[ Page 61 ]

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 28, 1970

The House met at 2 p.m.

THRONE DEBATE

MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable the Minister of Social Welfare.

HON. P.A. GAGLARDI (Kamloops): Mr. Speaker, first I would like to congratulate you on your appointment as the Speaker of the House. Down through — the years this august Chamber has had many people presiding over the members of the House, and I think every one of them did so with distinction and with honour, but I don't know of any Speaker that's ever distinguished himself in any better manner nor acquitted himself in any better manner, nor has shown himself to be more impartial than you. We are proud that you're in the job because of the way you do the job, and I'd like to congratulate you and pray that you're there for many, many years to come.

I also would like to welcome to the House the new members, particularly the ones on our side of the House, because I don't know of any time when we have had a better rounded crew than what we have today. It's nice to look across the floor of the House and see some friendly faces as well as some rather austere countenances. I certainly appreciate the fact that the second member from Burrard is with us again and he should never have been away from us at any time, as he's always done such a remarkable job and he's a real humanitarian, he has the welfare of the people at heart, and does a good job, and I've always failed to understand why the people of Burrard didn't return you far sooner, in fact why they ever let you go in the first place. I'm sure that this was a mistake and now they have rectified it, and I'm proud of them, and proud of you.

It's nice to see that we have a couple of Mayors in our midst as well, and this helps the legislative procedure, because no one is closer to the people than the local government, and I think it's such a beneficial thing to have individuals who come to grips with the day to day administration of the different communities, and they add to the Legislature and they also add to the legislation that is passed by this House and it's nice to see that we have some of these members with us.

Also, no matter what stage of difficulty you get into, we can look after you here on this side of the House. If you are a bachelor, we can marry you, if you need a doctor we can fix you up, because we've got doctors and we've got lawyers and just about everything that you want. The only thing we lack is an undertaker, and who wants an undertaker — we want uppertakers not undertakers — and so we're doing all right in that department as well. The queer thing is you're all on the other side. There are no bankers, but we've got used car salesmen, and believe me we've got good ones, and that's interesting, as well as newspapermen, and man, I don't know how you could get more rounded out than that. Farmers — oh yes, we have farmers, and we've even got ladies, well man, I'll tell you, we've got everything, and we appreciate them, and I'd hate to think right now what's going to happen in the next election, with all the House being Social Credit members. That might be, maybe that would be more beneficial for us….

HON. W.A.C. BENNETT (Premier): No…. No.

MR. GAGLARDI: You mean you have to have a little bit of Opposition. I think you're very kind, Mr. Premier, and maybe I might second that. Now, today for a few minutes, I don't want to take up too much time because there aren't too many things, I'd like to finish up by talking about one segment of the department of which I am a part and, incidentally, in a very short time, the department will be named the Department of Rehabilitation, and I want to talk about that for a moment or two a little later on.

But I would like to indulge in some of the idiosyncracies and some of the vagaries of the last election, because they were interesting, and it was a rather interesting time, and we saw some rather amazing things, and elections have a fascinating way of being able to solve an awful lot of problems and answer a lot of questions.

The leader of the Liberal Party presented himself right at the start of the election in Kamloops and unbared his chest and thumped it like a Tarzan, and he said, that how Kamloops goes the Province goes, and there were no more prophetic words uttered by any individual than what he uttered. If he could tell the sex of whales as well as he could the elections he'd be a first-class individual, not that he isn't, but I mean that he would be a better first-class individual. Not only did he make a trip to Kamloops once, but he came to Kamloops three times, "He who drinks of the waters of the Ganges shall return to drink again," was his motto, and he was burned on three occasions. He worked at it real hard and did the best and the biggest job he ever could do, and believe me if there is anybody wants to put an a parade, you get the leader of the Liberal party, he'll fill you in on how to do that job. This parade, it was the most fascinating parade, I think, that's ever been put on in any place in the world. Because you know the people tried to figure out for a long time how these big gaps were appearing in the Cook parade, a whole block long, and of course the Leader of the Liberal party knows, and most of the public in Kamloops knows. This is what lost them a tremendous amount of votes, because subterfuge is something our people up there don't stand, and won't stand, but because they only had so few cars in the parade, they only had them from four different ridings, they would break off in the middle and go around the block and then join at the back, to make it appear as though (laughter)….anyway, the amazing thing was that so many people were trying to figure out what was happening with this parade, why the big gaps, and anyway, they figured it out after awhile. Another amazing thing was that the leader of the Liberal party, though he didn't know it and I'm not going to give him any more secrets than just the odd one, right in his own campaign headquarters they were phoning me every once in awhile when they'd get out of there, and tell me that they were just there because they felt they had to be there because of certain reasons, but not to worry, they were going to be voting the right way, and I knew what the right way was. Even in the parade, the people that were in the parade would stop at our office and say, well now we're in the parade, but don't worry, we know what's happening and what's going on and we'll be there when the time comes.

Of course the Liberals in my area felt they had the whole deal hands down. The press helped them out, God bless them, they did a marvelous job for the Opposition. They wrote up every story like it was a front line and front page story, and every time the leader of the Liberal party came to town you'd have thought it was an occasion for a holiday, a Roman Holiday, or some kind of a holiday. One newspaper in our community demanded and desired to print the truth

[ Page 62 ]

and did, but believe me, most of the media, outside of television and radio, was on the side of the Opposition, and particularly the Liberals, but it didn't seem to do them any good. Oh man, I'll tell you radio was in between, it was right straight down the line, they gave me a fair deal and there were no problems with radio and television. In fact, I stayed less in the riding physically than at any time in any election. There were fewer people visited my ridings from the Government ranks in that last election than in any previous election, by design. I was on television, the only thing I appeared more on was television, and every time one of their speakers spoke I would follow up and tell them the truth and straighten out the mess that they made. I had me a ball, and an interesting time, and they still can't figure out in Kamloops how the Liberals lost, but if ever they want to come over and sit down for a quiet half hour I'll let them in on how they lost. In fact, if you want to ask the real authority on, it, it would be Howard Green, because when Howard Green was defeated in the City of Vancouver they asked him on television one day how come he didn't win the election, and he said, and this was a classic, "I didn't get enough votes"…. (laughter) and that was a simple answer for the Liberals. They just didn't get enough votes, though they couldn't figure it out.

I would like to tell you, Mr. Premier, that when you came to town, they certainly paid attention to you. I mean this, because if there was any area in this Province that the Liberals and N.D.P.'s zeroed in on, it was the city of Kamloops and the Kamloops riding, and they gave you good attention. But when the Premier came to town, and I think he was the only one on the Government side outside of the lady member from Little Mountain.

AN HON. MEMBER: I was there….

MR. GAGLARDI: Oh yeah, pardon me. Man, that's right — you were there, you better believe you were there, you did a fantastic job, in fact you helped me out tremendously — you better believe you were there…. But when the Premier came to town, I want to tell you, Mr. Premier, that if there is any riding in this Province that did the Government and you more proud than anywhere, it would be Kamloops riding, for they put your Government back in again, right in that area, just as powerful as they ever have, and if there is any riding that needs to be patted on its back, because they listened to everything there was to listen to. They had everybody in there. They even had the temporary leader of the N.D.P. party in there, and he crowed like a rooster and he told them all kinds of things about me, and the people in that meeting came out laughing and roaring, because they knew that he wasn't telling them the truth, and they went out and voted the right way even after he said what he said. But he did a good job, they gave him a good hand and listened, but that's right, gave him a good laugh. Some of them said that they came out with the old saying, Confucius says "Where loud braying is heard, donkey must be close by" — and that was their expressions up there. I would like to suggest to the leader of the Liberal Party, that you never have to worry if you get out of a job, because Barnum is still hiring people and circuses need them and you'd do a fantastic job. If the newspapers could write about you in the City of Kamloops like they wrote about you, and if it was the truth, you can get you a job anywhere.

Wait until the member from Prince George gets up and tells the House how they got a member on the Liberal team up in Prince George. They had to rob a bus, if you please. You talk about holding up a stage — they robbed a bus to get a member to run on the Liberal team. So it's been a rather interesting campaign, not only an interesting campaign but, Mr. Speaker, I want to tell you, we made a tremendous contribution to the Liberals, because the man who was their public relations man we trained in Kamloops. His first big public relations job, long before he worked for Mayor Campbell, or long before he worked for anyone, as an individual just starting out, they sent him up to Kamloops, or we had him come up to Kamloops and do our P.R. work when I was running against Davie Fulton, and we've never hired a P.R. man since. The Liberals got him this time and he did a good job for the Liberals believe me, a top notch job, he's a good man, but you have to give him something to work with to be able to do a good job. That's right, and I'll wager, if ever there was a place to spend money, I don't know how much money they spent and I'm not putting any credence to this figure, but if you had to put it, I'd think it would cost $50,000 to put on the show that the Liberals put on in Kamloops to get me defeated. I didn't think I was worth that much, or that I'd cause anybody that much difficulty, but you know, you would almost have thought I was important the way you fellows went after me, and I enjoyed every day of it, believe me I did. I don't know when I had a more interesting time, and I was never so humbled in my life, nor did I ever feel more proud — that's right — did I ever feel more proud for a people, because really it was their case that was vindicated; not mine.

I would like to tell about the member from Vancouver East, that you are the individual that started a nice little story in this House about an area called Blue River, and if you want to find out what they voted on up in Blue River, you take a look at it, because up in Blue River they gave me a greater majority than I've ever had in my life, so if you have anything else to say, I'd say hold it until the next election, then say some more, and I'll get more majority.

Now the N.D.P. have always had the idea that labour has been on their side. If ever there was a time that people spoke out clearly and decisively, it was in that last election. You want to see where labour is represented? All on this side of the House, even the doctor from up in Port Alberni, if you please, where perhaps is one of the strongest labour ridings, and was represented by one of the few N.D.P. individuals who could say he was a strong labour man, and now there's a Social Credit member in that riding, and just about every labour riding in the whole area. Mr. Member from Cranbrook, if it wouldn't have been for ball-point pens, your bald-headed countenance wouldn't be in there, because on a majority basis they voted you out, but you're here on a technicality hanging by a thread…. (laughter) yes sir, a ball-point thread, and so, Mr. Member from Cranbrook, if there is anybody who should appreciate the privilege of sitting there it should be you, because it was simply because a lot of Social Credit people voted with a ball-point pen instead of writing with the pen they should have voted with. Don't shake your head too much now, it will fall off, if you're not careful.

There is a reason why, incidentally, that labour voted for the Social Credit government. I think it is because they wanted stability. That's right, and I don't know how you can get people to indicate better how they trust you, than by doing what they did in the last election. Mr. Premier, if there was any leader — I don't know how long it is since there's been this majority in the House — but if there is any leader in

[ Page 63 ]

this nation that should hold his head up in real pride, though I know you are a humble man, hold your head up in real pride, it is you sir, because of the tremendous amount of backing that the Province of British Columbia gave you and your people in the last election.

Now the Kamloops area, that I think did you proud, is a tremendous area. According to statistics I think it shows that Kamloops is the fastest growing community in the entire nation. I think that statistic is correct. Not in British Columbia, but the whole of Canada. That's right, and if it isn't correct, I'll make it correct….and I believe that that's so. Now certainly there is a reason for that, and I notice in the Throne Speech, that it said something about a smelter, and also about several other great developments up in that part of the country and, Mr. Speaker, I would like to suggest to you that Kamloops will be one of the greatest mineralization areas there is in this entire Western Canada. The whole of the interior, Mr. Premier, your area, my area, many other areas that are represented in this House and right up the whole of the Thompson Valley, up the Clearwater and Blue Rivers, I think you will find one day will be one huge mineralized area and will sustain a smelter and a number of other primary and secondary industries. It will be one of the great areas of this Province, or one of the greater areas of this Province than what it is right now, and I think Mr. Premier, that you have paid a lot of attention to that great interior metropolis and I'm sure you will see, that by the necessity of this type of development, that there will be a lot more paid to it as well.

Now, 1960 was a great era. 1960 was the era of scientific skill and technological advances and perhaps human ingenuity from a mechanical point of view coming to bear greater than it has at any time in our history. You know that in the last ten years the entire or 90 per cent of all the scientists that ever lived are alive right now. That means that education-wise and from the viewpoint of intellectualism or scientific advancement, progress and development on an intellectual basis was greater in 1960 than in any period of time in our history. Sum total of knowledge develops now perhaps about every two years, wherein in previous times it was every hundred or two hundred or three hundred, now about every two or two and a half years the entire sum total of knowledge is doubled. That is rather fascinating, and 1960 was the era of tremendous advancements scientifically, development-wise, the whole world as well as the Province of British Columbia. 1960 saw the time when a man sitting in a little office away out in Washington, D.C. with a telephone at his ear, and if you'd have walked in and said "Mr. President, who are you talking to?" he'd have told you he was talking to the man on the Moon. You'd say, is this some kind of a dingaling or is this fellow a nut, but he was actually doing exactly what I am saying — talking to a man on the Moon. That was 1960.

But at no period in our entire history has the human side been more at sea or in a greater difficulty, nor with more problems, than what it was in 1960. No era perhaps has been more troublous, or more difficult. We made fantastic advances from the scientific point of view but we certainly, from a sociological or from a humanitarian point of view, went backwards perhaps faster than we ever had. Which goes to prove that every part of scientific achievement, though as good as it may be, lacks the ability to be even able to take care of our human problems, from a social point of view. We can get a man on the Moon, but we haven't learned how to get along with our neighbour. So 1970 is a new era. 1960 has been a time of tremendous advancement and achievement, from a mechanical point of view. Now 1970 has to be an era when we find the answers to the problems of human needs, of the 60's, and so we venture into a new era, into a new time, into a new area of advancement. This is one time when the whole of the human family has to start thinking progressively, aggressively, and perhaps be more humanitarian than ever we have been in all of our characteristics or we'll destroy ourselves. The United States of America has found herself in such a difficult situation from a racial point of view and from a point of view of taking care of certain segments of society, that the whole of the United States is in danger, because of its lack of ability to be able to grapple with human problems.

Now, Mr. Speaker, this is a day when our educational system shows up as being weighed in the balances and found lacking. We can easily train men to give them the skills and the ability to be able to grapple with the mechanical things of our world, and our times and our society, but what we have to learn now is to how better to be able to control ourselves and how better to get along with our fellow man, and how to appreciate the fact that everybody is a human being, and everybody has to be treated on the same basis, equal and commensurate with his own needs. There is a segment of society that today stands in a tremendous area of need and must, of necessity, be looked after, and education as it is, isn't the answer. Intellectualism advances fantastically on just about every plane, excepting on the social basis. We haven't learned how to be able to get along with one another and so our world is in a difficult situation. So the 70's, I believe, should be a time of human understanding, a time when we should sit down and argue about the problems and difficulties, and either we solve them or they will solve us. The era of the 70's is a new era.

Now, Mr. Speaker, there are a number of areas here, that I think we have to do something about. There has to be a new look, and I am always proud of men such as the men on our side of the House particularly, and certainly you, Mr. Premier, because you are always willing and ready to take that second look. If anybody has advanced with the times, this Government has. This Government has. If any Government has been willing to tackle the problem as it is, this Government has. I want to commend the Minister of Labour, bless him, when he stood up yesterday and said, "Either you fellows get together or else we'll get you together." I'm proud of the minister for taking that stand, because I believe that this is a time when we have to say to human beings, this is a day when we have to get together. So this is a new era, a new time, and we must take a new look, and the emphasis in this era of time has to be on our human needs. Now who understands everybody? A doctor can understand the physical, a mechanic can understand the mechanical, a scientist can understand the scientific, but is there any individual that really understands the intricacies of a human mind, and how to be able to handle that human being? This is where we are falling down today, and it's about time we took a new look, for the greatest need of this age is our ability to be able to solve our human problems.

Now we have to take a new look at a number of things. First we have to take a new look, I believe, in the area of management. You know Governments are notorious for every time they get into difficulty; they raise taxes. That's all, just raise taxes and hide the deficiency. Thank heaven, this Government hasn't been guilty of those things. This is one Government that down through the years has held taxes

[ Page 64 ]

down, and I don't know of any Government in this nation — you check them all — you can't find one Government in this nation today, that in the last two or three years that hasn't been raising taxes notoriously. Hence we find the Federal Government, if you please, putting up the White Paper on taxation. Now if there is anything that will devastate this nation, it would be the implementation of that White Paper, and it's about time we started to realize this. Management is in trouble with that White Paper, and when management is in trouble, labour is in trouble. For what is this White Paper going to do but disseminate, if you please, and destroy all the small business men of our entire nation. If ever there was a time when you had to play on all the keys of the piano, it's now, the ordinary fellow and all through the gamut of society clear to the top, the entire keyboard of human society has to play that one tune of cooperation. Now surely you can't do away with all the black keys and the white keys, and expect to get the right kind of a melody — impossible. So today, what happens? The Federal Government, because of a flagrant misuse of its authority and its past history, finds itself in trouble and hits the White Paper. Why? — to lift taxation. To be able to cover its needs, and its monstrosities like horses on the pay-roll, and what is the name of that ship, the Bonaventure, and so on, and the C.B.C. and a few other things. Why man, it's such a tragic situation, and the way that they increased the interest rates today, I tell you it's almost impossible for a nation to continue on any type of an aggressive basis. This type of a situation exists because the governments think that all they have to do is say to management, "We want more taxes."

Now what are we going to do if we lose that small logger, the man who's that middle-man, and we need him. He ties the whole of society together and, Mr. Minister of Lands and Forests, I believe in our legislation. We should see to it that the small logger is given a good portion of activity in the management of our Province, so that we can preserve that man's identity, and his ability to be able to handle the forests like he does. Let the big operator take his logs from the small operator and chew them up into pulp and then everybody steps in society on a proper basis, we need that tie.

So that White Paper…. I am not worried about Trudeau rattling about the country in a jet airplane…. (laughter) yeah, skin diving…. If he wants to go out with Bridgette Bardot, I'm only jealous that's all, let him go ahead…. no, my wife knows me well enough so that I can say those things…. and if he wants to go out with Barbara Streisand, more power to him, after all that's up to him. Also, I notice the news media, if you please, leap to the defence of Mr. Trudeau because he is using the jet airplane. Where in the name of common sense were you fellows when I needed you?…. (laughter) I'm not worried about Trudeau's airplane, but I want to tell you right now that I'm worried about Benson's policies and Trudeau's fine hand in those policies, because if you want to keep a nation rolling, you don't keep it rolling on that kind of a basis, and this is the day when we need to understand management, not destroy it.

I think we have to take a look as well at labour, and I was glad yesterday that the Minister of Labour talked about Bill 33. I'm not ashamed of Bill 33. I like Bill 33. If ever there was any piece of legislation presented to any House that was an honest, sincere endeavour to get management and labour to the right table and to quit smashing at one another, to get them to sit down and iron out their own differences while they look at one another, it's Bill 33. I understand so many times that labour wants to boycott. Why? Don't those labour leaders want to solve their problems? I think that the labour leaders ought to stick with labour because they, the labour boys, are voting for this Government, which means they back our policy. This Government knows that labour is the greatest force and the greatest benefit and the greatest need, and good working men are at a premium all the time, and the more we can give them, the more we like. We're 100 per cent for labour. But we certainly aren't 100 percent for the labour leaders that want to always be sniping and causing suspicion, and trying to deteriorate the entire warp and woof of ordinary common people. Let's get around that table, and understand one another in the 70's and let's make our progress, shoulder to shoulder as we should. Believe me, that Bill 33 was an honest effort on a mediation basis of trying, by the grace of God, to get labour and management looking at one another, and throwing their tomahawks away and trying to solve the problems of how to be able to better help out humanity. In the 70's, Mr. Minister of Labour, we have got to solve these problems, the strike business and so on — why do you think labour votes for us? They don't like these strikes any more than anybody else. We've got to get to a place where the social problems of the 60's are solved in the 70's or else. Believe me, this Government wants to treat people like they are people and human beings, and labour is one of the great forces of our society, and they must be looked after.

Another thing that I am quite discouraged and concerned about is our nationalism, our nationalism. It seems that the Federal Government doesn't know that there is a place called British Columbia or Saskatchewan, or Alberta or Manitoba, but it's about time that they did. It's time they did. I think that the Premier's idea is a first-class one of making this nation a little bit of a closer unit. I think that that's a good idea, because western ideas are western ideas, and I think that decentralization is a good thing, and apparently our gifts come from Ottawa, and they land in Vancouver, but they never seem to be able to bridge that gap. I think it's about time that the Federal Government started to pay a little bit more attention to our nationalism, on a little bit of a different basis, because this is the time when these policies are finished, they are outmoded, they belong to a different era. The era of the seventies is get together and solve your problems, sit down, bury your inhibitions and your hates and your jealousies and your animosities, because this is a year when we need unity. If ever there was a time to understand one another now is that time. I think one of the things that this Government can be proud of, and I'll be through in a moment or two, and that is that we want to make an honest and a straightforward attempt at trying to do that.

As a Provincial Government last year, right on the floor of this House, after the member from Vancouver Centre enunciated the policy or the suggestion of the National Alliance of Businessmen, the Premier asked me if I would take on the task. It didn't take very long to do it either, a few minutes after it was suggested, because he knows good ideas when he hears them and is aggressive. Here is a segment of society that seems to be left out and not being taken care of on a proper basis. So the Premier suggested to me that I should take on this task and I did. It took a little while to get an idea as to how to organize and so, in about the middle of July or August we got rolling and we only have six or seven men in the entire Department. Now to date, Mr. Premier, we have been able to find work for 1,150 people. Directly off of the rolls of welfare we have been able to take about 350. I would suggest to you that every one of these people was

[ Page 65 ]

headed straight for the Welfare Department here if we hadn't been able to get them a job. Now, we've been able to work within the framework of the legislation that's set up today as far as labour unions are concerned and other organizations. I've said it before and I'll say it again, because when I talk to you next time I want to talk to you on a complete change, an entire change. The whole philosophy of how to look after the people in the segment of society that are in need, without costing a dime more, and maybe using less people than what we have today. Well, this is the day of a new approach, the new era. This is a time when human beings have to be recognized as what they are — creations that God made with talents and abilities, and those abilities and talents can be challenged and utilized, and that's what we want to try and do, and this is the Government that has those aggressive and forward-looking ideas. Mr. Premier, it wouldn't have been but for your forthright thinking, and for the suggestion from the member from Vancouver Centre. Give him credit because he deserves it. In fact, a fine Italian brain is a good brain. (laughter). Well certainly, especially if it has been brought up on prune juice, it's bound to be. So I suggest to you, Mr. Premier, that you have a tremendous amount of credit coming for suggesting or for accepting the basis of an alliance. Not only that, I want to show you too, Mr. Premier, next time I have the privilege of addressing this august Chamber, that that rehabilitation business should be one of the biggest things that ever happens in the era of the 70's.

Well, Mr. Speaker, I've enjoyed the privilege of saying a few things about some of our Canadian needs today, and I pray that I'll have another opportunity of doing likewise, and I also wish all of the members who follow me well, and I pray that we somehow can work together so that we can make this Province the greatest Province, because it is already. But we can help to make the nation as well, the greatest nation because this is the kind of status that it deserves, and that will make us all proud of being the type of Canadians that we should all be. Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Member for Burnaby Willingdon.

MR. JAMES G. LORIMER (Burnaby Willingdon): Mr. Speaker, although I did not support you in the election as Speaker, I nevertheless wish you well during the Session. I would also like to congratulate the new members that are here this year. I think that it's only fitting for us old-timers to recognize the fact (laughter) that we should welcome the new boys and girls. I must say that it is quite difficult, Mr. Speaker, to follow a humble man in the debate, but I would like to say that I was very pleased that some of the words it was said he had mentioned, such as "deadbeats," were not used today, and I feel very happy. I realize that when they were said that he didn't really mean it, and that since that time he has spoken to some of his Department people. I would like to quote from the reports from the Social Assistance and Rehabilitation Division of the Social Welfare Department of 1967-68, in which Mr. Burnham states, "Lack of public understanding of the reason for public dependency results in a tendency to regard all who are receiving assistance as bums. This has a highly demoralizing effect on all welfare recipients. In fact, well over half of such persons are not employable. Furthermore, it has been increasingly recognized that the majority of those considered as employable, but who are chronically in need of assistance, simply are not acceptable to employers because of lack of aptitude, skills, or capacity available to job opportunities." It goes on to state that "Where there is some indication that the incidence of fraud had increased, the number of those situations that come to attention are relatively few in relation to the numbers assisted. In general, the incidence would not appear higher than in non-public welfare programmes."

Now, as Chairman of the Metropolitan Board of Health in 1968, I had occasion to interest myself, Mr. Speaker, in the situation at Jericho Hill School for the deaf and the blind. Now the physical location of this school is of the best, the lawns are probably the best lawns in the City of Vancouver, and there is a million dollar view. There are some new buildings, and from the outside the school looks very nice. Enrolment at the school is anywhere from approximately 350 students. About half of these reside in the school for 10 months of the year. Others are there during the lesson period or during the day-time. The number of blind are about one-third of the population and approximately two-thirds are deaf. Also, a significant number of these people not only have problems of blindness or deafness, but have other very severe problems such as brain damage, autism and other physical defects which are a great handicap to them, and mental retardation. These affect the performances of many of the children.

Now I intend to devote a few minutes only to the health and physical planned aspect of the situation and not to the curriculum, as I understand a committee is working on changes in the curriculum at the school, and I trust that any recommendations that this committee brings about will be implemented, as I understand there has been very little change in the curriculum at the school for some 15 years.

Now, throughout the years the Vancouver Health Department has serviced the school and has continually requested further improvements in the school situation, and on two occasions withdrew services from the school due to the fact that they were not happy with the way the school was being operated. Now, the professional people that were employed by the City of Vancouver and were on loan to the Provincial Government made certain reports on what they found to be the problems at the school, along with people loaned from the University of British Columbia, psychologists and so on. These reports were compiled into a single report and subsequently submitted to the Minister of Education and the Minister of Health by myself as the Chairman of the Metropolitan Board. Now, Jericho Hill School must provide to a much greater extent than a regular school programme for the development of children, due to the fact that these children are physically handicapped, and in a number of cases emotionally and socially handicapped. Such a school should provide for an environment which as closely as possible resembles the environment that they have at home. The second thing they should have is a staff trained in the problems of child development and the nature and effect of the various handicaps of these children. Now this is not the case at Jericho Hill, and there should be a co-ordinated educational programme and physical programme for the health of these children. There should also be encouragement and opportunity for maximum involvement of the parents, and this is not the case here. The parents are a somewhat frustrated group, and it appears that unless the parent is very actively engaged in and about Jericho Hill School, he does not receive encouragement to discuss matters with the school authorities, and develop programmes which attempt to overcome the dangers inherent in the sick or in those in residence. Now the professionals servicing the school have recorded in their report that the

[ Page 66 ]

facilities at Jericho Hill School fall far short of even a minimum standard for such a school.

AN HON. MEMBER: The era of the 70's.

MR. LORIMER: …. Now I mentioned that I presented this report in 1968 to the two Ministers and I think that the two Ministers actually had two hang-ups about the situation. The first was that they had believed, and I think that they probably did believe at the time, that this school was a model school for the North American continent, and I think they had been told this. I think it was probably based on the fact that the school does have a swimming pool, a very fine swimming pool, and some of the deaf children at this school had done very well at the Blind Olympics. However, this is surely not the test of the value of such a school. The second hang-up was the fact that it was felt that this was a boarding-school and not a treatment centre. Now this is quite true for a certain percentage of these people, the students that are there, but a great number of these children, as mentioned before, have other problems, and certainly there has to be a treatment centre at this school or else about a third or better of the children should be removed from this area and put into another area where treatment can be given. Now, there was very little done during 1968. However, we were advised that the Minister of Education was going to have a report made by a Doctor Demesa of Ontario and a Doctor Clark of the University of British Columbia, and they were to make a private report to him, which we certainly were pleased to hear about, and I understand these reports have now been made. I did not bring this matter to the attention of the Assembly last year because I wished to give the Minister time to carry on some improvements. Now, since that time there have been some improvements made at the Jericho Hill School. The first improvement was in the correction of the infirmary where there were some problems which have basically been resolved. Also, a new playing field has been constructed. However, the problem here, of course, is that there is no P.E. teacher and so the children at the moment are not using the playing field. The new positions on staff have been created on paper, but there have been very few bodies produced to fill the vacancies. Now, the morale of the staff, I suggest, and the report states, is very low, and resignations are still taking place in some of the areas. Now it's true that some of the students at Jericho Hill do go to University and to Vocational Schools, and in fact do very well, and these people certainly have benefited from their experiences in the school. But I suggest that the majority of these are those who live at home and go to their lessons during the day-time, and have parents who understand and sympathize with the problems that they face, and as a result they do very well in later years. But the many others have been less well served, and leaving the school with social, emotional and educational problems acquired during their stay, and enter a community which they are poorly prepared to cope with, both personally and vocationally.

Now, the older buildings of Jericho Hill have generally outlived their usefulness and are in an active state of decay. In recent years a number of new buildings have been designed and built at Jericho, but the plans for the replacement of the old buildings generally are on the drawing boards, and the mistakes in the design of the older buildings tend to reproduce themselves in the new construction. The report states that maintenance service for the physical plant has never been more than adequate, but in the last two years has deteriorated significantly. This change appears to be due, in part, to an inadequate number of cleaning staff. Now, the kitchen and the dining halls were erected some 26 years ago as a temporary facility and are still being used, and due to lack of staff and poorly supervised mealtimes, the mealtime period is basically a period of bedlam.

Now this report further refers to the residential supervisors, and it states that they are important, they act as substitute parents for some of these children for 10 months of the year, from anywhere from the ages of five to twenty, and this is their home. Some of these supervisors, the majority, cannot communicate with the deaf due to their inability to understand sign language, and this is a substitute, or supposed to be the substitute, for the child's home. Now I'm not intending to deal with the report at length. I might say in passing that there are, and I will be the first to admit and have admitted, that there are one or two discrepancies in the report as presented to the Ministers and those have been acknowledged that they are discrepancies. However, they are minor discrepancies and really take nothing away from the report as such.

There are a number of other small points that I don't intend to deal with which may seem small from this position — looking from the outside in — but when you're living in this school for, as I mentioned, most of your childhood life, these irritants become major problems. I would suggest that the basic problems in the school are first of all a failure to provide a home or a substitute home for the children who are living there. The residences are barracks-style, with four to six students head to head in cubicles, three-sided cubicles, and privacy is practically non-existent. There's a lack of communication, as mentioned, so there's very little after school activities. There's Guides and Scouts and things of that sort but these are not frequently held, they may be once a week, and as a result there's a great amount of time on these children's hands and they are unable to amuse themselves for such great lengths of time.

Some of the equipment, when I went through the school, was very inadequate at the time, the chairs and so on. The number of people trying to watch a T-V set with very few chairs for them to sit on, most of them standing up, and most of the programmes, or a great number of the programmes, poorly prepare the children to live among the world of the sight and of the hearing. A number of them, when they leave the facility, are ill-equipped to take jobs, and as a result find themselves living off their parents at home or on the welfare roll. As the Vancouver senior psychologist states in his report, this is a situation that promotes not mental health but mental illness, and I suggest that we have certainly by-passed these people. The Province with the good life, I think, has failed to meet their obligations in this area. I feel also that the Government has known of these shortcomings for a great number of years and I believe that it's certainly incumbent upon them now to do something about the situation at Jericho.

Now, Mr. Speaker, I was pleased to note that the Speech from the Throne refers to the construction of a new motor-vehicle testing station in Burnaby. We are very pleased to hear of this and it is my belief that this programme, and I suppose it is, will be carried on to all the major centres in the Province.

Now, the Honourable the Attorney-General has been in the news lately with reference to the removal of the Clydesdales from Oakalla — now these Clydesdales, of course, are in my riding and I'm very partial to them, and I would

[ Page 67 ]

hate to see….

AN HON. MEMBER: ….horses on the voters' lists….

MR. LORIMER: ….I'd hate to see those horses disbanded and removed. Now one story stated that the Honourable Attorney-General said that he was going to phase out Oakalla and, as a result, they couldn't have the horses in Oakalla any more, and they were going to be removed to Prince George and Kamloops and Colquitz. Now I think there are two issues here, one is the future of Oakalla and the other is the future of the horses (laughter) and I certainly do not criticize the Attorney-General if he's going to phase out Oakalla. I approve of that 100 per cent. I'm afraid that Oakalla will be there long after the horses.

AN HON. MEMBER: The sentence is ten years.

MR. LORIMER: But we've had these promises of phasing out of Oakalla for about twelve years now and, well, I was hoping that that issue in the paper might be a referral from you that we were going to phase it out. Now in any event, what I was going to say is that I hope that the phasing out isn't going to begin with the Clydesdales and end with the Clydesdales, but, from the remarks I gather that is what is going to happen. Now as far as the Clydesdales are concerned, seriously, I certainly think that they should be left as a unit. I realize it costs money, but I think that these horses should be on display at the Fall Fairs and Exhibitions throughout the Province. I think it's a well worthwhile effort for the Provincial Government to keep these animals for this purpose. I think it may be necessary to have a little money spent on it, but I think that the benefits to the people of the Province would more than cover the expense.

AN HON. MEMBER: That's for Government caucus meeting.

MR. LORIMER: Now I want to say a few words about our Centennial year that's coming up. I know that everyone is getting ready for great plans in their cities and so on, but I would like to make a suggestion that the Provincial Government, as it has in the past, have a function or a Centennial project as a Government project. Now in the previous Centennial there was the construction of the museum complex in Victoria, and I'm suggesting that the thing to do this time would be to put in a project in the lower mainland this year, suggesting, and this suggestion has been made before, that the project be the development of Burnaby Lake for a recreational centre. Now this lake has had a considerable amount of use in the past. It was involved in international regattas in 1930 and 1931, and in 1935 the water level was lowered for drainage purposes and as a result it is now full of lily pads. However, this level could be quite readily raised again. 395 acres is the size of the lake, and the municipal government has the ownership of 320 acres around the perimeter, making a total recreational area of some 700 acres. Now I suggest that this facility would be of great recreational value for not only the people of Vancouver and Burnaby but, being adjacent to the freeway, it would be of great benefit to all the people in the lower mainland from Hope west, which covers probably over half the population of this Province, and I think the Province should consider that centennial project which would be most fitting, and should be placed on the lower mainland.

Now I note in the Colonist of January the 23rd there is a statement, "Big Swedish Ferry sold to the Province", and subsequently a report from the Premier that negotiations were not completed, but that he said, as I understand it "we may buy it". Now I certainly object to the purchase of a ferry from Sweden when our shipyards are practically non-existent any more. They have no work, no order, or very few orders, and I think that it's only reasonable to encourage these shipyards and give them contracts. Even though the ship may be purchased from Sweden at a reduced price, a second-hand ferry, I think it is much more important and of much more benefit directly and indirectly for the Government, if they need a new ferry, to award the contract for the construction of the ferry at a local port.

MR. BARRETT: What's the good of a ferry if you can't pay to get on?

MR. LORIMER: I think the increase in employment would be of great benefit. Get the shipyard workers off the unemployment insurance and the welfare roll, and let's get the secondary industry in B.C. moving. Also, I think the Provincial Government should be fighting and be more active in fighting for the Federal subsidy which is available for the Province for the shipyard business.

Now I understand that the Department of Public Works is considering charging parking rates at the Vocational School. Now this I understand, of course, is a very small matter to the Department of Public Works, but it's not that small a matter to the people who are going to the Vocational School. Those involved in the Vocational School basically are being subsized by Canada Manpower, and the school is situated in a fairly remote area as far as bus transportation is concerned. It's true that a bus does go by, but it's a half-hour service, generally an hour service, and to get the connections it would be a very circuitous route to take a bus, so that it's almost essential that these people go by motor vehicle. Now I feel that most of them are on subsidies from Canada Manpower, they haven't funds, readily available to pay parking. It's a small matter, and those others who are not under the subsidy of Manpower are paying their own fees, and as a result have very little money left to pay parking assessments. I would certainly suggest to the Minister that the profits made from parking will not be worth the hardship caused to these individuals concerned. Thank you.

MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable the Second Member for Vancouver Centre.

MR. EVAN WOLFE (2nd-Vancouver Centre): Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask your permission to speak very briefly today.

MR. SPEAKER: Permission is granted.

MR. WOLFE: Thank you, Sir. I would like to particularly welcome the new members to this House — by new members I mean those that have not been here before — and in so doing to take note of the fact that most of them represent more of the major metropolitan areas in the Province. For instance New Westminster, Nanaimo — he's out of the House just now — and of course Victoria and several new members from Vancouver. I think this is significant in view of the increased importance of urban area problems in Canada, so I think we should stress this. I would also like to welcome the new Leader of the Opposition — should I say this year's Leader or the new Leader, I guess, of the Opposition, and just express the hope that in his new-found duties he doesn't neglect the Public Accounts Committee (laughter) — thank you. I noticed,

[ Page 68 ]

incidentally, that he's already purchased his new licence plates with the three letter prefix. Perhaps you hadn't noticed them, they read NDP012, and I was going to suggest to him that he should now put in his order for 1975 plates, and perhaps they should read NDP006, and at the same time he might order his 1980 plates which might read NDP000, and I'd like to offer the services of the members of this side of the House in writing letters of endorsement or assisting with this request, so feel free to take advantage of this, and at the same time I'm looking at the chair of the Liberal leader….

AN HON. MEMBER: I think he's disappeared….

MR. WOLFE: I did want to say that I was impressed with his speech the other day and his beautiful coloform since the House opened this year.

Mr. Speaker, very seriously, I would like at this time to pay tribute to Mr. Alec Matthew. I doubt if new members would realize that Alec Matthew was a twelve-year veteran of this House and he died very recently, within the past year, at a very ripe age, and it's certainly fair to say that he had an extremely productive life and gave many years to the public life of this Province and to the people in his own constituency.

Now just a brief word about this matter of hydro rates. Both of the Opposition leaders dwelt on this at great length in the first day and were very critical of announcements recently made regarding the possibility of increase in hydro rates. I think we're all in this House very concerned about this possibility, but what strikes me is the fact that for six years the Hydro has been operated without any increase in rates, and I would have to think that in my own business, if I were to attempt to operate it without the benefit of any price increase and consideration of wage and other costs increasing annually, I would have been broke at least two or three years ago. Furthermore, I think that we should look at the financial statistics on the Hydro in commenting on this. In the 1969 fiscal year, the Hydro showed a net income of $9,300,000 on revenues of $221,000,000. Mr. Speaker, that is a return of only 4 per cent. It's fair to say from statements recently made by their Chairman, Dr. Shrum, that there will be very little profits shown — next to none — for the fiscal year 1970. Now according to the Public Utilities Commission manual on public utilities rate increases, a public utility is permitted a return of 81/2 per cent on their revenue, and there is increased pressure today to increase this 81/2 per cent with a view to current interest rates. So I'm not saying that there should be an increase, but we should be fair and realize if there has to be one, we have to go along with it, because otherwise we're saying that we should be subsidizing the cost of power in this Province, and I say what fairer way is there to pay for the cost of our power than to charge the users, otherwise you are asking some other person to assist in the payment of your own bill.

Now there's been talk of a 15 per cent increase. I have no idea what amount of increase might be contemplated, but if you were to imagine a 15 percent increase in the rates of Hydro, what you're talking about is an increase of $35,000,000 in their revenue. If we are concerned with people on limited income having to face increases in their hydro bills, pensioners, people on welfare, and so on, it seems to me that we should face the fact that Hydro should not be subsidized, and that perhaps these people should request and should require greater allowances to compensate. So don't let us let Hydro be a drag on the general revenue of the Province.

In my opinion it should stand on its own feet. I believe the leader of the Opposition made a statement that Vancouver hydro rates for 500 kw per month were the highest in Canada. Of course, this is not correct, I wouldn't say that they are low, but they are not the highest in Canada. There are four other cities which are higher than the City of Vancouver and I think it is understandable that hydro rates in British Columbia, a new Province with this fantastic development, would be expected to be rather high. We don't enjoy Federally assisted dams. For instance, let us compare hydro rates here with the Maritimes. The Maritimes have the lowest wage rates, the lowest per capita income in Canada, and the highest hydro rates in Canada. British Columbia has the highest wages in Canada, and of course the highest per capita income. I'm not saying that we should be proud of the amount of our hydro rates, but hydro rates are a very complicated issue and the important thing is that I believe that hydro should be operated on a pay-as-you-go basis.

I would like now to turn to a new subject, Mr. Speaker, which is seldom spoken of these days, and that's the matter of pollution. You know we have so many different kinds of pollution — we have water pollution, we have air pollution, we have noise pollution which is very important, and of course now we have cracked glass pollution. In any event, the problem that I wish to talk about today is the matter of automobile pollution. Smog-control equipment, many people do not realize, has been available for automobiles in North America for about three years, and the impetus for this control has come from California, where authorities have rules that all new cars operating in that State must be equipped with mechanical devices to reduce emissions. Experts in pollution control in California say that a car properly equipped would discharge 80 per cent less hydrocarbons than cars not so equipped. One expert recently said that a 1960 automobile without emission controls emits more hydro-carbons than five 1970 automobiles. That is how far improvements in this field have gone in the last three years. Unfortunately, the efficiency of these devices falls off as the automobile ages. The control apparatus and the car need regular maintenance to attain the proper standard of control.

I think the time has come when we must insist that emission control devices be mandatory on all new automobiles, I say all new automobiles sold in this Province, together with the proper maintenance of those automobiles and devices, to make sure they are working at their maximum capacity. So accordingly, I am calling for legislation in British Columbia to do just that. You may ask why the B.C. Government should assume this responsibility. Well, it appears that is the only way we can get quick action on this important problem. Although there is legislation now in the United States and Ontario, the Canadian Government has not acted on a national basis, and I don't think British Columbia can afford to wait any longer for a national code. Equipment is available for installation on all new cars right now during their manufacture, and now is the time to start enforcing this clean air policy.

Since these devices require maintenance to ensure that they function properly, I would also ask that it be made compulsory that they be tested regularly. We now test cars for mechanical defects at stations in Vancouver, Victoria and Richmond, and there will soon be a station in Burnaby, and it would be simple enough to add one more check, to make sure that smog control devices are operating efficiently. Also, a simple testing machine is available, by which a policeman

[ Page 69 ]

can spot-check automobile exhaust emissions in a matter of minutes, and this machine can be set up at any point as a mobile testing station.

AN HON. MEMBER: A breathalizer for automobiles.

MR. WOLFE: Right now, in the State of California, automobiles that show evidence of excessive exhaust pollution are stopped by police and given a simple exhaust analysis. If this spot check indicates that the car is abusing the atmosphere, the owner is required to have his engine tuned or his emission device repaired, so that his exhaust analysis conforms to the regulations. Mr. Ed Cole, the president of General Motors Corporation, says that with our present yearly improvements in emmission control devices, and with further refinements in combustion fuel, he can foresee by the year 1980 they will be producing automobiles with internal combustion engines which will be 100 per cent emission free.

It seems to me that in the Vancouver and lower mainland area, we have a condition similar to that in the Los Angeles basin. No one living here would care to see this become another Los Angeles as far as air pollution is concerned. However, Los Angeles has made considerable improvements in the last few years through some very tough regulations. In the Vancouver area we are still not in serious trouble, we still have time to act, to prepare for our rapid growth in population. If we in British Columbia would install exhaust pollution regulations similar to the State of California right now, at this Session of the Legislature, we would take a major step towards improving our air pollution problem. In fact, I would predict that within ten years, notwithstanding the potential growth in car population, that we can have even then much cleaner, smog-free air than we breathe right now.

Now, Mr. Speaker, I'm sure you would be very surprised if I didn't draw your attention to some matters concerning my own constituency. Vancouver Centre is the heart of the business and commercial activity in British Columbia, and it is also the home of the skid-row derelicts. Last year in this House I mentioned a need for a detoxification clinic in the Vancouver area and, as a temporary measure, the City of Vancouver decided to implement section 64A of theSummary Convictions Act , under which it would be possible to detain chronic alcoholics. The City allocated the top floor of the present gaol as a receiving clinic for this purpose. Now except for a very short period, this is obviously not a very satisfactory place. Negotiations have been under way for months now between our Health Department and a committee from the City of Vancouver under the chairmanship of Alderman Halford Wilson. By-laws have now been drafted for the new Hospital Society, which would organize this detoxification clinic and establish its Board of Governors. However, a problem has developed. For this unit to be operated by our Hospital Insurance Service, and thereby attract Federal cost-sharing of its operation, it would have to be constructed as a full-fledged hospital, rather than a clinic. If it is to be built as a simple clinic, it then would not qualify under the B.C.H.I.S. and would not get Federal assistance. A simple clinic would cost us only roughly $5,000 a bed to construct, whereas a new hospital runs about $50,000 a bed. Obviously it would be ridiculous to consider anything but a clinic.

At present, none of our Vancouver hospitals will consider accepting such a detoxification centre as part of their responsibility. Therefore, the present plan is to build a small alcoholic hospital with a detoxification clinic in an adjoining wing of the hospital. The hospital portion would be operated under B.C.H.I.S. and the operation of the detoxification clinic would be shared 80 per cent by the province and 20 percent by the City of Vancouver, similar to the welfare costs of the City. I understand that Vancouver City Council have now agreed to this cost-sharing proposal, and I hope this means that our Government will approve its 80 per cent share of the annual operating cost. Vancouver is a major city with a mild climate and it has a special problem with skid-road alcoholics, one that extends far beyond civic responsibility. Therefore, the cost of a new detoxification clinic should be shared by all three levels of government. All have a responsibility. However, as far as the Provincial Government is concerned, this cost should become a joint responsibility of the Social Welfare Department, the Health Department and the Attorney-General's Department. I would therefore urge the Ministers in charge of these three Departments to take on the joint responsibility of bringing this agreement to a conclusion.

Let's cut through the time-consuming red tape, Mr. Speaker, and set an objective of having this clinic completed within the coming year. This is one of the first things we should do, even before passing any new liquor laws. By saying that, I do not oppose changes in liquor laws, but I do want to emphasize the urgency with regard to this clinic.

I would also like to urge our Minister of Municipal Affairs to speed the approval of plans for the proposed 7.8 million dollar new community centre and senior citizens' high-rise apartment in Vancouver's west end. We are all aware of the great need for low-cost accommodations for senior citizens and, since the closing of Gordon Neighbourhood House, Vancouver west end also needs a community centre. The recent growth in apartment living has made this situation even more acute. At the moment there is a hold-up over the amount of underground parking required. Although the Provincial Government is only sharing, of course, in the cost of the housing project itself, and therefore does not feel obliged to provide very much parking, the community centre will require adequate parking. I see no reason why our Government should not also share some obligation in assisting in the recreation facilities and therefore also with the additional parking requirements. We can't build any building in Vancouver today without considering parking as a part of the project. It has now been over a year since the money by-law for this centre was approved, and there is still much to be done before construction can start, and I would urge the Minister to do what he can to speed things along. Of course, with the present high interest rates and tight money, we have an obligation to control our expenditures as much as possible. At the same time, I did mention the need for such a centre in Vancouver's west end three years ago in this House, and although the by-law has been passed the City is still not at the stage of drawing or asking for detailed plans. Even if we could arrive at an agreement on who pays for what on this project within the next 30 days, it is doubtful if it would require expenditures of Provincial Government funds for at least a year or two.

One further Vancouver-Centre matter. I would like to see an early start on the long-talked about Britannia School Community Complex in Vancouver west end. This school will have a number of combined facilities in a community centre, including a library and a health unit, that would benefit all residents in that area. The Britannia Community Complex is estimated to cost seven and one half million

[ Page 70 ]

dollars and was originally part of Scheme 3 of Vancouver's urban renewal plan. Since the Federal Government cancelled its urban renewal policy last year, meetings have been held between the City and the Federal Minister, Mr. Andras, regarding the future of the Britannia complex. Mr. Andras has indicated that, in this opinion, the Britannia complex will fit in with Federal Government's revised policy on urban renewals and, therefore, receive their approval. However, since that meeting, the Federal Minister has indicated that they will spend only 31/2 million dollars in 1970 on urban renewal in all of British Columbia. Of this, one million is allocated to New Westminster which leaves 21/2 million for the Strathcona area of Vancouver. The question is, how much does this leave as a Federal Government contribution toward the Britannia Community Complex? Mr. Speaker, what is required at this time is a statement from the City, and from our Provincial Government, indicating that this project has a top priority. I would urge our Government to give this commitment without delay, and I say this notwithstanding the present tight-money situation, since it will not require expenditure of funds for some years. The Britannia Complex is supported by several responsible community organizations, such as the Strathcona Property Owners and Tenants Association, and the associations tackle adverse conditions. It has been proposed for some years now, and it is badly needed in the Britannia area, which is densely populated and adjacent to the New Raymer Housing Project.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to make one final point. In British Columbia we have an excellent Civil Service and, in my three years as a member of this House, I have found most Government employees that I have met to be intelligent, dedicated people. I say that very sincerely, and as a business-man I previously held the popular view that people sought jobs in the Civil Service, at every level of government, primarily for security, and that they normally put less effort into their jobs than employees in private industry. Needless to say, I no longer hold that view, and much of the credit for the high calibre of our present Provincial Government employees, obviously, is due to the hiring and employment policies of our Civil Service Commission. Nevertheless it has now been about 20 years since we have had a comprehensive study on the efficiency of services that we perform in Government Departments. With payroll consuming over 50 per cent of our budget in all Departments, we should always keep a careful watch on whether the services performed are required, whether a job could be handled in another way, whether it could be more efficiently executed, and so on. I am talking about procedure rather than people. I am saying that it is quite possible that we could find more efficient work procedures, that would cut costs, that we should conduct an efficiency survey through all Departments to find out what might be done. I will be very much surprised if there were not several functions now being performed that couldn't be changed or removed. This has certainly proved true in my own business, which is not very big, for I employ some 135 people. Two years ago we decided to check all the forms which our employees had to use regularly in our business and we concluded we could dispense with several different forms and procedures that had formerly been used. Because these procedures had become a habit, everyone thought we could not do without them. But, I can safely say that we really didn't require them and, since then, have been able to make more efficient use of our man hours. I see no reason why this principle should not apply to government.

So, Mr. Speaker, I am asking our Government to appoint, if you like, an Efficiency Task Force to make a study of all Departments. This study should not be undertaken in my view by a consulting firm, but by a specially appointed committee of three. The members could be the chairman of the Civil Service Commission, plus an economist and a chartered accountant. The Civil Service chairman will provide the in-service knowledge of present staff functions and the economist and accountant from outside the Government service will provide the impartiality and qualified opinions from a broad-based business background. This committee should do an organizational survey of each Department, with the primary object of streamlining functions to make them easier to perform and eliminating those functions that are outmoded.

AN HON. MEMBER:…. including the Oppositions'.

MR. WOLFE: I think so, we should. (laughter)

AN HON. MEMBER: If you include the Opposition, you'll wipe them out altogether.

MR. WOLFE: Mr. Speaker, this committee should report directly to the Minister of Finance or to the Treasury Board rather than to the Minister of the Department involved. Allow me to explain this point. I am told that in previous studies of this kind, reports have been submitted to an individual department head, either to the Minister or the Deputy involved, and the result quite often is no action. Now I'm not saying that such reports require action on every recommendation, but many good things resulting from these studies are recommended and result in being buried in some file, so my recommendation is that their reporting should be directly to the Minister of Finance or the Treasury Board. The study could be started at any time, preferably right away, by conducting a trial study of just one Department.

Mr. Speaker, this is not meant as a criticism of our present Government operation, nor as a suggestion that our present services are inefficient. I would make the same recommendation of any Government. Nevertheless, our obligation to the taxpayer is to give him the best value for his dollar, and the time for this type of study will never be more opportune than right now. The inflation steamroller is the most pressing problem in Canada today, and our Government is being asked from all sides to cut down on spending. Our payroll represents the biggest part of our expenditures. We should make sure that the productivity is there and the most efficient procedures are being used.

MR. SPEAKER: The Honourable Member for North Vancouver–Seymour.

MR. B.A. CLARK (North Vancouver–Seymour): Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to join with those who have issued a welcome to those new members of this Assembly, and I am sure they are going to contribute greatly to its debates. In all honesty, Mr. Speaker, I am one of those who is highly impressed with those new members who have spoken thus far in the Throne Speech Debate.

I am sorry the Minister of Public Works is not in his seat at the moment because I wanted to congratulate him on the installation of the new sound system, and to also offer my congratulations on his efforts which I understand are responsible for shedding light on the well-rounded beauty of the ceiling, which I think adds greatly to the aesthetics of this

[ Page 71 ]

Chamber. I also understand it adds to the lighting. At any rate, we'll accept it.

Mr. Speaker, the Government, rightly so, is proud of its new and increased majority. Lest they think all went their way, and on behalf of those who worked so hard in my riding, I would just like to point out that in North Vancouver–Seymour they got fewer votes than at any time since the present member from Vancouver Centre tried his hand in my riding. (laughter) All did not go well despite the visit from the Premier.

AN HON. MEMBER: In your riding we won!

MR.CLARK: ….That's right. In your riding — in my riding — when you ran you got more votes than any other party. You've never done as well since….

Mr. Speaker, this was the first election that I have been in that resulted in some bitterness. That was a new experience for me, and, I must say quite frankly, I did not enjoy that particular aspect of the election. I make specific reference to the fact that at one point the president of the B.C. Social Credit League wrote to the Chairman of the Canadian Radio and Television Commission to endeavor to get me off my radio programme. That was awful. The suggestion was made that equal time should be offered, and in point of fact equal time was offered to the party concerned, but lo and behold by that time they decided they didn't want it.

Be that as it may, Mr. Speaker, I was happy to devote more time to the election campaign. There was, seriously, a lot of correspondence that went back and forth between the Radio and Television Commission, and various people concerning the definition of candidate, and I hope that as a result of this unfortunate incident that we will straighten out matters pertaining to my industry running in an election, because it is rather confused, and there were six members of my industry in the election this last time, and I am very proud of that. I am sorry more of them didn't get elected, more of them ran for our party. Mr. Speaker, I also wanted to congratulate the Minister of Public Works for his new lighting because I'm quite sure that with this new lighting there is no chance of any shadows lurking in the galleries or is that too subtle? It's alright, it's a local joke.

I did have the privilege, Mr. Speaker, shortly after the election to spend some time, a few days, in Denmark, and I wish to relate some of the experiences I had there, Mr. Speaker, because I am sure members of this Assembly would be genuinely interested.

AN HON. MEMBER: Yes, tell us all….

Well, I spent most of my time in the Justice Ministry, so it's not going to be as exciting as some of you might have thought. I was spending some time in an effort to try and determine, seriously, what was the mood behind the radical change in laws relating to social problems that was taking place in Denmark. I was impressed, as I think many members of this House are impressed, with the changes that are taking place there. Amongst those changes are some interesting things happening in their Assembly. I think the Danish parliamentary system, Mr. Speaker, is one of the few systems in the world that was founded after a team of well-known and responsible citizens journeyed to several democratic institutions, and then tried to come up with a system which involved the best of several, and there are some features that I think we very well might copy. For example, Mr. Speaker, there is a time limit on debate in the Danish Parliament, and I am sure you would appreciate one particular device that as soon as a member rises to speak, a time clock is automatically begun in the basement, and when his time limit is up the microphone goes off. (applause) I offer that as just one suggestion. There is a speaker's podium, Mr. Speaker, that is occupied by the person addressing the Chamber.

They do not have the seating arrangement we have in this House. They did not adopt the traditional two sword lengths. The reason for not doing this was because they felt, after looking at the British system and several others, that the seating arrangement in such a Chamber in fact prompted a political debate. Be that as it may, their Chamber, I think, is a pretty good example of debates taking place on a principle basis rather than on politics. I was very impressed with it.

Another point I thought the members might be interested in was the recent redistribution of seats in Denmark. The Committee that set up the redistribution gave three seats to three major universities, and the university students had an opportunity of electing their own members of Parliament, with the result that the student body of Denmark has a voice in their Parliament. Now, I didn't get a chance to meet the students, but I understand that views are slightly left of now, but needless to say they now have their place in that Assembly and the executive assistant to the Minister of Justice told me that they credit the redistribution with the fact that they are having relatively little problem with the student unrest at the Universities, because they feel that the students do have a say in the Assembly. It's an interesting concept.

Also, in the Danish Parliament, Mr. Speaker, the members of the Press Gallery are provided with the most sumptuous appointments I have ever seen anywhere. Private suites, a large meeting room, library, even a bar. (applause) I am sure if the Press Gallery members could applaud, they would.

AN HON. MEMBER: There's a bar right there.

MR. CLARK: ….Of course, they also have another feature, Mr. Speaker, namely complete access to radio and television coverage of that Assembly. The television cameras and microphones are at the complete disposal of any member of the press.

I recount some of these Danish traditions, Mr. Speaker, as an introduction to a specific proposal that I wish to make to the Government. With such an obvious majority, surely the Government now can have no objection to doing what many members in this House have requested since I have had a seat here. That is that we strike a Committee of this House whose sole purpose is designed to take a look at our rules and procedures. I would propose, Mr. Speaker, that this Committee have the broadest terms of reference possible, simply to be empowered to examine our rules, to examine the rules of any other democratic institution, and to report back to this House next year their recommendations. Certainly, the Government can have no fear that the Opposition will steamroller some of their pet projects into these recommendations, because there is no doubt that the Government would have a majority on that Committee. Mr. Speaker, seriously, while I pay tribute to the traditions of this House, I don't think that there is any member here who would say that the rules and procedures of this House are perfect. In point of fact, when we adopted the British Parliamentary Rules we gave them very little change. Since that time the British House of Commons has changed its rules in several important ways, and in point of fact the British House of Commons now has rules that are far more efficient

[ Page 72 ]

than our own in many specific categories.

Now, having mentioned Denmark, I am sure some of the members are fully aware that one of the things that is happening in Denmark is some rather radical changes to their laws pertaining to pornography. Many countries are watching Denmark to see what effect this is having on the population. I am aware this is a matter of Federal jurisdiction, but I am sure the members in this House would be interested to know that there are now statistics available as to some of the effects of the approach of the Danish parliamentary system. Quite simply, what they did in their Criminal Code some years ago, they removed all reference to pornography. They simply omitted it from the Criminal Code. What has this done, or resulted in? It was a long and complicated road dated from about 1964, December of that year. The Justice Ministry in Denmark was gracious enough to provide me with a precis of the thinking that led to their present law, and I have made copies of this and I am quite prepared to make them available to any member of the House who would like to have them. It's an interesting story.

However, what I think is most pertinent to this Assembly is the fact that for some reason or other there is a dramatic decline in certain categories of crime in Denmark, and that this dramatic decline in crime is by coincidence, at least, connected with these changes in law. In point, again very simply, what has happened is that crimes involving sexual offences have been cut in half, and the most dramatic aspect of these statistics, the most important one to me, is that crime involving sexual assault on children under 15 has been reduced by as much as two-thirds. Now, while no one I talked to suggested that this decline in this type of crime was due solely to their changes in pornography laws, the Chief of Police and the spokesman from the Justice Ministry clearly indicated to me that the change in the law had an effect on the whole sociological environment in Denmark the result of which is seen in the statistics of the Police Chief of Copenhagen, just released in Denmark, which show a further dramatic reduction in this type of crime in Denmark.

I raise this, Mr. Speaker, for this House to consider, because I think it is important to try and see that side of it as well as the moral side that is obviously involved with this question. There is a lot of opposition to changes in pornography legislation, and I can understand that from a moral point of view, but I think as legislators, all countries in the world should be taking a serious look at what is happening in Denmark.

On another subject, Mr. Speaker, it has been expressed in this side of the House several times already that there is very little in the Throne Speech to get excited about. Well, that's not very new. However, there's one exception to me and that's the single sentence that reads that you will be asked to give consideration to the introduction under the jurisdiction of the Honourable the Speaker, of a system of recordings of proceedings of this House." I am quite sure some members of the House expected me to speak on this.

AN HON. MEMBER: Is it really necessary?

MR. CLARK: Yes, it's necessary. I think it's desirable, I think I've got some important points I'd just like to mention, and you can decide for yourselves. I am going to have more to say about it, Mr. Speaker, no doubt when the specific resolution is in front of us but I would like to make a couple of points at this time.

Everything I have heard in this House in the past four Sessions pertaining to a Hansard or a system of recording of debates, has been the potential effect of such a system on those of us in this Chamber, and to me that is completely irrelevant. The importance of a Hansard or a recording of the debates of this House, is the effect it would have on the citizens of this Province, not on the people who happen to be elected to this Chamber. The fact that we may benefit from it is secondary, the fact that such a Hansard may change our ways, may force some of us to change our habits in this Assembly, in my opinion, is just too darned bad. That's one of the side effects, perhaps, of such a system. I maintain that the people of this Province have a right to a recording of the debates of this House.

With regard to the system of tape recording I see presently installed in this Chamber, I would point out from experience that tape recording, while an excellent record, is an extremely inefficient reference. Extremely so. It is very easy to take a tape from this Chamber and file it away somewhere and say you have a recording of the debates of this Assembly. I wonder how many of you have ever had occasion to take an hour reel, or what I refer to as an hour reel, the size that we are using here, although it is recording far more than one hour on it, and find a specific spot in that tape. There are members in the Gallery, I am sure, who have been faced with that problem. But it is a long task, and in many cases, virtually impossible to find that place you are looking for. It just is not an efficient point of reference. Incidentally, in the method of tape recording we have installed in the Chamber at the present time, there is no way any single member of this House could play it, because the tape recording method that is being used, is playable only on certain specific equipment, and that equipment is extremely expensive and available, to my knowledge, only in radio or television studios. There we could play it.

Regarding tapes being filed, Mr. Speaker, I point out that they can be erased with ease and by accident. Sometimes the very simplest action of an innocent party can erase a whole bank of tapes, and I'm a witness to that from personal experience. Many things set up a magnetic field which will erase tapes. Tapes can be broken, they can be shattered into thousands of pieces, which I am sure will occur one day in this House, when they are being re-wound. This happens in the best of tape equipment. When we are looking at the tape recordings in this debate in terms of Provincial archives which is one purpose of having these records, a feature of tape known as "print through" becomes rather pertinent, and this is where tape becomes brittle and will transpose from one tape onto the tape lying beside it, its recorded word, and you end up after a number of years with nothing but a jumble. In short, a recording of the debates of this House, unless transcribed some time after the recording, in my opinion is completely useless. I will leave for a later debate, questions as to who should have access to the tape recordings we are making here.

Mr. Speaker, I note that in the Speech from the Throne mention of further assistance to those senior citizens on pension, both in the form of financial assistance and in the provision of low-rental housing and I welcome that mention. But conspicuous by its absence, Mr. Speaker, is any mention at all of further assistance or any assistance to those senior citizens of our Province requiring chronic care, there's no mention. I said in this House in my first Session, and I think in every Session, that in my riding senior citizens are being faced with rates as high as four and five hundred dollars a

[ Page 73 ]

month to receive chronic care. That's the situation that exists in British Columbia, that's the situation that is not even mentioned in this Throne Speech.

There is also no mention of specific assistance to the senior citizens who are striving to maintain their existence in a home that they have saved for, have bought and paid for years ago, but are now threatening to lose because of increased municipal property taxes. There is not a mention in the Throne Speech about that person, and I note the first item of importance that many of the Mayors of this Province picked out of the Throne Speech, was this omission. Saanich Mayor Hugh Curtis said, "I have particular concern for the retired fixed income home-owners, who, because of rising property taxes, have reached the point where they have to sell their homes. They can no longer afford to live in them." So, Mr. Speaker, for the fourth year in this Chamber, I ask the Government to consider some form of tax relief for the pensioned home-owners. Every senior citizen who manages to maintain residence in his own home, is a senior citizen that this Government does not have to provide accommodation for.

Further, Mr. Speaker, every senior citizen who maintains residence in his own home, is a stabilizing voice in our communities. I believe one of the worst things we have done in our society today is to collect elderly people together into neat little ghettos. What a sterile society it is that sees every house in every street containing a family of identical age and income. The song, Mr. Speaker, says "Where have all the flowers gone?" Where have all the senior citizens of this Province gone? They have gone to nursing-homes, cold, one-room flats, and neat tiny little cubicles. This Government has it within its power right now to alleviate the situation.

I proposed one method in the past, namely that legislation be introduced to allow municipalities to take a covenant on such properties so that municipal taxes do not have to be paid until such time as that pensioner is either deceased or disposes of that property. It's completely feasible. It could be done very simply. That's just one method of solving this problem, or at least assisting. So the senior citizens who have worked so hard for their homes do not have to leave simply because of rising municipal taxation. You can take it any step beyond that you want, all I'm asking is the first. There is no mention of that at all in the Throne Speech this year again, Mr. Speaker.

On Sunday, November 23rd of last year, an article appeared in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer entitled, "Does Anyone Care About Mary?" I don't know whether anyone of you saw that article. But the article represents a situation that exists in British Columbia as it exists in Washington State and, in my opinion, there is no excuse in 1970 for a story such as this being printed, in either our neighbouring State or in this Province. We may not be able to do anything about the situation in Washington State, but we can sure do something about it here. The girl they called Mary was a small-town girl, is a small-town girl who came to Seattle at the age of eighteen. Her mother was employed as a cook; her father, also a cook, was unemployed. Mary had rented her first city apartment. Following a knock on the door, she naively opened it, whereupon a man she had never seen entered her apartment and criminally assaulted her. As a result of that attack, Mary Smith was rushed to the Virginia Mason Hospital, her hands slashed, her left hand — and she was left handed — encased in a bandage hiding severed tendons, a black eye, internal injuries and psychological damage that anyone here can imagine.

The story is frightening enough, Mr. Speaker, up to that point, but there is a further crime that follows. The man charged with this assault is now supported by the State. He was married, father of three children, and his wife and children are supported by the State. He will be trained, given free medical care, room and board, clothes while in prison. A programme of rehabilitation including college will be provided for him. No one here objects to that, but what of Mary? She in her hospital bed is faced with medical expenses resulting from this attack. Her parents are obviously in no position to assist. It will be some months before she can return to work. In short, she is an innocent victim who will pay socially and financially for many, many years of her life. The article concludes, "Does anyone care about Mary Smith?" Mr. Speaker, there are Mary Smiths in British Columbia that we hear about every week. These are the innocent victims. Last year we took the first little step, when the Government agreed to provide compensation for people who were injured while assisting a peace officer. Let's take the next big step and come to the assistance of the Mary Smiths of this Province, who, through no fault of their own, have been victims of crime…. (applause) That also wasn't mentioned in the Throne Speech, Mr. Speaker.

From time to time in this Assembly we are asked to give official recognition in law to certain associations who are thereupon empowered to police their members. Examples of this are the engineering professions, the legal profession and the medical profession, all of whom are well represented in this Chamber. Mr. Speaker, I am becoming concerned that as these professions police their members, they are taking upon themselves powers that I feel are inappropriate. I certainly acknowledge the continued need for professional association and professional discipline. What I am concerned about is the fact that some of these associations have chosen to take a very strict mind in regards to the relationship between their members and the news media. To be specific, the Medical Association in British Columbia. Its rules and regulations prohibit a doctor from advertising. No objection from me at all. What I do object to is that the Medical Association is interpreting that rule to prohibit a doctor from discussing his own business, his own point of view, with the Press, and I don't think this association should take upon itself any such responsibility.

In my capacity as a reporter or commentator I have had occasions to seek out doctors in an effort to get their opinion on some medical announcement or advancement, and more and more often I am receiving the reply that the doctor in question must first obtain permission from his Association and more and more often I am receiving the reply that such permission has been refused. I suggest that such action by this professional association of doctors is in direct confrontation with the rights of the public to know the facts.

There are doctors in this Province who are at the forefront of medical development, some of them, yes, of a controversial nature. Without being specific, because I don't want to get a couple of doctors in more hot water than they are already, these medical developments are sometimes the subject of great debate within the profession. That's fine, I don't object to that, I hope they will continue to debate amongst themselves. But I question the right to prevent the doctor from communicating his ideas in regard to these developments to the public. One specific example recently was a doctor approached by a national media to give his views on a medical operation, his views being those of a

[ Page 74 ]

doctor who has probably more experience in this particular operation than any other doctor in Canada. I am informed that permission to take part in the interview was granted on the condition that the doctor's personal identity remain a secret. What nonsense! The national media, I further understand, did in fact identify the doctor, which caused the physician in question great embarrassment at a later date. In a separate incident, a member of the broadcasting profession in the City of Vancouver sought an interview with a medical practitioner of that same City with regard to, again a specific medical question. The doctor concerned replied that he was advised not to go on the radio. The question I raise is this: While acknowledging the values of such associations, do those associations or should those associations have the power to restrict or prohibit the expression of free opinion by its members to the public? I say they should have no such power….

AN HON. MEMBER: Right!

MR. CLARK: ….Another example, regardless of any member's personal view pertaining to abortion, you must be aware that there are countries in this world where this particular operation is legal and allowed. You are also surely prepared to acknowledge that there are women in this Province who will seek such an operation, be it legal or not. Some doctors in this Province happen to support the principle that a woman has the right to decide for herself whether or not she should have a baby, and they have investigated the clinics and hospitals in Japan and Britain. Yet the medical profession of this Province prohibits those doctors from being identified.

Now in order for a conscientious woman, married or not, to gain information as to what doctor can assist her in obtaining an abortion in one of these countries where it is perfectly legal, she's got to go the most circuitous route you can possibly imagine and try to find out through some whispering campaign what doctor can help her. Again I say, this is absolute nonsense. In my opinion a woman should have the right to such information, and any citizen should have the right to information regarding any medical problem or advance. If you do not believe that this is a problem, I suggest you talk to any of the moderators of the talk programmes in the City of Vancouver. You'll find they face the same situation I do, that they get at least a dozen inquiries a week as to whether or not we can identify the doctors who will provide this advice regarding abortion or male sterilization. I don't particularly want to be in the business of that sort of referral service, but I have to be at the moment, and I think it's wrong!

Mr. Speaker, glancing at the clock and wanting to maintain the good record of the previous speakers, I want to go to the final topic I wish to deal with this afternoon. This past year in my riding, Mr. Speaker, is a perfect example of what can happen when no one accepts the responsibility with regard to pollution, and I make no apologies for raising the topic again. Is there any more important subject we could discuss from the Throne Speech this year? I see by the Throne Speech that pollution standards may be placed in the hands of the municipalities. With that in your minds, I ask you to follow this story, as I feel it is a perfect example of what's happening in British Columbia, and I lay no specific blame on any specific level of government for what's happening.

Part of my riding includes a portion of the harbour of Vancouver, and along that harbour are located such industries as Hooker Chemical, Erco, The Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, Burrard Dry Dock, and Neptune Terminals. Neptune Terminals is a relatively new industry, Mr. Speaker, it's involved completely in bulk loading. Early last year I was advised by the Mayor of the District of North Vancouver that he had heard, off the record, that Neptune Terminals intended to get into the bulk loading of coal. He further informed me that he had taken it upon himself to relate this information to the Mayor of the City of North Vancouver. Right away we have the first ridiculous situation, where one Mayor has to tell the other Mayor because the first Mayor wasn't sure it was in his jurisdiction, and the day is going to come when we have one Mayor, Mr. Speaker. (applause) That was the first problem. But apparently the two Mayors did get together, and they were now aware that this industry was going to become involved in the bulk loading of coal.

Neptune Terminals had intended to enter the bulk coal business from the start, but it must be remembered that shortly after Neptune entered North Vancouver the Roberts Bank developments were announced, and I think it is fair to say that every citizen in North Vancouver now believed that all bulk loading of coal would take place at Roberts Bank. They were to be surprised. At this stage, knowledge of Neptune's plans became public. The coal involved, incidentally, comes from Smokey River, Alberta. The Neptune Terminals, at this time, was purchased by Federal Grain Limited, a well known British Columbia firm, and it was that company that made application to the City Council in North Vancouver by way of a letter requesting the City to commit itself to a guarantee that no delays would be placed in the way of building permits for the construction of the facilities to load this coal.

Well, at this point the community literally went wild. Public reaction was entirely negative. I have never seen any issue arouse the ire of North Vancouver like this one. At this stage some City aldermen suggested they would oppose any such building permits. Now, Neptune Terminals countered with a public threat that they would launch suit against the city if the building permits were refused, and at this stage Capt. Barney Johnstone, then of the National Harbours Board, stated publicly that he had an agreement from Neptune whereby they would do nothing contrary to municipal bylaws.

I would like to admit very freely that at this stage public reaction was highly emotional. Things were being said that I am sure are now regretted by all parties. It was an emotional situation. It was their homes that people were talking about, because Neptune Terminals is located in a particular section of North Vancouver in my riding on the harbour and right above it is a prime residential area. Not a mile away, not a half mile away, not even half a city block away, literally just up the slope. Engineering studies were produced at this time, and to the horror of everyone, all the studies agreed that there would be an air pollution problem from this coal within a radius of three miles, a potential air pollution problem, Mr. Speaker, to be fair. Well, three miles included a lot of prime residential area. A citizens' committee was formed under the name of the Anti-Coal Petitioners, and they appealed to City Council to reject any building permits. The same group, I believe, appealed to the Minister of Municipal Affairs at this stage, who declined to intervene.

Now, at this time we managed to reach the House of Commons in Ottawa on Neptune Coal. It's amazing how many government bodies become involved in this story,

[ Page 75 ]

which makes the tragedy that much more bitter. The former member of this House and the former leader of this particular group, Mr. Ray Perrault, raised the subject of Neptune Terminals in the House of Commons. Mr. Perrault was answered by the Hon. Donald Jamieson, Minister of Transport, and in reading these comments I am sorry that the member from Delta is not here because it seems to be pertinent to his problem and I have sympathy for him. This is what the Hon. Donald Jamieson said about Neptune Terminals and the coal pollution problem, and I am quoting from Hansard — you note that there is a Hansard in the House of Commons — Tuesday, May 27th, 1969. Please note how handy it is, too, I don't have to wheel in a tape machine. "The fact of the matter is that in cases like this — and I am thinking specifically of the Neptune Pier — the National Harbours Board has followed the same procedures as it adopts with regard to all these facilities throughout Canada. Any lessee or user is required to abide by all civic by-laws which apply in the area…." Fortunately we have a Hansard to check the words of the Minister.

Let me continue. I need not point out to the honourable member that regulations of this nature fall within the municipal or perhaps within the provincial field, but to ensure that there is no flagrant disregard of pollution devices or regulations, the Harbours Board does insist that these local regulations be adhered to. This has been the position in the case of Neptune. It was so during the whole of the construction period as far as I am aware, and the Neptune Company was so advised, as was the City Council. They worked in concert during that period, and to my knowledge no objections were raised at that time, however, I appreciate that all this may be regarded as constituting an evasion of the actual facts of the case. There is no point trying to tell residents who are threatened by pollution that it is all being done in the proper constitutional manner. I am well aware of this and I want to assure the honourable member that as far as the Harbours Board is concerned, we shall insure that the local by-laws are adhered to.

Now, at this stage things were really hot. City Council chambers in North Vancouver were anything but calm, and the poor Mayor one night even arranged to have plain clothes policemen seated in the galleries. That was bad enough. She ordered the gallery cleared at one stage, too, by these same officers. This community was really aroused. Well, to make a long story short, the building permits were granted. Mr. Speaker, I think the vote was five to two.

At this stage the Provincial election intervened. Needless to say the question of Neptune Terminals became a pretty hot election issue. The Social Credit candidate announced that if elected he would see that his voice would be heard here and something would be done, without being specific. But, he was obviously unaware of what the Minister of Municipal Affairs had said when he indicated to the local press that he wouldn't intervene. The New Democratic candidate, I am sorry to say, got himself in quite a pickle because he went around saying that he was going to correct it all if he was elected, and the people were well enough aware of the rules of this House to know that was going to be pretty difficult, but to make matters even worse, his running mate in Capilano came out in favour of the companies. I, personally, already was associated with those opposed to the installation of Neptune obviously. The Provincial election really served only to stir up the coal dust and accomplish absolutely nothing.

The next move in relation to North Vancouver was a public relations firm, they always enter the scene at some stage. In comes the public relations firm, armed with money and a beautiful brochure appears on the doorstep of every North Vancouver home saying how much we are going to love coal. It was beautiful. It just happened to coincide with the municipal election campaign. The Provincial election was over and the municipal election was upon us, and here was this lovely brochure "Isn't Coal Wonderful." Now, the next step was that one of the aldermen who had led the opposition to this coal was running for mayor, and two of the executive of the anti-coal petitioners were running for aldermen. Oh, this was a wild one.

It's really a tragedy, it's really not funny in the least, because here's the real tragic part of the story. It was after the election now. I'm not about to throw all sorts of bricks at you people. After the election the man who had led the fight on Council against the coal was elected mayor. The president of the anti-coal petitioners was elected alderman, and with those who had already opposed the installation of the coal. The tragedy is that if the vote on building permits was taken today I dare say we would not have coal in North Vancouver, but the election was six months too late.

What's the moral of the story? Well, to me the moral of the story is that because there is absolutely no co-ordination between any level of Government when it comes to pollution, in point of fact, nothing is being done, nothing.

In this one, in this story, Mr. Speaker, I lay the blame on the Federal Government for ever allowing one of its bodies, the National Harbours Board, to enter into an agreement to instal bulk loading of coal facilities within a municipality without any consultation at all with the municipality, none at all. I blame the National Harbours Board and its officials for sanctioning such an agreement without ever informing the two municipalities involved as to what was going on. I blame the Provincial Government for not having air pollution standards in the Province, for not having pollution guidelines. I think you are equally guilty, and I blame the local municipal council who, in my opinion, just didn't stand up against it long enough.

But the tragedy is that there are no pollution standards in British Columbia to bring all these powers together. I have no truck for anybody who is going to say well it's that government's fault more than it's that one. The public doesn't give a hoot whose fault it is. The people of North Vancouver are just asking themselves, how in the name of creation did we get coal on the Vancouver waterfront?

HON. R.R. LOFFMARK (Vancouver South): They've got Perrault over there — that's their problem.

MR. CLARK: Mr. Speaker, I challenge the Honourable Minister of Health, when he takes his place in this debate, to justify the words he just gave us in this Chamber as any sort of excuse for the people of North Vancouver. (applause) And, if your air standards are so cotton pickin' good how come we got coal in North Vancouver?

MR. LOFFMARK: You have Liberals over there — that's your problem.

MR. CLARK: You mean your air standards don't apply to us?

DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order, please. Order, please. Would the Honourable Minister restrain himself and then give up the

[ Page 76 ]

floor.

MR. CLARK: Mr. Speaker, I attempted to relate the story only in an effort to portray the tragedy that had occurred in this category of events. The fact that the Minister of Health doesn't choose to take the story seriously is no surprise to me and that, too, is an additional tragedy. (applause)

DEPUTY SPEAKER: The Honourable First Member for Vancouver Burrard.

MR. H.J. MERILEES (1st-Vancouver-Burrard): Mr. Speaker, honourable members of the Legislature, as I take my place in this Assembly, along with my sterling colleague, representing the over 100,000 citizens of Vancouver-Burrard, I am very conscious of the high honour and the responsibility that has been placed upon me. Vancouver-Burrard is one of the most interesting constituencies in Canada representing, as it does, the many social, economic, financial, industrial and ethnic groups that go to make up our great nation.

Before I give my maiden speech I have an apology to the members and to the citizens of Victoria. I have been here now for close to a week, and I regret to say that I have yet to get the weather situation under control.

Vancouver-Burrard should be viewed from the waterfront, in other words from the north looking south because that is the way the constituency grew, and if you do, the southern boundary is 16th Ave. which used to mark the old municipal boundary between South Vancouver and City of Vancouver, and I hope that in the 1970's that many of these senseless, uneconomic municipal boundaries will disappear, too. On the west it is bounded by Collingwood, on the east by Fraser St. and on the north by the ten thousand coloform count waters, which should please the honourable leader of the Liberal party, the ten thousand or more coloform count polluted waters of False Creek.

In addition to over 100,000 fine citizens, Vancouver-Burrard contains the head offices of over 48 of the organized labour unions in British Columbia, including the powerful Trades and Labour Council and the B.C. Federation of Labour. Also within the boundaries of Burrard as well — over to the left, of course — on Broadway, are the provincial headquarters of the New Democratic Party, and would you believe that on Broadway, also in Burrard, are the headquarters of the Provincial Social Credit League, but they are well over to the right on Burrard. Another interesting head office in Burrard is that of the B.C. Teachers' Federation, who occupy a very handsome structure at the comer of Burrard and 8th. On 8th Ave., across the street from the B.C. Teachers' Federation, in a not-so-handsome structure, is the hippie hangout known as Cool-Aide. I don't know if there is any parallel there or not.

Also on Burrard — the honourable member for Vancouver Centre was justly bragging about the financial headquarters of our Province in Vancouver Centre — in Burrard there are the headquarters for many social welfare organizations, as well as labour unions and the Teacher's Federation, and others. I won't name them all, but the Community Chest which serves the whole of the area — the honourable Leader of the Opposition has probably visited that Head Office too — Alexandra House. I don't know whether he's familiar with the commendable and famous, and to be more famous, activator unit in Vancouver-Burrard, the X kalay Society, and many others indeed.

One of the finest and largest healing institutions in the world today, certainly in Canada, the giant Vancouver General Hospital is gallantly working to attempt to cope with the needs of Greater Vancouver, and in many cases, the needs of the whole of the Province of British Columbia. Also nearby is Vancouver's seat of government, Vancouver City Hall, and the head office, would you believe it or not — and the honourable member for Kamloops referred to this organization before — the giant Pacific Press which publishes the Province in the morning and makes the Sun shine at night — right in the middle of Burrard. Burrard was the original home of the University of British Columbia which graduated some of this Province's most distinguished citizens before it moved to its very handsome campus in Point Grey. The late great Brigadier Sherwood Lett graduated from the Fairview campus in 1916, and Dr. Hugh Keenleyside was a graduate in 1920, and many, many others.

False Creek, which our City is now very wisely turning from a sow's ear into a silk purse, since 1886 has produced hundreds of millions of dollars in jobs and in produce. A fine contribution to the world's shipping are the warships of Canada's two great efforts in the two world wars. But the die has been cast and industry is being phased out, it is moving to other locations gradually so as not to dislocate workers and industry, but moving it is, and exciting new marina and dwelling projects are on the drawing boards. The City's health department today, which may come as some surprise to some people in this House, is well on its five-year programme of pinpointing all sources of sewage and other pollution of False Creek to the day in the near future when I will be able to invite the honourable leader of the Liberal Party to go with me for a swim.

Already some of the finest historic and tourist attractions are in Burrard at Kitsilano. The latest gem to be added was the famous H.R. MacMillan Planetarium and Museum complex. Alongside is the historic North Vancouver–built Saint Roche — the famous schooner, first and only vessel to make the East-West and West to East crossing of the Arctic Ocean and at the same time circumnavigate the North American continent. Alongside Saint Roche is Vancouver's contribution to the 1958 observation of British Columbia's Centennial — a maritime museum with the twin to the totem presented by the Province to Her Majesty the Queen in that year, and both of which were carved by the late great Kwakuitl Carver in Victoria, Mungo Martin. Close by, the historic Canadian Pacific Railway locomotive No. 374, which hauled the first trans-continental train into Vancouver and which was, of course, a part of the bargain that brought this Province into Confederation. During 1971, in recognition of the hundredth anniversary of this historic occasion, our Government and every community will be embarked on gala projects.

The statue of Captain George Vancouver stands in gold above these buildings, and he was a navigator whose charts are still helping to guide traffic on the exciting coast of British Columbia. This great British captain first sighted Vancouver in 1792 and he named Vancouver Harbour after his friend Sir Harry Burrard. Today, the port of Vancouver handles more freight than does the ports of Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles combined. Tomorrow, at Roberts Bank, close by the waters where Vancouver met those gallant Spanish captains, Roberts Bank will come into production, handling the giant bulk freighters of today that will make the Lower Mainland of this Province the greatest shipping point in all of Canada, and one of the great freight shipping and handling points in the whole of the World. (applause)

[ Page 77 ]

Not too many people realize that George Vancouver was of Dutch descent and when his early ancestor came to Britain the name was Vancouverdom, later contracted to Vancouver, and those who have read carefully Vancouver's voyages and his history will realize that he placed excellence, accuracy and duty before all other things, thereby living up to that famous old Dutch motto "Verbeter de Wereld, Begin By Uzelf" which translated means "to better the world — begin with yourself". This is a motto that all of us in British Columbia, I think, could do very well to live up to in the 1970's both as individuals, as organizations, and as well as communities and corporations.

A continuing review and recognition of our own personal responsibilities would be especially applicable when we become exercised about other people's pollution and other people's ugly dwellings and projects and urban sprawl. In this connection I suggest that we set up a Provincial advisory board on excellence of design, colour and quality. British Columbia is fortunate indeed to have some of the finest architects, artists, and designers that there are in this country. I'm quite sure that such a Board, when it is set up, would quickly come forward with a set of specifications that would be of extreme assistance in giving us standards of excellence for all the communities of British Columbia. I think these could deal with construction, colour and design. The Government could make the services of this Board freely available to all cities and municipalities. The standards would not of necessity be compulsory, of course, but they could act as an inspiration to all parts of our Province, advising colours of buildings to blend with the Cariboo, with the coastal areas, with the Kootenays and with every geographic region.

I suggest that we build, design, and colour during the 1970's so that the rest of the world will say that they truly have men to match their mountains. Let us pledge ourselves an end to ugly, jerry-built structures. Marble, they say is too expensive, but who says that all cement has to be grey?

Using woods, our Architectural Institute and many private organizations already have booklets and brochures that give colourful, beautiful designs of sound construction free of charge to any who need them.

The Department of Highways could start the ball rolling, Mr. Minister, by budgeting a fraction of one per cent of its annual budget for freeways and arterials for landscaping and for beautification. The municipalities from Hope to Vancouver could get together and plant ten million daffodils in the median of Highway 401. We say that Spring comes early on the Pacific coast — now let's prove it. This is no difficult project for the municipalities in that area to get together with the Department of Highways and make this a fantastic sight for anyone driving in from the East.

Combating pollution, cleaning up our cities and our Province, labour, lower cost housing, lower cost drugs, improved hospitals, schools and many other projects will occupy my attention as they will occupy others. But this, my first opportunity to speak to the elected representatives, I'd like to take a few minutes to discuss British Columbia's most dynamic dollar earner, the tourist travel and convention industry.

The Honourable Minister of Travel has indicated that this industry in the year 1969 came close to exceeding the $400,000,000 mark in revenue to the Province. In days gone by, Mark Twain said that everybody talks about the weather but very few people do anything about it. Now from my long experience in the tourist field I write out a parallel for that, and say that in British Columbia just about everybody talks about the tourist industry but very few know what they're talking about.

Tourism is not simple. It is not just some guy in a 1969 Cadillac with a California licence. It's not that simple. Tourism is a very complex industry. Just because it has no smokestack in the air people don't recognize it as an industry, but it is. We have individual experts in the many facets of our tourism and travel. There are experts in airlines, experts in hotels, experts running a ferry system, expert restaurateurs, and so forth — they go down the line. But overall experts to put the package together and organize it on a Provincial or a Federal basis — these are scarce indeed. No wonder they're scarce, because we have no system to produce them in the academic sense. The ones we have, our so-called experts, that we call experts, the only ones we have are actually just like Topsy — they growed. Not to say they're not skilled people in their own fields, and that they haven't learned to be experts in their own way, but we should have an academic programme that would produce them. So I would call for a cooperative programme that could be worked out with our school programme even as low as high school level, but certainly at the university level — and I'm sure the travel industry would cooperate — to produce each year at least a few graduates who could become, in a relatively small number of years, experts to handle this vast industry that stares British Columbia right in the face.

Research is needed, scientific research. With a $400,000,000 industry wouldn't you do a little research? If you had an advertising budget to reach out into the world market, and in an attempt to increase a volume of 400,000,000, don't you think a fraction of one per cent of that might be devoted to pure scientific market research? It's not to say that some research is not being done, it's just to say that the budget should be increased and the programme set up in a formal sense.

Comparisons are odious but compare we must in the one sense. Today tourism is number three in the Provincial economy, hard on the heels of mining, and it will be passing mining very, very soon, and then will commence the long, but in the end what will be successful, pursuit of the giant forest products industry which is now safely and securely ensconced in number one position. Pass the forest products one day it will do, and this is the point of my story — that we should as a Province, be preparing for this and working toward it.

If we have a $400,000,000 industry today, the sky is the limit as to what we might build it into. I don't know whether it's common knowledge, but the Bonneville Power Authority conducts each year an economic survey in depth, and one of their recent surveys shows that in the Pacific North-West States of the United States that tourism will become their number one industry by the year 1984. We're their neighbours and if we can't take a lesson or a clue from that survey, then we need our heads reading. Possessing as we do some of the last great sky, land and sea frontiers in the world today we should make sure that tourism does become our number one industry. If we don't want it, then we'd better make that decision too, or just let it slide and go by default.

Two of the greatest obstacles that have faced the developing of tourism were access and facilities. Today British Columbia highways, thanks to a fantastic programme in the last number of years, and the air and surface transportation systems, have very largely overcome the access problem, and I should add to this and give credit to the

[ Page 78 ]

British Columbia ferry system and the Honourable Premier's fantastic fleet.

In this field of transportation I have an addition to suggest. I strongly urge the Government to consider the setting up of a Department of Aviation to encourage the development of more small landings airstrips in conjunction with….

AN HON. MEMBER: Oh…for flying Phil….

MR. MERILEES: The Honourable Minister from Kamloops — I want to give him more places to go. (applause) I want to open that oyster of opportunity still wider.

Today, private aviation is in an explosive state of development. The number of private flyers of private planes has increased tremendously. In British Columbia of course, we have many lakes and many landing places for float planes, but for land-based planes, we need more and better landing strips. Incidentally, our progressive competitors in the State of Washington have such a department, in case anybody is interested, and they are our friendly rivals in this field. Also does the Province of Ontario, so a Department of Aviation for a Provincial Government is nothing strange, it could be attached to any one of at least two or three Departments of Government. Not only would it provide access, don't forget that some of the wealthiest citizens we have, some of the biggest industries we have today, oh their beginnings were a flight into this Province somewhere in a private aircraft for either a fishing or big hunting expedition — you got to believe it. That's how they first came here. There are side effects or bonuses in this connection in the more remote areas, as I am not just suggesting these landing strips only for the benefit of those economically capable of flying their own plane. In case of emergency or for straight economic use of the community, the presence of a landing strip can be a tremendous blessing.

Our facilities, mainly hotels, motels, parks and campgrounds, are developed beyond recognition, or have been in the last fifteen years — we all know this. But let me tell you, that this is still the most single, vital area as far as the development of tourism and conventions is concerned, that requires the greatest development of all. More and better camping grounds and marine parks are a pressing necessity, too, and these, of course, we all recognize, are a Provincial responsibility. The ones that we have are not only beautiful, they are well selected and very well done, but the pressure of the 1970's, and the competition, is going to demand they be refined and expanded, there is no doubt. Don't forget, despite the glamour and the speed and the luxury of jet air transportation — and this shocks a lot of people when they find out, the experts, or self-appointed ones on tourism, that I mentioned — that 80 per cent of our tourists still come on rubber, they still come in their own private cars, trailers or campers. Eighty per cent, that's the bread and butter.

The main challenge to our tourist promotion skills today, of course, is to develop off-beat business. Anybody can fill a room in a hotel or a motel in Victoria and Vancouver or in the lower mainland in August, but it takes a smart man to fill that hotel in February. One dollar in February is worth three dollars in July. Many parts of British Columbia, including particularly the lower mainland, lower Vancouver Island and so on, are crammed in the spring, summer and early fall months, but in the winter decline months, we are offered a real challenge to our ingenuity. If we succeed, and the Honourable Minister's Department knows this and is working on it, but this goes for all of us to remember, the main reward for developing this off-peak winter business is greater year-round employment for people, the thousands of people who are engaged in the business, extend their payroll period for twelve months instead of four, and greater provincial and municipal revenues.

Skiing and winter sports facilities particularly must be developed to greater volume and better quality, and I stress quality. Second-class accommodation, whether it be for skiers or visitors at conventions, just is no good — it won't stand up today in world competition. The lower mainland and the Okanagan ski facility developments have slowed down the weekend drain to the neighbouring State of Washington. But to reverse the trend, and really make it meaningful, to reverse this trend of dollars, we have still to improve, and the big emphasis is to improve as well as expand, our skiing and winter sports facilities.

Every effort by everyone of us should be put behind the efforts of dedicated men and women who form the Garibaldi Olympic Development Committee. Look at the Winter Games — if we get them for 1976 in the context of a convention — you will see, and easily grasp the fact that this would be the greatest single convention ever held in the history of this Province. Conventions, incidentally, meant $47,000,000 in revenue to this Province last year, the Honourable Minister tells me, $47,000,000.

I said that the capacity to accommodate visitors was packed to the limit in 1969, in 1970 it will get worse, but in 1971 the situation will have gotten clear away from us, unless assistance is given to those employing risk capital in building first-class facilities. I endorse the B.C. Hotel Association suggestion that the Government consider the provision of guaranteed loans through the Bank of British Columbia at reduced rates of interest in order to encourage investment in this field. I quote from a Canada-wide survey by the nationally known firm of Acres Limited, who state, "The Province of British Columbia offers the greatest potential for tourist development of any Province in Canada. The vast extent of its water and mountain recreation resources, its proven ability to attract visitors from the heavily populated areas of the western United States and offer them year-round recreation, combined with the fact that tourist plant development has fallen far behind, all support this statement."

For those who say, "Just another special interest plea, " I could give you a dozen reasons why not. Any hotel or motel in this Province who keeps a guest or a family overnight not only benefits their own business, but just about every other business in town. The people buy gasoline, they buy food, they buy fishing rods, a tooth brush, a pair of rubbers, or have a hair cut or half a dozen other things, before they move on to the next community, so the building of accommodation in any of our towns or cities benefits the whole community indeed.

Mr. Speaker, there is not time today to develop a total programme, this will come later. The Honourable Minister and his capable deputies and staff, as well as the dedicated voluntary leaders of the nine geographic regions of this Province, which incidentally was set up by the Department of Travel some years ago, and there is no plan in Canada that I know of and I don't think in North America, to match the plan set up by the Honourable Minister a number of years ago that created these nine geographic regions for tourist promotion, and I want to personally convey my congratulations to him. It is of interest to know, that in the galleries today, some of the dedicated volunteer workers

[ Page 79 ]

from a number of those nine regions are listening to our deliberations, and I would like to pay my respects to them. Many industries and businesses have come to the Province as a result of a fishing or hunting trip, I mentioned that before.

One thing that is often not thought of, everybody worries about our University students, which they should do, but one thing that a lot of people don't realize is that thousands of those students at Simon Fraser, Victoria University, and University of British Columbia, earn their annual tuition fees each summer by working in the tourist industry. This is what makes it possible for them to attend the universities of our Province. At least 20,000 families, that's a conservative estimate, one of the largest single payrolls in this Province, are directly dependant on the travel, tourist or convention industry for their livelihood.

Of the close to $400,000,000 that the Province realized in 1969, it's a safe bet to say that approximately $200,000,000, Mr. Minister, was American money. They were American dollars. An economist will tell you that the introduction of foreign dollars into this economy is like a blood transfusion. These dollars are worth at least one to five of our own dollar. Many communities from Campbell River to Kamloops to Prince George — you name it, owe the presence in their town of a fine hotel or motel, with luxurious banquet and meeting rooms, far beyond that which they could normally support, directly to the subsidies they receive from the great industry in the spring, summer and fall, and this is an indirect benefit to the community as a whole. Finally, if it were not for the travel, tourist, and convention dollars that we earn, economists will tell you that individual and corporate taxation would rise between 21 and 23 per cent.

I would like to speak for a minute about my own City of Vancouver. The problems of urbanization have been mentioned many, many times. It is acknowledged today that urbanization is one of the greatest single problems that face all of North America, the trek to the big cities has been going on for years, and it is pyramiding the financial burden to the breaking point.

One problem alone, in my own constituency, which points this up is the steady stream of socially and financially insolvent people, particularly younger people, who are finding their way to our doorstep and who, in the name of humanity, must be taken care of. In one long-suffering area of the Burrard riding alone, and the situation has become what might be at least described as alarming in the eyes of the health authorities and the law enforcement authorities and social authorities. Social agencies attempting to cope, and the law enforcement officers, deserve the strongest possible sympathetic support of this Government and of Ottawa.

Major problems on the physical front are also due, in good part, to the trek to the big cities, and I point the need for more generous financial treatment for the City of Vancouver. New schools, more hospital beds, social assistance, rapid transit, you name it — harbour crossings, expensive approaches, have become just too heavy a burden for residential and industrial land taxes to carry. The present system of obtaining revenues is totally inadequate. I realize that the Honourable Minister of Municipal Affairs is fully aware and is doing his best, but I am also convinced that we, as a senior government, are mainly responsible for taking the lead and dealing with these runaway urban juggernauts.

In the old days the bigger centres such as Vancouver were fair game for the up-country spots and the interior. In those days, yes, it may have been true. It was mainly all take and no give. But the coin has been turned over now to a large degree, and this is just not true, and today intelligent business men and leaders in the up-country communities will realize that the bigger centres, and Vancouver is only one today, are also some of their best friends and best sources of new business. A good example is electric service and electric rates, and this subject has come up in the Legislature already. It's a wonderful thing to know that the remote parts of this Province have been able to receive the benefits of electric service, and those of you who have lived with Coleman lamps in Kamloops for years, know what I mean. The fantastic benefits it accrues — the mere extension at any price, you might say, of electricity. But then to realize that these outlying communities are able to get electric rates which are on a parity with my constituents, and those of my honourable colleague in the densely populated riding of Burrard, is proof positive that, if it was not for the heavily populated centres, electric rates would have to be considerably higher in the up-country points and rural points and in many cases, many of these remote areas would never have received electric power at all.

The social welfare problems facing Vancouver and our Province will also receive my attention, as they will the attention of many others, or all of us, I guess. The one thing in this field alone that I would like to mention is the high cost of drugs. I'll just select that one. I refer to the need to bring about a reduction in the prices of prescription drugs, which are vital to the health and welfare of every citizen and every community. I think that it was during the heart of a recent election campaign that the Honourable Ronald Basford accused our Honourable Attorney-General of not doing anything about the continuing high cost of prescription drugs, which is somewhat ironic because nobody, but nobody, is in a better position than the Honourable Ronald Basford to do something about it. He only has to bring about an amendment of the Food and Drug Act, which is a Federal Act, to permit the sale of prescription drugs through advertising media by name only. The prescription would still be governed by existing regulations and, of course, couldn't be filled without a doctor's prescription, but it would undoubtedly introduce competition in name drugs that would also certainly bring about, in my opinion, and I've spent a good many years in the advertising and promotion business, undoubtably bring about lower costs.

Another method of what you might call fast, fast relief from the high cost of drugs would be an amendment to the Pharmacy Act which would allow the use of the generic form in the filling of prescriptions. The individual pharmacist is always responsible for the medicine he sells and must always be conscious of the need for high quality products from the manufacturer.

Nearly three years ago a Federal Committee studying drug costs recommended a meeting of the Provincial authorities with the Pharmaceutical Association and other bodies to discuss the findings with this Committee. This Committee believed, pardon me — bring about a reduction in the price of prescription drugs. So far, to the best of my knowledge, no action has been taken on such a meeting. I am convinced that if we can help citizens obtain, at reasonable prices, prescription drugs which may well be in some cases a matter of life and death, then we should do something about that recommendation. I personally know that the Honourable Minister of Health is fully aware of the need for this action, and I should like to call on every member of this House to give him the support that he requires.

[ Page 80 ]

Lower cost housing of sound design, of beauty and dignity, will get my attention, as I would expect it would get the attention of all of you. Finally, high on my list of priorities for action, would be a tightening and an upgrading of the regulations governing the pollution of the sky, earth and water. My slogan has been, is and always will be "Keep British Columbia Clean". It is my hope that this slogan can be used widely in the 1970's, particularly during Centennial Year. It could be introduced by every municipality and business firm in British Columbia. "Keep British Columbia Green" has certainly helped the forests. "Keep British Columbia Clean" can help the people.

Just as British Columbia has become one of the most popular last remaining frontiers for the visitor, we have, along with the States of Florida and California, become one of the three most desirable areas in North America for industrial and commercial development and a place in which to live. This statistic was proved in advertisements that were published throughout North America in some of the most responsible journals that you care to mention. We have truly taken our place as one of the three greatest areas for potential industrial development. With this in mind, it is like the better mouse-trap — the world will beat a path to your door, and I don't doubt it for a moment.

The slogan we had years ago is true, that business is moving to B.C. and on this basis I suggest that we could now start to become a little more choosy. We might just be a little tougher. We should give the most careful consideration and lay down the most specific terms of reference before the granting of concessions or permits to any and all kind of developers. You may have read that in spite of a potential $400,000,000 tax gain to the construction of a $75,000,000 oil refinery, that a small city in Ontario originally said no. Homeowners and city council combined unanimously and decided that their special and social environment was more important than monetary inflation. This took guts. Recognizing fully and frankly the need for new capital development in British Columbia, greater investments, for more work and wages, I nevertheless believe that our prime consideration for the 1970's must be for the better welfare and a better environment for all citizens in every part of their great and beautiful Province of British Columbia. Thank you.

On the motion of the Hon. Grace McCarthy, the debate was adjourned to the next sitting of the House.

The House adjourned at 5.20 p.m.