First Session, 42nd Parliament

(2021) OFFICIAL REPORT

OF DEBATES

(HANSARD)

Monday, March 15, 2021

Morning Sitting

Issue No. 29

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

Orders of the Day

Private Members’ Statements

Avalanche Canada

D. Clovechok

B. Anderson

D. Coulter

S. Cadieux

Youth mental health

T. Halford

A. Singh

Food security

M. Dykeman

J. Sturdy

Private Members’ Motions

Motion 5 — Economic recovery and infrastructure plan

M. Lee

M. Starchuk

I. Paton

H. Yao

B. Banman

B. Bailey

J. Rustad

K. Greene

K. Kirkpatrick

R. Glumac

G. Kyllo

MONDAY, MARCH 15, 2021

The House met at 10:02 a.m.

[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

Routine Business

Prayers and reflections: H. Yao.

Introductions by Members

G. Kyllo: I’m very proud to stand in the House today on behalf of me and my

wonderful wife, Georgina, to announce the arrival of our ninth grandchild

and our third grandson.

Sawyer Forrest Kevin Benty was born on November 23 at Shuswap Lake

General Hospital in Salmon Arm. The proud parents, Allan and Brittany Benty,

couldn’t be happier on the arrival of a little baby brother for their two

daughters, Nova and Journey. Brittany and Al asked that I give special

thanks to the amazing team of doctors, nurses and support staff that

provided exemplary care for both Brittany and Sawyer during their

stay.

Now, for anyone doing the math, the granddaughters now outnumber the

grandsons by a factor of two to one, but Georgina and I remain hopeful that

there will be many more grandchildren to come, and we may yet attain gender

parity.

Would the House please welcome Sawyer Benty.

[S. Chandra Herbert in the chair.]

Orders of the Day

Private Members’ Statements

AVALANCHE CANADA

D. Clovechok: It gives me a great deal of pleasure to rise today to speak about

an iconic Canadian service organization located right here in British

Columbia. That is Avalanche Canada, or AvCan. The crew from AvCan is

watching the live stream, so welcome to Gilles and everyone that’s

online.

[10:05 a.m.]

AvCan is a non-government, non-profit, charitable organization and

is Canada’s national avalanche safety organization. It’s based in my

riding in the beautiful city of Revelstoke. They develop and deliver

public avalanche forecasts and special public avalanche warnings, as

well as world-class public safety programs for the mountainous regions

in Canada. They also provide curriculum and support to instructors of

recreational avalanche skills and training courses, deliver public

avalanche awareness and education programs, encourage public avalanche

research, provide curriculum to teachers and organizations and act as a

central hub for avalanche information.

The organization was formed in 2004, after a report was prepared

for the government of B.C. after 29 people were killed by avalanches in

Canada during the winter of 2002 and 2003. This included seven high

school students in the 2003 Connaught Creek avalanche.

AvCan is led by executive director Gilles Valade, who is one of

the most impassioned and hard-working professionals I’ve had the

pleasure to work with. It’s an organization critical not only to the

safety of British Columbians but to the many thousands of visitors that

enjoy our back country. AvCan is recognized internationally as a leader

in public avalanche safety. They provide forecasts for 14 regions that

total 330,000 square kilometres, 98 percent of which is in British

Columbia. By comparison, the United States has 22 different avalanche

centres providing forecasts for less than 200,000 square kilometres in

total.

Current evidence indicates that due to COVID-19, there has been an

increase in back-country recreation, and many of these users are

inexperienced. It should be noted that because of this increase, search

and rescue teams continue to have an unusually busy winter, making

Avalanche Canada’s accident prevention programs even more important.

Unfortunately, while the back country has been busier than ever, the

COVID-19 pandemic has worsened an already downward trend in sponsorship

for Avalanche Canada. Private businesses are no longer able to fund what

is clearly a public service.

The federal government has recognized the importance of AvCan. In

2019, they provided a $25 million, one-time contribution that will help

Avalanche Canada over 15 years. This funding, however, was conditioned

on shared funding from the provinces. The approved business plan was

based on AvCan’s receiving increased funding from B.C.

The funding from this province is expected to be proportionate to

the level of services it receives from Avalanche Canada and an accurate

reflection of the avalanche problem in B.C. More than 95 percent of

AvCan’s forecast regions are in B.C., over 80 percent of AvCan’s entire

budget is spent in B.C. and, tragically, 75 percent of all avalanche

fatalities in Canada in the last 20 years occurred in B.C. So far this

year, eight people have died in avalanches in Canada, all of them in

British Columbia.

In 2019, the government promised $1 million every year for AvCan.

Multiple times we’ve heard from this government a commitment to that

funding, but the funds have yet to arrive. Although AvCan has a national

and international recognition, they continue to struggle for recognition

and support from the province that benefits the most: B.C.

Fifteen organizations representing “everyone who is anyone in this

industry” have sent letters urging this government to financially

support AvCan. It will come as a shock to most British Columbians that

although B.C. receives most of AvCan’s products and services, the

province of B.C. is lagging far behind in providing adequate funding.

The Yukon, for example, provides $60,000 annually to AvCan, representing

approximately $1.40 per resident, even though a significant portion of

that funding is spent in B.C. Even Alberta, with its struggling economy,

provides funding to Avalanche Canada in a multi-year

commitment.

The province of B.C., on the other hand, usually provides $400,000

each year, representing just eight cents per resident. I say “usually”

because this provincial funding is not guaranteed. Up to $250,000 of

AvCan’s annual funding from B.C. comes in the form of community gaming

grants, which means that AvCan has to re-apply every year for this

grant.

This past year has added a level of uncertainty again. Instead of

receiving a notification of community grant funding in November 2020,

AvCan was notified that confirmation would not happen until February

2021, which created an unnecessary and unreasonable level of uncertainty

for the organization’s operating budget.

[10:10 a.m.]

Just this past year alone, Avalanche Canada braced itself for

$287,000 lost in funding, based on several programs. EMBC’s $500,000

grant in 2017 has now ended. EMBC’s $25,000 grant for Mountain

Information Network has ended. Columbia Basin Trust has indicated their

funding will not be renewed when it expires, as well as…. There are

others. With $287,000 this year, the planned expansion of avalanche

safety programs into underserved regions, including the Northern Rockies

and Vancouver Island, cannot go ahead without more funding from

B.C.

Avalanche Canada provides an essential service to the province.

Our own government agencies, including B.C. Parks; B.C. Hydro; Ministry

of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development;

EMBC; the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure; hundreds of

search-and-rescue volunteers and so many others all rely on AvCan’s

daily forecasts as safety and risk management tools.

Several times, we’ve heard from this government that funding is

coming. How many more tragedies and lost lives is it going to take to

get the Premier Horgan’s attention before he makes good on his

government’s commitment for the sustained and adequate funding that

AvCan was promised.

Deputy Speaker: Member, I can appreciate the seriousness of the issue, but this is

not a time for partisan attacks. This is not a time for naming of

government officials. The member should know that by now. Thank

you.

D. Clovechok: Duly noted, Mr. Speaker.

Deputy Speaker: The member for Nelson-Creston.

B. Anderson: Thank you, Speaker, and thank you to the member for highlighting

the important work of Avalanche Canada. I would first like to provide

condolences to the family and loved ones of a local snowmobiler, Joe

LeBlanc, who was killed in an avalanche near Kaslo earlier this month.

Joe was a search-and-rescue volunteer and an experienced back-country

enthusiast. I would also like to extend my condolences and thanks to the

Kaslo search-and-rescue team who responded to the avalanche.

One of the joys of living in or visiting B.C. is exploring the

wonders of our mountainous back country. It is a great way to experience

incredible natural beauty and get exercise. But travelling in the winter

back country can include the risk of avalanches. Avalanches are the

deadliest natural disaster in Canada, killing more people every year

than all other natural disasters combined.

Michel Trudeau’s — the brother of our current Prime Minister’s —

body lies to rest at the bottom of Kokanee Lake, after being pushed into

the glacial lake by an avalanche over two decades ago. That same year,

my friend’s aunt Mary Cowan was killed by an avalanche that took the

lives of six people during a back-country ski adventure in Kokanee

glacier provincial park. Our community loses people to the back-country

avalanches every year.

Avalanches pose a real risk to winter back-country enthusiasts.

Avalanche Canada provides resources that help to ensure that people are

able to recreate safely. With our beautiful mountain ranges in B.C., we

have approximately 80 percent of the avalanche risk terrain in

Canada.

With COVID-19, people have been going outdoors in record numbers.

I know our local stores that are selling outdoor recreation equipment

have experienced a sharp increase in interest. It is extremely important

that people have the information, training and skills to keep themselves

and others safe in the back country.

The province appreciates Avalanche Canada’s continued support for

back-country users through public avalanche forecasts and outreach,

trip-planning tools, terrain models and world-class avalanche safety

programs and courses. Avalanche Canada issues public information about

risks and safety and the precautions that should be followed by

back-country enthusiasts.

Avalanche Canada provides courses that teach people how to make

terrain choices that are appropriate for the conditions. These courses

provide students with a strong foundation in planning and

decision-making in avalanche terrain. Their courses are important for

any back-country recreationalist, whether they access their winter

playground by ski, board, sled, snowshoe or climbing. These courses

empower recreationists to enjoy Canada’s winter back country and to be

safe from avalanches.

[10:15 a.m.]

The province provides $400,000 in annual funding, through various

ministries, for the existing services provided by Avalanche Canada,

including $150,000 from emergency management B.C. to support avalanche

bulletins, $250,000 in community gaming grants through the Ministry of

Municipal Affairs for operational costs, and approximately $10,000

annually for special avalanche warning alerts. The province also

supports search-and-rescue volunteers with avalanche

training.

dangers rise with the heat, and there are more fatal avalanche accidents

in March than any other month. In fact, nearly 30 percent of avalanche

fatalities occur in the month of March. Three major factors contribute

to this statistic, including a complex snowpack that’s developed during

the winter, a destabilized snowpack due to warming temperatures and an

To help keep Canadians safe, Avalanche Canada recently launched

Avy Savvy, a new online tutorial geared to back-country beginners. The

program is aimed at new users of the winter back country and provides

solid introduction to avalanche safety. Avy Savvy is not a substitute

for taking the avalanche skills training course, but it gives people an

overview.

In close, as we look forward to spring, many of us will want to

get a few more days of fun under our belts before the snow melts. I

would like to remind everyone to please ensure they’re using the

resources provided by Avalanche Canada to have fun and stay safe in the

back country.

D. Clovechok: I’d like to thank the member for her response. The need for AvCan

has never been greater. The funding issue and the shortfall from B.C. is

nothing new, but here we are. The funding commitments that have been

made have never been more crucial. Canada recognizes the need. Alberta

recognizes the need. The Yukon recognizes the need. The many

non-government donors recognize the need — and fund the need. But where

is B.C.?

To put this into context, on Thursday, July 20, 2020, in the

Committee of Supply, I had the opportunity to ask the Minister of Public

Safety about the province’s commitment of $1 million in funding for

AvCan that had been made when I asked the same funding issue in 2019. My

ask was simple both times. As quoted from Hansard: “Will the

minister commit to providing guaranteed annual funding so that AvCan

does not have to wait for their gaming grant application?”

From the Minister of Public Safety, I heard: “I fully recognize

the value of AvCan. I think they do a remarkable job. I did commit to go

to Treasury Board. I went to Treasury Board. Was it successful this

year? No. But I committed to trying to find a sustainable, long-term

funding format for AvCan in the same way that we’ve done for

search-and-rescue here in British Columbia.”

I also asked: “Would the minister commit to advocating for a

one-time lump-sum grant that would eliminate the need for AvCan to apply

annually for the community gaming grant, that way guaranteeing the

resources like Alberta, that has given a three-year commitment to

AvCan?”

His answer again: “I will continue to push for that.”

The minister is an honourable man, so I took him at his word. Yet

it’s hard to understand why other provinces, a Canadian territory and

multiple private donors have understood the importance of funding AvCan

and have delivered, but not B.C.

Well, actions speak louder than words, and lives are at risk. It’s

time for empty words and promises from B.C., to step up, and it’s long

past….

Deputy Speaker: Member, Member.

D. Clovechok: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

Deputy Speaker: Excuse me, Member. It is quite possible to take strong policy

positions on issues for your party without targeting a single member. I

would recommend that the member, before getting up and giving another

statement in the House, review the standing orders for private members’

statements.

I gave a warning earlier, and I’d hoped the member would take this

to heart. It’s a time that we try to get the best out of all of

ourselves and out of this chamber, without targeting individual members

for denigration or attacks. Please take that to note, Member. We’re

going to move on now.

[10:20 a.m.]

D. Coulter: I’d like to first begin by acknowledging that I am speaking to you

today from the traditional unceded territory of the Stó:lō people and,

in particular, that of the Halq’eméylem-speaking people.

in the deaf community, Mohamed Jemni puts it succinctly: “The disability

social, political and economic life. We need to focus on removing the

barriers people with disabilities experience in their daily lives,

including physical, attitudinal and information barriers.

government. As many of you likely know, our government has been working

spring. Working on creating accessible, liveable communities throughout

the province is something that our government really believes in and is

something I personally value. I’m so grateful that the Premier put his

trust in me to lead a part of this work.

As someone with a spinal cord injury who has been using a

wheelchair for over 20 years now, I know firsthand how frustrating

seemingly small barriers can be for people with disabilities. When I go

to a new business, community centre or public space, I circle the

building in my car, looking to see how accessible it is. Are there curb

cuts? If so, where are they? Is there a ramp available? If so, what’s

the gradient? Is there an accessible door? If not, will it be wide

enough for my chair?

These are just a few of the questions that I ask myself every day.

And while repeating this process, I, alongside other people with

disabilities, am reminded of the multiple barriers — not only in the

built environment — of a world that wasn’t built with us in mind. While

I may have some lived experience as a person with a disability, I am by

no means an expert on all of the barriers that people living with

disabilities face on a day-to-day basis.

legislation will be transformative for all British Columbians. Nearly 25

percent of people in our province are living with a disability, and as

the population ages, we know that number is set to increase. The new

Columbians. I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to be directly

involved in developing new guidelines, laws and policies that will shape

the future of a more accessible British Columbia.

Nearly 7,000 people, including people with lived experience,

service providers and small business owners, participated in the

consultation process in 2019 to share their ideas about how we can best

liveable communities, we need to look beyond our workplaces and homes.

How can we make our small businesses more accessible? How can we improve

the way we communicate or incorporate a more inclusive curriculum into

our education systems?

Over two months, our dedicated ministry staff put in the time to

connect with and listen to self-advocates, caregivers, supporting

organizations, Indigenous communities and business groups to find out

Our approach, in lead-up to the introduction of this legislation and

throughout the development of its implementation, will continue to be in

line with the UN convention on the rights of persons with

disabilities.

The principle of “Nothing about us without us” will continue to

guide our process, meaning that people with disabilities will continue

to be engaged in this process every step of the way. Our goal is to make

real and significant changes to the way things are done in B.C.

of the people who are asking for changes must be front and centre

throughout this process.

While this legislation will be transformative in building a

British Columbia that works better for all of us, our government is

already taking action to make our communities more accessible. Just one

example close to home: the Ministry of Environment has demonstrated

their leadership by implementing a series of changes to make B.C. parks

and campgrounds more accessible. In my neighbouring riding of

Chilliwack-Kent, Maple Bay campground in Cultus Lake Provincial Park now

has accessible cabins. These newly constructed wheelchair-accessible

cabins have leveled entryways and are close to the beach. Opportunities

like this help more people with disabilities discover the beauty of B.C.

parks, and I hope to check them out myself soon.

[10:25 a.m.]

The province is doing so much more. As part of our StrongerBC

economic recovery plan, we’re committed to building a more inclusive

economy that leaves no British Columbian behind. As part of this plan,

the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction announced $10

million in funding to support the local hiring of people with

disabilities in non-profits and small businesses across the

province.

Through the work experience opportunities grant, participants will

receive a 12-week paid work experience opportunity. We know the COVID-19

pandemic has disproportionately impacted people with disabilities.

That’s why paid work experience, through programs like this, will help

employers hire new staff and give employees the experience and

confidence they need to return to the workforce.

This pandemic has shown us how crucial government support is in

making sure that people with disabilities and those facing multiple

barriers receive the support that they need. While we are supporting

initiatives to help with employment opportunities, we need to make sure

that when people with disabilities re-enter the workforce, they are

entering a place that is accessible, inclusive and suited to their

specific abilities, and we need to make sure that our workplaces and

communities receive the support they need to make this happen. Our

As we move ahead with work on this important file, I’m looking

forward to working across the aisle to build a more inclusive and

accessible British Columbia.

S. Cadieux: Thank you to the member. I certainly agree with the member on

pretty much everything that he spoke about today. I’m sure we’ve had

many similar experiences as we both have navigated our adult lives with

spinal cord injuries.

The reality is that nothing is spontaneous for people with

disabilities. We are masters of planning and innovation. That’s what it

takes to live in a world that was not built for you, and that is what we

are trying to change. It is one of the highlights of my career here, I

would say, that we can collectively and cooperatively recognize that

this is something that needs to be done. The fact that all parties in

the need means a great deal to me.

The UN position on “Nothing about us without us.” As I have

learned it over the years and lived it over my advocacy career, the

reality is that we’ve changed that somewhat. Now, really, that effort is

“Nothing without us.” It isn’t about doing it for people with

disabilities. It’s about ensuring people with disabilities are there to

do it for themselves.

In British Columbia, not everybody is able to experience the

province equally. What someone can accomplish without a second thought,

like navigating a shared space like the Legislature, poses a significant

challenge to other people. These vastly different experiences are

reflected around us every day, often to the detriment of those who need

them most. A narrowing sidewalk, a crowded bus, a high curb, an unmarked

crosswalk on a busy street — all are obstacles that some won’t even

notice.

The term “disability” is a wide umbrella. It covers a diverse

group of individuals throughout our communities. They’re not always

visible, not always physical, not always chronic. Likewise, barriers

themselves are diverse and often hidden. They can be physical,

financial, emotional, social, economic and others. Some must contend

with disability from the beginning of their lives. Others are confronted

with new challenges at a later age, and it’s often a difficult

transition.

The current statistics suggest more than 20 percent of Canadians

live with a disability. As we heard the member say, close to 25 percent

in British Columbia recognize some form of disability in their lives.

For many, the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened that. They’re less likely

to be employed, representing a vastly untapped labour market, and the

pandemic has significantly compounded this.

people and that different people will need different things. People face

real barriers purely as a result of their identity as well. One’s

ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity or upbringing can have

serious ramifications on access of an individual or community. These

things alone can be barriers, but they can also overlay and add

complexity as it relates to people with disabilities and their inclusion

in society.

[10:30 a.m.]

We have a lot of work to do. One of the things that I like to

remind people of is…. I had a conversation recently with a hotelier.

there were some problems, and I pointed them out. I asked: “Why? Why are

these problems still here?” And he said: “Well, you know, disability is

really not our market.” I said: “Well, what is your market?” And he

said: “Business people.” I said: “Well, I travel for business four days

a week.” And then he said: “Well, yes, but really, it’s an artsy

community.” And I said: “Well, I’m the president of a theatre company

that just toured a production across Canada.”

The reality is that people with disabilities are not a discrete

group of people. They are 20 percent of every group of people, 20

percent of our population, and we are excluding their participation. We

have work to do to help people understand that this is not something we

do to be nice. This isn’t something we do for some. We do it for all. We

have a lot of work to do, and collectively, I am confident we will get

there together.

D. Coulter: I’d really like to thank the member for Surrey South for her

speech. I can see that we will have an ally in passing this

legislation.

This legislation that I keep referencing and am excited about will

represent an important step towards the realization of a more accessible

and inclusive province for the approximately 25 percent of British

Columbians who live with a disability. I also believe that all British

Columbians will benefit from this work, whether it’s as we travel, as we

support our loved ones or as we age. In many ways, the passing of this

legislation represents the end of the beginning. In order for our

efforts to succeed, it’ll be important for us to continue to work in

partnership with people with disabilities and the broader community as

people.

themes. One, breaking down barriers. We know we need to focus on

removing the barriers people with disabilities experience in their daily

lives, including physical, attitudinal and informational barriers. Two,

advancing human rights. We want this legislation to reinforce and

strengthen our commitment to the UN convention on the rights of persons

with disabilities and the United Nations declaration on the rights of

Indigenous peoples. Three, creating a culture of inclusion through

education and awareness and ensuring social connectedness. Four,

promoting fairness and equality through emphasizing diversity and

equity. Embracing diversity makes us stronger as a society and also

ensures that we’re equitable.

We know that there are many intersectional factors — gender, race,

sexuality, indigeneity — that contribute to the barriers people

experience. We need to ensure that we’re aware of these factors and work

to address them. Our intention is to learn from and model other

jurisdictions. We aim to promote a culture of change to work towards a

more accessible B.C. It’s going to take time, and I look forward to

carrying out this work with communities across the province.

We also know that government needs to lead the way and develop

tools and supports that help both public and private organizations

comply with standards. Though we hope everyone will willingly jump on

board with making B.C. more accessible, we will be establishing a

variety of compliance and enforcement mechanisms to ensure

accountability.

I’m so excited to be part of this work, and I look forward to

debating this important legislation in the months ahead.

Deputy Speaker: The member for Surrey–White Rock.

YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH

T. Halford: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you for that introduction. It felt

like a hockey game there for a second.

I rise today to speak on the important issue of youth mental

health. For many British Columbians, the last year has been the most

challenging and difficult in our collective memory. Our communities, our

province, and our world have changed drastically since the beginning of

COVID-19. The global pandemic is something we are all feeling the

effects of — most notably, the pandemic’s effect on the mental health

and well-being of children and youth in British Columbia, and all of us

in this House are deeply concerned. Children and young people in this

province are facing increased isolation as a result of the pandemic.

Evidence shows that physical distancing can have a significant impact on

mental health, although many children and youth are still able to attend

school in person, as my children do.

[10:35 a.m.]

The continuous isolation from friends, family and loved ones is

significantly impacting the mental health of our young people. Kids

haven’t been able to hug their grandparents in over a year, and that

loss of contact and physical affection can be deeply impactful. Even in

schools, students sit. They contribute for hours on end, but their

interaction is minimized, for good reason. But these feelings of

isolation can lead to effects that are very long-lasting. It’s

undeniable that the negative impact on child and youth mental health is

concerning, and we have a long way to go.

Now, my children, all three, go to elementary school in my riding.

They have not been able to hug their grandparents or visit their

grandparent’s home to play with the family pet. This is something I know

that all members in this House…. They share very similar stories. I

think it’s something that we all struggle with, but at the end of the

day, we’re all trying to make sure that we are doing the best with what

we have.

The disruption of routines has also caused a massive surge in

mental health issues among youth, according to doctors and

psychologists. Structure is incredibly important for young people, and a

disruption in routine can sometimes be traumatic. Children and youth are

also increasingly conscious and worried about their health and the

health of their family members, beloved seniors, the financial

repercussions of the pandemic for their families and the global effects

of the pandemic itself. The research is clear. Children and youth can be

expected to experience many health challenges during and after the

pandemic, such as increased anxiety, post-traumatic stress, depression

and behavioural problems.

British Columbia’s mental health system was already stretched and

underfunded before the pandemic. It is continuing to struggle. The extra

demand resulting from the stresses of COVID-19 is just exasperating that

problem. Many clinics, such as the Foundry, which offered walk-in

support to youth before the pandemic, now require appointments. These

necessary pandemic safety measures are causing longer wait-lists and

more gaps in the immediate care for youth.

In May of 2020, only three months into the pandemic, B.C.’s

Representative for Children and Youth confirmed that there were more

than 2,500 youth in B.C. on the wait-lists. That number continues to

grow today. Youth who are at risk of self-harm or other mental health

challenges cannot afford to wait months. They need help today, and I

think that’s something we all realize.

I’d like to echo the recent sentiments of my honourable colleague,

the member for Saanich North and the Islands, when he eloquently stated

in this House last week that when people have sought treatment for

mental health conditions, they were undermined, belittled and taunted,

but “as soon as their ailment was physical, they were put on life

support.” I agree with the member that it is time for this government to

treat the brain like it is truly part of the body and to value mental

health as we do physical health.

By now, many of us have seen the advocacy of two parents who

tragically lost their 16-year-old son from Victoria who had a history of

struggling with mental health. On January 3, 2021, this teen left his

home to walk along the E&N rail line, but he never returned. That

very day his parents received a call about a psychiatric appointment to

be scheduled in February. We all know that call was too late.

Since then, his parents have publicly advocated for greater youth

mental health supports in B.C. I think we should applaud those parents

today. This teenager was let down by our mental health system in B.C.

This family was let down by our mental health system in B.C. The

pandemic, which robbed this boy’s ability to see his grandparents,

isolated him from friends, took a major toll on his health. His mental

health was plagued by isolation, loneliness, a loss of routine and

anxiety.

Sadly, this teenager’s challenges and his barriers to access

mental health services are not unique, since children and youth trying

to get their first visit with clinical or psychiatric mental health

services face an average wait time of almost 55 days in B.C. When you

are a young person in crisis, a two-month wait-list is two months too

long.

[10:40 a.m.]

We need to properly address this to make sure that we are not

speaking about other tragedies in this House. The importance of

addressing mental health issues in early stages is undeniable. We need

more services to make this a reality. Children and youth are moving

through many physical and emotional and social changes, more than at any

time in their lives.

I ask this House today, this government, this opposition, that we

all make sure that we are making mental health for youth an absolute

priority.

A. Singh: I thank my friend from Surrey–White Rock for those comments. This

is such an unprecedented time, such a hard time for all of us, but I’m

hopeful we’ll get through. This is my first time speaking in these

halls, physically speaking here. Of course, I’ve been up

there.

For me, it’s a bittersweet moment as a racialized person, as a

person of colour — bitter in recognition of the storied history of these

halls, of this province and the many oppressive things done to people in

society that originated from these halls. I want to recognize that and

recognize that history. And sweet because of all of the good that also

originated from these halls and the sense of hope I feel and see with

all of you, all of us working together, for all of the good that we

still have to do for this province and for the people that we

represent.

History is like that. My thoughts are with Andre and his family

who are grieving. I have a 1½-year-old daughter. I can’t even conceive

of that. After decades where mental health care was neglected, we know

that things are not that great right now, but we’re trying to work to

make it better. That is speaking of the good.

I’m proud to stand here today on this side, with the government

that has a Minister of Mental Health and Addictions who gets up in the

morning and goes to sleep every night, day in, day out, thinking about

the work that needs to be done to help the countless number of people

who desperately need our help still. This is no easy task. There are so

many barriers to dealing with mental health and addictions — stigma and

the fear of asking for help being a huge one. I know that well. I know

that really well.

The hardest thing I ever did in my life was to reach out for help

during my darkest times in the throes of alcoholism, when I was in the

proverbial valley of the shadow of death. I was an adult. Reaching out

as a youth must be so much harder. That’s why it’s so important that

when you reach out, when they reach out, that there’s a hand there to

clasp their hand. That moment of clarity comes really…. It’s fickle. It

comes once — that moment of clarity when you have the strength to reach

out — and it doesn’t last long. We need to make sure that the resources

are there so that hand can be clasped.

That’s why this government and this minister have been working

tirelessly for almost four years now, investing in mental health

resources and resources for youth. This, after years, as I said, of

neglect. We can still see the effects of that now. This government has

been building a system of care from the ground up that focuses on early

intervention and prevention. Since 2017, this government has invested

almost $140 million in youth mental health services and has brought in

new ways for young people to access care and skill them up in response

to the pandemic.

Undoubtedly, this is an unprecedented time, something we hopefully

will never see in our lifetimes again. We face new challenges. We’re

trying to stand up to them. We’ve opened urgent primary care centres all

over the province, where clinicians are available 365 days a year for

same-day access. That includes mental health support. In addition to

these supports, my friend spoke about the Foundry — amazing

organization. As of 2020, there are nine Foundry centres operational

across the province. There will be a total of 19 centres once complete.

These offer not only in-person but also virtual supports as

well.

The province has invested $5 million in virtual mental health

services during COVID-19 to provide expanded services to British

Columbians, with specific services for children and youth. My good

friend works for the Foundry, so I have some familiarity with them. I’ve

had the pleasure of speaking with them on many occasions. What an

amazing resource.

[10:45 a.m.]

They offer young people aged 12 to 24 health and wellness

resources, services, supports online and through integrated services,

drop-in counselling — not only for youth but also their caregivers — and

peer support for youth and their caregivers. These are the kinds of

missions and organizations we need to support.

We’ve invested a lot into youth mental health, and we’re going to

continue to invest more. We’re continuing to work urgently to build a

comprehensive system of care that works for everyone, with a strong

focus on children and youth.

I’m going to end with this. It’s a quote from Gibran: “Your

children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of

life’s longing for itself. They come through you but not from you.

Though they are with you, yet they belong not to you. You may give them

your love but not your thoughts.”

I want to be able to have support and services so that when they

do reach out, the hand is there for them.

Deputy Speaker: Thank you, Member, and welcome.

T. Halford: I just want to start off and congratulate the member for

Richmond-Queensborough for his first stand in the House. It was an

eloquent one at that. Before we started here, I got to catch up with him

and hear about his 16-month-old daughter, who he is very proud of. I’m

sure she will be very proud to see him continue to rise in this

House.

On reflection of the remarks, I think it’s important that we all

realize — and all members on both sides of the House agree — that we

must and we can do more than what we’re currently doing. The mental

health crisis facing our children and youth in British Columbia, as the

pandemic continues, remains strained.

Unfortunately, the expansions and the innovations are reactionary:

reacting to the already pressing mental health crises that, again, are

exasperated by this pandemic; reacting to the needs of children and

youth who are desperate for care after months and years of facing

barriers; reacting to the mental health emergency well underway here in

B.C. These reactionary measures can often be too little and too late. We

saw that. We’ve seen it, tragically.

When discussing youth mental health struggles, we must also

consider a frequent intersecting factor. Youth substance and youth

addiction…. Problematic youth substance use is not a new issue, and it

continues to have a lack of access to appropriate services, which is

concerning. The current youth substance use health system has been

deemed inaccessible, difficult to navigate and lacklustre. These are

terms used by the children and families in crisis seeking those

services. So the action and service expansion we have seen from this

government has clearly not been enough.

Children and youth in British Columbia are struggling. Some,

tragically, have died. We can no longer wait for services from an

overworked, reactionary system. The current mental health system in B.C.

is failing. Children and youth are moving through many physical,

emotional and social challenges, more than at any time in their lives.

They have not developed the coping mechanisms and those experiences to

get them through these times, and the pandemic adds another layer of

complexity and additional challenges.

Again, Mr. Speaker, government, all leaders in this House, I ask

you that we please make mental health a priority, going

forward.

FOOD SECURITY

M. Dykeman: It’s a privilege to rise in this House virtually today from the

traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of the Matsqui, Kwantlen,

Katzie and Semiahmoo First Nations to speak about a topic that affects

everyone.

As agricultural advocate Brenda Schoepp said: “My grandfather used

to say that once in your life you need a doctor, a lawyer, a policeman

and a preacher, but every day, three times a day, you need a farmer.” As

a farmer myself, it’s an honour to speak today in this House about food

security.

Although food security is such a broad topic, having so many

prongs, it’s something that each one of us, whether a farmer or not,

share in common. We all eat, and we all rely on availability of our

food. So today I would like to discuss the importance of local food

security, an issue that has really been pushed to the forefront with the

challenges of COVID-19.

[10:50 a.m.]

Our world is a complex network of supply systems that we largely

take for granted, which depend on the services of various transportation

and logistics providers. The pandemic has highlighted the fragility of

relying on supply systems, which require logistics, warehousing and

packaging — to name a few components of this complex system — all of

which must work in unison for each one of us to put food on our

table.

What we saw was how vulnerable the system is to disasters of any

kind and how quickly a disruption in any portion of the supply chain can

lead to shortages of food or food insecurity, which the UN defines as

“the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of

affordable, nutritious food.” But we are fortunate that British Columbia

has some of the most fertile soil in North America and a more favourable

growing climate than much of our country. That is why investments in

local B.C. farmers is such an important step in combating food

insecurity.

Statistics Canada began monitoring household food insecurity in

2005 through the Canadian community health survey. The most recent

national measure was taken in 2017 and ’18, in which one in eight

households, about 12 percent, were food-insecure — amounting to over 4.4

million Canadians, including 1.2 million children — and living in homes

that struggled to put food on the table, the largest number recorded

since Canada first began monitoring food insecurity. Even more

startlingly, in the first two months of the pandemic, that number grew

by 39 percent, with one in seven people struggling with food insecurity,

as reported by Stats Canada in December of 2020.

Unfortunately, food insecurity and other markers of social and

economic disadvantage are closely related. In low-income households,

lone-parent homes, renters and those who identify as Indigenous, Black

and racialized households, food insecurity is most prevalent. Indigenous

households report rates of food insecurity of approximately 28 percent.

However, that number is an underestimation of the actual prevalence. The

survey sample did not include people living on First Nations reserves,

people in some remote northern areas or people who are homeless —

specifically, the three groups at the highest risk of food insecurity.

For an example, in Nunavut, approximately 57 percent of households are

food-insecure.

Our situation in British Columbia, based on the same 2018-19 data,

showed that here, 12.4 percent of our households are food-insecure,

which translates to over 600,000 people in B.C. struggling to put food

on the table. Over the last ten years, B.C. has imported about $2

billion worth of food each year. Over 98 percent of fruits consumed in

B.C. come from international imports, and we are highly dependent on

California for most of our fruits and vegetables.

Residents of Metro Vancouver consume about 2.5 million tonnes of

food per year, accounting for approximately 53 percent of the total food

supply in B.C. However, only about 14 percent of the food consumed in

Metro Vancouver is produced locally. International and interprovincial

imports account for over 73 percent of the food consumed in Metro

Vancouver, highlighting our dependence on national and international

transportation systems and the importance of the infrastructure that

supports it.

Every day Metro Vancouver is only days away from empty grocery

store shelves and hungry children, due to the next international,

national or significant regional crisis. The probability of such events

makes our food security an illusion, unless effective measures are put

in place to produce enough food locally to offset such

eventualities.

The average Canadian will pay an extra $695 for food this year, as

the pandemic, wildfires and changing consumer habits drive up grocery

bills. With the biggest increase ever predicated by an annual food price

report, rising prices for bread, meat and vegetables are expected to

lead to an overall food price increase of 3 to 5 percent, according to

Canada’s food price report in 2021 — which, for an average family of

four, translates to a grocery bill of $13,907.

[10:55 a.m.]

The stresses on our food system highlighted during this pandemic

are why investment in good local production capacity is so vital. This

is why support for farmers, who create robust, accessible food systems

that increase local food production capacity right here at home, are

integral to a resilient food security plan. In response to the very real

challenges we face, the Metro Vancouver regional planning committee

found that both self-sufficiency and resilience contribute to food

security.

Our government also recognizes the benefits of self-sufficiency

and has created programs like Buy B.C., investment in agro-innovation

and investment in food hubs like the Plenty and Grace Food Hub and

Innovation Centre by Langley farmer Lee Murphy, owner of Vista D’oro

Farms and Winery and the Preservatory.

The B.C. Food Hub Network aims to foster growth and innovation in

the processing sector through improved industry access to facilities,

equipment, technology and technical services and business

supports.

In conclusion, these are all important steps we’re taking to

ensure a prosperous and strong agricultural sector that can contribute

significantly to a reduction in food insecurity in B.C., while making

life more affordable for everyone. Agriculture is a significant economic

driver right across British Columbia. These are wise investments in the

future of all British Columbia, socially and economically.

J. Sturdy: I’d like to thank the hon. member for raising what is a very

important topic today and that is of food security. It is an interesting

discussion of what actually constitutes the definition of food security.

Clearly, food security to a vulnerable person living on the streets of

the Downtown Eastside is certainly different from that of a suburban

family, a rural resource worker or a farmer.

In the case that we’re talking about, actual food producers

themselves, I am confident that farmers have quite different thoughts

about what the term “food security” actually means to them. Growers face

real risks: drought and floods and the impacts on the land base; the

cost of animal feed; wildfires and the impact on feed supplies; market

access; pandemic restrictions on agricultural workers; and, ultimately,

the age-old question about the actual use of land contained within the

agricultural land reserve.

Before we get into a discussion about what is permissible on the

ALR these days, we do need to examine what actually constitutes

so-called food security. There are different ways to define it. Looking

at it as a grower, what is provincial food security as referenced by the

member opposite? Based on the commodity production figures published by

the Ministry of Ag a number of years ago, multiplied by the caloric

value and divided by the population of B.C., it appears that we do

produce enough calories to feed the population of this

province.

It would, however, be quite a limited diet, one that would

certainly not suit everyone. Just as an example, I personally do love my

olive oil, and it’s something which we certainly won’t be producing

domestically anytime soon.

Food security in British Columbia, with our diet of choice, does

and always will depend on imports from other jurisdictions to keep us

well-fed with the range of products that we like and in the off-season,

when our production capacity of fresh products is greatly reduced,

frankly. These are realities and are important considerations in the

discussion of food security.

[N. Letnick in the chair.]

As you may be aware, I’ve long been a vegetable and berry grower,

along with producing some proteins, and am required to make forecast

choices at the beginning of the season if I am to be successful in

getting product to market. This is an issue that every grower faces.

Believe me, as an elected official, I have heard a great deal from

growers ever since this current government was elected four years

ago.

As the hon. member opposite is no doubt aware, agricultural

producers have been consistently weighed down by increasing regulation

and, frankly, a crushing tax burden. Under the current government,

agricultural producers are losing ground. As producers who compete

globally, we have very few protections for B.C. growers. We face some of

the highest farmland costs relative to other jurisdictions, especially

in the southern and most populated regions of the province. We face the

highest level of taxation after 17 tax increases since this government

was formed in 2017.

A particularly onerous and irksome challenge is the lack of

recognition that agriculture is a highly labour-intensive business. With

the employer health tax, this government seems to believe that big

payroll equals big profit. I can tell the member — and she sure would

know, if she’s a grower — that in the case of agriculture, this is

simply not true. Agriculture is a razor-thin business and the employer

health tax is an enormous burden for growers.

[11:00 a.m.]

Growers face some of the highest degree of land regulation that is

highly restrictive to giving farmers and ranchers alternative sources of

income. We support some of the highest environmental standards anywhere

in the world, but that comes with a cost. We have the highest

agricultural labour costs, some of them. We have the highest tax rates,

the highest fuel costs in the world. Of course, we only get one crop off

the field, versus our southern competition, which may get two, three or

four crops. Yet we must compete in this uneven global market.

Despite the obstacles we face, some of which government has thrown

in the way of agricultural producers in British Columbia…. Our farmers

and ranchers have become some of the best in the business, despite these

challenges. Why? Well, because we simply must be the best if we want to

survive.

Before I conclude, I should mention that this current government

has gone to great effort to reverse many of the progressive initiatives

that had gone into improving a farmer’s ability to make a living on the

land base within the agricultural land reserve. The focus should be on

maintaining the agricultural capacity of the land, rather than

restricting opportunities for farmers that have little or nothing to do

with the land base. Ideology running amok seems to be the driver, not

the health of our farmers.

In conclusion, I ask: does the member opposite agree that we

should be doing all that we can to support farmers to be successful, to

be multigenerational, to be supported to feed B.C. during this pandemic

and beyond? If so, will the member commit to advocating for the changes

needed to make B.C. growers more competitive?

M. Dykeman: Thank you to the member opposite for his comments. I appreciate

his recognition of the importance of food security.

As I mentioned previously, agriculture is a significant economic

driver right across British Columbia. Agriculture is very unique in that

it has a much greater impact on reducing poverty and improving food

security than any of the other sectors of the economy. I would like to

share another important component of a strong and healthy food security

plan and another way that support for agriculture is being demonstrated:

agritechnology.

Agritech is the fusion of innovation and technology applied to the

agriculture, food processing and seafood sectors. One of the most

important ways that we can address food security is to support

innovations that increase the efficiency and sustainability of

agricultural production. These improvements can also result in enhanced

incomes and nutrition. By having the most diverse array of agricultural

commodities in Canada, B.C. is perfectly positioned to benefit from a

wide range of innovations, particularly those that can support

regenerative agriculture, innovative, on-farm management practices that

promote conservation and rehabilitation of farmland.

British Columbia is home to over 150 companies developing and

producing world-class agriculture technology — or agritech. Investment

in this area has significant potential to address production issues

arising from a growing population, with increasing expectations for

sustainability and traceability. B.C. is positioned to become a leader

in the development of agritech. Our government recognizes the important

role of agriculture and the role that agritech plays in both food

security and a strong economic recovery.

Our government is committed to supporting agritech, as can be

demonstrated by the recent agritech grant program, which provides $3

million to help B.C. agritech — agriculture and technology — companies

scale up, expand and develop technologies to increase sustainable and

regenerative food production in B.C. Programs like these support

innovation in agriculture and have a measurable effect on increasing the

innovation and infrastructure we need in our province to ensure a

food-secure future for everyone in British Columbia.

Hon. J. Whiteside: Hon. Speaker, I ask that the House consider proceeding with Motion

5, standing in the name of the member for Vancouver-Langara.

N. Letnick: Hon. Members, unanimous consent of the House is required to

proceed with Motion 5 without disturbing the priorities of the motions

preceding it on the order paper.

Leave granted.

[11:05 a.m.]

Private Members’ Motions

MOTION 5 — ECONOMIC RECOVERY

AND INFRASTRUCTURE

PLAN

M. Lee: I rise in the House to move this motion:

[Be it resolved that this House recognize the importance of a

comprehensive infrastructure plan to support British Columbia’s

post-pandemic economic recovery.]

This past year has been one of immense turmoil and change.

COVID-19 has impacted every sector of our economy, transportation

included. Not only did the pandemic change the ways and how frequently

we travel and commute around our province; it has also impacted industry

operators like airports and motorcoach companies that play essential

roles in our daily lives.

After months of advocacy from those in the industry and our B.C.

Liberal caucus, the NDP finally delivered grants for bus companies and

regional airports in need of support. This is a positive first step, but

for our province to move forward with economic recovery, we need to do

so much more. This government needs to develop a comprehensive plan to

support and maintain our transportation networks and invest in our

infrastructure so that these routes can continue to serve British

Columbians both during COVID-19 and long into the future.

I wrote to the Minister of Transportation nearly two months ago

asking for such a plan, but have yet to receive a reply. We’ve been in

this pandemic for more than a year. The NDP government has had plenty of

time to invest in transportation and infrastructure to keep our province

running and aid in future recovery, yet until last week, the government

had done nothing to address the growing challenges facing transportation

in our province.

Not only will reliable, viable and sustainable transportation

networks be essential for facilitating the trade and travel necessary

for economic recovery, but investing in our infrastructure will also

directly create jobs and stimulate the economy. We need this government

to advocate for B.C.’s fair share of federal funding for well-targeted

infrastructure projects that will enable safe, efficient and reliable

transportation corridors and benefit our province for decades to

come.

This plan must include projects like the Massey Tunnel

replacement, which is a critical pathway for tens of thousands of daily

commuters and an important trade route. It’s been 1,286 days since the

NDP cancelled the replacement, leaving commuters stranded in the worst

bottleneck in B.C. All we see from this government is more delay,

including with the business case that it’s been sitting on, with no

decision since last December.

There is the issue of the challenge of transportation access to

the Royal Columbian Hospital, our province’s number one trauma hospital.

The government’s delay tactics are evident here as well.

In December 2017, the government concluded consultations on the

Brunette–Highway 1 interchange and related access improvements for New

Westminster. Three-plus years later, it has not moved an

inch.

These are not just Lower Mainland issues, but widespread ones

across the province. There is the Taylor Bridge, a vital piece of

infrastructure crossing the Peace River and linking Fort St. John and

Dawson Creek. Millions of dollars worth of products, food, fuel and

heavy equipment in northeastern B.C. are carried daily over this bridge.

Despite its being in crucial need of replacement, it has yet to be

included in this government’s ten-year capital improvement

plan.

We also need to invest in our rural roads, throughout the

province. They connect B.C., enable people to commute safely and, when

it is safe to do so again, will enable tourists to explore our province

once again. Many of our roads around B.C. are deteriorating and in need

of significant repair, like the constant flooding and damage on Dog

Creek Road near Williams Lake, or with the Quesnel-Hydraulic Road, which

was impacted by a landslide last year.

On top of all this, we have the ongoing struggle with CBAs, which

are discriminatory and have also repeatedly driven up the cost of

projects while dragging down their scope and causing significant delays.

This has been the case with Highway 1 expansions for Salmon Arm west,

Chase Creek Road, Illecillewaet, and the Kicking Horse Canyon, along

with the Pattullo Bridge replacement and the Broadway subway

project.

This government needs to be doing more to invest in provincial

infrastructure. It is absolutely essential to our economic recovery. We

need this government to prove that they have a real vision for

transportation, including in Metro Vancouver, with its population

expected to grow by one million people over the next three decades, and

in the Fraser Valley, with the much-needed expansion of Highway 1 beyond

Langley to Chilliwack.

We need a plan that is going to maintain the long-term viability

of our critical transportation routes from commuting and daily life,

critical care access and facilitating trade, to eventually bringing

visitors back to our province. We need safe, efficient and reliable

transportation networks. It’s time that this government made it a

priority.

[11:10 a.m.]

M. Starchuk: Before I start, thank you to the member opposite for the

opportunity to respond.

I want to mention that I am speaking to you today from the unceded

traditional territories of the Coast Salish people, specifically the

Kwantlen, Katzie and Semiahmoo First Nations.

As we know, COVID-19 in these times has been difficult for all of

us. We can finally see the glimmer of hope — the light at the end of the

tunnel — that’s coming towards us.

When we take a look at what we’re doing as far as the economic

development and the plans that have come in place, they’re very

comprehensive and probably the most supportive in all of the country.

When we take a look at what happened in B.C., we’ve created 26,600 jobs.

Employment levels have risen to about 99.4 percent…. We’ve restarted the

province to the point where we are amongst the highest-rated for

provinces that we have.

We continue to make priority investments, right across the

province, to help build and maintain a reliable and environmentally

sound transportation system. I’d like to speak about some of those that

come to my riding of Surrey-Cloverdale. When we talk about connecting

communities with safe, effective, active transportation networks, they

have to be the most affordable transportation options. That’s part of

the foundational part of our government’s plan to build a better,

cleaner province.

When we talk about transportation and how it affects the

community, I want to make sure that we have that as part of our business

plan that’s going and part of what we talk about as our economic

recovery for small business. We want to make sure that the

transportation hooks up those small businesses to the transportation

networks that we’re building. We’ve got accounting firms in my riding

that have helped out and reached out to over four businesses right now —

small — that will benefit from this transportation network that will

come in to solve what we’re having here.

When we talk about the infrastructure and the investments that are

there to the community, let’s talk about the Pattullo Bridge. While it’s

not connected to my riding in specific, it is connected to the Lower

Mainland, Surrey and New Westminster. The new bridge, for those of you

that have not driven over the old bridge, is a great improvement over

what we’ll have in front of us today.

There will be more walking lanes, four lanes to travel back and

forth. It’ll better connect the communities of Surrey and New

Westminster, with these wider lanes that will make it safer to get

across to the other side. Along with this, when we talk about a green

network, we’re talking about high-quality walking and cycling paths

that’ll connect the bridge and the wide-use paths that’ll be on either

side of the bridge, separated from the traffic with barriers.

When we look forward at the infrastructure investments that are

coming, we take a look at Surrey-Langley SkyTrain. It’s a priority for

our government. No longer is it going to be a phased-in approach. It’s

going to start from Surrey centre and move itself all the way to

Langley. The jobs that this will create will be great for the area that

we live in. There’ll be steady jobs, high-paying jobs, and those jobs

will, in fact, help the small businesses that are in the community that

we serve.

When we talk about the transportation that we have that’s here

with regard to the routes that are there, the Pattullo Bridge project is

going to also help with that access that the member opposite talked

about with RCH. We talk about Highway 1 and the Fraser Valley and the

future improvements that are there to get the work underway. Last year

we completed the 216 exchange that was there, and now they’re planning

to add HOV lanes in each direction of Highway 1 between 216 and

I’d be remiss if I didn’t remind that the new Pattullo Bridge will

be along the lines of what the government has done so that we’re not

punishing the people of Surrey and New Westminster with tolls. This

bridge will be provided to the people of Surrey and New Westminster —

and others that are travelling through the city — at no cost. Tolls are

bridges.

These are some of the things that the current government is doing

to address the issues around infrastructure investments for the province

of B.C.

[11:15 a.m.]

I. Paton: I’ve been a resident in my riding of Delta South my entire life,

and I still live on the farm that I was born and raised on. I’ve

witnessed the construction of Highway 99 south to the U.S. border and

Highway 17 south to Tsawwassen and the B.C. Ferries. I’ve even witnessed

the toll booths that welcomed drivers to the entrance of the original

Deas Island Tunnel. I can personally account for 62 years of ups and

mostly downs of this dark, narrow tunnel lying at the bottom of the

Fraser River.

How will our province recover from the enormous economic setback

we’ve suffered due to COVID-19? Will our government, like a wise farmer,

use attributes like creativity, innovation, common sense and integrity

in its efforts to rebuild? It has a chance with one of the critical

pieces of infrastructure that could play a key role in B.C.’s economic

recovery.

Getting the George Massey Tunnel replacement project back underway

would put thousands of people back to work. It would put a glimmer of

hope in the eyes of some 85,000 commuters a day who are stuck in B.C.’s

worst traffic bottleneck. It would bring relief to our trucking

industry, which sees an incredible amount of time and money wasted as

drivers creep along slowly and sit idle in gridlock. It would allow

goods to move more quickly to the U.S. border, to the ferries and to our

local container terminals and industrial parks south of the

Fraser.

These improvements would have a profound impact on our economy at

a time when we need it most as B.C. recovers from a pandemic that, like

the Massey Tunnel traffic, has ground almost everything to a halt.

Sadly, the plans for this project have also ground to a halt: more

studies, more consultation, more opinions, as we continue to wait for

the release of a business case for an entirely new replacement

project.

Back in the middle of December, the government said it had that

business case. Well, where is that business case? It’s 3½ years after

this government cancelled our former government’s plan to replace the

aging and seismically unsafe tunnel with a bridge, and virtually nothing

has been done. Instead of sticking with the more innovative bridge plan,

which would have fewer environmental impacts, the government seems

intent on reliving the 1950s and plunking another concrete tube in the

Fraser River. My constituents tell me they don’t have much hope that

they’ll see a completed project any time soon.

Recently CKNW’s Lynda Steele pressed the Transportation Minister

on a timeline for a new project. She asked the minister repeatedly, over

and over, when shovels might be in the ground and when the new project

will be completed and open. She asked the minister: “When are we going

to see some movement? What happens next, and when?”

Ms. Steele obviously wasn’t impressed by the answer — or lack

thereof — because she pressed on. “Define ‘soon’,” she said. “When are

we going to hear something? Are we going to see shovels in the ground

this year?” she said. Then she said: “I hate to keep pushing you on the

timeline, but I know that commuters are saying: ‘I need to envision some

relief sometime in the near future.’ If we’re going to hear something in

the next couple of months, you’re not really committing to shovels in

the ground. When can we actually expect to see construction?”

She went on to say: “Is it going to be five years? Is it going to

be ten years before this tunnel is done and open?” Just as with the

official opposition any time we press the issue, she mostly got a bunch

of non-answers. However, near the end of the interview, the minister

finally allowed that we will see a completed project within a

decade.

A new bridge would nearly be done by now. It’s hard to fathom that

we might now have to wait ten years for a solution. When it comes to

shovel-ready infrastructure projects in this province, no project in the

nation could fit this term better than the cancelled Massey Bridge

project.

The minister made one other interesting comment during the

interview. He said: “We have a budgeted replacement project in our

capital plan.” The minister cannot point to it in the budget because

it’s simply not there. This is what I was talking about off the top when

I spoke about integrity. A farmer’s word is everything. Farmers pride

themselves in being upfront with people. It’s not what we’re seeing in

regard to this important infrastructure project.

Those living south of the Fraser are frustrated, and they need

answers soon. They want real, honest answers about when this replacement

project will get underway and when it will be done, once and for all.

It’s clear that we cannot wait a decade for a new crossing. We need

action now. It would be good for motorists; it would be good for our

economy. Let’s expedite a solution to replace the aging George Massey

Tunnel.

[11:20 a.m.]

H. Yao: Thank you for the opportunity to speak in the House, for the first

time, and for the opportunity to respond to Vancouver-Langara’s motion.

I do want to start by saying our government has done a fabulous job in

preparing for economic recovery for 2021. The motion that was made was

about economic recovery with infrastructure investment. If the House

will entertain me, I’m going to break that into two

components.

First is economic recovery. Recently I was actually visiting a

local mall in my riding, Richmond South Centre, and have seen the

vibrancy of the people already slowly coming back. It reminded me of the

over 99 percent job recovery, already matching closer to a post-pandemic

level. It also reminded us that our government introduced a COVID-19

recovery benefit to help us keep the economy moving. While many other

provinces continue to close and open, close and open, B.C. was one of

the champions who continues to maintain an open and consistent economy

to ensure that our small and medium-sized businesses are ready to take

advantage of the opportunity given to them when the vaccine rolls

out.

Speaking of vaccine rollout, I’m very glad to be able to speak to

you about my constituent who is 80 years old. This Friday, we may be

able to assist him to book an appointment. Our vaccine rollout is

actually ahead of schedule. All of British Columbia has spoken, and

especially ones in the Richmond South Centre riding continue to remind

me. We are looking for economic recovery, but based upon the opening of

the economy. Vaccine rollout is a priority.

It isn’t some small project here and there, but it’s actually a

lot of the B.C. economy returning to the previous normal. That is the

reason why I’m so glad to be part of a government that focuses on the

people, focuses on building small and medium-sized businesses through

our small and medium-sized business grant, to allow us to continually

push the economy forward and allowing small and medium-sized businesses

to overcome the struggle being provided by the pandemic.

Pandemics will wrench into our expectation. The pandemic of this

COVID-19 is unique and unprecedented for British Columbian history, but

we are so proud to be part of a government that continuously allows B.C.

to be a leader in many aspects. Especially, I want to thank British

Columbians for being heroes, for being champions by following Dr. Bonnie

Henry’s order. We understand, as some of the hon. members mentioned,

that kids want to embrace their grandparents. We have people who want to

say hi to one another, and we are all looking forward to a full economic

recovery as we’re moving forward. The vaccine rollout will be key as we

move towards an economic recovery and the recovery of British

Columbia.

I also want to address, as we have been continuously talking about

the Massey Tunnel replacement…. I heard many members mentioning

integrity, common sense, that we should do things the right way. Yet it

is the very government back then, the past government, talking about

doing a bridge project even though the Mayors Council rejected it. It

was the many environmental groups around the area who said it is not the

right way to go. I’m not too sure whether common sense or integrity is

there, but I do want to emphasize one thing: our government is talking

about planning. Our government is doing studies. Our government is ready

to introduce an infrastructure project that actually matches the need of

the local people.

We’re talking about having a bunch of people who were talking

about economic impacts and fewer economic impacts with the bridge, yet

it is the third environmental group in Richmond that continues to remind

me that if we do the bridge, it will actually create a safety issue and

it will create an environmental issue for Richmond and the Fraser River

south area.

I do want to take a moment and thank our government and remind all

British Columbians that we are moving forward. We are not just thinking

about simple projects, but we’re thinking comprehensively about how we

can, as British Columbians, recover, open and welcome the world, coming

to us through our tourism sector. Another great introduction by our

government was the funding to support the tourism sector in our

province.

In conclusion, I want to thank the member for bringing an

important topic, talking about economic recovery, and welcome all the

members to continue to support government pushing a healthy,

comprehensive and well-thought-out economic recovery plan for both

British Columbia, for all ridings and for Richmond South Centre. Thank

you.

B. Banman: I just wanted to say how honoured I am to rise today and speak to

this motion.

Infrastructure has always been one of the driving forces of our

economy. It creates thousands of jobs, promotes urban and rural

development, and promotes immigration to British Columbia as we develop

the commuting and business infrastructure to meet our growing population

and demographics.

[11:25 a.m.]

There is no doubt that investment in infrastructure will be one of

the driving forces of our post-pandemic economic recovery. My concern is

whether this is the right administration for the job. I think at this

point, the members of this House are all too familiar with their track

record.

The track record of this government and their infrastructure plans

and commitments over the past four years that have been plagued with

ballooning cost overruns, bungling delays and cancellations across the

province. Beyond that, I feel a fundamental failure of this government

has been their inability and unwillingness to inherit the province’s

committed infrastructure plans from previous administrations, many of

which came from extensive joint consultation with federal, provincial

and municipal levels of government, as well as local stakeholders and

First Nation groups — to pick up where they left off.

As the newly elected MLA for Abbotsford South, a municipal

councillor and former mayor of the city of Abbotsford for many years, my

constituents and I are all too familiar with this government’s history

of killing plans they inherited, plans that would have resolved many of

the commuting and congestion issues my constituents and British

Columbians are experiencing today. Projects, as my colleague mentioned,

like the bridge replacement for the George Massey Tunnel, a project this

government was all too happy to axe, burning away millions in taxpayer

dollars already invested, while bringing zip to the table, bringing

nothing. There’s nothing to show for it.

Nowhere is this more apparent than our promised Highway 1

expansion in the Fraser Valley. Over the past few decades, more and more

families have moved into the region and are forced to rely on Highway 1

to commute to and from the Fraser Valley. It has turned this mainstay of

transportation into a commuting nightmare for years, Abbotsford

commuters have battled bumper-to-bumper traffic and lengthy travel times

along Highway 1 as they have lost valuable time with their families

while being forced to sit idling in their vehicles, creating unnecessary

pollution along one of the most congested roadways in the Lower

Mainland, if not in Canada.

But it’s not just about commuters. A recent study by Jonathan

Arnold, completed for the Business Council of B.C., estimates that

gridlock accounts for $1.65 billion to $2.25 billion of lost economic

opportunity, increasing gas costs, time loss, increasing CO 2 .

Truckers estimate 30 percent time loss per trip, costing them $750

million a year. This is not a problem that happened overnight, which is

why the previous B.C. Liberal government put plans in motion to address

this almost a decade ago, when it pledged to widen Highway 1 through the

Fraser Valley to six lanes between Langley and Abbotsford as part of its

provincial transportation plan B.C. on the Move way back in

2012, when I was the mayor.

In 2013, an agreement was reached by the previous government to

expand Highway 1 to six lanes from 202 Street all the way to Whatcom

Road exit in Abbotsford. Construction was set to start in 2017 on the

first phase: a $113 million six-laning expansion from 216th to 264th.

Unfortunately, the new administration took over. They quickly abandoned

this plan, and here we are, four years later, still stuck in gridlock,

for whatever reason. Whether it be spite, indifference to the concerns

of the people of the Fraser Valley, or simply poor planning, there has

been zero progress on this infrastructure.

[11:30 a.m.]

I hope this government will rethink their commitments to the

people of the Fraser Valley and deliver on the Highway 1 expansion,

which has been ignored for far too long.

B. Bailey: I thank the member for Vancouver-Langara for his motion and agree.

Infrastructure planning and building is profoundly important to B.C.’s

economy and to our communities, particularly during these trying times.

A year ago, when COVID first began to significantly impact our lives,

many hard-working British Columbians were unable to go to work. By

providing one of the most supportive and comprehensive COVID-19

responses in Canada, our government is helping the people and businesses

weather this pandemic. Transportation infrastructure has been

instrumental in this.

Road construction continued with proper COVID safety protocols in

place. Despite the large number of job losses in many parts of Canada,

B.C. was able to create 26,600 jobs in February, and B.C. has the lowest

unemployment rate among the four largest provinces, well below the

national average.

Looking ahead, keeping our economy moving is an integral part of

B.C.’s restart plan. I’d like to speak specifically about one of the

major infrastructure projects: the Broadway subway project. Come 2025

the Broadway subway project will transform how people get around in this

part of Vancouver — much-needed support for east to west travel. The

Broadway subway project is a 5.7 kilometre extension of the Millennium

Line from VCC-Clark station to Broadway and Arbutus. It will provide

fast, frequent and convenient SkyTrain service to B.C.’s second-largest

job centre, world-class health services and an emerging innovation and

research hub and growing residential communities.

Seven hundred metres will be elevated, extending from VCC station

to a tunnel portal near Great Northern Way. Six underground stations

will connect communities and the region, including a direct underground

connection to the Canada Line at Cambie Street. These six stations will

connect businesses, jobs and communities at…. The first one on the east

is Great Northern Way. This is the Great Northern Way–Emily Carr station

on the east side of Thornton Street, just north of Great Northern Way

Campus.

I just want to take a moment to speak about this campus and

innovation tech hub, in case you’re not familiar. It’s a place that I’ve

spent a lot of time at, and it’s a combination of some of the most

excellent educational infrastructure in British Columbia and very many

innovative companies. Emily Carr is there, the Centre for Digital Media,

VCC, Langara Centre for Entertainment Arts. There are also vibrant tech

and creative tech companies including Synacite, Samsung, Axiom Zen and

Blackbird entertainment.

The tunnel began well over a year ago. I’ve been down to see it.

It’s incredible to watch this project in action — thousands of tonnes of

earth being moved. But back to the other stops along the way. The five

other stops are: Mount Pleasant, Broadway–City Hall, Oak-VGH, South

Granville and, finally, Arbutus. These stations will make it easier and

more affordable to live, work, shop and access services along the

Broadway corridor when the extension of the Millennium Line from

VCC-Clark to Arbutus station is completed.

Each new station will be located underground, including station

infrastructure such as platforms, up-and-down escalators and elevators,

clear way-finding and passenger information, accessible services and

public art. Stations will be integrated with the current streetscape

along Broadway and include street furniture and bike parking. All

stations will be accessible by bus, walking and cycling for a complete

multi-nodal experience. The 99 B-line bus service will connect from

Arbutus Street to the University of British Columbia. The project is on

schedule for the new line to open in 2025.

This is about one of the major infrastructure projects that’s

transforming our communities for the better, employing folks and

creating connections and access. Access is important. It’s worth noting

for this project, as with many others, that it’s being completed using a

community benefit agreement.

[11:35 a.m.]

A CBA is used to ensure that locals, Indigenous People, women and

other underrepresented groups who want to start or grow a career in the

skilled trades have a chance to do so and that apprentices have more

opportunities to work on site and to gain the experience that they need

to move towards completing their certification.

The CBA ensures competitive, transparent wages and fair working

conditions that foster a workplace free of discrimination and

harassment, and provides equity training and Indigenous cultural

competency training.

While this is an upfront cost on this project, a little under 4

percent, the long-term economic benefits of training the next generation

of skilled workers and expanding the construction workforce far outweigh

the cost.

J. Rustad: It is always an honour to have an opportunity to speak on behalf

of my constituents in Nechako Lakes. I want to thank the member for

Vancouver-Langara for bringing forward this motion, as it talks to some

key issues, I think, for us as a province but also, certainly, for my

riding. That is the economic recovery and the infrastructure plan that’s

needed.

One of the members from Richmond talked about the need for a

comprehensive and well-thought-out plan. Well, I would say that is

exactly what’s needed, and that’s exactly, quite frankly, what is

lacking, especially when you start thinking about the economic recovery.

Rural resources are a key part of how our economy has recovered and will

continue to recover. Whether it’s lumber or minerals, they’re all so

critical to us as a society; agricultural products as well.

All of this depends on a good infrastructure network. All of this

depends on our road network. When you look at the roads outside of the

Lower Mainland that many members talk about, we have 58,000 kilometres

of resource roads, forestry roads. Many of our products move down these

roads to get to our markets, to be able to support the jobs, whether

it’s in the Lower Mainland or in communities like mine, in Nechako

Lakes.

What is the plan that we see for these roads? As the Auditor

General pointed out, only between 14 and 20 percent of what is budgeted

and what is asked for, for maintenance of these roads, is actually being

delivered. Just think about that.

Every year these roads need work. Every year these roads need the

kinds of investments to make sure that people can travel safely down

these roads, whether it’s for tourism or for our resource sector, and

they’re only getting 14 percent of what they need, by this government,

without a comprehensive plan. It is absolutely shameful to think that is

what this government is looking at, to such an important component of

British Columbia and such an important component to our economy and our

economic recovery.

Furthermore, because of these unfunded and because of this lack of

things, we have…. About half of the high priority — these are critical

components that could actually end up shutting down roads — that need

repairs are taking two years or more to get done. In fact, there are 583

bridges and culverts that are in desperate need of being replaced and

that aren’t even in the five-year plan. This is part of how we need to

work, and this is, for my riding, how people get around.

You’ve got places like Madson Creek and Germansen Landing, where

we see a lot of mineral activity, forestry activity. They’ve had such

damage to the roads that they are often down to one lane, and quite

frankly, if you don’t have a 4-by-4, you don’t even have a chance to get

to your home and your community because of the lack of investment that

is happening in these roads.

I’ve got constituents living out in Houston that have had their

axle broken as they’re trying to drive down the road, because the

potholes and the disrepair of the forest roads, of these resource roads,

are so bad. They’re not getting the attention that’s needed. Down in the

Cariboo there are areas that have been washed out and that are going to

be years and years before they’re replaced, causing hours and hours of

delays. This is, quite frankly, unacceptable when you look at

this.

Where is this comprehensive plan? Where is this vision for a

province where we can all be in this together, where we can all be able

to provide the support that’s needed, both for communities and for

people, for our resource sector, for tourism to build and move through?

I mean, if you think about many of the communities, whether it’s Burns

Lake or Houston, tourism is important. Tourism has taken a huge hit

because of COVID-19, but we’re optimistic that that’s coming

back.

[11:40 a.m.]

Even for the locals who want to go out now to visit lakes or to go

out and do these kinds of activities, it’s becoming more and more

difficult, simply because the access roads are not being maintained. I

would think that this is a great motion to bring forward and a great

opportunity to talk about some of these needs, but especially those

components that are critical to our economy in terms of the resources,

the resource sector, that are critical to tourism in the small

communities and where people live and love to call home, like Nechako

Lakes.

I look forward, one day, to seeing a plan that does come forward

from this government addressing these kinds of issues, but

unfortunately, I’m not awfully hopeful, because clearly this government

has not made those critical components a priority, and quite frankly, as

I’ve said, that’s shameful.

K. Greene: I come to you today from the traditional and unceded territories

of the Musqueam people and ask everyone to take a moment to reflect on

the traditional territories you reside upon.

It would be understating the obvious to say that this has been a

difficult year for everyone. Normal has been turned on its head, locally

as well as globally. We need a plan in British Columbia to recover from

the lasting impacts of the pandemic.

Our government has been supporting people and businesses

throughout the pandemic, ensuring that a recovery period has a strong

base on which to grow. As recently as February, our economy gained

26,600 jobs and is at 99.4 percent pre-pandemic employment. We’re going

to continue to make investments in local communities across the province

as we see, on the horizon, our post-pandemic future.

Infrastructure is an important part of B.C.’s post-pandemic

recovery. Good infrastructure projects will not only promote economic

recovery but also support social and environmental recovery as well.

It’s so important to consider not just short-term economic impacts but

long and lasting sustained and sustainable growth in the long

term.

In Richmond, we anticipate the start of the Richmond Hospital

acute care tower replacement project. When under construction, the

project will employ hundreds of workers, including Richmond workers.

These are good, quality jobs that will stimulate the local economy, but

in the long run, the impact will be far greater. Richmond Hospital will

be able to offer more services with the replaced and expanded tower,

which means long-term employment for health care and support workers.

The social impact will be significant as well, with Richmond residents

well supported in their own community in their time of need.

The replacement tower will also improve the morale of our health

care team at Richmond Hospital, who have been providing excellent health

care despite the frequent challenges of delivering that care in a

building that’s 55 years old. Projects like the Richmond Hospital acute

care tower replacement will support us now and for years to

come.

Rapid transit projects like SkyTrain extensions are another

example of infrastructure that will support us post-pandemic. In the

short run, hundreds of local workers will find good employment to

support their families and, in turn, spend in the local economy,

boosting that economic recovery.

But the magnitude of the project benefits will be appreciated in

the long run when hundreds of thousands of people — workers, students,

shoppers, visitors — have more route options and can get where they need

to go quickly and affordably. Having a good transit alternative will get

more people out of their cars and ease congestion on crowded routes.

People will get home more quickly, benefiting the social fabric of our

communities — more time with loved ones and more time to do the things

that fill up our hearts.

The environmental benefit of rapid transit is critical for meeting

the targets set out in CleanBC. It is imperative, as we face the coming

crisis of climate change, that we find ways to rapidly reduce our carbon

emissions. A major portion of GHGs are in transportation, so projects

that enhance and expand our excellent transit system are going to play

an important role in rising to the defining challenge of younger

generations.

Transportation infrastructure projects are also including safe,

fully separated, active transportation options that never would have

pedestrians means more low-carbon options for residents. An added

benefit of these affordable low-carbon transportation options is better

health of body and mind from exercise — a great example of the social

benefit.

[11:45 a.m.]

Obviously, investing in other projects will be necessary to reduce

GHGs and support our economic recovery from the effects of the pandemic.

This is why we need to highlight the creation of a new centre for

innovation and clean growth, which is an investment of $35 million, an

exciting development as part of Stronger B.C. This centre will support

good jobs and leverage the exceptional talent that we have here in

British Columbia to grow the technology that will help us transition to

a low-carbon future.

The projects that we undertake today will support long-term,

economic, social and environmental targets. To do so means we are not

just investing in economic recovery today but in stronger, sustainable

communities for decades to come. Incorporating social and environmental

lenses on pandemic recovery projects means a more robust recovery for

everyone.

K. Kirkpatrick: I’m honoured to speak to the importance of smart infrastructure

investment in the province of British Columbia. I’ve got a great

interest in the benefits of smart transit planning.

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged us all. But governments

should also seize this opportunity for pivoting and planning for the

future to ensure our communities are resilient and productive.

Infrastructure investment is important to stimulate economic recovery,

and it provides a significant multiplier effect. It enhances

opportunities and boosts supply and overall economic productivity. It’s

proven to be a very important tool for economic recovery.

As an MLA representing constituents from one of the North Shore

ridings, I must say that a rapid transit plan for our region has been

called for since pre-pandemic times to address our traffic congestion,

and we need it now more than ever. When transportation options for the

North Shore aren’t keeping pace with its exponential growth, it affects

businesses, commuters and tourism. We need to improve, and we need to

deliver transit options to residents to support communities moving

forward as they look for reliable travel times and access to jobs on

both sides of Burrard Inlet.

However, the NDP’s record for bringing in relief for commuters on

the Lower Mainland has been a poor one. There are still 85,000 daily

commuters waiting for this government to solve the province’s worst

traffic bottleneck, the Massey Tunnel. Even with the approved Pattullo

Bridge replacement project, it retained the width of a crossing at four

lanes, and it came with a 7 percent cost increase that B.C. taxpayers

will have to pay for — all thanks to this NDP government’s insiders-only

union program, the community benefits agreement.

I hope the government can truly consider the importance of

infrastructure investment and incorporate it into its economic recovery

planning and policy initiatives. Not only does this planning need to be

efficient and fair to workers, it should be more sustainable, livable

and innovative.

I want to give you an example of how technology can help our

infrastructure planning to be more than simply widening roads and

building bridges. Those things are very, very important to

infrastructure planning, but I’m excited about the potential of what we

can look at in the future.

You’ve heard of the Internet of things, a network of connected

smart devices providing and sharing rich data. Well, I had the great

opportunity to visit the Department of Transportation in Denver,

Colorado, where they’re investing infrastructure dollars on the Internet

of roads, which turns a portion of roadway into a place where cars

communicate with streetlights, with signs, with other Internet-connected

things. It’s a project using fibre optics for short-range communication

technology called V2X, which stands for vehicle-to-everything, to help

the government resolve a limited transportation budget with a very

quickly growing population.

There are many other regions looking into the future like this for

their transportation planning. It works like a pair of walkie-talkies,

with the vehicle driving in front automatically communicating to warn of

approaching road issues such as collisions, icy roads and rock slides.

It helps time traffic lights to ensure the best traffic flow and

enhances road safety and traffic congestion. Ultimately, this will set

up the network for the inevitable future of autonomous

vehicles.

[11:50 a.m.]

If we aren’t paying attention to disruptive technologies in the

auto sector, then we’re falling behind. This smart road technology is a

step towards the real digital highway of the future and supporting and

leveraging B.C.’s growing tech sector.

Many businesses have had to adapt and change their business models

during this pandemic in order to survive, and government can’t leave

them on their own. It has to play a role to put forward plans and invest

in innovative programs that allow us to emerge from this pandemic better

than before. This is the time to identify current and future needs and

to think outside of the box to invest in infrastructure as part of a

systemic and holistic approach for economic recovery.

R. Glumac: When the COVID-19 pandemic was declared, what followed was like

nothing we had ever seen before. In the two months after that, more jobs

were lost than the total number of jobs lost in any post-World War II

recession. Since April of last year, job growth has been recovering, and

here in B.C., we’re on the right track to have the strongest economic

recovery in Canada.

Robert Kavcic, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets, has stated

that B.C. continues to look like an out-performer. In February alone, we

saw 26,000 new jobs created, and our employment levels returned to 99.4

percent of where they were before the pandemic. There is no doubt our

economic recovery is leading the nation. We are achieving this by

putting people first.

We have a comprehensive economic recovery plan, the scope of which

would be impossible to talk about in a five-minute speech. Instead I’d

like to take you on a little tour around the province to get a sense of

some of the infrastructure projects that are currently getting started

or are underway.

Let’s first go to Creston Valley and the town of Wynndel that’s

receiving high-speed Internet as part of the connecting B.C. program.

There’s $90 million being invested in improving high-speed Internet and

cellular access across the province.

Next let’s go to Kelowna, Vernon and Salmon Arm, which will see

the construction of five new student housing buildings for Okanagan

College. This $67 million project will increase student housing in this

region by 260 percent.

Next to Richmond, which receives $1 million for upgrades to

Alexandra Neighbourhood Park as part of a program to invest $30 million

in small-scale infrastructure projects across the province. This project

is just one of 63 infrastructure projects that have been approved so

far.

Now to Invermere, where $1 million is going towards the expansion

of a trail network between Invermere and Radium Hot Springs. This is one

of 38 projects totalling $20 million dedicated to economic development

and recovery in rural communities.

Next we go to Golden, B.C., where there’s funding for an erosion

mitigation project, one of 60 projects across the province totalling

over $20 million which are targeted to helping mitigate and address the

effects of climate change.

Next to Naikoon Park in Haida Gwaii, which will now have electric

vehicle charging stations, thanks to our $5 million program to fund

infrastructure projects in 24 provincial parks. Incidentally, there are

now more than 2,000 public charging stations across B.C.

Next off to Tofino, which will be seeing $38 million invested from

the province and federal government to improve the safety of Highway 4

between Port Alberni and Tofino.

Where should we go to next? How about Kamloops, which will be

seeing a $1 billion widening of Highway 1 between Kamloops and Alberta.

That’s 330 kilometres of highway.

Over to Quesnel and a $100 million repair to a

section of West

Fraser Road that was washed out by a recent flood. Then to Trail and $30

million invested in building a new elementary school and child care

centre, just one example of over $2 billion invested in school capital

projects over the last three years.

[11:55 a.m.]

To New Westminster and a $1.5 billion investment to build a new

acute care tower in Royal Columbian Hospital, which will increase the

capacity of the hospital by 50 percent.

All these projects that I spoke about were announced in the last

month. That’s one month. And there’s so much more coming. I haven’t even

talked about the Pattullo Bridge or the Broadway subway project and so

much more. It is this government, the NDP government, that will continue

to make investments in the people of this province to grow a sustainable

economy that leads the country.

[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

G. Kyllo: It is truly a privilege to rise in the House today and speak to

the motion: “Be it resolved that this House recognize the importance of

a comprehensive infrastructure plan to support British Columbia’s

post-pandemic economic recovery.”

All members of this House will recognize the value of investing in

our infrastructure: our roads, our bridges, our rail lines, our airports

and our pipelines. Those very necessary infrastructures actually provide

the goods and movements of services and products across both Canada,

North America and around the globe.

But it’s the manner in which these projects are undertaken that I

am most concerned about. This has to do with the manner in which this

current government is moving forward with what they call their community

benefits agreement. I think that there are very laudable goals of the

government, but it’s the manner in which they’re trying to achieve them

that is very concerning to me.

Some of the highlights of the CBAs include a targeted approach to

maximizing apprenticeship opportunities; focusing on priority hiring and

training of Indigenous peoples, and women; coordinating access to

existing training programs; as well as priority hiring for qualified

individuals. It goes on to indicate a hiring flexibility for contractors

and wage alignment of prevailing industry rates to promote good wages

for all employees.

Now, these are laudable goals, and these goals have largely been

attained previously through project labour agreements — agreements that

are inclusive of all workers across our province. Unfortunately, this

administration has chosen, under their CBA, to exclude 85 percent of

construction workers in our province. We must ask ourselves: why would

government be motivated to actually not be inclusive, but instead to be

discriminatory against a large portion of private sector employees in

our province? These are very concerning, both to me and British

Columbians.

Now, don’t take my word for it. The Canadian Federation of

Independent Business has indicated that under the CBAs, that the CBA

amounts to what they identify as “conscription of B.C.’s construction

workforce into a designated union.” They go on to say that this policy

“contravenes the obligation of government for fair, open and transparent

procurement” policies.

Again, as I mentioned, 15 percent of construction workers are

actually unionized in this province. The other 85 percent are not. We

must ask ourselves: why is government actually undertaking a new policy

that excludes and discriminates against a large majority of construction

workers in this province?

We’ve seen this movie before. Back in the 1990s, the Highway

Constructors Limited, HCL, agreement was struck to build a Vancouver

Island highway. We know what a mess that was. The project drove costs up

over 37 percent. This goes back to the core of being respectful to

taxpayers.

Mr. Speaker: Noting the hour, Member.

G. Kyllo: Mr. Speaker, I’ve got just a few more minutes. I’d like just a

little bit more time, if I may.

We have a look at what the costs are, not just back in the ’90s,

but currently, under the CBA. CFIB reporting that the Pattullo Bridge

project will go over budget between $129 million to $259 million just on

that project alone. That’s the equivalent of building four to ten new

high schools around our province.

The Broadway SkyTrain station, estimated to be $255 million to

$509 million of additional, unnecessary cost associated with CBAs, with

little or no reported benefit. Illecillewaet project, a four-laning

project east of Revelstoke, initially announced at a $35 million budget,

was then reannounced by the NDP government at $62 million and came in at

$84 million. This is for only 2.1 kilometres of highway infrastructure

improvement.

[12:00 p.m.]

In my own backyard, in the community of Salmon Arm, is the Salmon

Arm west highway construction project of 6.1 kilometres. I was very

proud to stand with the former Minister of Transportation in Salmon Arm

in 2016 and announce this project at $162.7 million. The project is now

tagged $22 million higher, at $184.7 million, but the project has been

cut in half. We’re getting half the project for $22 million more than

was initially budgeted for that project.

It is offensive; it is discriminatory. I’m very concerned, as are

many British Columbians, about the disrespect of tax dollars and the

discriminatory nature of many of these policies that are being

politically motivated by this government.

G. Kyllo moved adjournment of debate.

Motion approved.

Hon. J. Whiteside moved adjournment of the House.

Motion approved.

Mr. Speaker: This House stands adjourned until 1:30 this afternoon.

The House adjourned at 12:01 p.m.

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