First Session, 42nd Parliament

(2021) OFFICIAL REPORT

OF DEBATES

(HANSARD)

Monday, March 1, 2021

Afternoon Sitting

Issue No. 16

ISSN 1499-2175

The HTML transcript is provided for informational purposes only.

The PDF transcript remains the official digital version.

CONTENTS

Routine Business

Introductions by Members

Introduction and First Reading of Bills

Bill 7 — Tenancy Statutes Amendment Act, 2021

Hon. D. Eby

Statements (Standing Order 25B)

YWCA Metro Vancouver

B. Bailey

Angler’s Atlas and fishing derby event

M. Morris

Fundraising by Eagle Ridge Hospital Foundation

R. Glumac

Front-line workers and RCMP in Cariboo-Chilcotin area

L. Doerkson

Surrey Fire Fighters Society school snack program

M. Starchuk

Chang Tseng

T. Wat

Oral Questions

COVID-19 vaccination plan for seniors and small communities

S. Bond

Hon. J. Horgan

COVID-19 vaccination plan for essential workers

R. Merrifield

Hon. A. Dix

COVID-19 impact and disaggregated data collection

S. Furstenau

Hon. A. Dix

COVID-19 response for small businesses

T. Stone

Hon. R. Kahlon

M. de Jong

P. Milobar

Motions Without Notice

Membership change to Special Committee on Reforming the Police Act

Membership change to Special Committee to Review the Personal Information Protection Act

Hon. M. Farnworth

Tabling Documents

Office of the Auditor General, independent audit report, IT Asset

Management in B.C. Government , November 2020

Office of the Auditor General, independent audit report, Management of

Forest Service Roads , November 2020

Office of the Auditor General, independent audit report, Management of

Medical Device Cybersecurity at the Provincial Health Services

Authority , February 2021

Office of the Auditor General, independent audit report, Oversight of

International Education Programs in Offshore and Group 4

Schools , November 2020

Office of the Ombudsperson, annual report, 2019-20

Office of the Representative for Children and Youth, report, Detained:

Rights of Children and Youth Under the Mental Health

Act

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding Ministerial

Order M012/2021 and M013/2021, Minister of Public Safety and

Solicitor General

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding Ministerial

Order M480/2020, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor

General

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 004/2021, Attorney General and Minister Responsible

for Housing

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 061/2021, Attorney General and Minister Responsible

for Housing

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 061/2021, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor

General

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 081/2021, Attorney General and Minister Responsible

for Housing

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 083/2021, Attorney General and Minister Responsible

for Housing

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 086/2021, Attorney General and Minister Responsible

for Housing

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 655/2020, Attorney General and Minister Responsible

for Housing

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 659/2020, Attorney General and Minister Responsible

for Housing

Report pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures Act regarding

Order-in-Council 698/2020, Attorney General and Minister Responsible

for Housing

Orders of the Day

Throne Speech Debate

(continued)

J. Brar

H. Sandhu

A. Mercier

P. Alexis

D. Coulter

J. Routledge

Hon. R. Fleming

H. Yao

B. Anderson

Hon. S. Malcolmson

Hon. J. Osborne

Hon. M. Rankin

MONDAY, MARCH 1, 2021

The House met at 1:34 p.m.

[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

Routine Business

Introductions by Members

Mr. Speaker: The member for Prince George–​Valemount.

S. Bond: Thank you very much, hon. Speaker. It’s good to be back and great to

see you in the chair.

Today I rise to introduce the amazing young people that will be

joining the B.C. Liberal caucus as part of the 2021 Legislative Assembly

internship program.

[1:35 p.m.]

We’re delighted to welcome Camille Haisell, William Kelly, Michael

Kurliak, Moira Louw and Gabrielle Parent. We know that over the next several

months, they will get the very unique opportunity to work closely with the

opposition communications and research staff. I can assure you that they

will learn valuable skills and some insight into how politics work behind

the scenes and about the business that takes place in this House.

I have every confidence that these young men and women are future

leaders in our province, potentially in our country. We’re very excited. We

look forward to working with them in the weeks and months ahead.

I know that members in the precinct will want to welcome these young

men and women to the chamber today.

Hon. M. Farnworth: I, too, want to rise in the chamber today and welcome the legislative

interns who will be working with the government caucus. As the member has

indicated, many of them may well go on to careers in government. A number of

interns in previous administrations in this House have, in fact, ended up

sitting in this House, both in opposition and on the government side. So

it’s a really terrific opportunity for them.

I would like to welcome today Kate Olivares from Simon Fraser, whose

McGill University, a degree in history; Rachel McMillan from the University

of Victoria, political science degree, honours; Kala Bryson from UBC, degree

in political science, honours; and Arian Zand from UBC, political science,

international relations and economics.

Would the House please make these amazing young people most

welcome.

M. Babchuk: It’s my great pleasure today to introduce you to my husband, Dan

Babchuk, my brother-in-law Stephan Babchuk and my good friend Catherine

Ross, who are sitting here in the gallery. I think members will agree that

we can’t do the jobs that we do without the love and support of these people

in our lives. I hope the House will join me in welcoming them into the

gallery and the Legislature today.

M. Elmore: I’m very pleased to introduce RJ Aquino. RJ is a community leader.

He’s a founding member of Tulayan, which is an organization that bridges the

Philippines diaspora. They connect second- and third-generation Filipino

Canadians looking to reconnect with their heritage, language and history. RJ

is a founding member, also, of OneCity, the Vancouver municipal party, and

he’s currently the treasurer of Collingwood Neighbourhood House. He’s just

an all around terrific and inspiring leader.

I’d like to ask all members of the Legislature to please join me and

to wish RJ a very happy 40th birthday.

S. Furstenau: I’m delighted to join the other caucuses in welcoming our legislative

interns for this session. Abby Koning has studied political science and

human dimensions of climate change at the University of Victoria, and James

Anderson studied political science at UBC. We are absolutely delighted to

have them on board. I warned them that the Green caucus is a little bit like

Hotel California. You might be able to check out, but you will never

leave.

B. Bailey: I welcome people to join me in celebrating my mother’s birthday. She’s

watching today, and yesterday was her birthday. Born in Kamloops but spent

most of her life in Nanaimo. I’m very proud of my mom. She took her love of

books and became a book publisher, running a small literary press, which she

eventually owned, and became a lecturer at Vancouver Island

University.

We lost my dad in 2012. They’d been married almost 50 years. My

brother doesn’t live in Nanaimo, and I’m over in Vancouver. I haven’t seen

her since August. I want to commend her on staying strong and managing

through these very difficult times, as so many of our family members have

done. She has built a wonderful community of friends to walk with and ensure

that she keeps socializing in a safe way.

I congratulate you on that, Mom. We’ll see you soon. Happy

birthday.

[1:40 p.m.]

Introduction and

First Reading of Bills

BILL 7 — TENANCY STATUTES

AMENDMENT ACT,

Hon. D. Eby presented a message from Her Honour the

Lieutenant-Governor: a bill intituled Tenancy Statutes Amendment Act,

Hon. D. Eby: I move the bill be introduced and read a first time

now.

I’m pleased to introduce the Tenancy Statutes Amendment Act, 2021.

This bill contains proposed amendments to the Manufactured Home Park

Tenancy Act and the Residential Tenancy Act. One of the amendments

fulfils an election promise set out in my mandate letter from the

Premier to continue the freeze on rent increases for the remainder of

The rest of the amendments are in response to recommendations by

the Rental Housing Task Force. The task force was created to advise

government on how to improve security and fairness for renters and

rental housing providers throughout the province. The final report,

released in December 2018, contained 23 recommendations designed to

ensure tenancy laws and processes reflect fair process as well as safe,

secure and affordable housing for both renters and rental housing

providers.

The amendments include stopping renovictions by having landlords

apply to the residential tenancy branch prior to ending a tenancy for

renovations; expanding the RTB’s ability to review director’s decisions

and to initiate a review on the director’s initiative; clarifying

language around the Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Act park rules;

clarifying that the monetary limit for claims under the Small Claims Act

applies only to claims for debt or damages; clarifying when the director

does not have jurisdiction to resolve a dispute; clarifying the

director’s authority to compel records and information related to an

investigation and providing regulation-making power to establish

procedures to object to a director’s demand for records; allowing the

director to order a person to pay an administrative penalty if the

person commits fraud in a dispute resolution proceeding or an

administrative penalty investigation or hearing or fails to comply with

the demand for records; creating review consideration grounds that are

specific to administrative penalties; ensuring that the director must

grant a monetary order for unpaid rent along with an order of possession

of a tenant dispute so notice to end tenancy for unpaid rent that is

dismissed by the director and the notice is upheld.

Minor changes to regulation-making power will ensure that

government can implement a process that will allow landlords to apply

for an additional rent increase for capital expenditure.

I would like to take a moment to particularly thank the member for

Vancouver–West End, who chaired this committee, and also the member for

Saanich North and the Islands and the member for Courtenay-Comox, who

are members of this committee as well.

Mr. Speaker: The question is first reading of the bill.

Motion approved.

Hon. D. Eby: I move that the bill be placed on the orders of the day for second

reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Bill 7, Tenancy Statutes Amendment Act, 2021, introduced, read a

first time and ordered to be placed on orders of the day for second reading

at the next sitting of the House after today.

Statements

(Standing Order 25B)

YWCA METRO VANCOUVER

B. Bailey: I speak to you today from the traditional territory of the Coast

Salish people: the Squamish, Musqueam and Tsleil-Waututh

Nations.

I rise in the House today for the first time. I want to thank the

voters of Vancouver–False Creek for putting their trust in me. Thank you

to all who made this lifelong goal a reality.

There are literally thousands of outstanding not-for-profits doing

vital work in our province, including here in my riding of

Vancouver–False Creek. I’d like to take a moment to highlight one of the

longest-standing, the YWCA Metro Vancouver.

[1:45 p.m.]

Established in 1897, the YWCA’s vision is to achieve women’s

equality, and its mission is to touch lives and build better futures.

The YWCA serves women and their families with 66 programs in 75

locations across the Lower Mainland. We know that women and new

Canadians have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic, and the

YWCA is there.

I want to tell you a story about Nida. She’s given permission for

me to share her story. Nida is a newcomer to Canada and a mom who spent

several years out of the workforce. As a participant in the YWCA’s tech

connect, Nida was matched with a mentor, a senior software developer at

Amazon Web Services.

Prior to enrolling in the tech connect program, Nida was

struggling with how to proceed with her job search. She had withdrawn

from a PhD program at McGill University several years earlier, when she

became pregnant, and had been out of the workforce for multiple years

and was struggling to re-engage.

Nida’s mentor quickly identified her skill set and provided her

with clarity on what roles to target in her job search. Her mentor also

let her know about Microsoft’s Leap program, an immersive

six-to-eight-month program that provides professional women in

technology the opportunity to re-enter the workforce after an extended

absence.

Tech connect supported Nida through the application process by

providing her mock interviews and coaching, and Nida’s efforts paid off.

She joined Microsoft as a project manager this past fall.

ANGLER’S ATLAS

AND FISHING DERBY

EVENT

M. Morris: Last fall, as we entered the dark days of winter, I happened to

meet with Sean Simmons, a Prince George resident and owner of Angler’s

Atlas and Goldstream Publishing. Sean had formed the company in Prince

George back in 1999 and, over the years, expanded it across Canada and

into the United States. Sean is all about freshwater fishing. His

company now boasts more than 80,000 topographical maps and depth charts

of lakes in B.C. and across Canada.

Our conversation led to the first ice-fishing derby hosted by

northern MLAs from the Cariboo, central Interior, northern Interior and

the Skeena. The derby is supported by an app developed by his company,

called MyCatch, where no matter what lake you fish, you simply open the

app on your cell phone and take a picture of your fish laying alongside

a measuring device. The app records the date, time and the place of the

catch. The experts working within the company can determine the length,

down to a millimetre, and the species of fish caught. Fishers now have

the option to catch and release fish, if they prefer.

Once the fisher-person enters cell service, the information

automatically downloads to the Angler’s Atlas database. And don’t worry.

For those fisher-persons intent on keeping their favourite locations

secret, the locations of the fish entered are not revealed.

Our Shake Off the Blues fishing derby commenced on February 13 and

will conclude on March 7. Local businesses and sponsors from the Cariboo

to Fort Nelson and from Prince George to Terrace have generously

sponsored numerous prizes. As of a week ago, over 400 fish have been

entered from 48 different water bodies, representing 15 different

species of freshwater fish.

For anyone living in the northern Interior, enjoy our outdoor

spaces, shake off the blues, and enter the derby. You could be a

winner.

FUNDRAISING BY

EAGLE RIDGE HOSPITAL

FOUNDATION

R. Glumac: I’d like to rise in the House today to recognize the great work of

the Eagle Ridge Hospital Foundation in reaching its fundraising goal of

$5 million to help expand the emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital in

Port Moody.

Originally built in 1988 to serve 20,000 patients, the ER today

sees more than 50,000 visits every year. This expansion, funded in

cooperation with the B.C. government, will see treatment spaces more

than double, and overall space will triple to 21,000 square feet. There

will be new isolation rooms to support improved infection control and

new trauma resuscitation bays. There will be three waiting areas,

including family and child-centred spaces, private exam and consultation

spaces, and a new mental health interview space.

[1:50 p.m.]

This project was designed with the clinical team and the

architects working closely together, ensuring that the new emergency

room will be state of the art. Emergency physician Dr. Mostrenko says:

“This expansion will change the way we deliver care to the Tri-Cities. I

think it will make a huge difference in patient experience and the

overall health of our community.”

I want to thank all the staff and volunteers at the Eagle Ridge

Hospital Foundation for their incredible efforts to meet their

fundraising goals during these challenging times.

I want to thank the community in the Tri-Cities. Each and every

person that donated: thank you for your generous contribution to the

hospital that we all love.

This expansion, adding to the new urgent primary care centre

that’s being established in Port Moody, will ensure that people in need

of urgent care will be well served for many years to come.

FRONT-LINE WORKERS AND RCMP

IN CARIBOO-CHILCOTIN

AREA

L. Doerkson: Today I rise to lend my support to a group of men and women that

put their lives at risk on a daily basis. Like all of our front-line

workers, these people do not have the option of working from home. In

Cariboo-Chilcotin, where floods and fires create enough challenges

without the pandemic, we are talking about a group of people that run

toward danger, while most of us would rather run from it.

As a matter of fact, in recent years, we’re talking about a group

of highly dedicated professionals who stayed behind to protect our homes

and our communities while most of us had the opportunity to enjoy the

hospitality and generosity of our neighbouring cities that gave us

refuge during those challenging times.

While we take great pride in our communities, sadly we are

experiencing a rise in property crime and other serious offences.

Unfortunately, a considerable amount of criminal activity is conducted

by repeat offenders that are well known to our police

department.

Despite reoccurring release of so many prolific offenders in our

communities and the staggering amount of theft and property damage these

individuals inflict, our RCMP detachments have remained undeterred. They

continue to deal with these individuals every day and, I must say, with

the utmost support and accolades from the residents of the

Cariboo-Chilcotin.

We have seen the courage of our nurses, paramedics, search and

rescue, and many other front-line workers during this pandemic, but in

this instance, I wanted to take a few minutes this afternoon to thank

our RCMP members for all that they do. In Cariboo-Chilcotin, we have two

of the most committed leaders in Insp. Jeff Pelley in Williams Lake and

Staff Sgt. Svend Nielsen in 100 Mile House. Together they lead a very

dynamic group of officers to protect us daily.

I ask all of the members this afternoon to join me to show our

support and send well wishes to our RCMP members and police forces

throughout the province.

SURREY FIRE FIGHTERS SOCIETY

SCHOOL SNACK

PROGRAM

M. Starchuk: The Surrey Fire Fighters Charitable Society is headquartered in my

riding of Surrey-Cloverdale. I’m honoured today to stand in the House

and speak about one of their many great programs.

The nutritional snack program began in 1997, when Jon Caviglia

came up with an idea to help hungry children in our schools. Back then,

they started with just four schools. Twenty-four years later, Dan Kehler

is leading the program, and it has grown to 119 schools. These include

88 elementary schools, 19 secondary schools and 12 alternative learning

schools. In just my riding of Surrey-Cloverdale, there are 12 elementary

schools, three secondary schools and one learning centre that benefit

from this program.

The nutritional snack program has spent nearly $1.5 million since

its inception. Daily the program provides nutritional snacks, breakfast

and lunch to approximately 2,500 hungry students. The program also

provides fridges to eight high-needs schools for dairy and other

perishables.

The pandemic has created obstacles to the program with regards to

securing and delivering food supplies to the schools. This year the

program expects to spend in excess of $200,000. Learning can be a

challenging experience for some students, but wondering where your next

meal or snack will come from makes learning even harder.

This is why I stand in the House today to say thank you to those

Surrey firefighters, current and retired members, who donate their

off-duty time to deliver this program to the 119 schools in

Surrey.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[1:55 p.m.]

CHANG TSENG

T. Wat: I rise today to reflect on and honour the life of Chang Tseng, a

great artist and incredible member of our community and a man I had the

honour of calling my friend.

I was deeply saddened to learn of the loss of my friend Chang

Tseng, who passed away in late January. We have known each other since

the ’90s, when he had already built a reputation as a passionate actor

and film director, both in B.C. and in Hong Kong.

Chang started his acting career in 1951. He was one of the most

versatile and prolific leading actors, starring in many movies in his

golden days. He later became a film director and has been named the

director of documentaries focusing on amazing stories. Chang later moved

to Vancouver in the ’90s. I came to know him when he was a program guest

at my former workplace, CHMB AM 1320, a multicultural radio station

better known as Mainstream Broadcasting.

He was a man with a strong work ethic and passion who always

helped and cared for his colleagues. Chang was always actively involved

in community work in B.C. He participated in many charity events and

helped raise funds for local charitable organizations and those in need

around the world. He was also the former president of the Vancouver Film

and Television Artists Society, which has been involved in community

work and promoting the local film and TV industry.

I would like to offer my most sincere condolences to his wife and

family and pray that those who knew him find comfort and strength in the

love and support of family and friends.

Chang Tseng was a titan of his industry, and his legacy will live

on here in Hollywood North. All who knew him know that B.C. has lost a

phenomenal community leader and a great man.

Oral Questions

COVID-19 VACCINATION PLAN

FOR SENIORS AND SMALL

COMMUNITIES

S. Bond: Today British Columbians heard the much-anticipated update on the

vaccine rollout for our province. I’m sure the Premier, like other MLAs

in this Legislature, has heard from families across the province who are

concerned about how they will make sure that their frail elderly family

members are vaccinated.

No one underestimates the complexity, but I think many people had

anticipated that today’s announcement would answer more questions than

it did. In fact, there continue to be gaps. Of particular concern has

been how smaller or more rural communities will fit into the

plan.

Just recently — in fact, less than a week ago — the mayor of Hope

expressed some very significant concerns. Let me quote for the Premier

what he wrote. Mayor Robb said: “We were told that the direction from

the Ministry of Health is not to have clinics in our community.

Logistically how is this going to work? It makes no sense. We have

buildings available for clinics, like the ice arena, the curling club

and the legion. We can help with volunteers. We can marshal and train to

vaccinate.”

Could the Premier today, in light of the plan that was announced

this morning, explain to Mayor Robb and to the families in Hope and

other small communities across the province why there are no plans to

hold clinics in small communities like Hope?

Hon. J. Horgan: I thank the Leader of the Opposition for her question. We were

very pleased today to speak about the move to phase 2 of our vaccination

plan. Already, as the member will know, 275,000 British Columbians have

been immunized, with another 400,000 on the way.

The plan is comprehensive. I know the Minister of Health, as

question period unfolds, will be able to go specifically to how we’re

going to manage smaller communities.

The examples that you’ve cited are disconcerting to me. That’s

certainly not the approach that Dr. Henry and Dr. Ballem have been

discussing with me.

[2:00 p.m.]

What, in fact, we’ve been talking about is calling on all of us in

this place and municipal leaders and others — Rotarians, Lions Club,

Kiwanis, everyone — in a national and a provincial, in our case, effort

to make sure that the most vulnerable, those who don’t have the

necessary technological expertise…. The member from Kamloops South does.

Make sure that we can get to those frail and vulnerable people to the

best of our ability. We can’t do it without the support of

community.

I’m confident that as question period goes by and the Minister of

Health gets up and addresses that specific question about Hope, it will

give some comfort to the mayor.

I will say that in my own community, which is a suburb of

Victoria…. Mayor Young has already committed the dry floor at Eagle

Ridge Centre. There are other large facilities in smaller and larger

communities around B.C. that will be available.

Municipal leaders want to help. Community leaders want to help.

It’s that level of support and enthusiasm that, I think, will get us

through phase 2 and then, finally, into phase 3, when the general public

will be accessing massive immunization programs like we’ve never seen

before.

There will be bumps along the way. Today was to announce the

pending arrival of AstraZeneca. Having a third tool in our toolkit is

very, very helpful for the minister and for public health to ensure that

those gaps that were in the system because we are dependent on offshore

supplies are less disconcerting at this point.

I’m confident that the community of Hope will be addressed, as

every other community in B.C. will.

Mr. Speaker: The Leader of the Official Opposition on a

supplemental.

S. Bond: I appreciate the Premier’s answer to that question. I know that he

knows how anxiety-ridden many families have been — in particular, the

frail elderly — across British Columbia.

I think one of the significant challenges is that for a year now

the frail elderly in our province have been told not to leave their

community, to stay local, to make sure they stay close to home. So you

can imagine how surprised the mayor was to hear that there was

contemplation that seniors in Hope would actually be expected to travel

to receive their vaccinations. It’s contrary to all of the advice that

has been provided to families across the province.

Less than a week ago this is what else Mayor Robb had to say:

“This plan is wrong on so many levels and needs to be rethought to

include clinics in our communities. Smaller towns and villages are under

enough COVID stress without adding another layer.”

What I would ask the Premier to do today is to stand up and

guarantee that elderly residents in smaller towns, including Hope or

other remote communities, will not be required to leave their

communities to receive their vaccinations.

Hon. J. Horgan: Again, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for the tone and the

content of her question.

I absolutely agree. We have spent just under 12 months…. It will

be next week that we announced our pandemic response plan. A year that

none of us had ever anticipated. And it’s been challenging. We all know

that. People are tired. They’re afraid. Fatigue does not come close to

it. Exhaustion, exasperation and the anxiety that the member talks about

are genuine and real. The mental health challenges that have flowed from

the pandemic are as graphic as the pandemic itself.

We have made it clear, through phase 1, in the north…. For

example, in Takla Landing, as rural and remote a place — the member

knows; she has been there, I’m sure — as you can get to, vaccines came

into the community. Our intent, through phase 1, was to go to those

places that could not be easily accessible, and we’ve been relatively

successful in that. In some 90 percent of long-term care facilities,

residents and staff have been immunized.

I have every expectation that the residents of Hope, particularly

in phase 2, when we’ve got…. Those born before 1931 will not have to

travel to get immunized.

Part of our success in phase 1, hon. Member, was the mobile teams

that we had to go to communities. I have every expectation that that’s

the case. I’m certain that the Minister of Health will be up in a moment

to give you more details.

[2:05 p.m.]

COVID-19 VACCINATION PLAN

FOR ESSENTIAL

WORKERS

R. Merrifield: Front-line essential workers have been told that they will be

prioritized for vaccination and had expected to receive details of that

plan today, but there remains a complete lack of clarity and utter

confusion on the order and criteria for vaccinating priority

groups.

To the Premier, when will essential workers be told the vaccine

plan for them?

Hon. A. Dix: On January 19, the Premier, myself as Minister of Health, Dr.

Ballem and Dr. Henry released a detailed vaccination plan for the

province. So far, as the Premier has said, 275,000 immunizations have

taken place, and they’ve taken place in exactly the areas we said they

would take place, based on exactly the values and the criteria, the

clinical criteria, that’s required.

Our task is to protect those most vulnerable, and we have done

that — more than 90 percent of residents in long-term care and assisted

living, more than 90 percent of staff in long-term care, 46,000 health

care workers, many rural and remote Indigenous communities, etc. That

was laid out specifically, and it has been followed extraordinarily well

by all of the people working in public health.

Our strategy with respect to the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines,

which worked very well in our elder populations, is to focus on an

age-based approach. Why? Because these are the people who are most

vulnerable from COVID-19.

the AstraZeneca vaccine, which — they did it on Friday — as stated by

Health Canada and as stated in our plan on January 19, would be used to

work with essential workers in groups. We got approval last Friday. We

understand now that the vaccine will arrive, we were informed on the

weekend, starting the week of March 8, and we’ll be laying out a plan

for that.

It’s fairly straightforward. It was pretty clear on January 19;

it’s pretty clear today. Our core is to protect the most vulnerable

people in society. That’s why we have an age-based approach. We’ll be

using other vaccines, such as AstraZeneca and the Johnson and Johnson

vaccine, to address the issues involving essential workers.

R. Merrifield: I would disagree with the minister, because it is not

clear.

This pandemic has been with us for a year, and these workers

expected clear answers and detailed information today. British

Columbians on the front lines are stressed. They’re exhausted. They’re

even traumatized. The lack of answers just makes it worse.

Teachers, daycare staff, dentists, agriculture workers, transit

workers, first responders — all these groups deserve to know if they are

considered essential and where they stand in the queue.

Can the Premier give a firm date when these groups will be told if

they are prioritized or not?

Hon. A. Dix: Well, with great respect, we have an enormous number of essential

workers across B.C. We have received vaccine, and the member knows,

because she and her colleagues received a detailed briefing this

morning, that we’ve given priority to the most vulnerable and to

essential workers in health care. I don’t believe and I have not heard

anyone argue with that.

We’ve received a little over 300,000 doses of the vaccine, 275,000

of which have been delivered, and more are being delivered every day. If

you’ll remember, and people who watched the presentation today will see

the chart, we have consistently delivered vaccine as it has been

received in B.C., and we will continue to do so. The issue as to when

people will be immunized at least in part depends on when we’ll get

vaccine.

With respect to essential workers, we were clear on January 19.

It’s clearly stated in our presentation then and today. As we receive

other vaccines, we can use those to assist essential workers. We found

out on Friday — on Friday — that AstraZeneca was approved in Canada. We

found out on the weekend that we would be receiving some AstraZeneca the

week of March 8, and we will be proceeding from there.

I think that is the evidence-based, thoughtful way that we have

always proceeded in British Columbia. It’s why British Columbia has had,

I think, such a successful record, especially of assisting the most

vulnerable.

[2:10 p.m.]

There have been significant losses. There’s enormous hope in this

vaccination campaign. I think the presentation by the Premier, Dr.

Ballem and Dr. Henry today showed that British Columbia will continue to

do what needs to be done to protect the most vulnerable first and to do

it in an organized and serious way.

COVID-19 IMPACT AND

DISAGGREGATED DATA

COLLECTION

S. Furstenau: In the last year, nearly 80,000 British Columbians have tested

positive for COVID-19, and more than 1,300 of them have died from the

virus. We know their age and their gender. Those who have died have been

predominantly seniors, more of them men than women, but beyond that, we

know little else about them.

Their race, income, living conditions, access to medical care and

work environment are all relevant and important factors not just because

they provide more information about the patient but because each of

these elements can be deeply impacted by government policy. Yet of the

12 determinants of health, as defined by the Canadian government, this

government is only collecting COVID data about gender.

As the B.C. Human Rights Commissioner has stated repeatedly, the

COVID-19 pandemic is aggravating existing injustices, making it all the

more “critical that the government of B.C. collect and analyze

disaggregated data to identify inequalities and advance human rights in

this province.”

My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier explain why his

government has not made COVID data collection, in order to understand

and support the needs of diverse British Columbians, a

priority?

Hon. A. Dix: Well, the answer is that we have — every case, every single case.

The member referred to the more than 1,300 people who have passed away.

The member referred to the cases of COVID-19. These are analyzed on a

systematic basis and on an individual basis. Contact tracing occurs for

all individuals. We focus on the cases and respond to it.

You see this in our immunization plan, which is focused, in

particular, on a number of groups. People in long-term care, who

represent the majority of people who have passed away, tragically, from

COVID-19 in B.C…. That has been a priority.

You see that in health policy: 95 percent of residents and 90 — I

think a number higher than that — in terms of staff, more than 70,000

people and essential visitors. That reflects the data and our focus,

which I think is unmatched in Canada, on supporting Indigenous

communities, on supporting people living in congregate living and

circumstances, of using what we know about the pandemic to focus our

vaccination campaigns. All of that is a demonstration of our

determination to do that.

I would agree with the member that we need, as a society and as a

government, to do a better job of analyzing and developing and

presenting racialized data. That is a commitment of the government and

one that we will continue to proceed with in the months to

come.

Mr. Speaker: The Leader of the Third Party on a supplemental.

S. Furstenau: I appreciate the minister’s response. However, the data collection

beyond age and gender hasn’t really been made public or been used to

explain how the government is informing their decisions.

There is an important exception, however. B.C. does collect more

health data on the experiences of Indigenous British Columbians. During

the pandemic, that data has helped us make vital policy decisions, as

outlined in today’s vaccine rollout briefing.

Because the Ministry of Health has information that indicates that

Indigenous people face a disproportionate risk from COVID-19, both in

terms of illness and fatalities, they were able to change the vaccine

rollout strategy to reflect that, saving precious lives in the

process.

What I remain worried about, however, are the people who are being

missed. As a U.S. director of public health told the New York

Times in December: “When I look at my data, the average age of

death from COVID for a white person is 81, but for a Latinx, it’s 67.

For a Black person, it’s 72.” This has massive implications when

designing an age-based vaccine rollout. Is the situation different in

our province? Probably. Without the data, we don’t fully know, and

that’s a big gamble to take.

My question is again to the Premier. Why is this government

limiting our province’s ability to respond to this pandemic and to build

a more equitable future for B.C. by not collecting this disaggregated

race-based data?

[2:15 p.m.]

Hon. A. Dix: First of all, I would say, with respect to Indigenous people,

First Nations people, across B.C., it’s been at the heart of our

response, not since the vaccination campaign began but from the

beginning of the pandemic — from January 2020 on, in fact. The First

Nations Health Authority has been involved at every level, at all

times.

We have worked, I think, closely with Indigenous groups across the

province, not just First Nations but, of course, Métis and Inuit groups

as well. I think we’ve had some real success there by focusing in on the

problem, working together and recognizing the vulnerability of groups —

especially in rural and remote communities but also in urban communities

— and working together to address that.

I think we’ve systematically been doing that, and you see that

reflected in our vaccination campaign as well. We’ve used the tools that

we have. We understand, and everybody understands, that those most

vulnerable from COVID-19 are also most vulnerable for all other

conditions, such as diabetes and others.

We have taken steps consistently in our testing programs, in our

vaccination programs, in our programs across the board to address those

issues. I think the efforts by public health in this regard have been

excellent. They can always improve. They can improve, they will improve,

and they must improve.

I appreciate the comments of the hon. member. She’ll know, because

we’ve talked about this on a number of occasions — and she’s made this

case to me personally, repeatedly, during the pandemic — that we’re

continuing to work and improve our response to the COVID-19 pandemic,

particularly to the vulnerable.

COVID-19 RESPONSE FOR

SMALL

BUSINESSES

T. Stone: One year into the pandemic, the NDP government has completely

botched its only grant program for small businesses. To make matters

worse, internal government documents show that in the six months that

the small and medium-sized business recovery grant program has been in

existence, this government has actually spent more money administering

the program than in the total dollar value of grants that have actually

been pushed out the door.

Mr. Speaker, $31 million is earmarked for the administration of

this program, yet to this point, only $21 million has actually reached

those small businesses who desperately need the help.

My question to the Premier would be this. Why is more money being

spent on red tape in this grant program than in the dollar value of the

very supports that struggling businesses and communities all over this

province desperately need to survive?

Hon. R. Kahlon: Thank you to the member for the question.

We certainly know that there are some businesses in B.C. that are

struggling. We also know some businesses are doing really well. So when

we put our package together, as one of the most comprehensive packages

across the country — as the member who asked the question knows — we

wanted to ensure that all sectors saw the benefit.

What we have is tax credits for businesses that are either hiring

or rehiring employees. PST waived for businesses buying manufacturing

equipment. We’ve created a new program, Launch Online, which helps

businesses pivot to having more online presence, to be able to set up

their e-commerce to sell to greater markets. We also lowered liquor

prices for restaurants, not on a temporary basis but on a permanent

basis. The member will know that this was a request made to their

government numerous times.We’ve taken action, thanks to the Solicitor

General.

Now the program has $45 million out this week. We’ve seen the

applications continue to increase, week over week. Since we made the

changes, we’ve seen an over 80 percent increase in applications. That

means the changes we’ve made were good. We can continue to consult with

small businesses across the province.

We’ve been nimble from the beginning. The pandemic has been

changing along the way. So have we. We’re going to continue to do that

and provide those supports to support our businesses throughout

B.C.

Mr. Speaker: The member for Kamloops–South Thompson on a

supplemental.

T. Stone: Let’s be clear. Thousands of businesses all over this province are

barely hanging on. They’re barely hanging on in the member’s community,

in my community and in every point in between. The CFIB last week

indicated that one of seven small businesses in British Columbia today

are at risk of closing, and closing soon. That’s 25,000 small businesses

that are at risk. More importantly, they employ 300,000 British

Columbians.

[2:20 p.m.]

Only in NDP-land does it make sense to put $300 million into a

grant program for small business, only to then make the eligibility

criteria and the application process so complicated and so onerous that

those very businesses who need the help cannot access the funds there to

support them.

Small business owners are tapped out. They’ve tapped out their

savings. They’ve run up their lines of credit. They’ve used all the

space they have on their credit cards. They’re struggling, and they need

this government to fix this botched program.

To the Premier, why is $31 million being spent on red tape to

administer an application process, which is essentially a four-box

form…? Why is that much money being spent on what is essentially a

box-ticking exercise instead of getting those funds immediately out to

the small businesses that need those dollars to make sure that they’re

still standing, on the other side of this pandemic?

Hon. R. Kahlon: Again, I thank the member for the question.

As I’ve mentioned many times, and I’ll continue to do so, we have

one of the most comprehensive support programs in all of Canada. A

recent report just came out that said B.C. had the highest per-capita

direct contributions to businesses and people than any other

jurisdiction in Canada.

The member mentions CFIB. I know that I have had a chance to meet

with CFIB. They also mentioned to us that B.C. is the envy of Canada.

Their members across Canada are looking to B.C. and saying: “How can we

ensure that our governments are doing similar things as

B.C.?”

The member also failed to mention that surveys also share that 70

percent of all businesses are relying on government supports right now.

We know the programs that we’ve put in place are helping businesses, and

we’re going to continue to provide those supports as long as they need

them.

M. de Jong: Well, $21 million of $300 million is hardly the envy of the

nation.

These businesses have followed all of the rules, and they’re

drowning. They’re drowning. They’ve been treading water. They have been

treading water, and they are exhausted. And what does the government do?

The government has pretended to create a lifeline for them. When these

desperate businesses reach out to grab hold of that lifeline, the

government snaps it away and waves a bunch of paper in their

face.

A drowning business doesn’t have time to design the perfect

website. A drowning business doesn’t have time to design the perfect

spring ad campaign. A drowning business needs money to pay their

employees, to pay their rent and to pay their suppliers. Why is the

government spending more money on bureaucracy, on red tape, on paperwork

than it’s actually contributing to the women and men who run small

business in B.C. and are desperate for assistance?

Hon. R. Kahlon: Clearly, the member didn’t look up the program launch online. If

he had, he would know that we’re not requiring the businesses to build

their websites themselves. We’re giving them up to $7,500 to bring in

another company to do the work for them, up to $7,500 for each business

to hire a consultant to come in and do the work for them.

We heard from businesses. They said that some of them created

websites, but they found that they weren’t adequate. So these dollars

will be able to support them in getting the professional services that

they need. We’re going to continue to provide those supports. They’re

critically important supports.

The amount of applications we’re seeing for that program is

through the roof. Businesses know they need to pivot, and we’re here to

support them while they do that.

Mr. Speaker: The member for Abbotsford West on a supplemental.

M. de Jong: I wonder if the minister has read his own application form. The

government wants to know about new e-commerce platforms, wants to know

about advertising to reach new markets. These businesses are drowning. I

don’t know if the…. They’re drowning today. They’re drowning today, and

instead of actually throwing them a lifeline, the government is saying:

“Well, what kind of new boat would you design sometime in the

future?”

They don’t have the time or the means to build the new boat.

They’re trying to keep the lights on; they’re trying to keep their

employees employed. And this minister and this government are throwing a

bunch of paperwork at them instead of the funds and the support they

need to keep the lights on and keep people working in British

Columbia.

[2:25 p.m.]

So $21 million out of $300 million. The minister calls that a

success, bureaucracy that is going to cost another $31 million. How does

the minister defend spending $31 million on a program that thus far has

only provided $21 million of support to the hard-working men and women

who run B.C.’s small businesses?

Hon. R. Kahlon: Again the member failed to read through the program. He failed to

understand that the businesses don’t actually themselves have to create

the online website. They don’t have to create their

e-commerce.

The whole purpose of the fund is so that they can hire a

consultant to do the work. We’re not asking them and we’re not paying

them to create their own website. We’re not giving them money to set up

their own e-commerce. We’re giving them money so they can hire a

consultant to do that work.

Guess what. Every single chamber I met with said: “This is the

program we need.” Every single association we met with said: “We need

more of these programs, not less.”

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Let’s hear the answer, please.

Hon. R. Kahlon: So I don’t understand what this member doesn’t understand about

this program.

Interjection.

Hon. R. Kahlon: Yeah, that’s right. He doesn’t use email. So I guess that’s why he

doesn’t understand this program.

This is exactly what businesses have been asking for, and this is

what we’re delivering. Businesses want supports, and we’re going to

continue to provide those supports to them.

P. Milobar: What’s very clear is that we have a program…. On March 23 last

year, $1.5 billion was unanimously approved by this assembly. It took

until September for the $300 million program to even be identified —

right before the election, conveniently enough.

Here we are six months later, seven months later, and we know that

out of that $300 million program that was announced, only $21 million

has been expended to the businesses in need. Yet $31.6 million has been

expended in the bureaucracy of it.

I’ll read something to the minister. This is a real person, with a

real livelihood at stake, whose real business is in really dire straits.

This business has actually been closed by health order the whole time,

because it’s a nightclub in Kamloops. Here’s the quote from the owner:

“This has become very fatiguing. I’m not sure this grant is going to

help any businesses when you put this much stress on the business

owners.” This was an email from February 24.

Here’s another quote. “I’m sorry, but this is a complete travesty:

mandatory nightclub full closures since March 14 of 2020. It’s almost

one full year without any provincial assistance whatsoever. Then when

you do offer something, it’s unobtainable due to red tape.”

The minister and the Premier can spin all they want. The reality

is that businesses that need the help, that need the support — that have

mortgaged everything to try to stay open or to even have a physical

building to go back to when things reopen — are hurting, and this

minister would rather spend more money on administration and that red

tape than actually putting the money out the door.

When will the Premier fix this mess, get the money in the hands of

the businesses that need it and stop trying to deflect everything, when

it’s very clearly a program under their purview that they have messed up

so badly?

Hon. R. Kahlon: I think the members are mixing up all the programs. Let me

highlight a little bit for them.

So $3 billion we’ve spent to support our businesses through the

pandemic. Early on, we cut property taxes, we prohibited commercial

evictions, and we forgave hydro bills. We worked with the federal

government on our wage subsidy and commercial rent program. We put tax

credits in place for hiring and rehiring employees. We waived PST on

manufactured goods.

We’ve created a launch online program. We’ve created agritech

programs. We’ve created manufacturing programs. We’ve cut 25 percent

from liquor pricing for restaurants. That’s why the reports are saying

that we have one of the most comprehensive support packages across the

country. We’re proud of that. And 98.7 percent of jobs have come back to

B.C., to pre-pandemic levels. We’re going to continue to work to support

our businesses.

[2:30 p.m.]

[End of question period.]

Motions Without Notice

MEMBERSHIP CHANGE

TO SPECIAL COMMITTEE

REFORMING THE POLICE ACT

Hon. M. Farnworth: Notwithstanding Standing Order 69(2), I seek leave to move two

motions regarding substitutions on the Special Committee on Reforming

the Police Act and the Special Committee to Review the Personal

Information Protection Act.

Leave granted.

Hon. M. Farnworth: I move:

[That the written agreement between the Government House Leader, the

Official Opposition House Leader, and the Third Party House Leader,

dated January 28, 2021, be ratified to substitute Karin

Kirkpatrick , MLA for Ian Paton , MLA as a Member on the

Special Committee on Reforming the Police Act for the First

Session of the Forty-second Parliament.]

Motion approved.

MEMBERSHIP CHANGE

TO SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO REVIEW THE

PERSONAL INFORMATION PROTECTION ACT

Hon. M. Farnworth: I move:

[That Kelly Greene , MLA be substituted for Rachna

Singh , MLA as a Member of the Special Committee to Review the

Personal Information Protection Act .]

Motion approved.

Tabling Documents

Mr. Speaker: Members, I have the honour to present the following

reports.

From the Office of the Auditor General — IT Asset Management in

B.C. Government , Management of Forest Service Roads ,

Management of Medical Device Cybersecurity at the Provincial Health

Services Authority , Oversight of International Education

Programs in Offshore and Group 4 Schools .

The 2019-2020 Annual Report from the Office of the

Ombudsperson.

Detained: Rights of Children and Youth Under the Mental Health

Act from the Office of the Representative for Children and

Youth.

Eleven reports pursuant to the COVID-19 Related Measures

Act.

Orders of the Day

Hon. M. Farnworth: I call continued response to the Speech from the Throne.

[N. Letnick in the chair.]

Throne Speech Debate

(continued)

J. Brar: I’m pleased to continue my response to the throne speech of 2020 from

where I left on December 14, 2020. To begin with, once again, let me make it

absolutely clear that I feel proud to support the throne speech of 2020

delivered by our government on December 7, 2020, in this House.

We are going through the worst pandemic in the history of our

province, causing an unprecedented health and economic crisis for the people

of this province. This Speech from the Throne is focused on the immediate

actions our government has taken to protect British Columbians’ health and

livelihoods from the threat of COVID-19.

[2:35 p.m.]

No doubt our lives have been turned upside down by the pandemic. We

have come a long way together, but we have further to go. We can get through

this by looking out for each other, just like we have done

before.

When the pandemic hit our province last spring, we [audio interrupted]

we would be there for them for as long as it takes to recover. That promise

stands. We will continue to listen to public health officials, help those on

the front lines and support families and businesses.

From the beginning of the pandemic, our government has been there to

support the people most in need and has taken action to help hard-hit

industries while we build a strong economic recovery for

everyone.

Our government is working to make life easier for families and

businesses through the pandemic. We launched a new B.C. recovery benefit,

which was rolled out last year. The B.C. recovery benefit is expected to

help approximately 90 percent of British Columbians and to have spinoff

effects for businesses. It is $1,000 for families with an income under

$125,000. Families earning up to $175,000 will qualify for the benefit on a

sliding scale. It is $500 for single people earning less than $62,500.

Single people earning up to $87,500 will qualify for the benefit on a

sliding scale.

We are building a recovery that includes everyone, not just those at

the top. In addition to the B.C. recovery benefit, our government has taken

swift actions to support people during this extremely difficult time,

including the $150 monthly B.C. recovery supplement for people receiving

income and disability assistance; the $300 per month crisis supplement from

April 1 to December 2020; the B.C. emergency benefit for workers, which

concluded on December 2, 2020; the one-time enhancement to the climate

action tax credit in July 2020, with a family of four saving up to $564. We

are extending the rent freeze to July 10, 2021.

These additional benefits build on our affordability action taken

earlier, like eliminating MSP premiums, landmark investments in child care

and housing and, just this fall, launching the B.C. child opportunity

benefit for families with children under 18, which offers up to $1,600 a

year for a family’s first child and more for each child after

that.

Our government is also taking significant steps to assist hard-hit

small and medium-sized businesses to get through this tough time and try in

the recovery with a $345 million new grant program. Of the $345 million in

small and medium-sized business grants, $100 million is dedicated to relief

funding for the tourism sector. The province is also allocating $5 million

to Indigenous Tourism B.C. to administer relief grant funding targeted for

Indigenous businesses.

The small and medium-sized business recovery grant program provides

fully funded grants to B.C. businesses to ensure they have the support they

need through the COVID-19 pandemic. A $10,000 to $30,000 grant is available

to eligible small and medium-sized businesses impacted by COVID-19. An

additional $5,000 to $15,000 grant is available to eligible tourism-related

businesses. Applications for this program are open now, and the program runs

until March 31, 2021, or until the funds are fully allocated, whichever

comes first.

[2:40 p.m.]

Since the pandemic, this province has invested over $10 billion in a

COVID-19 response to protect people’s health and livelihoods and to invest

in stronger communities and a better future for everyone. Our COVID-19

response includes a further $1.6 billion investment in health care and

mental health. Supports to build our improvements and make sure critical

public services are available when people need them.

In communities throughout B.C., local government has also stepped up

efforts to keep people safe and to provide shelter and housing, and the

province is here to support them. We will continue to be responsive to the

needs of people, businesses and communities, to see them through the

pandemic and into a strong economic recovery that supports all British

Columbians.

In the end, we give thanks to Dr. Bonnie Henry and the Minister of

Health for their exemplary leadership in managing the unprecedented

challenges of COVID-19, and thanks to the people of B.C. for doing their

part to flatten the curve.

Working together, we can put this province on a better path while

protecting people’s health and for the fast recovery of our economy. We are

investing in health care and seniors care to protect people and to fight

COVID-19. We are building a recovery that includes everyone, not just those

at the top. We have come a long way together, but there is more to do.

Together, we will get through this.

I am proud to support this throne speech, Mr. Speaker. Thanks for the

opportunity today.

Deputy Speaker: Thank you, Member.

The Chair recognizes the member for Vernon-Monashee.

H. Sandhu: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Congratulations on your new role.

I would like to begin my response to the throne speech by

acknowledging that I’m virtually joining this session from the unceded

territory of the Okanagan Indian Nations. I thank them for their stewardship

of this land.

I am a new MLA representing one of the most beautiful constituencies,

Vernon-Monashee. I would like to express my gratitude and thank the

constituents of Vernon-Monashee for electing me to be your MLA. I am truly

honoured, proud and excited to be your representative. I take my

responsibilities sincerely. I thank all the voters for practising your

democratic right, regardless of who you voted for. Congratulations to all

the members of this House on your election and re-election.

No campaign is ever possible without the volunteers. I am so thankful

to my incredible team of volunteers, donors and supporters who have made our

historic win possible with their hard work, dedication and

enthusiasm.

I would like to take the opportunity to thank the previous MLA, Mr.

Eric Foster, for his service, and I thank our two other candidates. It takes

lots of courage, passion and commitment to step forward to run for

office.

I thank my family, including my wonderful husband, Baljeet; my teenage

daughter, Manreet, who is a second-year science student at UBCO and wants to

be a doctor to serve people in rural communities; my middle daughter,

Jasreen, who can speak four languages since she was eight; and my

five-year-old son, who gets adored by his sisters so much and is ready to

start his kindergarten this year. My kids have happily and proudly made many

sacrifices and adjustments due to my busy schedule.

I am profoundly grateful to my mom for being my rock, who stood by me

during our good and tough times, who taught me to fight for my rights and

for the rights of others. My mom made sure my kids were taken care of when I

was busy with work and campaigning. She also made sure that hot meals were

ready for me and for my family, despite having her own health issues and not

being able to stand for extended periods.

[2:45 p.m.]

My mother and my late father instilled in me the values of respect,

kindness, hard work, helping others and being the voice for the vulnerable

people in our society. My parents have helped me to be a strong, independent

and empowered woman.

There are two incredible men in heaven who are watching over me today

and have helped me tremendously to be who I am by giving me the purpose to

always strive to do better and to be a passionate and caring human being. I

am talking about my dad and my late husband, Sammy.

I want to acknowledge our longtime volunteers, Mr. Lorne Adamson and

Mrs. Jane Adamson, who have been volunteers for the last 42 years. Both

Lorne and Jane volunteered doing door-knocking and various other roles on

many campaigns with their two babies, Kevin and Mary, who are adults now.

This is a great and encouraging example of the true dedication, commitment

and determination to stand strong for the values we believe in.

Thank you, Lorne and Jane, for years of your hard work and dedication.

Finally, your sincere efforts, along with many of our wonderful longtime

volunteers and supporters from Vernon-Monashee, came to fruition.

I’d also like to give kudos to our wonderful and hard-working staff at

the Legislature, including my LA Pavanpreet, for their tremendous help. I

look forward to meeting you all in person. I would like to thank and proudly

acknowledge my amazing and hard-working staff members at our Vernon

constituency office, Emily and Josh. Josh and Emily worked tirelessly with

so much passion to help people of Vernon-Monashee. Thank you, both, for your

dedication and enthusiasm you show every day to work for the betterment of

people and our constituency.

I acknowledge and thank our front-line workers, including paramedics,

doctors, nurses, therapists, care aides and many unsung heroes, our

housekeeping staff, support staff from dietary, lab techs, imaging staff,

porters, administrative staff and many more. I would also like to extend my

sincere appreciation to our essential workers in retail, trucking, farming,

trades, hospitality, small business and volunteers with non-profit

organizations, also daycare workers and our incredible teachers for

continuing your work and dedication during these unprecedented

times.

I was so reassured that December’s throne speech was focused on

investing in people, their health and well-being, to promote the vital

services we all rely on, such as health care and seniors care. The throne

speech also focused on economic well-being and support for local businesses

and individual families.

In December, I was surprised by the words from the member for

Kelowna-Mission: “We need more health care professionals that can advocate

for patients and deliver the absolute best care possible, not just more

nurses.” The member also mentioned: “I don’t want an MRI. I don’t want or

need a new MRI.”

I would respectfully like to share my thoughts, as I come from a

health care background. I hope the member understands that nurses focus so

much on preventative care. Nurses are the biggest advocates for their

patients, and in fact, it’s one of their nursing standards that they must

meet. Furthermore, nurses are trained to look at the patient as a

whole.

For example, when myself or my colleagues go to do wound care, we look

at a patient’s diet, underlying medical conditions, living arrangements,

their mental and physical well-being and whether they need more supports.

Nurses always provide emotional support to patients and their families. Even

when patients pass away, community nurses make condolence calls and even

send cards to the families, connect them with grief counselling and many

other resources as needed. Nurses work with patients from birth to the end

of their life and anything in between.

[2:50 p.m.]

Nurses work in nursing homes, community outreach clinics, harm

reduction centres, mental health, telehealth and so much more. They work in

public health, taking care of newborns and teaching parents how to take care

of newborns and toddlers. Nurses do outreach work in schools. This is all

part of preventative care.

I worked as a proud registered nurse in rural areas, acute care,

surgical nursing, community nursing, palliative care and, most recently, up

until November 15, on a COVID unit. Over the last 16 years, working with two

different health authorities and in various health care settings, along with

many of my colleagues, I have personally witnessed and lived through the

massive health care cuts, austerity and privatization from the B.C. Liberal

government.

My LPN colleagues and many hospital support staff in health care

struggled financially due to the massive 10 percent wage rollback under the

B.C. Liberal government. I have witnessed my coworkers breaking down in

tears and crumbling when they were constantly understaffed and overworked. I

was also one of them. That is before any mention of the violence nurses face

in health care. Therefore, I appreciate our government’s every sincere

effort that has been made during the last 3½ years.

One can blame, point fingers, find faults, nod heads, wave their

hands, criticize the efforts or even try to take credit for some of the

things they want. The reality is that health care workers can tell firsthand

when cuts are implemented and when more services are being added because it

makes an enormous difference in their working conditions, for their physical

and mental health and, most importantly, for the quality of patient and

seniors care.

We still need many more nurses to fill the gaps that were left until

2017. The member’s remarks were concerning to me and to many others,

especially coming from our health care critic. I would like to request that

our government continue with its progress in dealing with this chronic

staffing shortage.

I thank our government for hiring many more nurses in the mental

health and substance use areas. This has been a great resource to refer

patients to highly dedicated teams.

I am grateful to our government for giving us an MRI and urgent care

centre in Vernon-Monashee. Prior to this, we had to send patients to

Kelowna, and they had to wait for too long in order to get their MRI

done.

We also had to book patient transfer teams, and most of the time a

nurse had to go with the patient. Then we had to backfill that nurse, mostly

on overtime. Imagine the amount of money we had to spend on patient

transportation, having extra staff or leaving existing staff working short

when we were not able to backfill that shift. We were spending way too much

money by doing so, and the patients were suffering from long wait times,

delayed diagnoses and treatment.

This also had a major impact on patient care in Vernon due to

short-staffing when we were unable to backfill the staff. Having MRIs widely

available is a proactive approach.

My mom had her MRI done recently. She only had to wait for eight days,

and her appointment was at 7 p.m. My father-in-law had his knee replacement

done in October, during COVID, and he didn’t have to wait for long. He

received exceptional care, which he’s so grateful for.

Improvements and investments in services like health care, mental

health and seniors care are some of the best investments any government can

make. Investments to deliver better care for seniors and stability and

safety for long-term care workers will hugely benefit my riding. We have

many seniors who have worked hard all their lives. It is our turn now to

give them the support and quality care they need and deserve.

We do have much more to do. I am confident that having a dedicated

group of people in this House…. We’ll focus on working together, as all of

us are here to serve our constituents and make lives better.

[2:55 p.m.]

The B.C. recovery benefit will help many families in many ways. When

we go through financial hardship, every penny helps. I have personally

talked to hundreds of people since the day of my election via emails,

messages and phone calls. People are so grateful to receive the recovery

benefit. People who I talk to are living on fixed income. Some lost their

jobs, some are on disability, and some are unable to go to work due to

compromised health and other struggles.

Farmers in my constituency also have had challenges. Due to the labour

shortages and with early snowfall in October, they were not able to harvest

all their crops. They lost their produce, and this was heartbreaking to

witness. I am pleased by our government’s announcement of a small farm

business acceleration pilot program, offering up to $800,000. I am reassured

that farmers in my constituency will benefit from this. I belong to a farmer

family, and I have witnessed the hard work, sweat and tears farmers have to

shed in order to bring food to our tables.

Talking about the farmers community in Vernon-Monashee, I would also

like to take a moment to acknowledge the unfairness and ongoing injustice

farmers in India are facing. The suicide rate among farmers in India is the

highest in the world, which clearly reflects the lack of support towards

these hard-working farmers. I would like to ask all members of the House to

please acknowledge and support farmers in India for their democratic right

of peaceful protest and to have their voices heard. Farmers all around the

world deserve all the respect, support and advocacy we can offer to them in

order to promote food security.

Our government’s commitment to expand child care and early learning to

create jobs, stimulate the economy and make sure children can have the best

possible start in life is a much-appreciated effort by many parents. The

nurturing care and investment in the early years of a child’s life leaves a

lasting and positive impact. This also enhances their mental health from

early on. Investing in children is investing in B.C.’s future. Our

government’s announcement of opening new child care centres in Vernon and

Coldstream is going to help many parents in Vernon-Monashee.

This fall our government released a robust economic recovery plan,

which is already supporting businesses. Tourism, farming and small

businesses are some of the major contributors to our economy in

Vernon-Monashee. Steps taken by the government to support our businesses

through property tax cuts, deferred tax payments, B.C. Hydro rate relief,

and small and medium-sized business recovery grants are much appreciated. I

have had the opportunity to meet many business owners, like Sue, in my

constituency, and they’re grateful for these initiatives. Sue had asked me

to thank our Premier and the government for these initiatives.

I am glad that our government’s recovery plan will be guided by our

core principles, including climate action and reconciliation with Indigenous

people. I appreciate the announcement to provide millions to child care

providers, school boards and health authorities to help them deliver

COVID-safe care and renovations to create more spaces.

Our government has delivered hundreds of affordable, supportive and

accessible housing units in Vernon, and these have changed many people’s

lives. I greatly appreciate the recent announcement of more affordable

housing for Vernon and area. This is going to benefit many more people by

helping them to find a home. I thank our government for paying attention to

this long-overlooked and ignored issue of affordable housing in

Vernon-Monashee.

I thank Dr. Bonnie Henry, our Health Minister and their dedicated team

for effectively dealing with this pandemic. I understand that many of the

decisions they had to make were not easy, but I also know that Dr. Henry and

her team always have people’s best interests at heart.

[3:00 p.m.]

Let’s continue doing our part, as we all have done the last year, so

we can overcome this crisis together. When you’re upset about having to wear

a mask or not being able to have gatherings, please take a moment to think

about our health care workers, who have to put on their masks for extended

shifts and for days in a row, along with full-on PPE, including

non-breathable gowns and gloves. Please take a moment to think about

vulnerable seniors who are living in isolation for months, in the hopes of

having this pandemic go away. Think about the thousands of people who have

passed away due to COVID, and their loved ones.

A couple of people have said to me that we have an opioid crisis, and

people are dying from heart attacks and other chronic illnesses. Yes, I

absolutely agree with you. I can reassure you that our work and care have

never stopped for people with addictions and to treat chronic illnesses. It

is reassuring, too, for me to know that our government has made sincere

efforts to address the opioid crisis by creating the first-ever Mental

Health and Addictions Ministry, by hiring many mental health and substance

use teams, creating harm reduction sites and outreach clinics.

Much more work is underway. More recently additional funding was

allocated to more treatment spaces to address addictions and mental health

issues. We are getting eight additional beds in Vernon-Monashee, at Bill’s

Place, to help people in need.

As a health care professional, I confidently share with you that we

have never lessened our efforts towards the opioid crisis or to take care of

patients with chronic illnesses. We will continue to do more, and I am fully

committed to continue my advocacy to address the need for more resources in

Vernon-Monashee. At the end, I would like to remind everyone what Dr. Henry

says: “This is now, not forever. We are in this together, and we will get

through this.”

I would like to end my speech with my favourite quote from John Mark

Green: “Everyone has a history. What you do with it is up to you. Some

repeat it. Some learn from it. The really special ones use it to help

others.”

I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for doing your part, for

making many sacrifices and adjustments in your lives to deal with this

pandemic. We have hope on the horizon, and there is a light at the end of

the tunnel. I hope 2021 will be a kinder and better year for everyone. Stay

safe, and stay healthy. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to

speak.

A. Mercier: I’d like to start by taking a moment to thank the people in Langley

who elected me and sent me here to Victoria. You know, a decade ago, if you

told me as a Langley boy that I’d be coming to represent the people of

Langley in Victoria as a member of the NDP, I don’t think I would have

believed you that I was running.

The folks in Langley are hard-working folks. They’re the nurses, the

teachers, the long-term care aides, the truck drivers, the tradespeople and

the grocery store clerks that keep this province going.

Langley is on the traditional territory of the Matsqui, Katzie,

Kwantlen and Semiahmoo-speaking peoples. It is an area that has grown at an

unprecedented rate. I think by the last census, Langley was growing at a

rate of 16 percent. It has all of the pressures and all of the concerns of a

community growing at that pace, from health care to childcare to

infrastructure.

Part of the reason we were able to win in Langley and why folks in

Langley were looking for change is that they looked around and they saw what

the government was doing in the community. They saw the $29 million that

this government committed to upgrades at Langley Memorial Hospital. They saw

the $25 million that the government was funding in childcare. They heard the

promise of the Sky Train, a promise we made in the last election, which is a

priority for this government and which we will deliver on.

I’d be remiss, as a Langley boy, if I moved on from speaking about

Langley without mentioning that Langley right now is also home to the best

craft beer in British Columbia. Now, I’m amenable to persuasion, so if

there’s anyone here or anyone in this House that thinks otherwise, you know,

I’m open to be convinced, although I’d say that I base my opinions on

empirical evidence.

[3:05 p.m.]

I’d like to also just take a moment to thank my campaign volunteers,

the folks that helped turn Langley orange. There are too many to name. The

riding executive for the Langley NDP have been stalwarts that have been at

this for 40 years. I’m thinking of Peter and Eleanor Holuboff, of Vivien

Henderson and of Lynn Coxworth, who has moved on to the Interior. I’m also

thinking of all of the young crew, the new crew, that’s come along to help

out: Joe, Kelly, Sara.

My campaign manager Piotr Majkowski, my partner in crime. Piotr first

came to British Columbia in 1991 as a Polish immigrant. He’s now a mental

health nurse and a college professor at Douglas College. He has done his

best for his family and for his community. I should mention that Piotr and

his mother Barbara and his sister Dorota right now are mourning the loss of

their father Ryszard. That is a loss that I feel deeply and that I know

their family feels deeply. I’d like to extend my greatest condolences to the

family in this time.

I’d also like to thank my parents. I was raised by an RCMP officer — a

Depot not speaking a word of it — and a mother who was a nurse, whom I have

watched, my entire life, struggling with a disability that comes as a result

of a workplace injury, and dealing with the Workers Compensation Board. I’ve

seen the impact through that. I was raised with the impact of the

administrative state of my family life.

Finally, moving on from family, I’d just like to mention my wife, Kate

Makarow, who, on our first date, asked me a question about B.C. politics and

stuck around 30 minutes into the answer, where I was thinking: “Okay, there

might be something serious here.” She’s since moved on to become my

financial agent, among many other things, and my partner in this life. She’s

at home right now with our 2½-year-old daughter, Charlotte, who, I can tell

you is, unfortunately, much smarter than me already and smarter than her

father. That doesn’t bode well, necessarily.

I’d also like to mention my other family, Teamsters Local 213. I first

joined the Teamsters in 2010, as a commercial delivery driver. I was given a

master class in advocacy, humility and good representation by my business

agent, Mike Levinson. When I decided I wanted to go to law school, the

Teamsters took a chance on me. Walter Canta, the secretary-treasurer; Ray

Zigmont, the president; and Tony Santavenere, the vice president, gave me a

chance, and I’m eternally grateful for that.

I would like to mention, as well, my articling principal Casey McCabe.

I have never seen any lawyer take as much meticulous care and preparation in

argument and preparing for a case, no matter how small the stakes or how

great the stakes, as Casey. I’m really a better man for having spent time

with Casey, learning the trade. Of course, there are my good friends at the

B.C. Building Trades and my friend Brynn Bourke, who is there right now as

the executive director.

Perhaps most critically, the institution that shaped my world view and

my political views, the University of the Fraser Valley. I was really

fortunate at UFV to have two stellar professors, who couldn’t have been at

different ends of the spectrum: Hamish Telford and Scott Fast. Hamish is at

an age now where unfortunately he no longer gets to tell his students that

he has colleagues in the Legislature. With my friend the MLA for Chilliwack

and myself, he now has students in the Legislature. Of course, balancing out

Hamish’s analytical and objective perspective was Scott Fast’s 1960s

American Marxist philosophy of life and world view, which I think was a good

mix in terms of my early education.

I am honoured to have been appointed by the Premier to serve as the

Parliamentary Secretary for Skills Training and to work with the Minister of

Advanced Education and Skills Training to restore our system of compulsory

trades in this province — a system that the B.C. Liberals gutted the last

time that they were in power, destroying the trades training system in

British Columbia.

[3:10 p.m.]

I am proud to build on the work done in our previous mandate by the

former Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Training, my friend the

member for Vancouver–​Mount Pleasant. This is necessary work. We are

currently the only province in Canada that lacks a system of compulsory

trades certification.

I am honoured as well to spend time on the other portion of my

mandate, which is ensuring that there are enough trades and technology seats

and early childhood educator seats to meet the demands of our growing

society.

I’ll turn briefly to the throne speech. As a new member in this

chamber, listening to the words of the Lieutenant-Governor talking about the

toll of the coronavirus pandemic, I feel the full weight and the burden of

the office and the responsibility that comes with a chair in this

chamber.

This is a sobering time. People are struggling. I’ve heard from folks

countlessly in Langley since being elected, and I am proud to be part of a

government that is offering real solutions, like the economic recovery

benefit or the small and medium business grant programs. There is a lot of

work ahead to do. It is daunting.

We heard today from the Premier the good news on vaccines and the

vaccine rollout plan. We still need to focus on our infrastructure and

ensuring that we have enough skilled tradespeople to get us through the

recovery. I am looking forward to having my part to play in that

role.

I’d like to thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m looking forward to being a

member of this House.

P. Alexis: Before I begin, I’d like to acknowledge that I come to you today from

the unceded and ancestral territory of the Stó:lō people, including

Kwantlen, Leq’á:mel, Matsqui, Sumas and Sq’èwlets territories.

As the MLA for Abbotsford-Mission, I am honoured to rise, albeit

virtually today, to give my support to the throne speech. I want to thank

the people of Abbotsford-Mission for entrusting me with the honour of this

office and the opportunity to serve such a vibrant, diverse and hard-working

constituency. From my time as city councillor and eventually mayor, I had

the privilege to work up close every day with so many people committed to

making a difference in their communities without attention, fanfare or even

acknowledgment.

Each of us lucky enough to be members of this Legislature have our

journeys that guided us here. My own was not the most conventional and, like

so many of our accomplishments, owes much to both hard work and good

luck.

Helping make both happen were so many people — parents who encouraged

me, friends who supported me, family who loved me. I can’t possibly list all

the names of those who added their shoulder to the campaign wheel, but I

want to specifically thank my campaign team and anyone who gave us their

time, sent us an inspiring poem or a song — thanks, Don — shared a story,

gave a few dollars. That really helped all of our efforts.

I also want to thank the many voters who took a chance on a new

candidate and a new direction of leadership. The passion, selflessness and

commitment to community in this constituency is inspiring. I’m so grateful

to the members of our local executive, in particular the long-standing

efforts of local legend Bruce Edwards.

I also want to acknowledge the volunteers who dedicated their time and

energy to the campaign and the election. For some, this was one of many

campaigns they have worked on over the years, although it’s fair to say this

was unlike any other campaign before. For others on the team, this was their

first time. I have been assured they found it educational, rewarding and,

yes, even fun, despite the obvious challenges that we faced.

Whatever brought us together — a desire for change, a personal

friendship, a passion for service — each and every one of them had to step

bravely and passionately into the new normal of election work, and for that,

I am forever grateful.

[3:15 p.m.]

Thanks to the support of family and outstanding teachers as a young

person, I had long believed women could do anything they set their minds to.

Unfortunately, both in university and in the working world, that belief soon

suffered. However, as women everywhere have gained ground in politics and

other vital leadership roles, that can-do attitude and optimism returned. I

stand here today in this Legislature as the first-ever woman elected to be

the MLA for Abbotsford-Mission.

I owe a great debt to those who came before me, the women who blazed

the trails for equal pay, representation and opportunity. Their work paved

the way for what we today expect and, indeed, demand. Winning my election

was made easier by local women seeking office who came before me, women such

as Joan MacLatchy, Heather Stewart and Jenny Stevens.

Women have always been great influencers in both my personal and

professional life. I come from a very large family of mostly women, but I do

want to acknowledge my long-suffering brother. We were led by strong

parents, including a mother who always maintained her dignity and elegance,

even while scrubbing the floors in rubber gloves. From her I learned the

value of hard work but also courage, grace and discipline.

We know that past research has found that women fare just as well as

men when they decide to run for office, but since fewer women enter

political races in general, they remain underrepresented. We also know that

when women are successful in running for office, they inspire other women to

get involved. How many little girls watching Kamala Harris get sworn in as

Vice-President now might be thinking of getting into politics? So many of

those young ones are counting on all of us to set high standards of

achievement and accountability and for my fellow women in caucus to continue

the work and to continue blazing that trail.

I also want to acknowledge my colleagues in the Fraser Valley caucus.

It’s great to be part of this hard-working, energetic and determined team,

to see the rise of progressive perspectives in our ridings and to give the

valley representation and support during this crucial time of its

growth.

My decision to run for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia

owed so much to the government’s commitment to women in politics and

government, and I’m awed by the talent and passion they bring to our diverse

team every day. Joining me on this side of the floor are more elected women

than have ever served a government in our province, and I am proud to stand

with them, shoulder to shoulder, in the face of such history.

Abbotsford-Mission is a unique blend of rural and urban, each existing

alongside the famous Fraser River. The river has given so much to our

community. Its banks offer rich, bountiful farmland. The water has powered

pulp mills and hydroelectric power, but perhaps most crucially is the

fishing it has offered — sturgeon, steelhead trout and all five species of

Pacific salmon, popular for local sports fisherman and also crucial to the

way of life for First Nations people. More than a resource, the Fraser River

is a symbol of prosperity, opportunity and our connection to nature. It does

not divide the riding; it unites us.

The Fraser Valley is booming, owing to rapid growth of industry,

prosperity and opportunity. One of the keys to this continued growth is the

increasing trend of people moving from urban centres to our more natural,

beautiful setting. Right now the area is famous for farmlands, agriculture

and food production. But construction, manufacturing, tourism,

transportation, retail and the service industries are all crucial, and the

future looks to hold many new avenues, including a possible agritech hub for

the province. But that future needs us to navigate our present first, and

the challenges ahead are significant.

[3:20 p.m.]

COVID-19 has been a terrible blow to our riding, especially with

regard to business, schools and education. While we have spoken quite a bit

about the physical toll of this pandemic and its economic impact, I worry

that we’re not fully acknowledging the coming wave of mental health and

long-term trauma that COVID-19 will leave behind, especially amongst our

young people.

When I talk to students and other youth in the community, it’s

harrowing to consider how grim and pessimistic their world has become. Of

all the hope we have seen lost, this one stings me the most. That’s why I

want to single out praise for a dynamic educator and administrator in

Mission, one who has worked tirelessly to promote optimism, kindness and

good cheer throughout all of this.

Rob Clark, principal of Silverdale Elementary, and represented by the

member for Maple Ridge–Mission, has long been an inspiration to students,

unabashed praise and credit for so much of their good work. He recently

tweeted a quote from Mr. Rogers: “When I was a boy and I would see scary

things in the news, my mother would say to me: ‘Look for the helpers.’” As a

former educator, I’m proud and grateful for the help he and so many of our

teachers have given us.

This government is working hard to help all British Columbians and

their families through the pandemic. We’re investing in health care and

seniors care to protect people and fight COVID-19. We have an aggressive

immunization plan, designed to help the most at risk amongst us first. We’ve

offered a recovery benefit to offer real financial help to British

Columbians. We’ve created an economic recovery plan that offers training,

resources and support to workers and employers as we prepare ourselves for

the post-pandemic economy. That plan will continue to respond to the

business owners and entrepreneurs who are not sure what the future holds for

their businesses.

Our work will also support the efforts of the constituents I hear

from, who are still working hard, despite exhaustion — for example,

teachers, nurses, restaurant staff, grocery store cashiers, front-line

workers, police officers and so many more. I want to thank our most

essential workers for their service in this most unprecedented of

times.

In addition to working to overcome the impacts of COVID-19, there

remain many crucial local issues that must be attended to in

Abbotsford-Mission. Infrastructure remains a key area as we continue to grow

and expand at an unprecedented pace.

It’s no secret that the people of Mission and Abbotsford need an

expanded Highway 1. It’s vital for the economy of this riding and for

families who live and work here. Right now a single accident on that strip

of road can cause hours of commuter delay. That’s hours that people lose in

seeing their kids, having dinner with their loved ones or spending time with

friends. For a booming Fraser Valley, it’s unacceptable. That’s why I am

delighted that the commitment for the project has appeared in the minister’s

mandate letter, with the highway being expanded two kilometres east of the

Whatcom exit.

That’s not just a commitment to needed infrastructure, however. It’s a

commitment to the people of this riding that this government is listening to

what matters most to them.

As MLA, I will work tirelessly for the people of Abbotsford-Mission,

not only regarding infrastructure but more: collaborating with the district

of Mission to assist their waterfront development project; expanding health

care services, including new equipment and staff; raising awareness of the

pandemic’s mental health implications, especially as regards young people

and students; increased funding for tourism; housing, especially for the

vulnerable populations and seniors; increasing Internet access for our rural

constituents; and helping organize the COVID-19 recovery and vaccine rollout

for our communities.

It’s going to be a massive community effort, one actively engaged with

local grassroots organizations. I heard from our Rotarians today that

they’ve already been contacted to assist with this, yet another example of

how this government will continue to work hand in hand with the people it

represents.

[3:25 p.m.]

I’m excited to be working with the appropriate ministers in addressing

the needs of this community and looking to open consultations on a wide

range of issues affecting Abbotsford and Mission.

We’ve come a long way together in the past year, and sadly, there’s

still much to do. But I have no doubt the people of British Columbia will

continue to rally, just as I have no doubt the people of Abbotsford-Mission

will yet again work together tirelessly and selflessly to see us through to

a post-pandemic province. It’s the people of British Columbia who deserve

the most credit. They have faced this terrible time in our history with

strength and patience, making countless sacrifices in flattening the

curve.

Families, workers, the faith community and more have rallied to get us

to this point. We’re very close now, and I have no doubt we will get through

it as both a province and a nation. Together we’re building a future for

B.C. that includes everyone. Together we will get through this.

D. Coulter: I’m not supposed to heckle my own caucus members, but I have to take

issue with what the member for Langley said about the best beer in the

province. I think we all might have a gripe with him over that comment,

yes.

I’d first like to begin by acknowledging that I’m speaking to you this

afternoon from the territory of the

Lək̓ʷəŋin̓əŋ-​speaking peoples,

the Esquimalt and Songhees Nations.

This is my first chance to be able to thank the voters in the

community of Chilliwack, and I’m happy to do so. I’ve been waiting for this

moment. I’m awed by the amount of trust that the voters of Chilliwack put in

me.

Like my friend from Langley, I did not think ten years ago that you

would have a B.C. NDP MLA in Chilliwack. I didn’t think it could happen, and

now you have your first B.C. NDP MLA in Chilliwack ever. That’s exciting for

me, just on that level — and on a personal level, of course, as well,

because I get to sit in this chamber with all you lovely folks and

participate in democracy here in the people’s House. So I’d just love to

thank the voters for that. I’m still in awe of the voters and their trust in

me.

I’d love to thank my campaign team. My campaign manager, DJ Pohl,

worked tirelessly on my campaign and had faith when I had none, always

buoying me to make that next phone call, whether it be fundraising or to

call a voter, and always keeping me going. DJ is a powerhouse. She is the

president of the Fraser Valley Labour Council. She owns an elected position

with the Canadian Labour Congress. She’s active in her own union, the BCGEU,

and she works a full-time job too. She did all that and managed my campaign,

and she did not skimp on anything during my campaign.

We ran a full campaign in Chilliwack, and on a small budget too. We

did it, and we made it work. I don’t think I would be elected today if it

weren’t for my campaign manager DJ Pohl, so I’d just like to thank her

deeply.

I’d also like to thank Bryan McIver, who is possibly the volunteer

that did the most work on my campaign, other than DJ, because DJ was a

volunteer as well. We’re all volunteers. Brian is an old-time organizer from

way back. He’s been doing campaigns for a long time now. He was a candidate

himself in Kelowna at one time. He is a tireless worker on the phone. He’s a

great person to have the ear of, because he has been doing organizing so

long that he’s just a wealth of knowledge.

I need to thank my financial agent, Mark Jackson. I am not very good

with books or dealing with Elections B.C., so he definitely takes the sweat

out of that work. I’m very, very happy that I had him.

[3:30 p.m.]

Of course, I would be remiss if I did not thank my lovely wife of

eight years now. I’m really appreciative of the patience she has shown me.

She did not sign up for this; I did. This was my dream. I can’t thank her

enough for supporting me in that dream. She’s been very generous with her

love in that fact.

I’d like to thank my parents. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for my

parents, believe it or not. They were instrumental in me making it to the

age of 46 and being able to speak in this House. I can honestly say I’ve had

great parents and a great childhood, and I appreciate everything they’ve

ever done for me.

I, of course, would like to thank my colleagues in the B.C. NDP

caucus. I’ve never met a greater group of people — very generous with their

time and always willing to lend a hand to a new MLA. I really, really

appreciate that.

I’d like to thank the Premier for putting his trust in me and making

am to have that title and how excited I am to do the work that the Premier

has tasked me with. He’s tasked me with doing consultations on upcoming

Poverty Reduction will be introducing. I’m very excited to do that

work.

As well, I will be working with the Attorney General and Minister

Responsible for Housing when we refresh, develop and change the building

codes, which is coming up. I’m very excited to do that work. I really see

that work as being part of our recovery. Having an inclusive recovery and

I’m very excited about that prospect.

During the campaign, I heard many stories from people. So I would just

like to relay one. I know this woman, Michelle. She works at an oil change

place — actually, the oil change place I love to go to. I’ve struck up many

a conversation with her over the years. What was important to her during the

campaign was child care. Child care was so crucial to her because she’s a

single mother, and child care is so expensive.

Even though our teachers shouldn’t be considered child care — our

schools aren’t daycares — a snow day during school is a really big burden on

Michelle and her pocketbook. Either she has to take that day off from work

or she has to pay for child care, which is almost more than what her wages

for that day will be. Child care is going to be a huge deal for her, and I’m

very proud to be part of a government that is going to bring in universal

child care.

The recovery benefit was also very important to her. You know, $500 at

Christmastime — or even after Christmas, $500 at any time — for her is a lot

of money. So she was quite excited about us doing the recovery benefit,

after the election, when we had our first session here. She was talking to

me about the recovery benefit when I was talking to her.

Besides the voters showing their trust in me, I’ve been embraced by

the community of Chilliwack since I’ve been elected. The small business

community has totally embraced a B.C. NDP MLA, which is terrific. I’ve been

working with them to help them apply for the small and medium business

recovery benefit and, also, the launchonline.ca program so that they can set

up online stores.

[3:35 p.m.]

And this one. This program dovetails nicely into my work as the

opportunity grant. We’re currently in the third launch of it. With this

grant and with this new launch, non-profits and businesses can apply for

money to give work experience to folks with disabilities or living with

other barriers. That is really what building an inclusive recovery to COVID

is all about. So I’m really excited about that.

Chilliwack is a really diverse community. It has a lot of needs. We

have a downtown core. The opioid crisis has hit us very, very hard downtown,

and during COVID, only more so. So I’m proud of our government for having

the first Minister of Mental Health and Addictions. It’s something that was

dearly needed.

We also have farms. We have everything from a downtown core to farms.

Coming up, we’re going to have agritech grants, which can be so important to

my constituents, so important to farmers in my constituency — help them be

more productive, give them some money so that they can buy much-needed

capital and continue to grow their businesses, their farms.

I’d also like to, just for a moment, talk about long-term care. I deal

with a lot of people down in my constituency office that have a variety of

problems. It really connects me with what people are going

through.

There’s this man named Ray. He came down to my constituency office; he

was in distress. He lived with his partner for over 30 years. He lived with

her in a home. She’s since been put into long-term care and has dementia.

He’s having to deal with social workers, going back and forth, because he’s

not allowed to visit her at this home. So my office has worked with him to

try and work with the social workers. He doesn’t quite understand the

system, and my staff is helping him out.

Actually, maybe I should stop right there for a second and thank my

staff. I have been very, very lucky with the folks I have hired. Caitlin

Hickenbotham is just a powerhouse when it comes to constituency work. She’s

teaching me how to be an MLA, really. I don’t know how I would have done

this if I had just hired someone without any experience. So I’m very excited

about having her.

Recently, in the last three or four weeks, I hired another

constituency assistant, Willow Reichelt, who is detail-oriented, loves being

given a project and just running through it. Where Caitlin is really, really

good with casework and outreach, Willow is terrific with coming up with

really good.

For folks like Ray…. We’ve hired thousands of health care workers and

contact tracers, which are really important. We need to get this pandemic

under control so that folks can go back into long-term care homes and visit

their loved ones.

I also have a constituent that came and asked for a meeting with me.

His mother is in a care home, and he’s not allowed to go visit her as

well.

It is very, very hard on all of us when we can’t visit our loved ones.

Many of us weren’t able to visit with our families or friends over the

holidays. It was hard on us, but I think it’s harder if someone is in a care

home and needs help and you can’t go visit them. Obviously harder. So I’m

really excited about the vaccine announcement today. Really excited. There’s

hope on the horizon. Someday soon we can all be sitting in here shoulder to

shoulder.

[3:40 p.m.]

One of the reasons I came here…. Well, no, it’s not. I didn’t come

here for this reason. But one of the perks, maybe, is banging on my desk and

heckling maybe just a little. I’m somewhat excited about that. I’m thankful

to the Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction for giving me

good tips in that regard.

That’s about it today. I think I’ve shot all of my arrows. My quiver

is empty, so I will leave it there.

J. Routledge: It is my honour to have this opportunity to rise virtually to respond

to the Speech from the Throne.

May I begin by acknowledging that I’m speaking to you from the

traditional, unceded territory of the Coast Salish people: the Squamish, the

Musqueam and the Tsleil-Waututh Nations.

[S. Chandra Herbert in the chair.]

I also wish to acknowledge that I’m here as their uninvited guest, yet

they continue to make me feel welcome in their home. In fact, the last

in-person meeting I had in my capacity as the MLA for Burnaby North before

the pandemic was with Chief Leah George-Wilson of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation.

Her people have kept this land and the coastal waters beautiful, bountiful,

natural and self-sustaining for millennia.

When I met with Chief Leah, we talked about the impact of the Trans

Mountain pipeline expansion. It would be remiss of me not to remind all of

us that the single biggest threat to her people’s cultural survival is the

Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project. That will carry diluted bitumen

1,150 kilometres from the Alberta tar sands to the coast, right here in

Burnaby, so it can be shipped offshore by as many as 400 tankers per year,

or more than a tanker a day, to be refined in another country and sold back

to us at a higher price.

For the Coast Salish people, the TMX pipeline expansion is an

existential threat, as it is for the more than 200,000 newcomers to their

land like myself. The federal government of Justin Trudeau has recklessly

invoked their constitutional authority to store 300,000 barrels of the most

unstable and inflammable type of oil in a tank farm on the side of a

mountain in the middle of an increasingly dry forest in the middle of an

earthquake zone.

The question is not if there will be a catastrophic fire on Burnaby

Mountain. Rather, the question is: when will there be a catastrophic fire on

Burnaby Mountain, and will we be able to control it?

The company that is building the pipeline tells us that they have a

state-of-the-art emergency plan and a trained crew of firefighters, ready to

jump into action if the need arises. But here’s the hitch. Here’s the simple

fact that totally undermines the credibility of their assurances. These

firefighters are located in Kamloops, four hours away.

According to Burnaby fire chief Chris Bowcock, who is himself a

world-renowned expert on hydrocarbon fires, firefighters would have ten

minutes to evacuate the elementary school next to the tank farm and stop the

fire from spreading to the other tanks, engulfing the forest and trapping

the 30,000 people who live, work and study at SFU. Ten minutes.

[3:45 p.m.]

I’m proud that my government, the provincial government of John

Horgan, fought for the jurisdiction to protect our lives and livelihoods

from the potentially devastating effects of this pipeline. We took the fight

all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada and were represented by one of

the best — some would say the best — lawyers in Canada. Sadly, the Supreme

Court ruled that the government of British Columbia does not have

jurisdiction over an interprovincial pipeline.

How did the former leader of the B.C. Liberal Party react to the

Supreme Court decision, on behalf of his party? By stating that the B.C.

government should throw its support behind the pipeline project. If his

party were still in power, they would have willingly sacrificed the safety

of the people of Burnaby to what the Prime Minister inexplicably and

inaccurately calls national interests.

That may be one of the reasons why the citizens of Burnaby not only

returned all four B.C. NDP Burnaby MLAs to the Legislature; they did so with

massive majorities. I want to thank the voters of Burnaby North for their

support. I want them to know that I will continue to advocate for them over

the next four years. I will continue to remind the party of Justin Trudeau

that they are unnecessarily putting lives at stake, way out here in

Burnaby.

I also sincerely thank my re-election campaign team. They ran a truly

grassroots, multi-language campaign, drawing on their experience and

instincts as union and community organizers. Even during a pandemic, they

found innovative and safe ways to involve a wide range of people and invite

them to share in the collective sense of victory. I am humbled that so many

young people worked hard to get me re-elected, including my own

grandchildren.

I would like to thank my family for their ongoing, enthusiastic and

active support and encouragement. You may remember that since becoming an

MLA in 2017, my living arrangements have undergone a significant

transformation. My husband, Bill Brassington, and I renovated our home so

that our son, Bill Jr.; his wife, Janey Lee; and their two children, Ty and

Asia, could share our home with us. Now, to be accurate, we didn’t actually

do the renovations ourselves. We hired skilled tradespeople to do that. With

their help, we are now a multigenerational household.

We are so fortunate that we were able to move back into the house

together just weeks before the pandemic was declared. My heart goes out to

everyone who has been separated from their loved ones for almost a year now,

and I grieve with those who lost someone to COVID-19. This past year has

been hard on everyone, but it’s been harder on some than others.

I’m proud that in the management of COVID-19, in saving lives and

livelihoods, B.C. is recognized as a North American leader. Over the past

few weeks, I’ve been visiting small businesses in my community, to make sure

they’re aware of the small business recovery grant, and I’m so glad I

did.

The response was largely, largely positive. I did connect with some

small businesses who did not know about the grant and now they do. I spoke

to others who knew about the grant but had some questions. This is important

feedback, and it will help us improve our systems and make programs more

accessible.

I also want to thank the staff in my constituency office. They truly

are front-line workers. Day in and day out for a year they have been

fielding calls and emails from worried and deeply stressed constituents —

constituents who worry they will never again get to hold their loved one who

lives in long-term care, constituents who worry they will lose their homes

if they can’t pay their rent or mortgages, constituents who worry that they

won’t be able to complete the education they’ve already gone into debt to

pay for, constituents who have been laid off for the better part of a year

and worry they won’t have a job to return to.

[3:50 p.m.]

The staff in my community office, Perisa Chan, Jason Blackman and the

recently retired Cate Jones, have gone the extra mile to provide timely

information, to be a virtual shoulder to cry on, to tactfully correct

misconceptions, to help stressed callers navigate the system and to provide

practical feedback to the system when it’s failing those who need it the

most. In many ways, constituency office staff are part of the glue that

holds our community together, and I thank them for their compassion, their

moral compasses and their commitment to a cause bigger than

themselves.

I identified my staff as front-line workers. I also want to thank all

front-line workers — the people who have been putting their health on the

line to keep the rest of us healthy, safe, fed, sane, connected, validated,

educated and employed. Many of these jobs were underappreciated, underpaid,

undervalued prior to the pandemic. Many of these workers that we praise

today were invisible and exploited.

I’m proud to say that even before COVID arrived, our government was

taking steps to minimize exploitation. One of our first acts as a new

government was to start increasing the minimum wage. We amended the B.C.

labour code to make it easier for workers to protect their rights through

unions.

When COVID arrived, our government took swift action to protect

people. We took note of the alarmingly high death rate in long-term care

facilities. We discovered that low wages in that sector meant that employees

were working in multiple facilities, because if they didn’t, they wouldn’t

be able to feed their families. We took immediate action to contain the

spread of COVID by topping up their wages so workers could protect

themselves, their patients, their families and their communities by

affording to work in just one facility.

We secured large amounts of personal protective equipment. We

introduced strategic testing and contact tracing. In Burnaby, the new

primary care network took the lead to support our most vulnerable

neighbours. For example, we put in place a system to match seniors living

alone with younger, healthier volunteers who were willing to pick up their

groceries and prescriptions for them. We created food hubs that make weekly

healthy food deliveries to vulnerable individuals and families who may have

lost their incomes during COVID.

We created a network of financial supports to help people get through

the pandemic, such as the $1,000 emergency benefit, temporary rent relief,

protection from the threat of eviction and crisis supplements for people on

disability and income assistance. To protect jobs, we’ve helped businesses

through property tax relief, deferred taxes and B.C. Hydro rate relief. Of

course, there is the small business grant that I mentioned

earlier.

Saving lives and livelihoods during the pandemic has come with a hefty

price tag. We declared war on COVID-19, and we are winning that war, but

wars cost money. The provincial deficit may grow as much as $13.6 billion.

The neo-liberals amongst us are already fixating on that number. They are

already foreshadowing their intentions. Brace yourself. They will be making

the case for a return to austerity economics. They will invoke the deficit

as a justification for cutting programs, laying off front-line workers and

starving vital services — again.

We’ve been here before. Austerity is magical thinking. It’s about as

effective a cure for economic resilience as inhaling bleach is for

COVID-19.

[3:55 p.m.]

As the returning MLA for Burnaby North, I feel an overwhelming

responsibility to expose the myth of austerity economics. I feel an

overwhelming responsibility to remind the people of Burnaby North that it

was the B.C. Liberals who put our health care system on a starvation diet in

the first place, who shredded the social safety network in the first place

and made so many British Columbians disproportionately vulnerable to the

pandemic.

I was re-elected because the people of Burnaby North expect more from

their government. They want a government that will proactively use its

resources to invest in our communities and the people who live there — all

people, not just those at the top.

I was recently appointed the Chair of the Select Standing Committee on

Finance and Government Services. I thank the Premier for appointing me to

that position. A big part of our job is to conduct public consultation that

will inform the next budget — in this case, the 2022 budget. In appointing

me to this position, the Premier must have known that my favourite campaign

button simply says: “Democracy is not a spectator sport.”

The Finance Committee provides us with an opportunity to bring voters

and potential voters down from the bleachers and onto the playing field to

be part of the action. For me, politics is about the participation of the

people. I want to be part of setting a budget in which people can see

themselves, in which people can say: “That was my idea,” or “That addressed

the problem I had,” or “This will work for me; this will work for my

community.” I think this is so important.

I’d like to conclude by sharing with you an observation that was made

to me by one of my constituents. I guess we must have been lamenting how

long it takes to make profound social change. She said: “The race for social

justice and social equality is not a sprint. It’s a marathon.” Then someone

else who became part of the conversation said: “Well, it’s not even a

marathon. It’s a relay race.” That resonates with me as well.

Some day I’ll get to pass the baton. I know that there are a growing

number of good, passionate, smart people who are willing to keep the race

going.

Thank you so much.

Hon. R. Fleming: It’s great to be joining members of the House this afternoon. I’m

honoured to be here today as the Minister of Transportation and

Infrastructure.

I’m speaking from the traditional territories of the

Lək̓ʷəŋin̓əŋ people, the Songhees and

Esquimalt Nations.

It’s a particular pleasure to be able to speak, on behalf of my

constituents in Victoria–Swan Lake, in support of the throne speech. I want

to begin, as other members have, by giving some thanks and shout-outs to a

number of people around the constituency and, indeed, around the province

who have got us through difficult times.

I want to thank, as other members customarily do…. We all rely very

heavily on our constituency assistants. So I want to thank Sheridan Hawse

and Noah Mitchell for the incredible work they do to help my constituents

get connected to the government services that are important to their lives.

They do the difficult work of representing members in their absence, and

they do it with incredible skill, patience and aplomb. I thank Sheridan and

Noah again.

I want to thank Elections B.C. as well. Of course, we had an election

in late 2020 that was done safely and that was done very well by Elections

B.C. It meant that we had very skilled and thoughtful district returning

officers in every part of the province that helped conduct an election in

all 87 of our constituencies.

[4:00 p.m.]

My thanks would be extended, as well, to the candidates who put

themselves forward in that election, the local political constituency

associations of the various political parties, the independents, all of the

volunteers and all those who participated in the election.

I think we all owe a debt of gratitude and thanks for people’s

collective efforts and engagement with our parliamentary democracy. It, I

think, showed that no matter what is thrown at us, be it in a global

pandemic or other conditions, we have, through our own people, the strength

and resilience to do just about anything, including renewing our parliament

and conducting an election.

Victoria–Swan Lake is a very interesting place, which I’m privileged

to represent. I don’t expect members to know a lot about it. We all

represent very diverse regions in our province. In normal pre-pandemic times

and after the pandemic, we’ll have the privilege of travelling this great

province again.

Swan Lake is an interesting constituency. It’s a very diverse riding.

It’s a younger riding, by the capital regional district’s standards. The

last time a census came to my attention, from the federal government, I

language in the homes of my constituents. I think the nationalities

identified, around the world, where people immigrated either recently or

many generations ago…. Something like 120 national backgrounds represented

in Victoria–Swan Lake.

It’s an incredibly diverse community and is represented by two really

good municipal governments as well. I want to thank all those who work for

the city of Victoria and the district of Saanich. Of course, during the

pandemic, local governments have had many front-line heroes who have kept

services running that are vital to the well-being of our

residents.

Mine is a community — like, I think, other members’ as well — that

enjoys getting together and celebrating, and we’ve had to forgo a lot in

order to honour the health restrictions that have kept one another safe