003.

The committee

looks forward to being reconstituted at the earliest opportunity in the fourth

session of the thirty-seventh parliament in order to complete the review of the

outstanding reports published during the current Legislative Assembly.

Motion

approved.

[1435]

Orders of the Day

Hon. G.

Collins: I call continued debate on Address in Reply to the Speech from the

Throne.

Throne Speech Debate

(continued)

Christensen: Thank you for the opportunity to continue debate on the throne

speech. On Tuesday the Lieutenant-Governor spoke of opening up new ways of

meeting our common interests, and I just want to touch on a couple of the issues

that the Lieutenant-Governor mentioned. First was the issue of a consolidation

of the delivery of child care services in the province, and I think this is a

long overdue move on the part of government to try and bring some cohesion to

the delivery of the various supports that government provides to parents around

the province who need child care, as well to child care service providers.

I know that in

my own constituency, I'm contacted by parents on really two basic issues around

child care. One is certainly the cost of child care in today's economy while

parents are struggling to make ends meet, and the second is simply on the lack

of available child care spaces. Obviously, both of those are difficult issues to

address, but government must take steps to encourage an expansion of the child

care spaces. I think the minister has made great strides, in fact, in doing that

by expanding the scope of support in child care to licensed family day cares as

well as the licensed group day cares. I look forward in my own constituency to

seeing how that policy unfolds and seeing the results on the ground as parents

are better able to get the child care that they need and that their children

need.

The second

issue in new ways of meeting our common interests is that of the move towards a

provincial authority for community living B.C. I think that we will look back a

decade from now and really see what an exciting opportunity this has been for

the people who rely on the community living sector and those working in that

sector in terms of their ability to provide for the people who they care so much

about.

In my own

constituency of Okanagan-Vernon we're very fortunate to have a number of very

good service providers, both non-profit societies and private caregivers, who

are dealing with folks in community living. I know, certainly, in speaking with

them that there are a number of challenges ahead as we move to this new

authority, but in general, there's a great deal of excitement in terms of their

ability to have input on how to best meet the needs of this client group. All of

the folks involved are very committed to focusing on the needs of clients, and

as long as that is the focus that is retained, I guarantee you that at the end

of the day we're going to have a much more effective delivery system in British

Columbia, and certainly those in my constituency are looking forward to that.

[1440]

One of the

most important elements of the throne speech on Tuesday was the statement of

recognition and reconciliation with first nations. I don't think the importance

of that statement by the Lieutenant-Governor and by the government can be

overestimated. Nobody who reviews the history in this province and the policies

of the past in terms of dealing with our first nations people can look back with

any sense of pride on those dealings. For the first time government has

acknowledged that poor history and has attempted to make amends so that we can

move forward in cooperation with our first nations to achieve the goals that

first nations communities are setting for themselves and do that hand in hand

with non–first nations communities. I know that in my own constituency — I

believe it was last week, or it may have been two weeks ago now — the city of

Vernon and the Okanagan first nation came to a memorandum of understanding in

terms of how those two neighbouring communities can work better together to

further their common interests and the common interests of everybody who lives

in the North Okanagan. As long as we have our communities working together, we

are all going to be better off at the end of the day.

There were a

number of initiatives in the throne speech that dealt with opening up B.C.'s

heartlands to economic growth. Again, those initiatives and the importance of

those initiatives can't be overestimated. I just want to touch very briefly on a

few of them.

Firstly, and

of great interest to my own constituency, there is the indication that we are

going to have a B.C. resort task force. As I suspect most of you know, Silver

Star Mountain Resort, one of the finest ski areas in the province, is in my own

constituency and is again enjoying a good year of snow when many others are not.

While I haven't had an opportunity this year to get up there nearly as much as I

would like to, it's always a good break when I can at least get up for a couple

of hours and enjoy a few runs on the slopes. Silver Star, on its own, is in the

process of developing an aggressive growth strategy that will benefit all of the

North Okanagan.

I've commented

in this House before about the type of customers we're seeing come from around

the world to visit our ski resorts. I think the establishment of a B.C. resort

task force to focus on what the needs of those communities are, so that they can

take the greatest advantage of this natural opportunity we've been provided in

British Columbia, is a very major step forward. I very much look forward to

seeing what the

[ Page 4765 ]

task force is doing and hearing the results, and I'm sure many in my

community are looking forward to that, as well, and hoping for some involvement.

Secondly, in

respect of economic growth, many members in this House have spoken of the

reliance we have on the forest industry in the province and the fundamental

importance that this industry is working on all cylinders. The fact that in this

session we can look forward to the long overdue steps necessary to revitalize

the forest industry in this province is something we can all be excited about.

In my own

constituency we have a wide, wide diversity of forestry interests. Perhaps it's

a good example in the province of a community that is a relatively small

geographical area but has a great diversity of types of forest as well as a

great diversity in the industry. We certainly have the large companies that

literally employ thousands in the Okanagan Valley and that must continuously

work on efficiency to remain competitive in what is becoming an extremely

competitive and tough world market.

We have

smaller but growing mills that face the continuing struggle to ensure that they

can get access to fibre so they can actually make the products they already know

they have markets for. We have the value-added remanufacturers and log home

builders and others in the value-added sector that, again, struggle on a

continual basis to ensure that they can get the fibre to make the products

they've already developed markets for. We have, among others, a thriving salvage

logging community that really, in certain parts of my constituency, is the

foundation of the economy.

All of those

aspects of the forest industry need the opportunity to thrive in this province.

I am confident that the steps taken and the legislative changes made during this

session and led by the Minister of Forests will, in fact, accomplish a

revitalization of the forest industry as a whole so that we can all look forward

to a dynamic and successful forest industry throughout the province in every

part of that industry.

[1445]

Finally,

there was a good deal of discussion — and I'm sure this discussion is going to

be ongoing — in terms of transportation infrastructure, and I simply want to

comment that what is of fundamental importance is that we are now moving forward

with a provincial strategy that deals with the transportation needs in all parts

of the province. I know in my own constituency there's been a good deal of

anxiety over the years about the need to upgrade Highway 97 going both south and

north from Vernon. I'm looking forward to the further unveiling of the

transportation infrastructure strategy and how that impacts the Okanagan in

particular. But I think we all need to recognize that it doesn't matter where

you go in this province, there is a transportation infrastructure project that

is critical to both the social and the economic needs of every single community.

It's long

overdue that we develop a strategy that can actually see the province move

forward. It was refreshing to see we have a government that's prepared to take,

in some cases, unpopular steps necessary to ensure that the strategy moves

forward and that is thinking about the long-term interests of the province.

Another

development, just briefly, in terms of transportation. Certainly, I was pleased

to hear that there will not be tolls on inland ferries. That is something my

colleagues in the interior and I have been concerned about. While I don't have

an inland ferry in my own riding, I have one that neighbours on my riding.

Certainly, it's of critical importance in terms of the link between my riding in

the Okanagan and the neighbouring riding in the Kootenays. There will be a good

number of my constituents who are happy to see that development.

In closing,

it's simplistic to say — and it really is underwhelming to say — that we've

set out an ambitious set of initiatives, but that is in fact the simplest way to

put it. Success is critical to the well-being of my constituents in

Okanagan-Vernon as well as all other parts of the province. I certainly look

forward over the next number of months to working with the Premier, the cabinet

and all of my caucus colleagues here in this House to ensure that we reach the

goals that were set out in the throne speech by our Lieutenant-Governor.

B. Kerr:

It's my pleasure to rise in support of the Speech from the Throne today. I

receive hundreds of e-mails, it seems, every week. Last week I received an

e-mail from a constituent, and he told me, after going on through a number of

issues, that all he wanted was decent wages, public health care, affordable

education and public parks we can afford. I think that's what we all want. I

don't think we're any different in that regard, but the serious question is: if

we're not there now, how do we get there? I think the Speech from the Throne

lays out that plan, so I'd like to address some of the specifics outlined in the

speech.

It recognized

the importance of an economic strategy for the heartlands, and it recognized

that no place on Earth is more blessed with more potential than British

Columbia. It mentioned that in the heartlands, the optimism of the people burns

bright. I'd like to say that although my riding is not considered to be in the

heartlands — at least I don't think it's considered to be — that same

optimism is felt throughout my entire riding.

From Cowichan

Bay in the north of my riding to Port Renfrew in the extreme west, we are on the

verge of great economic development. It is through economic development that we

will arrive at the vision of my constituent. It cannot be done by saddling our

province with more debt. It cannot be done by mortgaging our children's and our

grandchildren's future. It must be done by developing a sound economic plan that

takes into account all segments of our community.

The economic

strategy will include plans for infrastructure, human capital and marketing. It

will open up new partnerships with first nations; new investments and

transportation infrastructure; new opportunities for tourism, sports and

recreation; and a revitalized forest industry. All these plans are vital to my

[ Page 4766 ]

constituency and are already recognized by concerned citizens throughout my

entire riding.

In Cowichan

Bay they formed an improvement society. They have worked hard to develop a

breakwater to protect the foreshore and the pleasure craft that will come to

that area. Cowichan Bay is a unique site, and I invite everybody to come for a

visit. It's a beautiful little area. Getting the breakwater has not been easy.

It has taken time. Now that approval's been reached, Cowichan Bay will be able

to develop and reach its true potential as a tourist resort. I'm really looking

forward to that breakwater. I'm looking forward to maybe taking my boat there

this summer.

[1450]

Even closer

to my home is a 65-acre site called the Skeleem centre. The Skeleem centre is a

facility that works with acquired-brain-injury patients, with the intention of

their rehabilitation and their return to the community. The work this centre

does is unique in British Columbia, and patients from all over the province have

been helped by this centre. Skeleem is having its problems right now and may

soon have to shut down, but it's my hope that it can continue and that the good

work performed by the staff at the centre can continue. I have been working

closely with all parties to solve this problem, but I'm afraid that only time

will tell the future outcome of this worthwhile facility.

In the Glenora

region of my riding a number of vintners have gathered together to form VIVA,

the Vancouver Island Vintners Association. It's their hope to develop the region

as a wine region which will attract tourists from around the world to a culinary

and wine-tasting experience in a setting that is second to none. They are

setting a strategic plan entitled the wilderness wine route. This route will be

an alliance of tourism, vineyards, restaurants, transportation providers and

food growers. All the people have come together with a willingness to cooperate

in an effort of mutual benefit.

Roughly, this

route would leave from Victoria, head northwest through Sooke and along the Juan

de Fuca Marine Trail to Port Renfrew. From there it would move across a logging

road over to Cowichan Lake and into the wine region and then back to Victoria.

We can sometimes call that the circle route. I've had that on my agenda since

I've been elected. I hope that in the very near future that will happen. My

colleague across the way here is hoping we can extend it to beyond Cowichan Lake

to Port Alberni, and maybe that will happen too.

Along the way,

tourists will be able to taste some of the local flavour, with the potential to

dine in two of the most notable restaurants in North America, the Sooke Harbour

House or the Aerie. What a great vision for Malahat–Juan de Fuca — a vision

that coincides directly with the vision outlined in the throne speech.

The throne

speech also recognizes the need to reconcile with first nations to bring them

into the vision and to work with them as equal partners. This is exactly what's

happening at Port Renfrew. There the Pacheedaht are working with a developer to

put together a multimillion-dollar tourist attraction. They're an integral part

of the development and are working with the developer to benefit both parties

and the entire community. So as you can see, Mr. Speaker, from Cowichan Bay to

Port Renfrew the economy will soon be booming.

Next week

we're going to hear about a comprehensive transportation plan that will open up

our area for even greater economic opportunities. Although we have the Island

Highway, we need upgrades on a number of other highways if we want to open up

the entire Island for commerce and tourism.

The regional

transportation advisory committees will determine what the priorities should be.

This will avoid political interference that can sometimes occur and allow the

citizens who have direct interest in the highways to determine where the

improvements should be. I think that's a great step to getting rid of political

interference so we don't end up with the hodgepodge of whoever has the most

influence getting the most money spent in their area. This means that Vancouver

Island and coastal B.C. will be opened up with greater choice, more competition

and better service through the new B.C. Ferry Services. We at Malahat–Juan de

Fuca welcome this vision.

Vancouver

Island has relied heavily on the forest industry in the past, but times are

changing. We need to create more value for each dollar spent in the forests. In

Sooke there is a number of companies that increase value considerably by

manufacturing and exporting products made from wood. They've had problems

getting fibre in the past. That's been one of their biggest hurdles in business:

just getting the fibre. The throne speech outlines the visions of how more

timber will be available for innovative, smaller local operators. This is great

news and will allow the smaller companies to really develop their business

potential.

Nothing will

correct social problems more than job creation, and this economic incentive will

indeed create more jobs. Mr. Speaker, you can see that everything I've taken

from the throne speech so far relates to the economy, but there's yet more good

news in this area.

Hon. R.

Coleman: More good news.

B. Kerr:

More good news.

Changes to the

Small Business Venture Capital Act will increase access to seed capital,

eliminate red tape and provide funding opportunities not only for my riding of

Malahat–Juan de Fuca but for all the regions of British Columbia. I can tell

you from my experience as a business consultant that one of the most difficult

problems facing any business is the shortage of capital to start up a business

or to expand a business. Our vision for the economic development of British

Columbia — whether it is to increase tourism opportunities, increase business

opportunities through greater access to capital, increase opportunities in the

forest or increase transportation infrastructure — augurs very well for the

future of British Columbia, and I am truly optimistic about our future.

[ Page 4767 ]

A strong

economy allows us to determine what kind of a society we want, because a strong

economy gives us choices for health, for education and for other social

services. I'd like to address some of these issues now.

[1455]

As a parent

and grandparent, I am really concerned about the educational opportunities for

our children. At the grade school and high school level, the Teaching Profession

Act will be amended to enhance accountability and administrative efficiency

while clarifying the role of the B.C. College of Teachers.

During the

past year, I met with both the Sooke Teachers Association and the school

district board. I hope to work closely with both bodies to ensure that students'

needs come first. It is important that educators and boards recognize that there

are fiscal constraints and that choices must be made so the system runs

efficiently in a manner that will provide our students with an outstanding

education and a safe environment. I know a number of educators are working

extremely hard to provide just such an environment, and to those educators I

would like to offer my thanks.

In my role on

the Finance and Government Services Committee I travelled, along with other

members of the committee, across the entire province. We listened to the

concerns of citizens. While advising us to stay the course on our fiscal plan,

most said they wanted more funds for education. They, like me, are concerned

about education, and I am pleased that the minister has been able to provide

additional funding for education. This, along with the flexibility provided to

school boards, will provide a framework for excellent education now and into the

future.

Another issue

that's extremely important, and one that touches all of us, is health care.

Health care costs have risen tremendously over the past few years. Health care

costs now amount to over 41 percent of the province's entire budget. If we are

to make health care sustainable, we must make reforms to make health care more

accountable, and we must make every dollar spent on health care patient-centred.

I'd like to

offer you a quote from the auditor general regarding health care resource

allocation by the previous government. This is directly from the auditor

general's report. "We concluded that the ministry is allocating resources

across the health care system without the benefit of essential cost and

performance information. As a result, most resource allocation decisions are not

based on the kind of information necessary to fully implement and evaluate the

strategic directions the ministry has set." In other words, the health care

system was adrift. The largest cost to the budget had no controls. Over $9

billion was being spent without any controls.

So what have

we done? We've recognized the importance of health care to our community, and

we've added $1.1 billion in funding. But in doing that, we've added some

controls. We have determined performance measures, and we have set benchmarks so

we can measure our progress towards these goals. These are steps we must take if

we're going to provide patient-centred health care on a sustainable basis into

the future.

Pharmacare is

another serious challenge within our health care system. Pharmacare costs have

risen dramatically over the last few years — I believe around 14 percent a

year — and it's predicted to rise considerably at an even greater amount in

the future. As more and more people ? the baby-boomers ? get into that stage, we

can see that the costs are going to be horrendous unless something is done.

Affordability

is a significant challenge and one we have addressed through our Fair Pharmacare

program. Under this program over 280,000 families will see their Pharmacare

costs drop. That's a great thing, and it's fair for everybody. Under the Fair

Pharmacare program, low-income families, regardless of age, will benefit. I

think all of us agree it's not fair that a wealthy individual does not pay for

Pharmacare solely because of his or her age when a younger, low-income family

must bear the full cost. The Fair Pharmacare will address this inequity.

I listened to

the member for Vancouver-Hastings lamenting the fact that we're dividing people

by pitting workers against management, that we're not bringing people together

and building a better, more democratic and more prosperous province. What's

happened after increasing funding for health care, making Pharmacare more

equitable and setting more measurable performance goals? We still hear about

cuts to health care. I suggest that those who continue to chant the mantra of

cuts to health care are the ones who are attempting to divide the province

through a misinformation campaign designed to create fear and uncertainty. Mr.

Speaker, we are doing the right thing for health care.

[1500]

I'd now

like to revisit my constituents' concerns that I mentioned at the beginning of

my comments: decent wages, affordable education and parks we can afford. I

believe that the throne speech addressed all of the concerns of my constituents.

Wages will increase and, indeed, have increased. They've increased faster than

any other province in Canada. They will continue to increase through increased

economic activity. Education will improve, and access to higher education and

trade skills will improve with the changes that the throne speech addresses.

B.C. parks will become a magnet for tourism. The new recreational stewardship

plan will make that happen.

We are doing

the right things. We are taking the right direction for the province, and to

counter some of the words of the member for Vancouver-Hastings, we will be

bringing people together in a common project to build a better, more democratic

and more prosperous province. We will encourage the potential of every British

Columbian to realize their hopes and dreams, and we'll be helping them bridge

the gap between who they are and who they want to be. I'm proud to support our

vision in the throne speech, and I look forward to this session as the vision

unfolds into reality.

Hon. R.

Coleman: The throne speech this year is good news for British Columbians. It

is the sign of the

[ Page 4768 ]

turning of the corner, the sign that we as a government, who have made tough

decisions and had to bring the fiscal and management of government into order,

are starting to see the successes.

On Monday the

Minister of Education announced an additional $50 million that will go into

education in British Columbia this year. That's a remarkable amount of money on

top of an already protected budget of $4.8 billion. Why were we able to

accomplish that? Well, quite simply put, because we've actually managed our

money better. We've done very well in the management of our debt and our

interest and the management of that ministry and, under the tutelage of the

Minister of Education, have been able to find the additional funds that we've

always said would go back into education whenever we found those savings.

The effect of

that is different in every area of the province. In my particular area today, my

school board announced it is not closing three schools that it was intending on

having to look at closing with regard to some of the rural areas of my riding.

In other ridings it will be additional books, computers. It will be additional

opportunities for students and teachers. It will be additional opportunities to

see education grow within those communities. But whatever it is about, it's

about this. It's about a government that is doing the job it was elected to do

in May of 2001.

[J.

Weisbeck in the chair.]

It is about

a government and a group of people in a government caucus that have put in

literally thousands of hours on behalf of their constituents and on behalf of

the province to get this place under control. It's about a government that has

taken the time and listened to British Columbians to set the priorities for the

future so that we will have a sustainable education system, a sustainable health

care system and, frankly, a sustainable government in British Columbia, because

we are not going to waste money where it's been wasted in the past. We are going

to manage it. We are going to do it right, and we have proven in the last 20

months that that is exactly what we are doing.

The throne

speech that was given in this House two days ago is a document that was full of

interesting and very positive initiatives on behalf of government. A number of

those affect my ministry and affect other ministries of government, but I think

the message is this: the heartlands of British Columbia are recognized as the

breadbasket and the people that fund money into this province for critical

health care and education services in this province. It's time a government

recognized that contribution given to all of us in British Columbia by the

heartlands of B.C.

It is about

the fact that we've identified we want to have a dialogue on crime, which I am

going to speak about in a minute. It's about modernizing policing. It's about

protecting education and health care. It is about finding ways to reconcile with

first nations and other initiatives that need to be done and Canada's

relationship with ourselves and also about the 2010 Olympic bid.

[1505]

We are

going to have a dialogue on crime in British Columbia. Somebody had said:

"Well, why do you want to have a dialogue on crime? You've had one on

transportation, education and health care."

Well, there's

a number of reasons, and I want to outline them today. First of all, I think

it's time that our communities — the communities, the policing agencies, the

community service groups, the judiciary, the Crown, the legal profession on both

sides of the fence — all came to an understanding of the stresses and

pressures this province presently faces with regards to crime and also how it

faces and how it can stand up to and plan for the future, so that we will not

move down a road where it will become an unmanageable situation for our

citizens.

I want to use

a couple of examples in regards to this. First of all, let's talk about the drug

trade for a second. In British Columbia we have 40 percent of all the marijuana

grow operations in this country. Some people would say: "So what?"

Well, I say it's not acceptable. It's not acceptable for a number of reasons.

First of all, the marijuana grow business fuels organized crime in British

Columbia and other areas of Canada. The money that comes out of the illegal

drugs funnels money into terrorism activity internationally. It funnels money

into the illegal gun trade. It funnels money into methamphetamine labs, which is

speed, which is also sold to our youth. It trades kilo for kilo for cocaine

across the border, which comes back into this province and further debilitates

our society.

This industry

is run by the outlaw motorcycle gangs in British Columbia. They are organized

crime in B.C. and in this country. Tied into them are various groups, both

ethnic and non-ethnic groups, that are involved in this business. Today in this

province we are investigating in excess of 60 murders that are related to that

trade. That is not something that is acceptable in our society. For anyone to

think we should sit back and be soft and not have a conversation on crime in

that context alone, they are making a dramatic mistake about the importance of

us getting all our resources together and pushing in the right direction to deal

with this issue.

These are

serious issues for British Columbians. The illegal gun trade in British

Columbia, which fuels both north and south of the border and into Asia, is paid

for through marijuana grow operations. It is paid for through the drug trade. It

is what is insidiously destroying our communities.

We have to

come to grips with a number of things. First of all, are we prepared to welcome

the criminal element of this country and other countries into our jurisdiction

because they think this is the place to do business? Or are we going to start to

stand up to this trade so this place is not the place to do business in the

illegal drug trade in North America or anywhere else in the world? I think we

have to do the latter. We have to stand up to it, and we have to protect our

communi-

[ Page 4769 ]

ties. We'll do that by educating our communities on the whole issue in and

around this issue.

The dialogue

on crime will therefore give us the opportunity to raise the bar of awareness,

which will lead us down the road to what changes we may require the federal

government to make with us, what information we want to give to our federal and

provincial prosecutors, how to educate our system on how its system of justice

has to react to the ever-changing scope of crime. I think it's a critical start

to that dialogue taking us forward to the education that is going to be required

in order for us to fight crime. As we do that, we are going to move on some

other initiatives in the province.

[1510]

We know by

the Oppal report that integration and amalgamation of police services are

essential. We also know that common communication and a lack of borders —

either technological or communication-wise or between law enforcement

communities over law enforcement communities — cannot exist if we are to be

able to deal with the serious crimes that we deal with in our province. We can

all find examples in Canada where, if proper integration and sharing of

information had taken place, a serious crime would not have been continued or a

second one would not have been committed. We will not accept anything less than

proper integration or amalgamation of police services in B.C. That's a message

to anyone, whether it be from the heartland, whether it be from the lower

mainland or whether it be from the lower Island. We want integration in our

policing in British Columbia because it's the best thing we can do for our

citizens.

I want to give

you an example of integration. At the moment we are looking at putting together

an integrated homicide team on the lower mainland of British Columbia, one that

will go across the borders and have common information about policing with

regards to homicides, which isn't blocked by borders between communities that

the criminals, frankly, don't believe they are stopped from operating within. We

are going to have that integrated homicide team so that we have the seamless

ability to do investigations and share information. But that is just step one.

We need to look at all the aspects of crime, and we as public figures have to

understand, as integration comes forward, that we cannot go back to a little

island within a community and believe that there is no crime here; it's only

over there.

One of the

challenges we will have as we move forward is that we will actually want to put

specialized teams together to deal with sex offenders and sex crimes. When you

do that, you have to be able to watch somebody move from Burnaby to Vancouver to

North Vancouver over to Delta and into the Fraser Valley. You have to be able to

have the movement of intelligence and observation when you're dealing with that,

so that we can protect our children from people who want to commit these

offences.

As we move

forward there are actually going to be mayors and councillors who are going to

tell us that they don't think their communities should participate in

integration because they're different, that they don't think they should protect

their citizens at the level that the Oppal report and we in government see as a

vital connection to the stopping of crime and protecting citizens in B.C. The

message is that we're going to do that.

Last year

through, basically, the group of people on the lower Island getting together

with the concern between two police departments, we amalgamated the Esquimalt

and Victoria police departments. The members of this House should be aware that

that has actually been a very successful and healthy project. The people in both

Esquimalt and Victoria have seen the difference. They've seen the better

coverage. They've seen the better integration. They've seen the better services

that come with that relationship.

One of the

critical aspects of dealing with crime and dealing with integration comes from

the sharing of technology. There were some choices that had to be made,

particularly in the last 12 months, in British Columbia with regard to how we

will police this province in the future. The critical one was to be able to get

to the table all the chiefs of police from the 12 — and now 11 — municipal

departments in B.C. and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, both at the municipal

level and at the provincial level, to come to an agreement on an integrated,

real-time information management environment for policing. We got that decision.

The next challenge was: what do we do with that? What if we wanted to put a

computer system in so that we had real-time information-sharing so that a B and

E that's taking place in Coquitlam this evening is, in real time, entering into

the computer of the law enforcement officer in Burnaby as that individual

officer at the scene is putting the data in? What could we do if they could talk

to each other, and we could actually know and flag incidences from a crime

management system to be able to know that we have relationships in two

communities between similar crimes?

[1515]

The first

thing you do is get to the point where you say: "We need to have that

system." Then you have to identify and select the system. Then comes the

biggest challenge of all. No integration of information management in the

criminal side for policing would ever be successful in this province if we

allowed somebody to opt out. We can only have one system. We can only have one

platform, and that platform in British Columbia is PRIME-BC. In order to

accomplish that in British Columbia in the times of the toughest restraint, as

we moved forward to make the tough decisions in government, Treasury Board and

the committees of this House gave to my ministry the money to put PRIME in every

community in British Columbia within the next 24 months. That is going to allow

us to change the face of policing in British Columbia on a standardized basis in

real time. As we move forward, the Attorney General's JUSTIN system, which is in

the court system, will integrate down into PRIME and will actually download

[ Page 4770 ]

information that is critical for law enforcement to do their job on the

ground in B.C.

For instance,

if there's an order that says somebody cannot be in a community because the

court has ordered them because of a relationship in a spousal dispute within

that community, we want to be able to have that information in the car. When

somebody is checked, we will know they're not supposed to be there, and maybe

we'll save a life. Maybe we'll stop an assault. Maybe, but maybe, we'll stop

more crime.

PRIME is going

to go into British Columbia, and it will be a success. It is the first time

anybody in any jurisdiction can look and see and say that somebody's actually

moving in the right direction. I had a meeting with the commissioner and the

deputy commissioner of the RCMP a week or two ago. We were having a discussion

about different systems. I have always been pretty clear that this was our

system in B.C. Of course, they will integrate with anything that we do now. I

said to the commissioner: "Absent of any discussion on technology, can you

tell me another jurisdiction in Canada or in North America, or anywhere for that

matter, where there's going to be a standardized data management system in real

time for policing across an entire jurisdiction the size of ours?" The

answer to that is no.

In the United

States we actually have county police who have data systems that don't talk to

city police. We have international information that doesn't talk back and forth.

That's not acceptable in this province. We are going to lead the way forward in

both integration and the integration of management for policing in British

Columbia on the data side, so we can tell the world that this is how it should

be done, this is how it will be done, and this is what will work for you as

citizens of the province of British Columbia.

It is such a

critical aspect of our communities that as we move forward with the dialogue on

crime and PRIME and the education of our communities, we collectively come to

the decisions of how we're going to manage the issues that face us in our system

today. It's also important to realize that we have a group of thousands of

people out there. In B.C. we have almost 30 percent of the entire Royal Canadian

Mounted Police complement in Canada. We have our 12 municipal police forces.

Those people are out in the street every night on shift — shift work, which is

hard on families — with a commitment to communities, a dedication to our

communities. They are asked to make snap decisions — decisions that we all

think we can second-guess, whether it be in the media or in the privacy of our

own homes or on talk-show radio. Understand that these are professionals. They

do their job because they believe in your communities and in protecting society,

or they would have never entered into the career.

We're going to

give them the tools to do that job. We're going to build a five-year plan for

policing which will include integration and specialized sections, everything

from forensic idents to dog masters to specialized teams to deal with sex

offences to homicide. We will do this because it is the right thing to do. The

police officers in this province agree; their senior management agree. We from

the public-life side have to recognize it is absolutely critical that we be

successful in integration for the protection of our citizens.

This throne

speech also dealt with a number of other issues. It was announced that we're

going to have a seniors and youth conference. That sounds, some people would

say…. Some people might have some questions like: "Why would you do that?

What are you saying? Are you just trying to make it sound good?"

[1520]

You know

what we need to do? As part of a plan to deal with the issues around crime, the

issues around human behaviour and the respect for each other in our communities,

we also have to reintroduce our communities to each other. Our young people have

to learn the respect for seniors, and seniors have to understand the changes

that youth have relative to how they dress or what they do today versus what

they did when they were young. You'll accomplish that by actually having an open

dialogue and conversation between those groups, with everybody participating, so

that we can actually have a conversation and understand the impact one person's

decision over another is going to have on somebody and how we can get beyond

that to where we regain the respect between our youth and our seniors and our

communities. It is critical that we do that.

We can't sit

back and let some of the things happen in our communities without actually

trying to go help these people to understand how a change of behaviour would be

better for them and the communities that they live in. Our seniors shouldn't

live in their homes in fear of home invasion, and our youth should not think

they should have the right to take what doesn't belong to them. I think we have

to bring together these parties and all the others to understand that,

understand that on the outside edges of any one of these discussions, we can

always pick the bad. I've always believed that most of it is good, and that good

will be brought out by us having that dialogue and actually re-identifying some

goals for our communities.

In the 1996

election there was a vote that took place in this province where a government

formed government with actually less than the percentage vote of the party that

formed opposition. This province has had some people for some time asking us to

look at a citizens' assembly, to look at how we actually govern, to look at how

we actually form our government and how we elect the people that serve us. It's

a dialogue that's needed to take place, and as the throne speech says, we're

going to move to a citizens' assembly. That citizens' assembly, made up of

people from around British Columbia, will look at all the options with regards

to electoral reform in this province and may come back and tell us we already

have the best of all worlds. They may also come back and give us some direction

that we may want to look at for electoral reform in the future of B.C.

Ironically,

the very government doing this has already made some of the biggest changes in

Canadian

[ Page 4771 ]

political history with regards to electoral reform. This is the government of

free votes. This is the government that has set an election day, has set

election days for the future of the province of British Columbia. This is the

government in B.C. that finally put in place a parliamentary calendar, that

actually put in place a way to manage people's business so debate can actually

be focused based on the timing and thoughtful introduction of legislation in a

Legislative Assembly.

This is the

government that took members of the caucus and put them on government caucus

committees so they can work on issues and give full advice to cabinet ministers,

so that they can move forward with an agenda that meets the needs of all British

Columbians. This is the government that's gone further than anybody else in

developing some forms of electoral performance. I don't think we should be

ashamed or afraid of the discussion and the debate that will come from a

citizens' assembly as we move forward, because at the end of the day it's not

our choice. It's a choice of the people that vote in this province as to how

they want this province to be governed.

I spent time

in an elementary school where 50 percent of it was aboriginal and 50 percent of

it was Caucasian. I grew up with friends, who I still have today, I met in that

school from both aboriginal and non-aboriginal communities. I served in the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police for almost eight years, and during that time I

actually served where there were Indian reserves that had to be policed. I think

the step towards reconciliation that this throne speech brought forward to the

first nations, outlining our deep regrets to them, is an important step. If

you've ever seen firsthand how we failed in so many circumstances with first

nations, it is time that we actually admitted our failures, expressed our

regrets and built a legacy for the future, not one for the past.

[1525]

We will

work for workable, equitable and fair treaties, the throne speech says. New

economic opportunities for first nations and $30 million in an economic fund,

which is $10 million per year, and we doubled the First Citizens Fund for

British Columbia's first nations. I was at a meeting the other day with some

people from the First Nations Summit. You take a step back and have to

understand the difficulty in both the elementary and high school education and

then the university education opportunities for people in these circumstances.

They need advice and help. They need advocacy; they need tutoring. They need

work with them so that they can be successful. The First Citizens Fund can form

a big part of that relationship and help us get there.

In this

province, if you've travelled it, Mr. Speaker, we have some pretty ugly roads

for people to travel on. The member for Peace River North is fond of telling us

about the state of northern roads, and frankly, he is correct, with the

exception of the one that actually runs by his own home in his community.

The reality

is, though, we have this vast province that we want to be successful. We want it

to succeed economically because economic success will allow us to put money into

education and social programs and health care. We need to move effectively to

market the goods and services that we as British Columbians produce, and you

can't do that down roads that won't take the weight or the capacity or move the

machinery or the equipment. Whether it's in the oil patch or the mining industry

or forestry, we do need an improvement on the infrastructure in British Columbia

so that we can move our goods and services.

By making that

commitment to do so, it tells a number of things to a number of people. First of

all, the fact that we're comfortable enough to do it tells us we're being pretty

successful as a government, because we have confidence in our ability to deliver

and our ability to deliver it for everyone in B.C. on infrastructure. We have

confidence that we can reinvigorate the economy of British Columbia, because we

as government have started to make the changes to make those things successful.

And we are confident that the people in the heartlands of British Columbia will

grab on to the opportunities they have for them and deliver on behalf of all

British Columbians — because we need them to.

We are going

to take that infrastructure and improve the roads in rural British Columbia.

We're going to upgrade highways. We are going to fix highways that, when you

travel through and talk to people, are nothing but scary in communities. The

scariest one of all is the Kicking Horse Pass outside Golden. If you've ever

travelled the Trans-Canada Highway, it is probably the most unsafe and scariest

piece of highway on that entire ribbon of asphalt from coast to coast. It is

also a huge stress on the communities in that area because of the fatalities and

the serious-injury accidents that take place on it.

We need to fix

that highway. We've made a commitment, with the cooperation of the federal

government, to fix that portion of highway in B.C., because it does a number of

things. It sends a message to our trading partners across Canada, especially in

the Prairies and Alberta, that we're open for business, and come on — we're

improving our roads. It sends a message to the people in the Golden area, the

Invermere area and the Revelstoke area that we've actually listened to you about

the concerns about this highway and the problems it is giving to your community.

And it sends a message to the rest of British Columbians, whether they be on the

lower mainland or the lower Island or the North Coast or Prince George or the

Okanagan, that we're serious about transportation links for all British

Columbians in all areas of B.C. so that we can build a strong future for our

province.

[1530]

Mr.

Speaker, if you could imagine having the opportunity to run an advertisement for

your company, if you were in business, to two billion people for two hours, you

would jump at the opportunity. But if you could do that and create a couple

hundred thousand jobs and a few million dollars into government coffers and open

up a whole bunch of facilities and open up a

[ Page 4772 ]

province to the world, you would do it. The 2010 Olympic bid will do just

that. Over two billion people watched the opening ceremonies at Salt Lake City.

They have a problem in Utah, which the members of the opposition wouldn't like

us to have, and that is they have all the facilities built, they have a legacy

fund, and they have $100 million (U.S.) in additional profit they're trying to

figure out how to spend in their state.

I want that

problem in B.C. I want us to open up this province to the world. I'm proud that

we're going to open up the infrastructure, I'm proud that we're protecting

health care and education, and I'm proud that we're doing the right thing to

deal with the issues that face B.C., because we've made the tough decisions and

will continue to do so as we move forward.

We have turned

the corner in British Columbia. This government has made the tough choices. We

are taking this province in a bold new direction, and we'll build its future

beyond what anybody's imagination could be. Members of this House, be proud of

that, because you know what? We're going, we're going way up, we're going to win

as a province, and the future is bright for all British Columbians.

Deputy

Speaker: Responding to the Speech from the Throne, the Minister of Energy

and Mines.

Hon. G.

Plant: I'm excited already, and you've barely begun.

Hon. R.

Neufeld: And I've just barely begun.

It's

certainly a pleasure for me to be able to rise in the House in support of the

Speech from the Throne. This is a Speech from the Throne that has all kinds of

good news for everyone in this beautiful province, regardless of where you live,

what you do, where you work or how you work — or the work that's going to come

so you can actually have a job.

This province

is moving forward. The Premier said he was going to move this province forward,

and the Premier meant what he said. It is moving forward in the economic sense,

in the social sense, in the treaty sense. Anything you can think of that we

talked about during the election in the New Era document, we're moving

forward on it.

C There's a short paragraph in the Speech from the Throne that really caught my

attention. I'm just going to read it into the record:

"This

is the government's overriding vision: to open up every region and every

community to new horizons of hope; to open up every sector of our economy to

new opportunities wherever they exist; to open up the free flow of people,

goods and services within our province and with our trading partners; to open

up every region of B.C. to visitors from around the globe through a successful

2010 Olympic bid. There is no place on Earth that has more to offer the world

than British Columbia."

Far too

often all of us forget how fortunate we actually are to live where we do in this

beautiful country called Canada. I am always proud of the fact that I come from

the north. I will always live in the north, and I have lived in the north for

most of my life. I've raised my family in the north. It is something that I hold

very near and dear to my heart.

I'm proud of

the constituency of Peace River North, and I'm proud of the people that live in

the constituency of Peace River North: an entrepreneurial young generation of

people that want to move forward in this province, that love B.C. as much as I

do and that want to actually have jobs in the province so that their kids can

have jobs in this great province of ours.

[1535]

constituency is the second largest in the province. To put this in perspective

— I always have to remind myself of how large it is, and in fact I get

reminded when I try to drive across it every so often — it stretches over 500

miles by highway from one side to the other. It goes through flatlands, it goes

over major rivers, and it goes through the Rocky Mountains. It's a huge part of

the province. It's the size of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island

and Vancouver Island in land mass. There are some members here from Vancouver

Island and particularly one from North Island and one from Port Alberni, as we

speak, and they can feel some isolation, I'm sure, at some time in the province,

as we all can. Some of the constituents I represent feel isolated also, and that

should be understandable. They understand how people on Vancouver Island can

feel isolated, and I'm sure the people on Vancouver Island can understand how we

feel isolated sometimes from our major centre, that being the Vancouver-Victoria

region.

We have a

vibrant economy where I come from. We have almost always had a vibrant economy.

The only time we didn't have a vibrant economy that I can remember is when

government got involved — and that's the federal government — in setting the

price of oil and natural gas in a national energy program that actually almost

destroyed our economy. Government moved out of that, and that should be a good

lesson to all of us. It's a lesson we all know in this House, except maybe a

few. When government gets involved too heavily in our daily lives, something's

going to go wrong. We need to give more responsibility to people, to

individuals, to our children, to people that want to work and invest and do

whatever they want to do in this great province of ours.

I'm also

representative of a part of the province that has a treaty, for well over a

hundred years, that was signed. Treaty 8 it's called. In fact, just recently the

Premier, myself and the Attorney General had an opportunity to meet with the

seven Treaty 8 chiefs and talk about their treaty and how we have to start

looking at it maybe in a different way — that we start respecting some of the

thoughts that were in Treaty 8, although it was written a hundred years ago, and

start looking at it as a modern document so we can start moving forward so those

aboriginal communities, some of them in my constituency and some in the member

from the South Peace's constituency, can actually prosper, can have the same

hope, the same feelings the rest of us do about the fact of having a job, of

hav-

[ Page 4773 ]

ing a home and a vehicle and actually having a reserve where I live where

there's sewer and water — the basic things that so many of us take for granted

— or a road so you can actually get there without a four-wheel drive.

Those are

things this government is addressing and has committed to address across this

whole province. We know it's going to take a while. We understand it's going to

take some time, but if you don't start somewhere, it's never going to happen.

We've committed to doing that.

Aboriginal

people have been proven to live in the northeast for a long time. It's the only

part of the province that's actually east of the Rockies. All the rest of the

province of British Columbia is west; we live east of the Rockies. The Charlie

Lake Caves show that humans, aboriginal people, lived as long ago as 10,000

years right close to Fort St. John in the Charlie Lake community caves. Those

same kinds of artifacts are found along the Alaska Highway going north up

towards Alaska. That's 10,000 years ago. It's a long time. They have been there

for quite a while.

[1540]

We have an

amazing amount of stuff in Peace River North or in the northeastern part of

British Columbia that a lot of people don't know about. Fort Nelson is a small

community along the Alaska Highway of about 5,000 to 6,000 people. We have

barging facilities out of Fort Nelson that actually go to the Beaufort. You can

arrive in the Beaufort earlier in the spring than you can from any other place.

Most of the barging is done out of Hay River. They have to wait for the ice to

go out on that river longer than the Fort Nelson River, so you can actually get

out to the Beaufort Sea out of Fort Nelson. In fact, a very good friend of mine

in Fort Nelson who died a number of years ago and has a large barging company

— well, the company is still owned by the company — actually bought two of

his tugs in Vancouver. He had them built in Vancouver and took them around the

long way. They're still plying the waters north of Fort Nelson.

We have

tourism along the Alaska Highway, all kinds of tourism. Almost everyone in the

lower 48 wants to go to Alaska to see the last frontier. Every year we see

everything from small cars to huge motor homes by the thousands going up the

Alaska Highway. It's a huge draw and not just for our area of the province. To

get from the lower 48 up to where I live, they actually come through the rest of

British Columbia to see what wonders we have through this whole province.

Whether they go through the Okanagan or through Highway 97 through the Cariboo,

they will see areas they will never forget because they're so different and so

beautiful.

We also have

in my constituency pretty well all the oil and gas that's produced in British

Columbia. It comes from northeastern British Columbia and from Peace River

North. We hope to change that. In fact, we're not hoping; we're moving forward

to change that. We want to see oil and gas delivered across this whole province

in other areas. There are basins where that can happen, basins that have been

unexplored — literally unexplored — where there are billions of barrels of

oil and trillions of cubic feet of natural gas and coalbed methane. It is such a

huge opportunity for this province.

Now there are

those that would say that we shouldn't be exploring for oil and gas because it's

a thing of the past. They're wrong. When you talk to people like Dr. Ballard, he

will tell you that they're wrong. We need natural gas, and we will continue to

need crude oil well into the future as a feedstock for hydrogen cells. We know

we're going to need it. We should be out there finding it. We should be getting

self-sufficient in oil. We're far from being self-sufficient in oil.

We import

almost all of the oil that we need in this province just simply because we

haven't gone out there and explored for it in the other basins where there's an

opportunity to find it. It creates great jobs, good economic activity. It's

something that each one of us needs.

How many times

a year do you pull up to the pumps and get gasoline or diesel fuel in your

vehicle? That's made from crude oil. How about driving down those roads, which

the member just talked about, that are paved? That asphalt is made from crude

oil, and the gravel is mined. We need that. You look at our buildings. The

concrete is mined. It comes from all parts of the province. We need to continue

to do that, to continue to grow because this province will continue to grow. The

population will continue to increase.

We committed

to open up the democratic process with free votes in the Legislature. We're one

of the first Legislatures to have free votes. That's a positive for British

Columbians because their members can actually come here and vote the wishes that

their constituents would like them to vote.

We have a

fixed election day. People in my constituency at election time constantly talk

to me or used to talk to me about the fact that they never knew when the next

election was. They didn't know how to prepare for it. They didn't know when to

listen because the government of the day, whatever stripe it happened to be,

would just call it whenever they felt it was most appropriate for them, not

appropriate for the people that they represent. We fixed that. The Premier said

during the election that we're going to have a fixed election date, and we do

have a fixed election date in British Columbia.

[1545]

We have a

provincial congress where we get MPs, MLAs, mayors, councillors, chiefs and

people from all over the province to sit down and talk about how we can actually

deliver services to people. Obviously, we all represent the same people, just in

different areas of the province. That's a move, a step forward. In fact, we've

heard all kinds of good reports about that.

Open cabinet

meetings where we actually have a cabinet that's televised provincewide.

That's great

stuff for the province. We said during the election that there were going to be

two things that were our priority. One was education and one was

[ Page 4774 ]

health care. In education, we now have the top-paid teachers on average of

any jurisdiction across Canada. It's very important that people have a good

education. As the Premier says many times, a good education is probably the best

thing for health care. I believe that, and so do most people.

The funding

that we got just recently, the $42 million that was divided up amongst all the

school districts across the province, will certainly help in my school district.

In fact, they're very happy with it. In fact, last night the Premier announced

for this next fiscal year another $50 million in education. When I talked to my

school boards — I have two of them — they both told me that the difficulty

they were having with the levelling of the budget was actually paying for the

increase in teachers' salaries. This will go a long way to taking care of that

problem in continuing to provide excellent education in the province and

specifically in Peace River North.

In advanced

education the minister should be commended for what she's done in Peace River

North. The colleges have worked with industry to try and encourage development

of training for people to work in the oil and gas industry and in the forest

industry in the region that I come from. That's the biggest problem. The jobs

are there, but you can't find the people to fill them. You can find people, but

they're not trained. You need to train them.

Nabors

Drilling donated a $1.5 million service rig to the college in Fort St. John for

training for workers in the oil patch. Now, I think that's great the ministry

worked that hard to make that happen, but I think it's equally great that Nabors

Drilling decided, because they see what opportunities there are in the northern

part of the province, to actually donate a piece of equipment that's worth that

kind of money to the college, and it sits right in the college yard right now.

In fact, we had a dedication of that just a short time ago.

We also have

Duke Energy, which is going to make an exciting announcement in the next week or

two in Fort St. John. It will benefit Fort St. John, Dawson Creek, Fort Nelson

and all the communities in the northeastern part of the province. They're going

to start working with the education system, with the high schools, with the

colleges in donating millions of dollars over the next number of years for the

benefit of people wanting to get into the trades to be able to work in this

industry. It takes some real good training to work in a lot of this industry.

It's not just a simple industry to work in. That's the foresight these people

see with the changes that have come in the last number of years under this

administration. They feel the long-term investment they're going to make by

putting those kinds of dollars into education is actually going to pay off for

them, and that bodes well for the province.

Health care

— $1.1 billion more last year, and this year we'll have some more dollars from

the federal government. Health care is the number one concern in the

constituency, and we're going to address that as best we can.

[1550]

We have a

problem with getting enough doctors and nurses, and the government has seen fit

to actually expand the training for health care professionals into the

University of Northern British Columbia. That bodes well for northern British

Columbians, and I think that's just great and shows that the Premier means what

he says. We want to get health care and education on track so that people can

receive it where they live and when they need it.

The heartlands

strategy is great. We heard earlier that the problems of infrastructure are huge

across this whole province. It doesn't matter just where I live. We need a lot

more infrastructure, but to have infrastructure costs dollars. The Finance

minister and the Transportation minister have worked very closely together to

figure out, along with everyone else, how we can do this. Last night the Premier

announced a program where we will see…. Although we will see a

3.5-cent-a-litre gas tax increase, all of that money, which will raise

approximately $200 million a year — and as the economy grows, that will also

grow — will be reinjected into roads and bridges through this whole province,

and specifically for rural and northern roads. That's in excess of $600 million

over three years. That is good news.

That is

absolutely wonderful news for where I come from, where not too many years ago

you could hear the stories of farmers having to pull school buses with their

four-wheel-drive tractors. That, in fact, is true. Unbelievable, but it's true

in this era we're in today. That was under the last administration, the last

administration that forgot about the north. This administration has remembered

where the north is and that they're just as important and integral to British

Columbia as any other part of the province.

That is going

to be a boon to the people from where I live. All this money that's raised by

the 3.5 cents will go back into infrastructure — every bit of it. There will

be no debt for our children to pick up for that later on. We're actually going

to pay our way and maybe even a little bit more than pay our way. I want to

thank the Minister of Transportation. For a long time, when the last

administration tried to rebuild some roads, they did it in the old-fashioned way

— just kind of graded a little bit more dirt on the surface and spread a few

rocks on it and left it. But this administration has taken a serious look at how

roads are constructed so that we can actually move loads at 100 percent axle

weight year-round. We're actually going to have shoulders on our highways in

northeastern B.C. Now, that may seem pretty simple for a lot of people. You look

at me a little puzzled, but I can understand that, because I've been to the

Okanagan. I do see shoulders on the road, and we're actually adopting that

process that's been used in the Okanagan for all those years. We're actually

going to move that north, and I think that's just wonderful and great. We're

finally going to have shoulders on the road.

As Minister of

Energy and Mines I have a great portfolio to represent, and I am so happy that

the Pre-

[ Page 4775 ]

mier gave me the opportunity to do it. The people in my constituency actually

re-elected me in the last election so I had that opportunity. It's a great

ministry to represent. We have mining across this province, and in fact the

miners just had their annual convention in Vancouver, their Cordilleran Roundup.

It was the most positive one they've had for over a decade. Over 3,000

registrants came to Vancouver to the Cordilleran Roundup to talk about mining in

British Columbia, something that this government says we're going to bring back.

We're going to make it possible, and we're going to make sure that mining

becomes what it used to be in British Columbia, and that's a key economic driver

for all of us in the province.

[1555]

The oil and

gas industry is booming along pretty good. We have a record number of drilling

rigs drilling in northeastern British Columbia today. I think the count changes

from day to day, but it's around 145 active drilling rigs working in the

province. It's a record, and we should be proud of that. It's a record because

of some of the things we have done as government to make sure that industry

feels comfortable coming to British Columbia and creating that investment of

over $3 billion to $4 billion a year, every year — the cost of drilling in

British Columbia. It creates all kinds of jobs, and well-paying jobs, for

British Columbians so we can raise our families and actually have a good

province that we can call home and our kids can call home for a long time.

We've got the

best seismic program we've ever had going on in northeastern British Columbia

this year. That bodes well. That means in the future something else is going to

happen. That's the exploration side of it. It's just like in mining we've almost

doubled the amount of dollars in exploration in the province this last couple of

years. It's got a long ways to go, mining, but it's at least on the way up. The

curve is this way, not that way, as it was under the NDP.

We need to

have that exploration if we're going to have mining and oil and gas happen in

the province. We just had a conference in Fort St. John in relationship to the

energy policy that we released at the end of November, where we had oil and gas

producers, coal producers, people from alternative energy sources and hydro

sources all coming together in a one-day conference to talk about how we move

forward now that we have the energy plan in place. It was great to see the

enthusiasm the people came with and talked about and the issues we have to deal

with.

One of the

issues we have to deal with resides right in the northeastern part of British

Columbia and that is how we actually level the playing field for our service

contractors. We've levelled the playing field so the industry feels fairly

comfortable coming into B.C. to do the work they do. Now what we have to do is

level that playing field so that service industry we have, those jobs that are

created out of that service industry, actually come from Peace River North,

Peace River South or, specifically, British Columbia.

We can't

provide all that labour and all that expertise and all that equipment, but we

sure should be able to supply a whole bunch more than what we do now. I've

committed and my ministry has committed to working with that industry to make

sure we now look at that to make sure that happens.

One other

thing. The last speaker talked about the 2010 Olympics. That's just great for

British Columbia. You know what? I do hear some people — and you hear it even

from people in Vancouver, heaven forbid, but you do — saying we shouldn't do

that. What they're doing is saying no to jobs, they're saying no to opportunity,

and they're saying no to striving for excellence in the province. Regardless of

where you live in British Columbia, it's good for the province. If you live

where I do, if the economy is better in the lower mainland than it was before

the Olympics — and it certainly will be — that's good for all of us. That

helps everyone, so we can have good health care and good education in the

province.

Along with

that, a real bright, shining light we had in the Speech from the Throne was that

the Premier wants us to be actively working offshore in the province. The

opportunities for British Columbia and for British Columbians are huge in

offshore. It can be done environmentally sound and safe. In fact, we've had an

expert panel of scientists go out there and tell us in the last number of years

about the things we should be doing to make sure we can do it environmentally

sound and safe. It's done around the world environmentally sound and safe.

We set up in

my ministry a special division headed by Jack Ebbels, the deputy minister for

offshore oil and gas, to make sure those things happen. The Premier, through the

throne speech, has given us a date to make sure things are happening out there.

I can tell you, from our ministry, we're going to be working very, very hard to

make sure those things happen.

[1600]

Now, there

are a few out there that say we shouldn't. Mr. David Anderson — I think most

people know him — is one that's not helping a lot. Mr. Dhaliwal, on the other

hand, is helping us a whole bunch. Both are members from British Columbia. One

who wants to see growth, one who wants to see jobs, one who wants to see wealth

for the province of British Columbia — I think we should support him and work

with him all we can to make sure that happens.

Mr. Speaker, I

know my time has slipped by so quickly, and I didn't even get a chance to talk

about the energy policy. We have an energy policy in the province of British

Columbia second to no jurisdiction across Canada. This government and all its

members have worked hard to make sure we have an energy policy that looks

forward and that has low-cost electricity, a secure supply and opportunities for

independent power producers to actually go out there and build projects in the

private sector and create jobs and wealth in the province of British Columbia.

We have an

environmental side to it, where we instruct B.C. Hydro to get 50 percent of its

new re-

[ Page 4776 ]

quired energy from clean sources, whether it's biomass, fuel cells or

whatever. That bodes well for the province of British Columbia. We also

maintained our promise; B.C. Hydro remains in public hands.

Mr. Speaker, I

see my time is gone. I appreciate that you gave me the time to stand and talk in

this House about this great province of British Columbia and specifically the

part that I represent. Thank you very much.

J. van

Dongen: I ask leave to make an introduction.

Leave

granted.

Introductions by Members

J. van

Dongen: I'm pleased to introduce Mr. Ward Griffeon and his wife, who are

visiting us today. Mr. Griffeon and his very extended family operate a large

aquaculture operation on the Sunshine Coast, and we visited that operation

recently. I want to commend them for their great work ethic and their commitment

to the industry. I ask the House to please make them welcome.

Debate Continued

H. Bloy:

It's a privilege to follow the member for Peace River North, the Minister of

Energy and Mines. More good news. I can hardly wait for the next two weeks to

have more good news come out.

I'm a proud

British Columbian standing here today. I'm a proud British Columbian to be able

to look into the future. I am proud of this team that's here and led by the hon.

Premier. I want to thank the Premier for his strength. I want to thank the

Premier for his vision for looking into the future. I want to thank the Premier

for wanting to stay the course.

I was a member

of the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services that

travelled the province this past fall. At every stop we made, for the majority

of presentations — I would have to say over 70 percent of the presentations

— people said to us: "Stay the course. Don't stop what you're

doing." They want to see this government continue on the course that we

laid out in the New Era document. In the New Era document we

outlined our future and our vision.

Today I want

to rise to reply to the Speech from the Throne. I rise to support the Speech

from the Throne. The speech details the government's vision to open up British

Columbia to the world and to open up every region and community of this great

province to a wealth of new opportunities.

[1605]

The new

B.C. heartlands economic strategy that we've been talking about will open up new

opportunities for regions and communities by developing and implementing plans

for infrastructure, human capital and marketing programs across this great

province. When the heartlands of British Columbia do well and when they are

prospering, then we all prosper. The urban areas prosper because of the hard

work of the heartlands of British Columbia.

This

government will continue to support the heartlands of B.C. by developing a new

resort task force to work with the successful four-season resort communities

that we have now. This government will work with the resort community and the

first nations to ensure that the province resort potential is fully realized and

fully recognized around the world.

We are

recognized around the world now. Whistler Blackcomb is the number one ski

destination in the world. Not only that, it has more visitors in the summer for

skiing. We want to recognize all corners of this province. We have so many ski

resorts and four-season recreational opportunities for people from around the

world to come and visit, play and enjoy British Columbia.

We have new

investments in transportation infrastructure. We have new opportunities for

tourism, and we will have new opportunities for sport and recreation when we

successfully win the bid. We have a revitalized forest industry.

Ten years of

neglect have meant the mining communities, logging communities and fishing

communities across British Columbia were starting to wonder whether they would

ever have their time to shine. We want to return hope and vitality to small-town

British Columbia. We want to make sure that these small towns are there in the

long run to make sure that they can. They contribute so much to support our

urban economics.

We expect our

tourism industry to more than double in size by the year 2010. We expect to have

an environmentally sound offshore oil and gas industry up and running and

booming with new job creations by 2010. We are opening up new partnerships with

the first nations, including a statement of respect and reconciliation and a

commitment to revenue-sharing with first nations who wish to help revitalize our

forest industry.

We're

honouring our New Era document and our commitment to improve child care

access and choice. Through sound fiscal management we're focusing resources on

those most in need. Last year we launched the new child care funding operating

program, which increased the number of child care spaces eligible to receive

operating funding from 45,000 spaces to 70,000 spaces. That is just a huge

improvement in child care. We have announced that we will increase the access to

child care subsidies for low-income British Columbians.

We as a

government have spoken of the need to help those most in need. Today we

announced an increase in the income threshold for the child care subsidy program

and expect that 9,000 children from low-income families will benefit from these

changes we've announced.

Again, as a

member of the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services, when

we travelled the province this past fall, a number of concerns were brought to

us. We brought these concerns

[ Page 4777 ]

back to government, and government listened. We brought the concerns back,

and government was open. As a government that listens to people, we made a

commitment to help those most in need, and we are fulfilling that promise. We

are not here for special interest groups. We are here for all British

Columbians, especially the ones most in need.

I do not

believe in the NDP, Glen Clark–style of government where they would yell and

scream and they would be rude and obnoxious with absolutely no understanding of

the work of government. My colleagues and I work to accomplish a better life for

all British Columbians every day by working effectively and quietly behind the

scenes.

[1610]

Every day

government speaks; there are announcements. But they have been listening to my

colleagues and myself and to the people of British Columbia. My fellow members

from Burnaby and I work quietly behind the scenes to maintain Burnaby Hospital.

My colleagues

and I brought forward the concerns of funding for community schools. In my area,

I have two community schools. I was able to bring the administrators from these

schools — Stony Creek Community School and Miller Park Community School —

and parents from these schools to meet with the Hon. Gordon Hogg. The parents

had a true opportunity to tell from the heart what they thought of community

schools. They wanted to say that you can't measure the food in a cupboard. You

can't measure a child who is in an after-school program, who may not end up in

the criminal justice system five years down the road. These are stories that had

been told to me, but I couldn't relate them the same way they did, so I wanted

to bring them to the minister. The minister was more than receptive to listen to

them, and there was great dialogue in that room. When we left the room, we were

happy that we'd had the meeting. They had a better understanding of how

government has worked. Hopefully, through their presentations we've maintained

the funding for community schools.

My colleagues

and I spoke about early childhood care. We listened, we acted, and we delivered.

You heard it in the throne speech, and you heard it in the Premier's

state-of-the-province address. Health concerns, education — our government has

responded. The Premier announced last night an additional $100 million into

education over the next three years. This is on top of $42 million that was put

in last year. This is on top of $50 million that we announced a few days ago. We

said that we would maintain funding in education. Well, we have increased the

funding in education. We have maintained the funding in health care, and there

will be more money in health care that will be coming from the federal

government, and that will go towards patient care.

We've

increased the amount of money to education, and we made that commitment at a

time when student enrolment is declining across this province. We have increased

the per-pupil funding by $662. This is the equivalent of from 1998, where it was

$5,844 per student in British Columbia, to 2003-04, where it will be $6,506.

This money is to help local school boards meet the needs of students first.

We passed Bill

29. Is it working? Does it work? You can bet it's working. We have continued to

save dollars every day since passing Bill 29, and every dollar that was saved

went directly towards health care. We committed to maintain the funding in

health care, and every time we can make savings, that money goes directly

towards patient care. The more efficiently each health authority runs, the more

direct dollars go to patient care. A new Fair Pharmacare plan will be introduced

later this month, and there are some 280,000 low-income families that will pay

less than they do now for Pharmacare. For the first time ever, young families

with lower incomes will be supported with drug costs.

[1615]

The vast

majority of B.C. families will pay the same or less than they do today for

prescription drugs. That's working for the people most in need by putting the

money where it should go, not to special interest groups.

In my riding

of Burquitlam, I've been working with the business community. The middle of my

riding is North Road, and it's the dividing line or the joining line, as I like

to say, between the city of Burquitlam and the community. I've been working with

the businesses in that area to help them create a business association to

promote the area. We now have the Millennium Line that comes down there on its

way to New Westminster and the loop. This is an unique area. As an ethnic area,

it's become known as Koreatown. The Korean population is very large in the

Burnaby and Coquitlam sides. There are nearly 200 businesses on North Road in

this small section.

I wanted to

form a business association so that they could take advantage of the Millennium

Line that is now coming through there and for the two cities to work together. I

contacted three individuals. I worked with Mr. Ron Little, Mr. Michael Hwang and

Mr. James Lee. They were the driving force behind this committee.

We had a

meeting a little while ago with representatives from the city of Burnaby, from

their planning department, city councillors and business leaders. The committee

had a very good discussion. They went off, and they've decided that they would

like to create a business improvement area. This business improvement area will

really be unique, because it will be the first time ever, to my knowledge, that

two cities have done a business improvement area together. They're excited about

bringing more people to this area. In the lower mainland there are a number of

great examples of business improvement areas, and I expect this will be one that

in the near future everyone will be talking about.

Open for

business. Well, the riding of Burquitlam is open for business. Up on top of

Burnaby Mountain, at Simon Fraser University, there's a new development called

UniverCity. Up there they've started construc-

[ Page 4778 ]

tion on 10,000 new homes. These homes will be built over the next 15 years.

There is going to be commercial and retail construction as well.

The excitement

on Burnaby Mountain at Simon Fraser University will come to its height on July

2, 2003, when the International Olympic Committee announces that Canada has been

awarded the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games. What an exciting day

that'll be. Wow. I can hardly wait for the world to come to British Columbia to

celebrate the Olympics. Can you imagine over two billion people from around the

world watching the opening ceremonies? Can you imagine as the athletes are

filing in side by side, in this huge line of team members from countries around

the world walking into the stadium? We're going to have Korea there, China,

Austria, our neighbours the United States of America. Amongst the world that

will come to our great province will be the Canadian Olympic team. What a

thrill. I can just visualize. I've seen it. I can visualize our team walking

into the stadium side by side, holding that Canadian flag high and proud. That

will take place right here in British Columbia and in Burquitlam.

Right here in

my riding of Burquitlam, on top of Burnaby Mountain at Simon Fraser University,

in relationship to the Olympics, which will be the catalyst, will be located a

speed-skating oval. The oval will house a long track and a short track and will

have three ice-playing surfaces in the middle. After the Olympics one of the

ice-playing surfaces will be removed, and it'll be an indoor field for

cross-training. The athletic competitions that will take place in that oval by

competitors from around the world and the dreams they will foster amongst young

people are not measurable.

What is

measurable is the over 100,000 square feet of research and classroom space that

will be built next to the oval. This is measurable. This is the real legacy that

will be left to British Columbians — over 100,000 square feet of classroom and

research space. This building will be supported by an endowment fund that will

guarantee the maintenance operation of this building. This is the real legacy to

British Columbia.

[1620]

This is an

academic dream. This is where research will happen, and research creates jobs

all over British Columbia and the world. The research that is done is leading

out of Simon Fraser University; they are the leading health care researcher. I

would like to dream a bit and say: is this the first step towards a medical

school at Simon Fraser University? It has to start somewhere, and this is

possibly it. This is the dream from the Olympics.

The Olympics

will benefit many businesses within the riding of Burquitlam, but really the

whole province of British Columbia. My colleagues and I have initiated a Time to

Shine committee for the Tri-Cities, and we will be hosting the business

community so that they can see how they can truly participate in the Olympics.

We will be hosting that in the Tri-Cities on March 24 of this year. My

colleagues and I have already hosted a Time to Shine meeting for the business

community in Burnaby.

The Olympics

and the people from around the world — the athletes, the academics, the

trainers and the people that will come — will not only go to Simon Fraser

University; they'll come down into Burnaby and Coquitlam. Over the years when

athletic teams come, they'll use the first-rate facilities for their additional

training that Burnaby and Coquitlam have to offer. The Olympics are a dream to

many, but to Canada and British Columbia it is an opportunity to show off to the

world what a great country we live in. It's our time to shine.

Hon. S.

Bond: I'm very pleased to stand today as the MLA for Prince George–Mount

Robson. My constituency, my riding, is a testament to the strength of diversity

in this province. The place where we choose to make our home encompasses the

majesty of the mountains, including Mount Robson, the urban energy of Prince

George and the peaceful rural lifestyle of the Robson Valley. The pioneer spirit

that brought many families to the north and to the interior has held

communities, businesses and families together through some very difficult times.

In this same spirit of confidence, of community and of family, it is that spirit

that will guide the heartlands as we work together to open the door to

opportunity and to sustainable economic growth.

The people of

my riding value hard work. They value friendship and family, and they want to be

part of a prosperous British Columbia. They want just one thing. It's

opportunity — the opportunity to put in an honest day's work and to be fairly

compensated; the opportunity to raise their families in the community that they

choose; the opportunity for their children to have a quality education system;

the opportunity for top-notch medical services delivered in a sustainable way;

the opportunity for our children to be able to work and raise their families in

the part of the province that we call home.

An important

theme emerged on Tuesday, and that was the renewal of our pledge to support and

sustain families, to strengthen them and their capacity to respond to the

challenges that we will all face in the future. This government and the MLAs who

have been elected care about families — so much so, in fact, that they are

prepared to make very difficult decisions that are necessary in order to ensure

that your children and mine are guaranteed the future they deserve in British

Columbia.

The

announcement of Fair Pharmacare, with its focus on providing real benefit to

some 280,000 lower-income families, is a measure of this pledge. Accessible,

affordable child care, particularly for single working parents, is a fundamental

element of supporting families. By providing expanded access and more choice to

families across the province, we have responded to parents' concerns to provide

the daily care and support that are essential to families.

[1625]

Our

government has also been working with families of children and adults who face

significant challenge living with a developmental disability. As some-

[ Page 4779 ]

one who has volunteered in my own community to support families facing these

challenges, I am very proud to be part of an initiative that is leading the

world — yes, the world — in redefining government's role in providing

services that will help these families stay together and that will allow

communities to provide support to families in the most appropriate ways

possible.

This

government's commitment extends to aboriginal communities as well. The Speech

from the Throne sets down clear direction and a determination to provide new

levels of economic opportunity for aboriginal peoples and support to their

families and their children. It is time as a province that we join with

aboriginal leaders and their communities in mutual respect to work together to

improve the quality of life for first nations people. I would very much like to

recognize the work and the progress that has been made by the Lheidli-T'enneh

chief, Barry Seymour. Their positive efforts mean good news for aboriginal and

non-aboriginal communities alike. By working in partnership with provincial and

municipal governments, the Lheidli-T'enneh have made great strides. They have

reached an agreement with the city of Prince George and are close to an

agreement-in-principle with the provincial and federal governments.

Opportunity is

what my constituents want, a fair chance to be a major partner in the economic

renewal of British Columbia. The throne speech delivered Tuesday makes clear

that the provincial government, my government, shares their desire. To me and to

all of the people who live in my constituency, the commitment to the heartlands

woven throughout our government's work plan for the coming year is truly welcome

news. The B.C. heartlands economic strategy is a bold statement that fully

recognizes the contributions my part of the province makes to British Columbia.

It is a call for us to resume our place at the table. It is saying that British

Columbia i