First Session, 41st Parliament

(2017) OFFICIAL REPORT

OF DEBATES

(HANSARD)

Monday, June 26, 2017

Morning Sitting

Issue No. 3

ISSN 1499-2175

The HTML transcript is provided for informational purposes only.

CONTENTS

Orders of the Day

Private Members’ Statements

The 75th anniversary of the Alaska Highway

D. Davies

J. Rice

A meaningful response to crisis

S. Robinson

D. Plecas

B.C. film’s contributions to the province

J. Thornthwaite

S. Chandra Herbert

Getting people moving again

G. Heyman

M. Hunt

Private Members’ Motions

Motion 1 — 150th anniversary of Canada

M. Lee

D. Donaldson

J. Tegart

M. Elmore

L. Throness

H. Bains

T. Shypitka

K. Conroy

D. Clovechok

C. Trevena

G. Kyllo

MONDAY, JUNE 26, 2017

The House met at 10:02 a.m.

[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

Routine Business

Prayers.

Orders of the Day

Private Members’ Statements

THE 75 th ANNIVERSARY

OF THE

ALASKA HIGHWAY

D. Davies: On March

8, 1942, construction started on the Alaska Highway. Completed in only

eight months, the Alaska Highway provided a vital link between Canada

and the mainland United States and Alaska.

The idea

of a highway linking the continental United States with Alaska by way of

Canada originated in the late 1920s and early 1930s. However, with the

Great Depression underway and the lack of support from the Canadian

government, concerns were raised that the project would mostly benefit

the American military, and the project was put on hold.

The United

States tried again in 1936 to get the project underway. However,

concerns were raised by Canadians that the highway in Canada, used by

the U.S. military to supply support to Alaska, might put at risk any

Canadian neutrality between the war with Japan and the United States.

However, with the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 and the war between the

allies in Japan, priorities of both Canada and the United States quickly

changed. Both countries feared attack on Alaska and the west coast by

the Japanese forces, and the need for a highway linking Alaska and the

continental United States became a top priority.

With both

countries on board, an agreement was struck. The United States would

build and pay for the cost of the entire highway and then transfer

control of the Canadian sections of the highway over to Canada after the

war was over. The only thing left to decide was what route the highway

should take.

Originally, there were four routes proposed, two of which had

significant political and commercial support. One ran east of British

Columbia’s coastal mountains, and the other paralleled British

Columbia’s sections of the Rocky Mountains.

[10:05 a.m.]

A third

route, which was the one preferred by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

tasked with building the highway, sliced northwest through the Rocky

Mountains. The fourth option rolled north of Edmonton into the Northwest

Territories, then west over the Mackenzie Mountains to Alaska. This was

the least-favoured option as well as the longest, at 1,700 miles or just

over 2,700 kilometres.

Without

any proposed option a clear favourite, a fifth route was eventually

proposed. It included the best features from the first, second and third

options. Once the route had been selected, it was time to get to

work.

In order

for the construction to happen, first an army of heavy equipment had to

be sent in, and 174 steam shovels, 374 blade graders, 904 tractors and

over 5,000 trucks were sent north. This was in addition to snowplows,

bulldozers, cranes and generators.

[R. Chouhan in the chair.]

The sheer

number and spectacle of men and equipment that the United States Army

brought in raised concerns for some Canadians who were skeptical that

the highway was really about helping defend Canada. In fact, one of the

local newspaper, the Peace River Block News , in Dawson Creek,

ran a headline: “The United States Troops Invade Dawson Creek to Build

Road.” It is true that in order to accomplish this vital task of

building the Alaska Highway, the United States sent in over 10,000

soldiers.

Those men

faced very difficult conditions. Anyone who is from northern B.C. or has

travelled through northern B.C. would know that building a highway

through this area would be no easy task. The soldiers faced everything

that one would imagine building a highway through frozen wilderness,

freezing temperatures, dangerous weather — including blizzards — and

even hazardous wildlife would do.

It wasn’t

just the cold weather that brought problems; once the climate improved

and the weather got warmer, the soldiers had to face new hardships.

Rivers flooded. Trucks got stuck in the mud and the muskeg. Mosquitoes

were a constant menace. In fact, many of the soldiers quickly nicknamed

them bush bombers. There were wildfires and wild animals.

Some of

these soldiers faced worse conditions than others. Almost one-third of

the 10,000 U.S. Army Engineers and soldiers who built the highway were

from segregated African-American units commanded by white commanding

officers. These soldiers received little to no training and had to deal

with horrendous stereotypes and propaganda from their white commanding

officers. Despite this treatment, brave men helped build the Alaska

Highway in this very difficult time in less than eight

months.

Their hard

work, though, changed the minds as well. In fact, when the official

ribbon cutting for the highway took place at Soldier’s Summit at

Historic Milepost 1061, two of the four soldiers that held the ribbon

were African American. In fact, some historians say that the

construction of the Alaska Highway played a role in

the eventual ending of segregation in the United States armed forces. We

owe them and all those that worked on the highway a great deal of debt

and gratitude.

[G. Kyllo in the chair.]

Many

consider the construction of the Alaska Highway one of the biggest

engineering marvels of the 20th century. At 2,333 kilometres in length,

stretching from Dawson Creek to Big Delta in Alaska, the highway became

a vital defence link between Alaska and western Canada.

Once the

war was over, based on the agreement made before construction, the

United States had six months to hand over the Canadian portion of the

highway. On April 1, 1946, the United States Army officially transferred

control of the road through the Yukon and British Columbia over to

Canada. In 1947, the highway was opened up for general public use. Since

the 1940s, the highway has consistently been improved, and now the

entire Canadian

section is completely paved.

This year

we celebrate the 75th anniversary of this highway. It has played a vital

connection between all of our communities in the north.

J. Rice: I rise

today to respond to the member’s statement around the Alaska Highway,

celebrating its 75th anniversary.

[10:10 a.m.]

Although

there was plenty of talk about building a highway through western Canada

to Alaska in the 1920s, it was the attack at Pearl Harbor in December of

1941 that made the Alaska Highway a priority. Seventy-five years later,

it remains as one of the most spectacular road trips, with access to

wonderful wilderness areas. The Alaska Highway celebrates its 75th

anniversary this year, as I mentioned.

After

Pearl Harbor, calls and approvals for construction of the Alaska Highway

came quickly from the U.S. Army, the U.S. President and the Canadian

government. The highway connected the U.S. lower 48 states with Alaska —

a potential front line in the war with Japan. It opened access to and

allowed passage through a huge area of wilderness set back from the

Pacific coast. Running approximately 2,200 kilometres northwest, it went

through the thick bush and across the mountain ranges of northern

British Columbia and the Yukon, into the interior of Alaska.

Construction began officially on March 8, 1942, with construction

equipment carried by trains on the Northern Alberta Railways to Mile

Zero at Dawson Creek. The official end of the highway is Delta Junction,

Alaska. The U.S. Army and the Canadian civilians worked in arctic

temperatures, through thick forests and peat moss bogs that sank your

equipment. They worked alongside killer mosquitoes — or bush bombers, as

they were called — as well as grizzly bears to construct the highway.

The Alaska Highway was the most expensive project of the war, coming in

at $138 million.

Hon.

Speaker, if you love a good road trip, check out this world-famous

highway. You can enjoy the natural beauty and the wildlife, learn about

laborious construction and harsh conditions of the past. And there are

many unique places to visit.

A website

has been created to celebrate the 75th anniversary, and it’s a great

starting point for travellers planning to make the trek this summer. You

can visit the website at celebratealaskahighway.com. Here you’ll learn

more about the history and the construction of the highway, as well as

suggested tourist attractions at the various communities along the way.

There are lists of gas stations and rest stops that can also be found at

the website.

In Mile

Zero Park, in Dawson Creek, you’ll find the Walter Wright Pioneer

Village — a heritage village that explores the history of the early

pioneers. Dawson Creek was once a small farming community but became a

regional centre when the western terminus of the Northern Alberta

Railways arrived in 1932. The community grew rapidly, and a decade

later, as the U.S. Army used the rail terminus during construction of

the Alaska Highway….

Other

attractions include learning about the dinosaurs, the furs and the gold

at the Hudson’s Hope Museum. You can see what creative works can be

created with a chainsaw in Chetwynd. You can relax at Charlie Lake near

Fort St. John. You can pan for gold in Taylor, home to the annual

class-A Worlds Invitational Gold Panning Championships.

Fort St.

John, one of the largest cities along the Alaskan Highway, is the oldest

European-established settlement in present-day B.C. It was a 1794

trading post.

You can

visit the trestle bridge at Pouce Coupe. You can soak in the hot springs

at Liard River Hot Springs — a B.C. provincial park and home to the

second-largest hot springs in Canada.

The Sign

Post Forest at Watson Lake in the Yukon was started by a homesick U.S.

GI working on the highway, who put up a sign of his hometown and the

distance to it. Others followed suit, and the tradition continues to

this day, with more than 80,000 signs.

Whitehorse, according to the Guinness Book of World Records ,

is the city with the lowest air pollution. It is the capital and largest

city of the Yukon and the largest northern city in Canada, where summer

days have 20 hours of daylight. And don’t forget to visit the Santa

Claus outpost once you hit Alaska.

B.C., the

Yukon and Alaska are three stunning places worth exploring, and you can

do so along the Alaska Highway. What better time than now to visit —

during the 75th anniversary of the mighty Alaska Highway?

D. Davies: The legacy

of the Alaska Highway is an important one. The highway serves as a vital

link connecting our northern B.C. communities, the Yukon and our

neighbours in Alaska.

[10:15 a.m.]

It is also

a major tourist attraction. Serving as the gateway to British Columbia’s

north, the highway does draw tourists from around the world who want to

experience a true northern lifestyle.

Some of

the world’s best fishing spots are also located along the Alaska

Highway. You can stop at many lakes throughout the entire trip, fishing

in stocked lakes that include rainbow trout, Dolly Varden and Arctic

char.

Of course,

travelling along the Alaska Highway is one of the great opportunities

where you can see the famous aurora borealis, or the northern lights.

Travellers, as mentioned, can also relax in the Liard River hot springs,

which is actually one of my favourite destinations along the Alaska

Highway and the second-largest hot springs in Canada.

Also, as

mentioned by the member opposite, if you cross over the Yukon border,

you can visit the world-famous Sign Post Forest in Watson Lake. This

spouts an ever-growing collection of 72,000 signs from around the world,

which tourists have placed. The first sign was put up by a homesick

soldier, Carl Lindley. He put up the sign from Danville,

Illinois.

addition to the community signs, there is lots of wildlife to see —

bears, beavers, bison, mountain goats and moose. Northern B.C. and

southern Alaska is one of the only places in the world where you can see

Stone’s sheep, well known for their large curved horns. The animals are

commonly seen if you hop out of your car and do a hike in Muncho Lake

Provincial Park. However, you can often see them along the side of the

highway itself — out wandering around or licking salt.

There is a

lot to see if you do a trip along the Alaska Highway and throughout

B.C.’s north. As the highway enters its 75th anniversary, I hope

everyone here considers taking a trip to B.C.’s north and seeing what we

have to offer.

A MEANINGFUL RESPONSE TO CRISIS

S. Robinson: I rise

today to make a statement about the importance of having a meaningful

response to crisis — in particular, the fentanyl crisis that is

currently gripping communities right across our province.

I thought

I would tell the story of a young man to illustrate the importance of a

responsive government — a government that understands the people it

represents and is committed to making their lives better by providing

the services they need when they need them.

Alex came

into my office at the end of August last year. He was super skinny,

bedraggled, dirty and incredibly sleepy. His mom had called earlier in

the week asking for help with her 21-year-old son. Given that Alex was

technically an adult, I suggested that perhaps he would be willing to

talk with me directly.

Much to

my surprise, this young man took his mother’s suggestion and showed up

at my community office on an August Monday morning asking for my help.

Alex sat in a chair in my office telling me that he was high on heroin

and that he hated who and what he had become. His self-loathing was

palpable as he described how a doctor’s prescription for a broken ankle

several years earlier had turned into an addiction that was more

powerful than he was.

Alex

pulled at his tattered dirty T-shirt as he described his younger self as

a buff young man who regularly worked out in the gym, loved to ride his

mountain bike and took pride in his appearance as he tried to impress

girls. The young man before me now talked about how pathetic he had

become, how he hated who he was, how ugly he was and what a horrible

human being he was. His self-disgust was heart-wrenching as he looked at

his skinny, frail, drug-addicted body.

This was

not the adulthood he had imagined for himself, and he wanted to stop

using drugs. He expressed fear of withdrawal — of the pain, the

discomfort and the seduction the drugs had on easing his mind, calming

his body and fooling him into believing that just one more hit would be

his last.

My heart

ached for this young man, and it ached for his mother and his brother

who had been witnessing Alex’s descent into misery. In that moment in my

MLA community office, Alex begged for a safe place where he could safely

wean off the drugs, reconnect with his life and start to heal the rifts

in his family.

When a

young man full of potential comes to his own conclusion that he needs

help, it is incumbent upon all of us — as neighbours, as citizens and as

human beings — to offer help.

But I

have to tell you, help was hard to come by. I searched the Internet,

looking for nearby resources that would open their doors to a young man

ready to act in his own self-interest. I feared that this motivation

would be fleeting, so I knew we had to act fast.

Phone

call after phone call revealed that this young man would have to wait to

get the help he needed. He would have to call every day or two in order

to see if there was space in our uncoordinated, fragmented

system.

[10:20 a.m.]

Service

providers, our front-line workers, repeated similar phrases over and

over again: “Have him call in six hours,” or “We don’t have any space

right now,” or “He can call again tomorrow.”

But Alex

had no tomorrow. While I was making these calls, Alex was starting to

pace in my office. At first, he was hungry for food, so we gave him

something to eat. Then he talked about getting hungry for drugs.

Withdrawal was beginning, and his level of agitation was

increasing. Both he and I knew that if we could not come up with

something, some sort of plan to keep him from using in the next hour or

two, he would leave my office to get his next hit. And we both knew it

could be a hit that could kill him, given the presence of fentanyl in

these illicit street drugs.

Hon.

Speaker, it doesn’t have to be this way. This piecemeal, uncoordinated,

fragmented collection of addiction services that we call a system is not

working, and it hasn’t been working because we haven’t had a government

that has cared enough to make this a priority.

Yes, we

have had some increase in harm reduction services, like substitution

therapies and safe injection sites. And yes, we have been talking about

the number of people dying in our streets, dying in SROs, dying in

suburban and rural homes and in coffee shop washrooms throughout the

province. But we are 14 months into a declared crisis, and we still

aren’t making a dent.

According

to the Coroners Service, there were 136 suspected drug overdoses in

April 2017. That’s a 97 percent increase over the number of deaths due

to overdoses from April 2016. While Vancouver Coastal Health Authority

had the highest number of illicit drug overdoses so far this calendar

year, Fraser Health is close behind in the number of drug overdose

deaths, and so far this year, British Columbia has seen a 50 percent

increase in illicit overdose death rates compared to 2016 in the

Okanagan and in central and north Vancouver Island health

regions.

We need

to do more. We need a meaningful response, a response that ensures that

when people like Alex are ready and motivated to act, we have a resource

for them that will help them through what will be a very difficult

time.

Imagine

if you break your leg, you go to emergency, and you’re told: “You’ll

just have to come back tomorrow” or “Just keep calling until there’s

room.”

We need

to ensure that our response is comprehensive, integrated and

coordinated. Imagine going to an emergency department where they

stabilize your broken leg in a splint but tell you to go home and wait

six weeks before they’ll do surgery.

We need

to ensure that our response is based on sound, evidence-based

treatments, supports and recovery. We are very particular about who

treats broken legs. We should be particular about who treats

addictions.

Part of a

meaningful response is investing in the social determinants of health.

We know that income, housing, social support networks, education,

employment, working conditions, social environments, physical

environments, coping skills and healthy child development all play a

role in preventing addiction.

meaningful response requires a government prepared to invest in the long

game, a government that listens throughout its term, not just after an

election. A government prepared to invest in people needs to be part of

a meaningful response to this crisis.

D. Plecas: Thank you

for the opportunity to respond to this debate.

I’d like

to begin by first thanking the first responders in our province, who, as

we all know, day in and day out have gone above and beyond battling this

opioid crisis. I’d also like to thank all of those stakeholders who’ve

done so much and responded in many ways that have helped make British

Columbia the clear leader in North America in terms of a response to

this crisis.

We’ve

expressed our leadership as a government in a number of ways. B.C. was

the first province in all of Canada to declare this crisis a public

health emergency, leading to the creation of a joint task force on

overdose response. And notably, this last February, we put $15 million

in new funding to do a number of things, including increase access to

opioid substitution therapies, support the establishment of additional

supervised consumption services, increase testing capacity at the

provincial toxicology laboratory and support the Coroners Service

overdose death investigation teams.

Further,

our government remains committed to redoubling our efforts on this issue

with new and increased investments and embracing innovative treatments

to ensure lives will be saved. These new initiatives will help to build

on the strength of our government’s previous efforts, which include

providing opioid substitution therapies and recovery services and

driving renewed efforts on drug education and prevention.

[10:25 a.m.]

As of May

17, nearly 7,300 police and civilian staff have been trained to

administer naloxone. As well, over 259 community organizations have

received overdose response boxes, which has resulted in more than 43,000

no-charge naloxone kits being distributed through the take-home-naloxone

program.

Further

initiatives have included the province providing some $13 million in

funding to health authorities to help ease financial pressures they have

encountered. As of May 17, there have been 23 overdose prevention sites

set up and running to assist, aid, all across this province, from

Vancouver Island, Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and into Prince

George.

Additionally, our government has opened 500 additional substance use

treatment and intervention beds to assist in this crisis. Over 80

percent of the beds were created in partnerships with local non-profits

and community providers like B.C. Housing.

January, we invested $16 million for 60 additional residential treatment

beds, intensive outpatient services and the removal of financial

barriers for opioid treatment medication. We also recognize the need for

community supports to be put in place, which is why, in May, the health

emergency management B.C. established a new mobile response team, made

up of 12 practitioners.

This is

in addition to our government previously announcing $5 million in

funding for B.C. emergency health services to assist our paramedics and

dispatchers through this crisis.

But as we

know, our province can’t fight this crisis ourselves. We require the

assistance and commitments from the federal government in confronting

the crisis.

Previously, we have seen that increased efforts by the Canadian border

security agency have resulted in 47 seizures of fentanyl or carfentanil,

and as a result of the overdose crisis, the police have prioritized more

investigative resources to target traffickers of these deadly illicit

drugs.

Most

importantly, though, we have pledged to appoint a minister of state for

mental health, addictions and recovery. I’m a very strong proponent —

have been forever — of recovery, and I’m proud to be part of a

government that I believe is one of the first in Canadian history to

recognize the importance of recovery in this way. Recovery is possible,

and we need to support those who are ready to confront their

addiction.

There is

more work to do to ensure, in the wake of this crisis, we are ready to

do it.

S. Robinson: I do

appreciate the response that we just heard. But again, we heard lots

about little pieces and not a whole lot about vision. I think this issue

requires a vision that considers all the elements of addiction and the

crisis that we’re currently experiencing.

I know

that many are really curious about what happened to Alex, so I will

share that here in the House. After many phone calls and pleading with

those that I knew who worked on the front lines, Alex was able to get

into detox, but it would be a ten-hour wait. Alex’s mother agreed to

keep him captive in the car and drive around until he could be safely

handed off to these front-line workers.

Later

that week I got a panicked phone call from Alex and his mother, because

it would be several weeks before he could get into a treatment facility

that I had recommended. So where would Alex go in the meantime? An

addiction doctor prescribed him Suboxone to manage the cravings, but he

had no place to live and no support system that would help him stay

focused in the interim.

Again I

made phone calls. I called a few people that I knew in the addictions

field and managed to get him in sooner than the predicted wait. Alex

spent the next ten weeks in treatment. He gained weight and reconnected

with his family and some of his friends from high school. He also came

to believe that he had a future worth fighting for.

Alex was

still taking Suboxone that helped him to feel confident that he could

keep moving forward, and it kept the craving for illicit drugs and the

possibility of dying from a fentanyl overdose at bay.

When it

was time for Alex to move on from treatment, he was hopeful that he

could settle into one of the many recovery houses in the area, a place

where he could focus on his healing, his life and his

recovery.

[10:30 a.m.]

Given how

uncoordinated and fragmented government services are, I suppose I should

not have been surprised to learn that the recovery houses in the area

would not accept Alex because he was taking Suboxone, his

physician-prescribed medication. On the one hand, we have a commitment

to substitution drugs as part of addiction treatment, but when people

are ready to rebuild their lives, we have a mostly unregulated recovery

program that excludes those on substitution treatments.

Alex was

devastated. His mother was devastated. I was devastated. He had no place

to go, no job to speak of, and he was terrified of going back to drug

use. His mom eventually agreed to provide him with a place to live. I

would love to tell you that the story has a happy ending. Alex had a

relapse several months ago. It has been painful for all of us to

witness. While Alex takes responsibility for the choices he makes, we

have to take responsibility for not being there for Alex when he needed

us.

It’s time

for a meaningful response to this fentanyl crisis. It’s time for a

government that listens to British Columbians from all walks of life,

not just those at the top. It’s time that we work to create a

coordinated, responsive addiction treatment system so that the Alexes in

our communities can be all they can be — productive citizens, good

employees, loving children, caring siblings and good

neighbours.

B.C. FILM’S CONTRIBUTIONS

TO THE

PROVINCE

J. Thornthwaite: I’d like

to talk about something that this House hasn’t heard for a while —

film.

My riding

of North Vancouver–Seymour is renowned for its remarkable beauty. The

mountains provide a backdrop against the ocean that is simply

breathtaking and, in fact, is the stuff that movies are made of. It’s

not surprising why the film and television industry started in North

Vancouver and is now a provincewide phenomenon. In fact, British

Columbia is one of the top centres for screen production excellence in

North America.

With a

long history of producing award-winning feature films, television

series, documentaries and commercials, B.C. has become an

internationally recognized hub that offers full-service production

thanks to experienced, creative and talented staff, extensive production

infrastructure and award-winning expertise in digital animation, visual

effects and post-production.

There are

a number of factors that contribute to our success. First of all are the

stunning locations that British Columbia has to offer. There are outdoor

locations ranging from alpine heights along the coast to the Okanagan

desert. We have stunning architecture and unique heritage locations that

have been featured in films all around the globe. We

also are a quick 2½ hour flight away from studios in Los Angeles, which

makes us an ideal location for U.S.-based studios, independent

production companies and networks to do business with their northern

neighbours, who just happen to be in the same time zone.

We also

have a competitive tax rate that is designed to promote both domestic

productions and attract foreign ones too. The basic production services

tax credit rate is set at 28 percent. In addition, the digital animation

or visual effects, DAVE, tax credit is also highly competitive at 16

percent.

The one

thing that gives British Columbia our edge is our people. The

extraordinary talent that drives the industry in our province is being

put out by our own homegrown institutions like Capilano University in

North Vancouver and other post-secondary institutions located throughout

British Columbia.

Students

are attracted to the industry because they can indulge their creativity

and hone their skills at B.C.-based educational institutes like Cap U.

Who wouldn’t be attracted to the creative sector? It contributes over $4

billion to the province’s gross domestic product every year and employs

thousands in film, television, post-production, interactive digital

media, as well as the traditional magazine and book industry.

Let’s

look at the motion picture Deadpool , for example. It spent

approximately $40 million of its budget in British Columbia and employed

2,000 local cast and crew during two months of shooting. Those workers

brought home total wages of $19 million or a weekly average of almost

$2,000 per week.

[10:35 a.m.]

The

production also gave a boost to workers outside the film industry. The

Motion Picture Association estimates that $1 million was spent on

location costs; $815,000 on hotels, catering and restaurants; $735,000

on construction; and $780,000 on transportation and car rentals. You may

have recalled…. In a statement I made before the House rose in the last

session, I commented on the benefits to logging companies in the

Interior because the wood is used for construction in B.C.’s films

across the province. In the end, Deadpool became a smash hit,

and now the production of Deadpool 2 is already filming once

again in British Columbia.

There is

another reason why the film industry keeps coming back to British

Columbia. In the past five years, B.C. has grown to become one of the

world’s largest centres for visual effects and digital animation, with

over 60 domestic and foreign-owned visual effects and animation studios.

This means B.C.’s motion picture industry can service over 45

productions at once and accommodate all sizes and types of productions.

We also have a well-established post-production industry with robust

talent that includes award-winning colourists, editors, engineers, sound

mixers, composers and musicians.

Overall,

B.C. has become an internationally recognized hub that offers

full-service production thanks to experienced, creative and technical

talent, extensive production infrastructure and award-winning expertise

in digital animation, visual effects and post-production. Thanks to the

first generation of television and film-makers who started out with

humble beginnings, we now have an even more sophisticated second

generation that is leading the way. According to Creative B.C., the

number of motion pictures has grown from just four productions in 1978

to more than 260 in 2016. After all, it is our people power that is the

main driving force behind television and film in British

Columbia.

I look

forward to the comments from the members opposite.

S. Chandra Herbert: Thank you

to my colleague for raising the topic, a favourite topic of mine as well

— the film, TV, entertainment and creative industries of British

Columbia.

Members

may be interested to know that I once appeared on film opposite Brad

Pitt. Well, actually, he was in front of me. I stood in the back. I

think I was 12 years old at the time. A very nice man. We had a good

conversation. The candy apples were tasty as well. That was for a movie

called Legends of the Fall . No, Members, it wasn’t a movie

about the current government. It was about a time in American history

which…. Anyway, rent the film. You can see me in it for about five

seconds.

B.C. film

has been a success decades in the making. And the member is right. It is

in large part because of the people, and it’s in large part because of

entrepreneurial spirit matched up with government intervention, as well,

to take what was at the start a fledgling little industry…. Then, when

you added on the tax credits and support for studios, construction and

so forth, it has managed to grow to be one of B.C.’s biggest

industries.

I want to

say thank you to the people who advocated for it then and who are

continuing to advocate for our film and TV industry. It provides so many

great jobs, so many great stories and such delight in so many

communities.

Who are

those people? Well, they are many, but I would start just by saying the

individual entrepreneurs who had the dream of starting studios, of

starting their own little companies, and who started talking to others

and took some risks and the governments of the day, both Social Credit

and New Democrat, who decided that film tax credits were important and

should be brought in and, thankfully, were continued by the current

government.

The

Council of Film Unions. When I travelled to Hollywood to meet with some

of our biggest customers at Fox, at Paramount and a couple of the other

industries, one thing they said to me is: “We like your tax credits

because, of course, that helps us take our dollar a little bit further.

We also like the fact that we can work with the Council of Film Unions”

— that’s all the unions that work in the film industry —

“to find a way to get to labour peace and to ensure that we get

good-paying jobs for the members and the films get shot on time and on

budget.”

It’s not

just the unions. It’s also the Motion Picture Production Industry

Association, the Canadian Media Production Association. I’m sure there

are many others, whether it’s smaller groups like Women in Film and

others that have had really important roles in growing the industry over

time — also, of course, our educational institutes like Vancouver Film

Studios, Capilano, Emily Carr, SFU. The list goes on.

It’s an

industry so many want to get into. I had a small little glimmer of being

involved. Instead, politics became a calling. As they say, politics is

sometimes like Hollywood for ugly people, so I guess I did okay here.

Sorry. My present company excluded. You’re all very handsome and

beautiful.

Now we

have an exciting opportunity to grow the industry further. Something we

need to do is not rest on our laurels, not just accept that we are where

we are. We’ve got to look forward.

[10:40 a.m.]

What’s

the forward thinking? Well, one group that is not included in our

current labour tax credit is writers — writers who write the films, who

write the TV shows, who write the pilots. They’re not included, even

though they are labouring very hard as well. I think they should

be.

When

we’re looking at a value-added industry, you want to make sure that the

labour in writing is also included, because should the film get picked

up, should the TV show get picked up, it continues on. You gain your

royalties, and many companies then take those royalties and reinvest

them in their companies to produce more work, and that becomes ongoing

capital for them.

Right now

writers are excluded, so many times writers are imported from other

parts of Canada and, in fact, many times from Los Angeles. I want our

B.C. writers to be valued just as well as our technicians, as our

gaffers, and so on, because we will be able to grow the industry even

further if we’re able to keep more of that money at home and add that

value.

We also

need to look at Creative B.C. Its budget is right now lower than it was

when it was B.C. Film, and that was over 15 years ago. So the money

that’s there to help jump-start small, domestic Canadian productions

just is not there in the way that it used to be.

It’s

important that we start that jump-starting process, because Ontario is

and Quebec is, and most of the federal dollars end up staying in Ontario

and Quebec and not finding their way out to B.C. We send them there

through our tax payments, but they don’t come back into our film

industry in the way they need to, because most of the major Canadian

producers are out east.

We need

to be stronger advocates for our own domestic industry to grow its size

so that in the boom-and-bust world of high Canadian dollars and shifting

productions, we never have to face that risk of potentially losing a big

chunk of our industry should the dollar rise because we’ll also have a

large domestic industry. It’s an incredible industry. I’m very glad to

be able to speak strongly in support of it on behalf of the New

Democrats, and thank you for the opportunity.

J. Thornthwaite: Thank you

to the member for Vancouver–West End. I’d like also to give a plug, to

myself and the Minister of Finance, because we made a cameo presentation

in a film that was filmed a couple years ago called Stranger in the

House , filmed right here in Victoria. It was produced and

directed by our homegrown producer and director Allan and Cynde Harmon,

and you can check that out at any time.

Anyway,

as I mentioned earlier, it is the strength of our brain power that

drives our industry, but in order to succeed, we need the necessary

infrastructure. I am referring to the 60 domestic and foreign-owned

visual effects and animation studios located throughout the

province.

For

example, just this spring, a state-of-the-art film studio opened in

Langley. Martini Film Studios is a 150,000-square-foot facility with

eight stages and full backlot services. This new studio is following a

trend for facilities to locate themselves beyond the traditional hub of

Vancouver.

But this

is not just to say that other production companies, like Ironwood

Studios, aren’t investing in Vancouver. Ironwood boasts 177,000 square

feet of space, seven stages, two workshops, plus plenty of room for

storage in its facilities that opened last year. In addition to the

studio space, Ironwood has also built a green screen facility and

outfitted its building with a 10-gigabyte fibre optic network to

instantly connect VFX crews, camera crews and art departments with

remote offices.

addition, the visual effects house Sony Pictures Imageworks moved its

headquarters from California to an expanded 74,000-square-foot facility

at Pacific Centre in downtown Vancouver in 2016.

These

facilities come in addition to the children’s and family entertainment

producer DHX Media. This company has built a 75,000-square-foot

animation studio on 5th Avenue and Yukon Street to work on TV shows,

including Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, based on the film

Slugterra , and Supernoobs. According to DHX

studio’s chief content officer, Ace Fipke: “We’re really putting roots

down here because we feel that this is where the talent is.”

All of

those factors — low dollar, tax credits, talent, our people, our workers

— make B.C. one of the most desirable places to produce video games,

special effects and animation. With endorsements like that, we can be

very proud of the film and television industry here in British Columbia

and look forward to it thriving for years to come.

[10:45 a.m.]

GETTING PEOPLE MOVING AGAIN

G. Heyman: I can

think of literally dozens of ways in which B.C. needs to get moving

again. We on this side of the House are eager to do that. British

Columbians are eager to see a government that does that. But I am going

to restrict my remarks this morning to the issues of transportation,

public transit, relieving congestion, making British Columbians’ quality

of life better and, most importantly, taking the measures necessary to

stimulate our economy by relieving congestion.

couldn’t knock on a door in my constituency in the recent campaign

without somebody asking me: “When are we going to deal with congestion

on the Broadway corridor?” My colleagues talk about the congestion that

people feel south of the Fraser.

Throughout British Columbia, whether it’s in the capital regional

district or whether it’s in the Interior, people feel the impacts of a

growing population. Proper planning requires looking ahead, seeing what

the growth trends will be and building the infrastructure necessary to

address that. It’s not just because people have better things to do than

idle in traffic, reducing their productivity, being separated from their

families when they could be home, spewing greenhouse gas emissions for

no reasonable purpose, but for the economy.

One only

had to listen to the chief economist of the Business Council of British

Columbia appearing before the Standing Committee on Finance and

Government Services a couple of years ago. When asked directly what he

thought the cost of congestion was to the economy of British Columbia,

he said: “I don’t know, but it’s at least $1 billion a year.” Estimates

have run as high as $1.2 billion or $1.3 billion a year because the

Lower Mainland and Metro Vancouver is the hub — and, in this case, the

bottleneck — through which goods destined for ports, destined for

export, service vehicles must travel. When they’re crawling instead of

moving efficiently — because everybody, due to a lack of adequate

transit, is stuck in their cars — it costs all of us money.

It costs

the province’s economy money, it costs businesses money, it costs jobs,

and it hurts our reputation. It’s $1.1 billion to $1.2 billion a year.

In my view and in the view of my colleagues, that should be a priority.

In the view of the mayors of Metro Vancouver, it has been a priority.

They have worked very, very hard to design a long-range transportation

plan for the region, working with TransLink, settling priorities between

competing interests in municipalities around the region and putting

together a workable plan.

It’s

important, when thinking of implementing a plan, to know where the

funding is going to come from, and that’s why the mayors put forward

numerous suggestions on funding. Seven years ago there was some hope

that the funding issues could be resolved. There were Transportation

ministers who looked to work with the mayors, and a memorandum of

understanding was signed by the government with regional mayors that

promised — promised, hon. Speaker — to look at collaborative,

cooperative ways of coming up with the funding needed to increase public

transit in the region, to increase the maintenance of roads in the

region, to increase handyDART service, bus service, to replace the

Pattullo Bridge — to do the myriad of things that are needed to keep

Metro Vancouver moving again.

Following

the signing of that memorandum, suggestion after suggestion, proposal

after proposal from the mayors was simply rejected. Even when former

Transportation Minister Blair Lekstrom reached an agreement with the

mayors, the Premier tried to scuttle the agreement.

It was

only after a massive pushback from outside her government, from the

region’s mayors, as well as inside the government, that she backtracked

and we ended up with an agreement for the Evergreen Line.

[10:50 a.m.]

It’s not

good enough to play politics with something as important as moving

people, moving goods and making the region livable — not just Metro

Vancouver but regions around the province. There are transit needs in

every corner of the province. We have seen after years and years and

years, finally, a B.C. Transit bus on the Highway of Tears — not just to

deal with transportation but to deal with the very real threat, the

threat that resulted in disappearances and deaths of many

women.

On this

side of the House, we look forward to working with the mayors. We have

committed — for many, many months now — to fund a full 40 percent of the

capital cost of the entire mayors’ ten-year transit plan. Further, we

have committed to work with mayors on Vancouver Island and in Victoria

to increase transit in this area, as well as to increase transit in

every corner of British Columbia.

That’s

what it will take to get B.C. moving again. It won’t take political

posturing. It won’t take confrontation. It won’t take ill-advised

referenda that at one day are a point of principle and another day are

expendable.

It will

take goodwill. Without that goodwill, we will continue to open our

newspapers and turn on our television news and find that the federal

government has struck deals — like the one they recently struck with

Montreal for $1.2 billion in funding — and wonder if the available

capital from the federal government will dwindle before we have cemented

our proposals, moved forward with reducing and relieving congestion,

created harmony with elected government officials in municipalities

around the province and gotten B.C. moving again.

M. Hunt: An

ongoing goal of this government is the commitment to and a strong record

of achievement in its transit systems. In B.C., we’re already moving,

and we’re ready to do more. That’s why we’re speeding up the timeline for replacing the Pattullo Bridge, for

example.

Before I

go into future projects, I just want to remind the House of all the

accomplishments this government has made to keep B.C. on the move. It

was this government that built the Canada Line, nearly 20 kilometres of

rapid transit connecting downtown Vancouver to YVR and Richmond Centre,

after 30 years of talk and study, including the ten years of the members

opposite being in government. This gateway to the world continues to

provide reliable transportation to Vancouver’s world-renowned airport

while reducing gridlock.

Not to be

forgotten, as was mentioned, it was this government that completed the

Evergreen Line, extending the Millennium Line all the way into

Coquitlam, which, in fact, was the completion of the original plan of

Premier Bill Bennett and Metro Vancouver in their transportation plan.

So finally, we now have that SkyTrain there that was planned from 1985.

I don’t want to brag about ridership too much, but the Evergreen use is

actually triple that which the old 97 B-line had each week. Now 250,000

people travel between Coquitlam, Port Moody, Burnaby, New Westminster

and downtown Vancouver.

Moving

beyond completed projects, our government is committed to keeping B.C.

moving by funding our share of the mayors’ plan. The announcement has

been made about the $2.2 billion. We will match the federal government’s

$2.2 billion, and our government will make sure that the Broadway subway

and the Surrey LRT will be built — further connecting British Columbians

with easy access to the whole of the Lower Mainland.

doesn’t stop there. Our government is looking to the future. We’re

planning a multitude of feasibility studies. We’re looking to connect

communities across B.C. even more, by studying the possibilities of

rapid transit to the North Shore, a possible SkyTrain to Tsawwassen,

even the continued extension of the Evergreen Line to Maple Ridge. These

are just some of the possibilities that our government is committed to

and looking at.

The

future is now. Our government is prepared to make the tough decisions to

provide further options to keep B.C. moving.

Outside

the Lower Mainland, we’re also committed to pursuing light rail on

Vancouver Island here — again, a project that’s been talked about for a

long time. Let’s get it done.

We know

that no one wants to stay stuck in traffic, and that’s why we’re

implementing the ten-year plan of B.C. on the Move. In fact, those from

up-Island, as they come down, are going through the upgrading of the

McKenzie intersection, which will help to eliminate what is currently

B.C.’s worst bottleneck. We’re working on phase 4 of the Highway 1

Kicking Horse Canyon upgrade. We’re also working on four-laning the

Cariboo connector, enabling easy access to the north.

[10:55 a.m.]

Wherever

British Columbians need to go in British Columbia, we’re making

improvements. To those on the coast, we’re committed to making it easier

to cross the water. We’re pursuing a foot-passenger ferry connecting

Nanaimo to Vancouver and cutting that travel time substantially. We’re

even looking at making ferry fares more affordable for those who live in

ferry-dependent communities.

For those

who drive cars, we have electric car subsidies. Up to $12,000 in

incentives are available for those who want to drive electric vehicles.

Now, people like me are a little concerned about the distance that

electric vehicles can go, so we bought hybrids instead. But we’re

working on that. We’ve committed $50 million to upgrading the electric

vehicle–charging infrastructure throughout the province of B.C. so that

drivers don’t need to worry about how far they can go between

charges.

This

isn’t a plan of a government that’s out of time, out of ideas, as our

members opposite would say. Our government is working hard to keep

British Columbians moving, and we plan to do even more to further grow

our economy and reduce the gridlock.

G. Heyman: I suppose

I should commend the member for Surrey-Cloverdale for looking to the

future instead of being stuck in the past. I guess I would just say that

there’s nothing like standing on the abyss of years in opposition to

make one look to the future.

Many,

many….

Interjection.

G. Heyman: Well,

I’ve got a good example across the aisle.

It has

been instructive in the last couple of days to see many, many ideas that

members of the opposition, mayors and citizens in British Columbia have

insisted are necessary for our growth — to build a better community and

build our economy — to all of a sudden be discovered, to all of a sudden

be a priority.

It’s

important that the people of British Columbia can have faith — faith in

consistency, faith that expressions of projects and ways to move forward

on transit transportation and many other measures important to British

Columbians can be believed — and that they can have trust that there is

sincerity, analysis, history and commitment in these

statements.

mentioned in my earlier remarks that in 2010, the government had signed

a memorandum of understanding with the mayors to move ahead. But the sad

history of the failure to move transit ahead in British Columbia is that

over the last number of years, we have seen the ridership begin to go

down. We have seen service levels flatten and decline. In fact, experts

at TransLink say that without a commitment, without the funding that’s

needed to build the Broadway subway, build light rail south of the

Fraser, add more buses, add more B-lines, add to SeaBus

service and build infrastructure, service levels on a per-capita basis

will fall back to 2004 levels by 2020.

That’s

not acceptable. That’s dangerous to the economy. It’s dangerous to the

quality of life. That’s why we need to do more than talk about it. We’ve

needed to do more than talk about it for many years now. We need to make

it a priority.

We need

to make it a priority to work with the mayors of Metro Vancouver to find

funding mechanisms. We need to make it a priority to work with

municipalities throughout British Columbia to create more transit and

more ways to move people in the most efficient way possible while

reducing greenhouse gas emissions. That’s the commitment that we on this

side of the House have, and we look forward to the opportunity to bring

it to fruition.

Deputy Speaker: Recognizing the member for Vancouver-Langara, pursuant to the motion

from last week.

Private Members’ Motions

MOTION 1 — 150 th ANNIVERSARY

CANADA

M. Lee: I rise

today to move a motion.

[Be it resolved that this House join with British Columbians in

celebrating the upcoming 150th birthday of our great country —

Canada.]

With

continued turmoil around the world, now more than ever it’s an important

time to reflect on and commemorate the history of our nation.

[11:00 a.m.]

Together,

we gather on the traditional territories of Lekwungen peoples, the

Esquimalt and Songhees Nations. As Canadians, while we celebrate 150

years since Confederation, it’s important that we recognize that the

history of this land and indigenous peoples’ relationship with this land

extends far beyond 150 years, to time immemorial, and also that we

respectfully acknowledge their history, culture and traditions, apart

from non-indigenous Canadians.

We came

to this land as immigrants from all over the world, and our diversity

and vibrant multicultural framework is part of what makes Canada so

strong. Whether we immigrated to Canada ourselves, or whether it was our

parents, grandparents or other family members before them, we all have

an immigrant story. Many of these stories start from humble beginnings

and a search for better opportunities.

[R. Chouhan in the chair.]

My father

came here in 1953 to study at UBC in his early 20s. He stayed in

Chinatown, and a local Catholic church helped him to find his first

accommodations. The church also helped him find his first job, working

as a janitor at St. Paul’s Hospital. My mother came in 1962 from Hong

Kong. She worked first as a nurse at VGH, Vancouver General Hospital,

and then went into public health nursing. She also helped my father on

evenings and weekends in his drugstores. Many of our families have made

similar sacrifices, working hard to build a better future for us and

instilling in us a strong work ethic.

Yet with

our different pasts and family histories as Canadians, we share many

similarities, like ingenuity and determination — two traits that help

define what it means to be Canadian. To overcome the obstacles and

barriers across this great nation, by necessity, good doses of ingenuity

and determination have been required. With inventions ranging from the

telephone, the lightbulb, insulin and the cardiac pacemaker to worldwide

standard time, AM radio, basketball and the snowmobile, we are very

proud of the inquisitive and innovative nature of Canadians, which

continues to make positive and global impacts.

Canadians, we also share a commitment to volunteerism and civic

engagement. Whether at home or abroad, we are known for our compassion

and our willingness to lend a hand. Across this province, in each of our

constituencies, we recognize the collective spirit and shared

responsibility of British Columbians to help each other and to take care

of others. Canadians are true community builders.

Back in

my university days, I had the good fortune to be selected to a national

youth advisory committee and spent a year travelling around Canada. This

experience helped shape my understanding and my view of our country.

With a wide variety of events planned throughout our province and across

this nation, I hope Canada’s 150th anniversary will provide young

Canadians with similar opportunities to discuss, experience and explore

what it means to be Canadian. We can see many examples of what it means

to be Canadian by simply looking around us.

Indeed,

in my riding of Vancouver-Langara, which is a diverse and vibrant

community, there are many engaged community-minded residents, like my

constituent Richard Wong, who grew up in Prince Rupert and who is

leading a local and national effort of coast-to-coast drumming across

eight cities in celebration of Canada’s 150th anniversary. Incorporating

indigenous, Chinese, South Asian, South American, Korean and other

drumming traditions, this event will bring Canadians across the country

together for a shared goal. I will be at the Vancouver site of this

event on Canada Day, where there will also be an effort to set a

Guinness World Record for the most nationalities in a drum

circle.

I’m also

looking forward to celebrating Canada’s 150th anniversary at the Sunset

Community Centre in Vancouver-Langara, which will bring together

Canadians of Chinese, South Asian and Filipino descent, to name a few, for food, fun games, community booths and

performances. Events like these bring our communities together to

include new Canadians in a more integrated way. It’s this diversity, as

represented and integrated in this House, that makes our province and

our country so strong, with the different perspectives needed to meet

the challenges and the opportunities of a dynamic and ever-changing

world.

With

that, I invite my colleagues in this House to join me in recognizing

this important milestone with a view to our collective future as a

nation. Happy 150th birthday, Canada.

D. Donaldson: I thank

the member for Vancouver-Langara for introducing his private member’s

motion: “Be it resolved that this House join with British Columbians in

celebrating the upcoming 150th birthday of our great country —

Canada.”

[11:05 a.m.]

We only

each have about five minutes to address this motion, and it’s a big

topic — this celebration of Canada’s 150th anniversary.

I’ll

begin with the fact that the southern part of Stikine is about 1,000

kilometres north of Victoria and 4,000 kilometres from Ottawa. So it’s

understandable that many in Stikine can feel they are on the fringes of

Canada and B.C. — sometimes just an afterthought when decisions are

being made.

It would

be a mistake to conclude that those in Stikine don’t share many of the

values that we wish to define ourselves as Canadians: fairness; justice;

the belief that money should not be able to buy influence; and the

belief that our government should work for all the people, not just an

elite few.

Canada is

a young country, and B.C. is even younger. We have much to be thankful

for. Freedom of association. Freedom of religion. Freedom of expression.

Freedom not to be discriminated against based on race, spiritual beliefs

or sexual orientation.

On this

150th anniversary, we have much to answer for as a nation and as a

province in our relationship with aboriginal people. Two areas are top

of mind when I reflect on Stikine: the topic of aboriginal title and the

treatment of aboriginal children.

We all

know that the land in Stikine was occupied and used by First Nations for

generations before non-aboriginals arrived. It was never ceded to the

Crown in formal agreements, like treaties. The land that generated the

wealth that has built Canadian and B.C. society and institutions was

never given up by most B.C. First Nations. That wealth was never and is

still not shared in a manner that recognizes it came from unceded

lands.

Stikine, we all live on the unceded lands of the Tlingit, Kaska,

Tahltan, Gitanyow, Gitxsan and Wet’suwet’en. How the federal and

provincial governments address unresolved land title and the injustices

it has created has huge implications on how we view ourselves as

B.C.’ers and Canadians.

In the

instance of the Tsilhqot’in court case, the current provincial

government spent millions of dollars arguing against aboriginal title,

taking the case all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, where they

lost. The MLA team I belong to endorses the Tsilhqot’in decision on

aboriginal title and the principles of the UN declaration on the rights

of indigenous peoples. This is an approach that will lead to more

certainty regarding unceded territories, and therefore, greater benefits

for all living on those lands and for all Canadians.

The

health of aboriginal children is linked to those lands. Just last year,

Cindy Blackstock, from the Gitxsan Nation, won a nine-year battle in

front of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal, which found that Canada

discriminates against children on reserves by not providing the same

level of funding compared to what provinces provide to kids living off

reserve. “Less funding for family support translates into more children

ending up in the child welfare system,” the tribunal stated.

For her

advocacy, Ms. Blackstock — a respected researcher and academic — was

harassed to such a degree by the Canadian government during the process

that she was awarded a cash settlement by the tribunal, acknowledging

the wilful and reckless conduct of the federal ministry of aboriginal

affairs staff.

Again, I

am very happy to be an MLA, part of a team, that accepts and will act on

all 94 calls to action in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s

final report. The calls to action are one way to address the legacy of

residential schools and most are focused on supporting children and

families.

Canada is

150 years old. We should use the occasion to reflect on the injustices

encountered by First Nations, Métis and Inuit in their dealings with

Canada and B.C. during the last 150 years — injustices that continue

today.

Given

that, we should celebrate that what is great about Canada and B.C. is

the fact that we still have First Nations who are willing to move

forward with us, together, to build a better place. For that, I am

grateful.

Let’s

make ourselves proud that Canada 150 became the time that we understood

the past, acknowledged the present and acted together on a better

future.

J. Tegart: It’s my

pleasure to rise in this House on behalf of my constituents in

Fraser-Nicola and respond to the motion. I, too, would like to recognize

the Esquimalt and Songhees Nations, on whose traditional territories we

conduct our business today.

[11:10 a.m.]

As we

look towards Canada 150, and with the 21st National Aboriginal Day —

soon to be National Indigenous Peoples Day — having just passed, it’s

important to note that indigenous peoples’ history with this place and

this land spans far further than 150 years. It’s

important to acknowledge the contributions of First Nations, Inuit and

Métis peoples and to continue working together, nation to nation, as we

move forward.

With more

than 25 First Nations bands in my riding, Fraser-Nicola residents are

fortunate to be surrounded by rich culture, history, language and

traditions. The diversity that we see throughout our communities is part

of what makes British Columbia and Canada such unique places to travel,

live, work and play. This anniversary is an important time to celebrate

what makes us different and unique, as well as the similarities that we

all share.

Canadians, we share a number of values like resilience, respect for

diversity, compassion for others. These values are part of what helps

unite us and make us stronger.

Events

planned throughout this month and next reflect both that unity and that

diversity. With events taking place across the nation, Canada’s 150th

anniversary gives Canadians in all corners of our country the chance to

come together in celebration. As for me, I look forward to celebrating

this special occasion with constituents throughout the Fraser-Nicola

region in a variety of gatherings.

On June

30, I look forward to joining the Winding Rivers Arts and Performance

Society for a theatrical presentation that condenses Canada’s history

into a fun and enlightening hour. No small feat. And I’m anticipating a

busy day on July 1, as I start the day with celebrations in Hope, with

opening ceremonies, kids’ games and activities, a classic car show, cake

cutting and live music. Hope residents have a lot to look forward

to.

I’ll have

the pleasure of spending the second part of the day in Merritt. I’ll

miss the pancake breakfast and some of the other fun activities planned,

but I look forward to the singing of our national anthem and taking

part

in the ceremonies part of the day.

With such

a widespread and diverse constituency, I’m fortunate to be able to take

part in Canada 150 celebrations in a number of ways. Most of all, I

appreciate the opportunity to meet and connect with residents as I

travel around my beautiful region.

With

longer days, warmer weather and easier travel, this is a key priority

for me every summer and a highlight of each year. And whether on the

July 1st weekend or at another time in the coming weeks, I always value

the time spent with people from my constituency, meeting with them face

to face.

conclusion, I’d like to thank my colleague from Vancouver-Langara for

raising this motion. I hope the Canada 150th anniversary gives us a

chance to come together as individual communities and as a nation as a

whole to reflect on our shared history and values. I look forward to

celebrating this time with my constituents throughout

Fraser-Nicola.

M. Elmore: I’m very

pleased to rise and speak to the motion moved from the member for

Vancouver-Langara: “Be it resolved that this House join with British

Columbians in celebrating the upcoming 150th birthday of our great

country — Canada.”

We are

celebrating 150 years, the birthday, on July 1, but technically, Canada

Day was not designated until 1982. It was originally called Dominion

Day, and 1982 was the year that the Canada Act was passed. We saw the

patriation of the Constitution Act. That’s when Canada Day was

officially recognized, and we had full Canadian sovereignty.

Canada,

of course, has a history of nearly 500 years of European colonization.

But prior to European colonization, as mentioned and referenced by my

colleagues here, we’ve had…. These lands were occupied by indigenous

peoples, indeed, for thousands of years.

[11:15 a.m.]

And so

Canada, as we know it, is relatively young. Also, European colonization

is relatively young in the scheme of things.

And why

we celebrate…. Of course, a lot to celebrate on July 1, great

achievements that we have here in Canada. We also have much more to

recognize in terms of the impact to indigenous peoples.

I want to

talk a little bit about some of the events that I’m looking forward to,

to join and celebrate. Every year a great celebration in

Vancouver-Kensington. We have the ANAVETS Multicultural Day street party

as well as the Kensington Community Centre celebrations for Canada Day.

I’ll also be joining activities at Sunset Community Centre. I know there

are celebrations right across the province and around the

country.

It’s a

great celebration attended by thousands of folks from the community —

kids and families — with events, live music, performances, photo booths,

carnival games, barbecue, cake cutting and so much more. It’s just a

real celebration, a coming together of community and a really fun time.

It means a lot to everybody who’s there, who celebrates.

But I

also reflect on our history. Indeed, the history of our country and our

province is built on a racist legacy and past of our lands that have

been colonized by Europeans. Indigenous peoples originally took the

brunt of that. And it’s important, while we celebrate, to also very

seriously take stock of our racist past here in B.C., impacting, in

particular, our indigenous peoples and also immigrants of colour. We’ve

had the redress and recognition of past wrongs committed against

different groups, Chinese Canadians and others. But there’s still more

to be done.

I’m very

proud, with the members in my party, to have made a commitment to

adopting the United Nations declaration on the rights of indigenous

peoples, as well as making the commitment to implement the spirit of the

Truth and Reconciliation Commission. These are important

commitments.

When we

talk about the vision going forward…. We’re going to celebrate. We’re

going to mark our great achievements as a country. But also our vision

for our province and our country has to be to go forward and really

champion — to be known as a champion of human rights — and to really

stand up for justice to ensure that our province and our country have

opportunities for all peoples; that we really take seriously the

commitment to recognizing the genuine rights and titles of our

indigenous people and to ensure that we take steps to eliminate the

impacts of systemic racism so that we can be proud that we are a

province and a country that is vibrant, inclusive and is a Canada where

all peoples can achieve their full potential and shared

prosperity.

I want to

close by welcoming everybody here in the House. A great 150th

celebration for Canada Day. I know we’ll all be out celebrating in our

communities. It’s a commitment to really taking forward the spirit of

reconciliation and the spirit of justice and really being a leading

voice to ensure that all peoples can celebrate our great country

equally.

L. Throness: It’s a

privilege to stand this morning and celebrate by talking about Canada’s

150th birthday. The best country in the world.

I was

thinking: “How can I describe Canada?” There are several ways. I want to

talk first about Canada as a young country by talking about my grandpa.

My grandfather’s name was Bjarne He was born in Norway. He came to

Canada in 1911.

I knew

grandpa for many years as a young man. I remember him very well. He

passed away in 1975. But he was born in 1891, when Canada was just 24

years old. My great-grandpa, Bjarne’s dad, was born in Norway in 1856,

11 years before Canada became a country. That’s only two lifetimes away.

That’s not very long ago. As a lad, I could touch someone who was born

near Confederation. It underscores the fact that our country is

young.

Canada is

big and empty. When I was a young man I worked on the rigs in Canada’s

north. We would fly in and out of Edmonton, bouncing around on a little

plane hour after hour, over vast stretches of boreal forest. Canada is a

big country.

[11:20 a.m.]

A few

years ago I was up in Nunavut for its tenth anniversary celebration —

talking about a young country. It boasts a population of 30,000 people,

yet it covers one-fifth of Canada’s territory. There are just 22

kilometres of road in Nunavut. Canada is really big.

Canada is

rapidly changing. When I grew up in Fort St. John, in the ’60s, Canada

was pretty well ethnically uniform. I think I saw my first

African-American person, in person, when I was about 13 years old. Today

half of Vancouver and half of Toronto were born outside Canada. Rural

Canada is still depopulating and the cities are dominating the cultural

and financial and political life of our country. That’s a lot of change

in one short lifetime.

I think

of Canada as free. It’s a place where people can come from all over the

world and leave behind the old bondages that they experienced. They can

leave oppressive governments and police forces behind. They can leave

behind worries about their next meal or the perils of disorder and war,

of deep racial divisions, ethnic strife, gender unfairness, harmful

cultural pathologies and lack of government services. Instead, they can

look forward, through hard work, to achieving the prosperity that

millions of other Canadians experience and enjoy every day. Our country

is remarkable for its freedoms. I don’t think there’s been a freer

nation anywhere at any time in history.

I think

of Canada as a country with many virtues. People are polite here, almost

to a fault. Just about everybody works hard and pays their taxes and

obeys the law without being told that we have to.

We might

be a bit standoffish, but we have shown our generosity to other nations

experiencing disaster. We’ve proved our courage in war. We don’t wear

our patriotism on our sleeve, but the love of our country runs deep.

Wherever I go in the world, I am always quick and proud to say that I’m

a Canadian.

This

Canada Day, as we celebrate this milestone in our history, I’ll be

thinking of the past, remembering the strong shoulders on which we

stand. I think again of my grandpa, who came as a teenager to

Canada.

He left

behind all of his family and only returned to his home country a few

times to visit. That’s a big sacrifice. He worked in Edmonton for the

winter, and every spring he took the train to Edson and walked the Edson

Trail for two weeks to Grande Prairie, where his homestead was. As he

once told me, on the Edson Trail he had to wipe his forehead constantly

to keep off the clouds of mosquitos that attacked him along the way.

He’d work the land in the spring and, after harvest, walk out again.

Grandpa carved a prosperous farm out of Grande Prairie gumbo. He raised

a family of seven successful children there, and in so doing, he also

built Canada.

The

example of my grandpa, a great Canadian, reminds me that I, too, need to

do my little

part in my little corner of this enormous land to continue

building Canada, just like millions of other Canadians have done — to

guard its freedoms, to manage change well, to be a generous person of

courage and honesty and friendship, to honour those who have worked so

hard to make our country great.

To all my

constituents, I hope you savour deeply on this day the bounty and beauty

of the Fraser Valley, which has got to be the best place in the best

province in the best country in the world. Happy Canada Day. May God

bless you, and may God bless our wonderful, great country,

Canada.

H. Bains: First of

all, it is an honour and a privilege to be elected by the good people of

Surrey-Newton and to be in this House to speak on this

occasion, the 150th birthday of this great nation.

Canada,

by itself, is a vast land base, surrounded by its boundaries. Within

those boundaries, we have boundless beauty, natural beauty that we come

to enjoy every day. It is a story — 150 years of what the people of

Canada have developed Canada into. The natural beauty is its natural

beauty, but the real beauty Canada enjoys is its people, people who came

from all over the world and made this country their home.

During

this process, the struggles and sacrifices we asked many people who were

here before us to make…. Our First Nations were forced and asked to pay

the price for us to come and settle. We cannot forget the residential

schools and lost generations as a result of that.

[11:25 a.m.]

Our

newcomers — Chinese, Indians, Japanese, Jews and blacks — who faced

discriminatory immigration policies, struggled through to make Canada

more equal, more inclusive, more passionate. It was a struggle between

those who wanted to keep Canada with a unique culture, race,

characteristics and identity versus those with a vision and desire to

develop Canada as equal, diverse, inclusive, passionate and welcoming,

with social and economic justice for all. Thank God the latter, the

progressive forces, won. Thanks to their foresight, Canada is the best

country in the world today to live, raise our families and

work.

It is

also a story of working people — working people who struggled to

maintain and develop health and safety at workplaces and fair working

conditions — and the many sacrifices that working people made. I want to

thank our trade union movement for participating and building Canada as

an equal Canada, a just Canada. As a result, we must remember and thank

those — people like Louis Riel, Ginger Goodwin — who made sacrifices so

that we can enjoy the Canada that we have today.

I say

these things on such a happy occasion. As they say, those who forget

their past are doomed to repeat it. Also, we must expose ourselves to

who we are so that we can determine what we want to become. We have a

lot to learn from our past and a lot to learn what not to do. In our own

community, in the South Asian community, many people came before us and

opened the doors for us to come and debate such important issues in this

House.

started from a time when those people that looked like us were excluded

from coming to Canada and those who were here didn’t have equal rights —

those from the time when we didn’t have the right to vote to the time

when we are now part of this House and we make laws to make lives better

for British Columbians.

Khalsa

Diwan Society on Second Avenue. The leaders, in their foresight, never

gave up on Canada despite all the adversities that they faced — people

like Meva Singh and Ghog Singh, Dr. Pandia and today, Charan Pal Gill,

who fought against discrimination and racist policies of past

governments. As a result, we have a more inclusive Canada

today.

Our South

Asian industry leaders — people like the Domans, Mayo Singh, Terminal,

Goldwood Industries — and the many forestry workers who also ended up

being labour leaders. Those are the doors that were never open for us

before, but thanks to those, we are equal partners in every aspect of

Canadian society. In politics — people like Naranjan Singh Grewall, who

became the first mayor of Mission.

Our

journey doesn’t end here. Canada’s journey doesn’t end here. We must

continue to work in this House and outside to make sure that Canada is

an even better place and more equal, more peaceful for generations to

come.

T. Shypitka: Thank

you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to my constituents in Kootenay East for

the privilege and opportunity of serving and representing you here

today.

I rise

today to speak to a tremendous occasion, the 150th anniversary of the

British North America Act of 1867, uniting separate colonies in the

Dominion of Canada. Canadians this week across our country, from coast

to coast to coast, are united by shared bonds. In these values, we stand

united from coast to coast to coast — from here in British Columbia on

the west coast, to the northern territories, from the Prairies to

Ontario and Quebec, through to the provinces in the Atlantic.

course, we also recognize that the history of this land predates that

150th anniversary, as our First Nations have a history here that

significantly predates those first European explorers.

[11:30 a.m.]

Canadians

today have backgrounds and ancestries that can be traced all around the

world. Today Canada is a beacon of hope to the world. We are a welcoming

nation where men and women from all over the world immigrate because

they want a better life for themselves and for their families, and this

is where they want to do it. This is the land of freedom and of

opportunity. This is a land where men and women of all faith traditions

are welcome, one to which those facing persecution abroad can come. That

pluralism is our strength. No matter what one’s background, I believe we

can acknowledge that we are blessed to call this nation our

home.

I want to

particularly thank the men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces, those

who wear our country’s uniform and answer the call of duty. Today we

especially bear in mind those members of the Armed Forces who are away

today, away from their families and serving our country while making

this 150th anniversary of the founding of the Dominion of Canada. Thank

you for your service. Thank you to your families.

Before I

wrap up, I’d like to say a few words about our province. Here in B.C.,

we’re particularly fortunate to call this place our home, a remarkable

province with a remarkable and rich history of its own. The

contributions of British Columbians echo throughout

Canadian history. Of the many people from across the world who want to

come to Canada, many choose British Columbia.

I am

honoured to represent Kootenay East, an amazing

section of our beautiful

province, a gateway to the mountains and, if I dare say so, one of the

most beautiful parts of our province.

encourage all British Columbians to attend a Canada 150 celebration. In

my constituency, I know that so many communities in the Kootenays have a

Canada Day celebration planned, ones to which all are welcome. For

myself personally, my family and I will be spending Canada Day biking

from Wardner to the community of Cranbrook on a brand-new trail system

that was built by many volunteers and partnered with the Ktunaxa First

Nation. This trail system further promotes the beauty and all that

Kootenay East has to offer.

We have a

bright future and a history to be proud of, and a future that is bright.

On this momentous occasion of the 150th anniversary since the founding

of the Dominion of Canada, let us never be afraid to be proud of our

nation, our province or the values that we hold dear.

As I saw

just moments ago the children that are up in the gallery…. These are the

values that we’ll pass on to our children. This is the nation that our

children will inherit, just as we were fortunate to be here ourselves.

Especially as members here in this place, we must always be mindful of

the role entrusted to us by the constituents we serve.

K. Conroy: I, too,

am pleased to stand to speak to this motion: “Be it resolved that this

House join with British Columbians in celebrating the upcoming 150th

birthday of our great country — Canada.” Like others in this chamber, I

too am the daughter of immigrants who chose to come to Canada. My

parents, Ben and Ingeborg Thor-Larsen, immigrated from Denmark — dad in

1951, mom in 1952, when they were married.

Dad

arrived in Vancouver in November, where he got work shoveling snow for

25 cents a day. Unfortunately, the freak snowstorm only lasted one day.

He quickly went on to get work as a machinist, his trade and why he

immigrated. Canada needed tradespersons. He promised Mom if she didn’t

like it here, they could always go back, but they never did. In fact,

they became Canadian citizens July 1, 1967, during Canada’s 100th

birthday celebrations in Castlegar.

remember as a kid my dad grilling me on the times tables and me grilling

him on the capital cities of all the provinces in Canada. He was

incredibly nervous about passing the test. I also remember the ceremony,

the excitement, the giant cake and how happy they were. Every time I

attend a Canadian citizenship ceremony in my official capacity and

welcome new Canadians, I’m always a wee bit emotional and grateful my

parents chose Canada and stayed, raising us four kids. We were

first-generation Canadians, and now our grandkids are third generation,

although, on my husband’s side, our grandchildren are, we think,

eighth-generation Canadians, as his family immigrated from Ireland to

Canada during the potato famine.

Our

region is made up of immigrants from throughout the world, but primarily

Italians, Portuguese and the Doukhobors, who fled Russia at the turn of

the last century to escape persecution, as they were a peace-loving

group who refused to bear arms. That tradition carries on today with the

leader of the Union of Spiritual Communities of Christ, J.J. Verigin, a

respected voice for peace here at home and internationally.

[11:35 a.m.]

There are

many events happening throughout our region to celebrate the 150th

birthday. The Kootenay Gallery of Art is organizing a community project

called 150-Plus Creative Acts. Shemmaho Goodenough, who immigrated to

our area from the U.S. in 1970, has taken up the challenge to celebrate

150 in a unique way. As part of the celebration at Millennium Park in

Castlegar, she asked that we gather at 3:15 to all symbolically state

the oath of citizenship — however, not the existing one. She explains

that the

preamble of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission states: “In

order to redress the legacy of residential schools and advance the

process of Canadian reconciliation, the Truth and Reconciliation

Commission of Canada makes 94 calls to action.”

The 94th

the oath of citizenship with the following: ‘I swear, or affirm, that I

will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth

II, Queen of Canada, her heirs and successors, and that I faithfully

observe the laws of Canada, including the treaties with indigenous

people, and fulfil my duties as a Canadian citizen.’”

The oath

for new citizens is suggested as part of education for Canadians, both

naturalized and those born here. She hopes we will all join her to

publicly recite this affirmation, thus grounding our support for First

Nations treaty rights.

This is

an interesting event to happen at the confluence of the Kootenay and

Columbia rivers, an area once seen as the traditional territory of the

Sinixt — or Lakes people. For a number of reasons, the members of the

band gradually left the area, migrating to the west, to the Okanagan

nations, and south, to the Colville Confederated Tribes.

When the

last living member of the band died in our area in the ’50s, the federal

government declared the Sinixt extinct, and yet there are descendants of

the Sinixt elders who are living today, very much alive and certainly

not extinct.

I think

it is time we recognize that, in fact, this nation is not extinct and

has been a part of history for many years before Canada even became a

country. For many in our area, that would be a respectful way to

celebrate Canada’s 150th.

We have

to do more to recognize the rights and titles of indigenous peoples who

have called this land home for thousands of years and to address the

wrongs committed in the creation of Canada. We need to continue to fight

racism and discrimination and ensure that our communities are welcoming

for everyone — just like my parents when they arrived in the

1950s.

Deputy Speaker: Minister

for Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations.

Let’s

change that. Columbia River–Revelstoke. I was trying to promote you,

Member.

D. Clovechok: I

appreciate that very much, let me tell you straight-up, and I

accept.

I’m

honoured and privileged to rise here today for the first time in this

very special place, representing Columbia River–Revelstoke. I want to

thank and recognize all those who helped me earn the right to be here.

The names are far too many to recognize, but to the over 120 active

volunteers who gave freely of their time and commitment to our shared

goal, I say thank you. You stand here with me today.

I want to

specifically thank my wife and family for their never-ending belief in

me and the unwavering support and encouragement.

This

weekend, we will celebrate the day 150 years ago when the people of this

great land came together and forged our country — Canada. The dreams,

the backbreaking work and the understandings between many cultural and

religious communities helped create our great Canadian

mosaic.

important part of this is acknowledging the First Nations and Métis

communities of our province and across Canada, whose rich history and

cultures extend well beyond 150 years, into thousands of years.

Together, we are a diverse, inclusive and compassionate country, and we

are blessed to call Canada and British Columbia home.

This

weekend, throughout my riding, we will be celebrating this milestone

event. To celebrate Canada 150, I will be joining Mayor Mark McKee and

other Revelstokians and be riding in the parade in Revelstoke. I, along

with locals and tourists, will stand proudly watching the RCMP members

dressed and marching in their iconic Canadian red serge.

We’ll see

the assembly in the park for the ceremonial cake-cutting. I always enjoy

this gathering, which hosts hundreds of folks and lots and lots of kids.

The festivities in Revelstoke are large and eventful — and the annual

bocce tournament, face painting and live music.

This year

is extra special for Revelstoke because it’s the 125th anniversary for

the Revelstoke fire department. On their own anniversary, I would like

to thank and recognize them — and, indeed, all firefighters — for their

service to our communities and our families.

[11:40 a.m.]

Elsewhere

in my riding, people in Invermere will start Canada Day off at midnight.

The local Kinsmen Club will light up the night with a festival of

fireworks display that will not soon be forgotten. Invermere will have

its own parade, organized by our local legion, and everything you can

imagine for Canada 150.

Golden, there are at least two pancake breakfasts put on by the Lions

Club. There’s also the Kicking Horse Country Dash, a six kilometre run

that you’ll kick yourself for missing. Also, don’t miss the Canada Day

Grind, a trail bike event; the Old Fashioned Picnic; and the Golden

Stomp Down. But don’t hang your boots up. There’s also an outdoor pool

party and free concerts at both the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort and

Golden municipal campground.

In the

highest city in my constituency and in Canada, Kimberley kicks off the

day with a wild wing start. The Kimberley food bank rubber-duck race is

sure to get your feathers all ruffled up. Over 3,000 ducks will be

racing — with lots of prizes, all donated, including a $2,500 grand

prize. All moneys raised go directly to the food bank. There also will

be live music in the bandstand, First Nations singers and drumming

followed by, of course, more cake.

I want to

recognize all the volunteers, as well, that make these events happen.

Without them, they could not happen.

I also

want to congratulate my neighbours down on Dutch Creek, Heinz and Ulrike

Meyers, who this Saturday will celebrate their 50th year as Canadian

citizens.

Even with

all those celebrations, it’s more than a party that brings us together.

We must never forget that our country, our province, our way of life did

not happen by accident. Canada is a country based upon diversity, with

people coming from backgrounds across the world to build a better life

for themselves and their families.

We are a

country that cherishes freedom, democracy and justice, while at the same

time extending our kindness to those who are in need. We are a nation so

proud of our past, so proud of our First Nation cultures and so

confident in our future that together we’re ready for the next 150

years. Canada is the greatest country in the world, and like you, I’m

proud to call it my home.

Happy

Canada Day, everyone, and happy birthday, Canada.

C. Trevena: I’m

delighted to join the debate to mark British Columbia’s upcoming 150th

birthday and to say that it is a…. We are celebrating it through this

House. I am one of the number of members in this Legislature who had the

privilege of choosing my nationality. I chose Canada as my country. I

came to Canada back in 1993 to work and ended up falling in love with

the place — its physical geography, its diversity, its tolerance, the

very essence of what Canada is.

It’s a

true privilege to be able to choose your nationality. Many people who

come to Canada come as refugees. We are well known for opening our arms,

opening our houses and opening our communities to refugees, and I’m very

proud that that is the case. That is one of the hallmarks of us as

Canadians — that we are very open. We’ve seen most recently…. Whether it

is the Syrian refugees who came in at the end of 2015, into 2016, or

those who are so desperate and who have been crossing the land border in

Manitoba and in Quebec to get into Canada recently, we see that we are

still a welcoming place that is encouraging refugees to come.

I, coming

as a professional, had that ability and that privilege to choose Canada

as a place to settle. As I used to say at the citizenship ceremonies

that I would go to as the MLA for North Island, which always brought a

lump to my throat…. Each time that the oath of citizenship was stated, I

remembered my own citizenship ceremony, which was held in Toronto back

in 1999. Whenever there was one in Campbell River, I tried to attend.

Unfortunately, the citizenship ceremonies don’t happen in our smaller

communities anymore, which I think is a great sadness and really does

lose some of the vibrancy that we could have had.

Being a

Canadian citizen comes, as we all know, with rights and with

responsibilities. We know our rights. We know our freedom of speech, our

freedom of expression. There are so many rights that we, because we have

rule of law, count on. But there are responsibilities. There’s the

responsibility of going to vote. There’s the responsibility of

participating in your community. It is one that sometimes is forgotten

in the mess of everyday life.

[11:45 a.m.]

Particularly for new Canadians trying to establish themselves,

sometimes they are able to get out and really get involved, and other

times they have too many other things to deal with. But participating in

our democracy is a fundamental responsibility of all of us as Canadians,

and I think that as we celebrate our 150th anniversary, it’s something

we should remember.

I came to

Canada, as I mentioned, in 1993. I learned a lot about the politics of

this country because I came in time to work…. I was working as a

journalist, and it was the time of the ’93 federal election. The

Conservatives were routed. They were left with two seats, and the Bloc

Québécois became the official opposition.

Here in

B.C., we have our own political dramas playing out, as we all know, at

the moment, with our current almost-hung parliament. So we see the

importance of participating in our democracy. We see the importance —

that every vote really, really does matter.

We’re

celebrating Canada’s 150th. We’ve got to remember as we do so, in this

chamber, in the House, recognizing the 150th birthday of Canada, that,

actually, B.C. wasn’t a signatory to the original act of Confederation.

We joined four years later. So maybe in another four years we will be

celebrating our own 150th. B.C. itself was a new entity at that time —

the colony of Vancouver Island having just become part of the greater

whole in 1866. It was all pretty new, and we weren’t signatories. Nor

was that huge land mass known as Rupert’s Land, land that was actually

owned by the Hudson’s Bay Company. Now it would be pretty horrific — it

is pretty horrific — to think that a company could own such a vast array

of land, but they did.

One of

the things, as we celebrate our 150th, is that we have moved on. We’ve

got a long way to go, but we have moved on. I think all of us remember

that the physical land mass which has been known as Canada for 150-plus

years — whether it was Upper Canada, Lower Canada or Canada — has been

here for millennia. The land mass has been here, and there have been

people living here for much of that time — people with their own

cultures and their own societies.

Representing the North Island…. There are areas where contact between

First Nations was made. First contact was made with Captain Vancouver,

Captain Quadra, Captain Cortes in what is now the Discovery

Islands.

I would

like to finish off with just one last line, saying that we have peace,

order and good governance. They’re not just a banner headline. They all

do help to make a just society.

G. Kyllo: On behalf

of the hard-working people of Shuswap, it is truly my pleasure to add my

thoughts to this morning’s motion.

For the

past century and a half, Canadians have been building and shaping

Canadian identity. Generations of hard-working Canadians have built a

legacy that is now known around the world. And I’m not just talking

about our amazing poutine or our world-class maple syrup. We have worked

hard to create a culture of understanding, of opportunity and of respect

for one another, regardless of one’s personal heritage, belief system or

gender.

People

from around the world have left their home countries to seek out the

opportunities that Canada has to offer — people like my stepfather, Knut

Thomsen, who left Denmark at the age of 18, eventually settling in

Sicamous, where he acquired a houseboat rental business. Millions more —

17 million, in fact — have chosen to do the same in the time since

Canada’s Confederation. Not only have we accepted newcomers as our own,

but we have worked hard to create and share improvements for those

beyond our country’s borders.

We can

all be proud of the advances we have made in medicine, such as the

creation of insulin; in technology, the Canadarm and IMAX; and in

communications, the telephone and the walkie-talkie. They have helped us

to live healthier lives, created jobs and connected us to the

world.

Our

culture and our heritage is one that takes care of our

neighbours with the confidence that they will do the same for us. These

values and principles that I have mentioned have been sewn into the

fabric of the cities, towns and communities across Canada and are deeply

tied to our identity. As we reflect on the 150th anniversary of our

Confederation, we have a lot to be thankful for and a lot to

celebrate.

In my

riding of Shuswap, my constituents and I are celebrating by

participating in the annual Blind Bay parade, where the community

gathers together to show off our floats and antique cars, finally

finishing the night off with an exciting on-the-water fireworks display

in my hometown of Sicamous. It is a great community event where we are

able to come together and celebrate Canada.

[11:50 a.m.]

I’d like

to thank Ron and Rose Mitchell, who have driven me in the parade every

year, since being elected as MLA, in their ’64 Ford Galaxie. I’d also

like to make note that several other Shuswap communities — namely

Armstrong, Spallumcheen, Enderby, Salmon Arm and Sicamous — are also

celebrating Canada Day with community celebrations and parades of their

own.

addition to all of the July 1 celebrations, one special place in my

riding shares its 150th birthday with Canada: the O’Keefe Ranch. The

ranch is an important part of British Columbia’s ranching history, and

its staff members have worked hard to preserve the culture and history

of life in early B.C. for future generations.

Through

sites like the O’Keefe Ranch, we can learn about some of the challenges

and experiences Canada went through during its infancy. The ranch gives

us a look into B.C.’s cattle industry and provides visitors with a

deeper sense of appreciation for the industries that served as a

foundation for the Canada that we all know today. I’d like to take this

opportunity to thank historian Ken Mather and the ranch manager, Glen

Taylor, for preserving this important piece of history.

Since

1867, Canada has changed and matured immensely. We have a lot to be

thankful for, and I’m thrilled — as all British Columbians should be —

to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday.

Hon. N. Letnick moved adjournment of debate.

Motion approved.

Hon. N. Letnick moved adjournment of the House.

Motion approved.

Deputy Speaker: We stand

adjourned until 1:30 this afternoon.

The House adjourned at 11:52 a.m.

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