2004 Legislative Session: 5th Session, 37th Parliament
HANSARD

Official Report of

DEBATES OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY

(Hansard)

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2004

Afternoon Sitting

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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2004

           The House met at 2:03 p.m.

           This being the first day of the fifth session of the thirty-seventh Legislative Assembly of the province of British Columbia for the dispatch of business, pursuant to a proclamation of the Hon. Iona Campagnolo, Lieutenant-Governor of the province, hon. members took their seats.

           Mr. Speaker: Good afternoon, hon. members, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to all of our guests. Pastor Tim Schroeder of the Trinity Baptist Church in Kelowna will say prayers for us today.

           T. Schroeder: Just before I say the prayer, I want to mention that this morning I had the privilege to visit briefly and pray briefly with your colleague Sindi Hawkins. She's fighting hard. Her spirits are incredibly high, and she asked that I tell you how deeply grateful she is for your friendship and your care. With Sindi's spirit and God's help, she's going to win this, and we're going to celebrate her return. Let's pray together.

           Dear God, each time the phrase "Super, Natural British Columbia" rolls off our lips, it's a tribute to the fact that this incredible treasure is more than any of us can claim to have made. While we wouldn't ever have the audacity to suggest that when you made some other provinces you were having an off day, we would certainly declare that when you made this one, you were at your very best.

           As this session of the Legislature begins, it's without any embarrassment that we ask for your help. As these men and women are faced not only with the honour but with the awesome responsibility of managing this treasure, I pray that you give each of them individually and that you give them collectively a measure of wisdom and courage and sensitivity that is beyond any of their natural abilities, and at the end of the term, this province will be an even more polished treasure than it was when it came into their care.

           With one voice we pray for Sindi, asking that you use all the power of modern medicine, and then some, to heal her.

           Finally, being where I'm from, God, I can't quite close this prayer without thanking you that not only is the fire out and not only is there a blanket of life-giving moisture covering the interior but that everywhere we look, there are also the sights and sounds of rebuilding. It's such an encouragement, and we are grateful. Finally, bless not only these men and women, but bless their families as together they make the sacrifice to lead us. In the name of our Lord, I pray. Amen.

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           Mr. Speaker: Hon. members, the Lieutenant-Governor is in the precincts, and I would ask everyone to please remain in their seats.

           Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor, having entered the House and being seated on the throne, was pleased to deliver the following gracious speech.

Speech from the Throne

           Hon. I. Campagnolo (Lieutenant-Governor): Pray be seated.

           Mr. Speaker, hon. members, British Columbians, it is a privilege to join you once again for a new session of the parliament of British Columbia. Since I last addressed you in a Speech from the Throne, we have lost many accomplished, honoured and admired fellow citizens. We said farewell to the remarkable Jim Spilsbury, whose love of airplanes and air travel gave birth to coastal air services to provide access to formerly isolated coastal communities.

           We also sadly note the passing of Doris Shadbolt, who carved out her own place in the complex arts world as writer, educator, activist and curator and as a beloved supporter of creativity in all its many dimensions.

           Every committed citizen contributes to strengthening the communities that we all share in this fortunate province. Such a man was the former Penticton councillor Ron Biggs, who was a dedicated community volunteer, as was Vancouver's longest-serving parks board commissioner, George Wainborn. We remember the talents and dedication in business, culture and the arts of people like master Port Alberni carver and artist Art Thompson and others like Cecil Green, who was a technological innovator and dedicated philanthropist. We pay tribute to people like the late Glen Hillson, who was a ground-breaking advocate seeking dignity, care and respect for those living with HIV/AIDS. All these exceptional individuals and many more are missed and are remembered with respect.

           There are moments in history that crystallize the essence of a province's nature and the promise of its people. They are the moments that bring out our best and signify our spirit to the world. They are the moments that hold within them the shape of our future. British Columbians have been through many such moments in the last year. Together we have faced fire, flood and record drought. Together we prevailed in times of trial, and together we stood in triumph.

           Throughout the last year we saw incredible acts of kindness, of courage and of compassion. We saw so many people risk their lives to save the lives and property of others. We saw legions of quiet heroes and selfless souls who are our neighbours, our friends and our fellow citizens. In community after community they showed the spirit of citizenship and community that defines British Columbia. No matter what the challenge, together British Columbians can rise up to meet it. Whatever the goal, together we can reach it. That is the spirit of British Columbia.

           It is the spirit of 2010 that we saw so clearly last July. In households and stadiums across the province, British Columbians waited with bated breath as that envelope was opened on a stage halfway around the

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world in Prague. Together with the government of Canada, municipalities and first nations, we waited, and together we captured our dream. British Columbia will host the world for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

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           British Columbians will bear the Olympic torch and carry it high with pride and with purpose as it lights the way to peace, hope and progress for all humanity.

           Canadians will hold it high in celebration of our common aspirations, our diverse cultures and our singular will to achieve the goals we set for ourselves as individuals, as teams and as a nation. Nowhere will that flame burn more brightly than in the eyes of young British Columbians.

           Just two weeks ago, for the first time ever, British Columbia won the right to host the World Junior Hockey Championship. Vancouver, Kelowna and Kamloops will join in hosting the world in 2006. With the approval of the International Ice Hockey Federation, exhibition games will be played in Victoria, Nanaimo, Burnaby, Chilliwack, Salmon Arm and Vernon.

           It is our time to shine in British Columbia, now and for many years to come. The groundwork for growth has been laid. The foundation for achievement has been built. The new era has begun. In every area of public policy, important reforms have been made with one goal in mind: to bring out the best in British Columbia.

           Bringing out the best in our economy. For B.C.'s families to realize their dreams and reach their full potential, we need a strong economy. The old approaches ignored the needs of our resource communities, neglected the north, and failed to consider the rights and interests of first nations.

           Your government has taken many actions to bring back the best in our economy across the province and in every region. Major changes have been made, policies have been modernized, impediments to investment have been removed, costs have been lowered, tax rates have been cut, red tape has been reduced, competitiveness is being restored, progress has been made, and results are beginning to show.

           Next week your government will table a balanced budget, right on schedule. More people are working than ever before in British Columbia. Our unemployment rate has dropped to its lowest level in years and is now below the national rate.

           British Columbians' take-home pay is growing. Personal income taxes have been cut by an average of 25 percent, 27 tax relief measures have been implemented, and almost 90,000 regulations have been removed.

           Our economy is on the rebound. The markets are up. Confidence is growing. The number of small businesses is on the rise after years of decline. British Columbia is now leading the nation in job creation. Over the last two years B.C.'s rate of growth in new jobs was higher than any other province.

           Our province gained nearly 40 percent of all investor immigrants to Canada in the third quarter of 2003. For the first time in six years more people moved to British Columbia from other provinces than moved away. People and investment are coming back to B.C. Families and children are coming back home. Key sectors are booming once again.

           Progress has been made, but more needs to be done. Your government will do more this year to help every sector of our economy. Bills will be introduced to further eliminate the unnecessary red tape that has stifled economic growth. Your government will act to meet its commitment to cut the regulatory burden by one-third.

           There will be changes to encourage employee investment and improve consumer protection. New legislation will modernize the regulatory requirements in agriculture, environmental management and the real estate and resource sectors.

           More will be done to help B.C.'s ranchers recover from the bovine spongiform encephalopathy crisis. In addition to the $10.5 million in extraordinary assistance already committed for the BSE recovery program and cull program, a further $16.8 million will be contributed to help farmers under the whole farm trust.

           Certainty in land use will continue to be enhanced this year. The working forest land base will be established. Land use plans will be completed for the central coast, north coast, Sea to Sky, Queen Charlotte Islands–Haida Gwaii, Morice and Lillooet areas. Constructive new relationships in land use decisions will be strengthened.

           Bringing out the best in partnerships with first nations. For too long the needs of first nations communities were ignored. Your government has made it a clear priority to work together with first nations to create concrete action plans to help them realize their full potential.

           Dialogue and negotiation are triumphing over division and confrontation. Over 150 land-related measures and other agreements have been concluded, which support first nations participation in forestry, oil and gas, and parkland management. An additional 124 economic measures agreements have been reached. Three agreements-in-principle have been reached in the past year with the Lheidli T'enneh, Maa-Nulth and Sliammon first nations, and a fourth with the Tsawwassen first nation is nearing completion.

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           For the first time ever, annual funding from forest revenues has been designated for first nations revenue-sharing agreements. More wood will be made available to first nations to open up new opportunities in forestry. Since September 2002, the government has signed 29 agreements with first nations to provide access to 7.26 million cubic metres in timber and to share forestry revenues of $38.6 million. Under the forestry revitalization plan, the share of the annual allowable cut available to first nations will be more than doubled from about 3 percent to about 8 percent.

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           New opportunities for energy revenue-sharing arrangements with first nations in Treaty 8 areas will be introduced this year.

           Your government is working with first nations to develop new child protection strategies that effectively address the unique needs of first nations children in care and in foster situations.

           Secondary school graduation rates for first nations youth are starting to climb, and entry to post-secondary institutions is increasing.

           Legislation will be introduced to create a $15 million B.C. Rail–first nations benefit trust that will support initiatives for the 25 first nations along the B.C. Rail corridor. The trust will be run by first nations and used as they see fit to support economic development, educational advancement and cultural renewal.

           Bringing out the best in transportation and northern development. Our transportation infrastructure was neglected and allowed to deteriorate over the past decade. Your government has acted to focus investments on critical transportation improvements throughout the province. The $1 billion B.C. Rail investment partnership with CN Rail will create an economic boom in the north and the interior. It is a partnership that responds to the challenges and recommendations identified by northern communities for the benefit of the north and of the province.

           B.C. Rail's tracks, railbed and right-of-way remain protected in public ownership through legislation. The B.C. Railway Company, a provincial Crown corporation, will own these assets. CN Rail will pay the province $1 billion for the rolling stock and the right to operate the line for the term of its lease. This enables your government to pay off B.C. Rail's $500 million debt and save $30 million a year in interest costs.

           CN will assume all maintenance costs, capital costs, risks and profits from running the railway to its full potential. That will mean hundreds of millions of dollars in new investment in B.C. as well as faster, cheaper, better rail service. It will create a truly integrated continental rail service that will better connect B.C. companies to their customers within our province and beyond.

           This investment partnership will leverage tremendous amounts to our transportation infrastructure. A new passenger tourism service will be launched to draw visitors north from Vancouver and Whistler via Prince George to Jasper, and potentially across the north from Prince Rupert to the Rockies and the Peace. That alone will create hundreds of new jobs in the years ahead.

           CN will invest $15 million to help open up the port of Prince Rupert. The government will invest a further $17.2 million to expand that great northern port and to open it up to container traffic. That will create another estimated 500 direct jobs. The expanded port will open new worlds of opportunity for the north as Asian and North American exports and imports flow through Prince Rupert.

           Prince George will be the centre for CN's western rail services. It will be the primary beneficiary of 600 new centre beam cars and 1,500 upgraded boxcars. It will have a new non-stop Chicago express rail service and a new $1 million state-of-the-art wheel shop. It will see $4 million in proceeds invested in a $10 million expansion of the Prince George Airport. Prince George will be the headquarters for the new $135 million northern development initiative that your government will launch this year.

           Legislation will be introduced this session to establish the northern development initiative. It will give northern communities unprecedented control of their own destiny and $135 million to leverage and invest in benefits for each region and the entire north. That money will flow directly into the northern economy starting this year. The northern development initiative will be managed and invested by northerners on northern priorities to create jobs and opportunities that will unleash the true potential of that vast and varied part of British Columbia.

           The B.C. Rail investment partnership will also support improvements to our transportation infrastructure in every region; $200 million of the proceeds will be used to finance projects that are planned and outlined in the government's transportation vision.

           Bringing out the best in B.C.'s forestry economy. Our forest industry has always been of critical importance to British Columbia's prosperity, but it has been challenged for many years. The softwood lumber dispute and lack of forestry investment have made it a difficult time for forest-dependent communities.

           Your government has acted to bring out the best in British Columbia's forest economy. It will continue to implement the forestry revitalization plan, to provide renewed hope for those in the industry.

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           Market-based timber pricing will be introduced on the coast. The plan to reallocate 20 percent of the annual cut to smaller operators, local communities, first nations and others will be implemented. Legislation will be introduced to open up more opportunities for small-scale salvagers by quadrupling the amount of timber available by direct award.

           Your government will increase its efforts to open up new markets for B.C. forest products in China and elsewhere.

           New amendments will ensure forest contractors' rights are maintained when licensees transfer, subdivide or consolidate a licence. Your government will use every legitimate advantage to help B.C. forest communities and companies prevail in the softwood dispute and successfully compete for new customers around the world.

           New measures will be introduced to combat the mountain pine beetle. As well, your government will act on the Filmon fire review recommendations.

           To help B.C.'s ranching sector, the Range Act will also be modernized.

           Bringing out the best in energy and in mining. British Columbia is North America's new energy powerhouse. British Columbia has 115 trillion cubic feet of clean natural gas, enough to heat every gas-heated

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home in Canada for 230 years. There is an estimated 42 trillion cubic feet of gas and 9.8 billion barrels of oil off our northern coast and the coast of Vancouver Island. Your government will encourage the government of Canada to complete its scientific review and join with B.C. in responding to this truly exceptional offshore oil and gas opportunity with actions that are scientifically sound, environmentally safe and socially responsible.

           Families and first nations living in our coastal communities see enormous potential. Working together, it can be captured.

           The government is taking action to ensure exploration in northeast B.C. and the Nechako and Bowser basins. There is potential in coalbed methane on Vancouver Island, in the Kootenays and in the Cariboo — 90 trillion cubic feet of gas that can be converted to clean energy.

           British Columbia has huge coal reserves in the Kootenays — 23 billion tonnes provincewide. That alone is enough to meet B.C.'s energy needs for the next 120 years. A new royalty regime is now encouraging summer drilling and generating record revenues for the provincial treasury.

           Your government is taking concrete steps to maximize the potential of wind, thermal, solar and tidal energy so future generations will be able to rely on sustainable sources of power. Fifty percent of all new power produced for B.C. Hydro will be generated from clean, alternative energy sources. Already, independent power producers in B.C. have proposed $800 million of new investment in clean, renewable power projects.

           Your government recognizes the enormous contribution that mining has made to our province, and it is working to bring out the best in mining and mineral exploration across B.C. Legislation will be introduced to reduce unnecessary and redundant regulatory requirements in coal tenure administration by 29 percent. Other changes will introduce on-line transactions, create e-payment capabilities for miners and clarify mineral rights.

           The government's new action agenda for mining will restore mining's economic potential and generate new investment, jobs and opportunities for mining families throughout British Columbia.

           Bringing out the best in the Spirit of 2010. No sector of our economy will benefit more from the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games than tourism. A new Spirit of 2010 tourism strategy will be introduced this year to ensure that every region can take full advantage of the Olympic opportunity. It will build on B.C.'s spectacular all-season resorts that are already generating investment and jobs throughout the heartlands.

           The new Vancouver convention and exhibition centre is proceeding and will give tourism throughout B.C. an enormous boost. It will be a showcase for our wood construction and will feature the best B.C. products throughout.

           There are amazing opportunities for growth in the winery and ecotourism industries.

           Later this spring your government will co-host a Spirit of 2010 business summit. It will bring together businesses, investors and community leaders from across the province. Detailed Olympic development strategies will be outlined covering tourism, procurement, trade and investment, and labour supply strategies.

           Your government will also build on the international marketing efforts it is supporting in tourism, technology and forestry.

           A new initiative will invite all British Columbians to help picture the true spirit of our province and its people for all the world to see in films, photos, music, art, poetry and literature. Under this new Picture B.C. initiative, British Columbians' images, words and artwork will be featured on the government's website, showcased in printed publications and profiled in countless ways from now until 2010.

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           Local governments, first nations, school districts, tourism organizations and others will be invited to work in partnership with the province to picture B.C. in films and images that suitably convey our diverse cultures, regions, amenities, enterprises, activities and natural wonders. Picture B.C. will build a library of resources that will be available to participating partners for use in international marketing campaigns, tourism promotions and investment missions.

           Bringing out the best in student achievement. For all British Columbians to realize their full potential, we must have an education system that is second to none and that is accessible throughout the province. Education is the key to unlocking the promise of British Columbia for our children and the opportunities that they will inherit.

           Your government's goal has been to free up resources for the best education system anywhere through strong and prudent financial management and a prosperous, growing economy. Education has been restored as an essential service. Parents have been encouraged to become actively involved in their children's education. Today there is expanded choice in schooling, enhanced education accountability and a strong focus on student achievement.

           Education funding has increased despite a decline in student enrolment that will continue for years to come. Since the year 2000 total funding is up more than $500 per student, including an increase of over $200 per student in the year ahead under the new generally accepted accounting principles. The education budget will grow by $313 million over the next three years, from $4.86 billion in 2003-04 to almost $5.2 billion in 2006-07.

           New provincial standards for codes of conduct will be put in place to increase student safety and reduce bullying in the schools. New physical education performance standards will also be introduced. The incredibly successful action schools program, which encourages children to develop good physical fitness habits early in life, will be expanded so kids throughout B.C. can benefit.

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           B.C.'s new graduation requirements will begin this September. They will raise our standards and provide more flexibility and choice for students. Several more steps will be taken down the road to improve student achievement. New funding and investment in early childhood development will help bring out the best in children from infancy to their first years in school. The early learning and child care agreement with the federal government will inject more than $70 million over the next three years in funding increases for programs to support British Columbia's youngsters.

           The human early learning partnership conducted through UBC will benchmark the learning readiness of school entry–aged children across our province. That partnership will help better target early childhood development funding and ensure that all children have every opportunity to experience the excitement of learning and to be the best that they can be.

           Your government wants British Columbia to become recognized as the most literate location in North America by 2010. It is estimated that 40 percent of adult British Columbians have low literacy skills. They have difficulty in reading, writing and basic numeracy skills that places them at a severe disadvantage in theireveryday lives. Many adults cannot read at all. They cannot fill out job applications, read a map, use an ATM machine or balance their chequebooks. Low literacy is directly tied to low income and to unemployment. Your government is committed to tackling this serious social challenge for young and for old alike. Every British Columbian should experience the benefits and the opportunities of literacy.

           To that end, your government will launch a major new initiative to foster literacy throughout B.C., enhancing reading, writing, numeracy, as well as computer literacy and proficiency in English for all British Columbians. A new Premier's advisory panel on literacy will be created to assess British Columbians' most urgent needs in literacy and recommend actions for improvement. Your government will provide new funding for literacy initiatives aimed at leveraging matching contributions from private donors. Moreover, your government will double its annual contribution to the adult literacy cost-shared program and will challenge the federal government to do likewise.

           The government will act to improve literacy in our schools. It will act to ensure students have the textbooks they need to bring out their best.

           Bringing out the best in higher education. As our student population ages and our provincial population grows, so too does the demand for access to advanced education. More than 70 percent of job openings in the next decade will require some form of post-secondary education. Nearly 6,000 new spaces have been added to our public post-secondary institutions during the last two years, yet there are still not enough spaces to meet current and future demands for learning and skills development.

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           In the days ahead, your government will outline a comprehensive new strategy to increase access to advanced education. It will act this year to create new post-secondary options and new student spaces in the heartlands as well as in the lower mainland. Young people deserve to know that if they work hard in school, they can move on to new educational opportunities that meet their needs where they live.

           Your government believes that any student with a 75 percent average in secondary school deserves to have access to university. This year it will act to accomplish that goal by 2010. Your government will add 25,000 new student spaces to B.C.'s colleges, universities and institutes by 2010. That will create opportunities in public post-secondary education at twice the expected rate of growth in students aged 18 to 29.

           Overall funding to B.C.'s post-secondary institutions will increase in each of the next three years. As well, the advanced education budget will increase by $105 million by 2006-07. Measures will also be taken this year to gain better information and to increase the options and choices for advanced education in British Columbia's private institutions. More must be done to better match B.C.'s training and educational options with the skills and workforce demands of the future.

           Today there are about 70,000 job openings that need to be filled over the course of any given year, yet there are only about 37,000 job vacancies that remain open for lack of skilled workers. From now until 2010 that will mean an anticipated half million new jobs, not counting those generated by the Olympics. It is expected that the games and related capital projects will generate a further 132,000 person-years of employment. These are all opportunities for B.C. workers and their families. The new industry training model will increase flexibility and choice in trades training for everyone.

           A new Spirit of 2010 human resource strategy will also be launched later this year to ensure our skills training initiatives are better targeted to personal training and training needs. As our economy flourishes, more will be done to meet skills shortages in critical growth sectors like oil and gas, communications and transportation, technology, construction, hospitality and tourism. When we welcome the world in 2010, British Columbia will have the best-trained superhosts on the planet.

           Bringing out the best in digital technology. Today too many of B.C.'s families are shut out of the opportunities and advantages in the new knowledge economy; 171 of B.C.'s 361 communities currently do not have broadband access to the Internet. Your government will bridge that digital divide. It will act in partnership with others to connect every community in our province to high-speed Internet access. This year 154 schools will be upgraded from low-speed to high-speed Internet access to open up broadband access points in 77 communities through the provincial learning network. The remaining 94 communities will be connected to the broadband network by the end of 2006.

           Once those access points have been established in each community, they will then be linked to homes and

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businesses. Your government will work with local service providers, community organizations, first nations and the federal government to put in place those last-mile connections. As your government extends broadband access to rural communities, it will liberate new opportunities in telehealth. Advancements in tele-imaging and digital technology will deliver better, faster patient care closer to home.

           Bringing out the best in patient care. Few challenges that confront us as a province and a nation match the task of revitalizing our health care system so it is sustainable and meets the needs of patients regardless of where they live. Changes have been made to improve the quality of patient care and make our health care system more sustainable. Yet the challenges remain and grow greater every year.

           Simply put, funding cannot keep pace with the pressure on the system. Health care spending has been increased by $2 billion over the past three years, or over 20 percent; $1.2 billion has gone directly to wage and compensation increases for B.C. doctors, nurses and health support workers. Health care funding has increased at more than three times the rate of economic growth. Pharmacare costs have soared by 14 percent annually. And still the pressures grow, with no end in sight. As our population ages, demands increase and costs escalate.

           But the biggest single cost component of health care is labour. Salaries, fees and benefits for doctors, nurses and health support workers account for 70 percent of all health care spending. B.C.'s health professionals are now amongst the highest paid in Canada, as health sector wage and compensation costs have increased by over 20 percent in the past three years.

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           As we strive to create the sound financial footing that is critical to the next generation of British Columbia's future, everyone must share in the burden of transformation that is taking place. Already many public servants have accepted that responsibility, as 27 separate public sector agreements have been concluded with the government's cost-neutral negotiating mandate. The workers covered by those agreements have all helped your government to live within its means and not add to our children's growing burden of debt.

           The government urges all others in the broad public sector to act in that same spirit, in a united effort to secure our children's future. This requires health care professionals to also do their part for patients, for taxpayers and for the long-term sustainability of the public health care system. Every penny of savings realized from the administrative restructuring and the elimination of unnecessary costs will go back into care for patients.

           Every new dollar from extra federal health care funding will flow directly to improvements in patient services. Working with communities across the province, your government will pursue new strategies to increase the supply of seniors housing, options for independent living and expansion of home care services.

           Your government will establish a new rural health travel assistance plan that will be launched this year to help defray costs for rural families who must travel to health centres for special care. At the same time, it is expanding the capacity of regional hospitals to deliver more care in those regions so that fewer patients have to travel to get the care they need. There is now evidence that more British Columbians are getting the care they need when they need it in the regions where they live.

           Your government will continue to press the government of Canada to provide the programs and resources necessary to meet the health care needs of first nations in British Columbia. Your government will also work with the federal government to establish a national centre for disease control here in British Columbia.

           B.C. is leading the world in the fight against SARS. Nothing better demonstrated the spirit of British Columbia than the leadership shown by our health care professionals and our citizens as they rallied together to prevent the spread of that virus and keep each other safe. Not one life was lost in British Columbia. Yet in one year a lifetime of progress has been made that will potentially save many thousands of lives in the future.

           Only a year ago B.C. scientists at the Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre were the first in the world to map the genetic code of the SARS virus. Now Dr. Brett Finlay and his team of 40 scientists have developed a vaccine for SARS that is already in initial testing. A process that usually takes ten to 12 years has been accelerated to 18 to 24 months by our own world-leading British Columbia scientists. It is an amazing example of how ongoing investments in research can bring about the best in science and cooperation to advance human health and understanding the world over.

           Bringing out the best in sport, music and culture. As British Columbians prepare to host the Olympics, your government will embrace the Spirit of 2010 with new initiatives to bring out the best in sport, music, arts, culture, literacy and volunteerism. Over 30 million in one-time exceptional funding will be invested to support those initiatives, largely under the auspices of LegaciesNow. LegaciesNow will be given the funding and resources to assume the leadership role in British Columbia's sport development and recreation programs. It will work with sports associations, schools, the Olympic secretariat, Olympic organizers and all levels of government to bring out the best in our athletes. It will leverage new contributions for sport and fitness from other levels of government and from the private sector.

           The 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games are Canada's games. British Columbians want all Canada to succeed in 2010. We want to see Canadians from every province and territory on the Olympic podiums in Vancouver and Whistler. It is the dream of the Olympics and the drive of the Olympics that will light the excitement in our children's eyes. LegaciesNow will take our kids from the playground to the podium. It will build on initiatives that are happening today, like

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the Spirit of 2010 hockey tournament, and on others that will take place tomorrow.

           There has never been a more exciting or promising time to live in British Columbia for athletes, spectators and sport enthusiasts alike. Our artists and musicians should share the excitement of our young athletes. New Music Now and Arts Now initiatives will be launched under the mandate of LegaciesNow to help our young musicians and artists be the best they can be. LegaciesNow will prepare British Columbians to take advantage of the 2010 Winter Olympics, and it will continue bringing out the best in British Columbians beyond 2010.

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           Bringing out the best in social responsibility. Your government will continue to improve services for children, women and families. Changes last year funded 25,000 more child care spaces, making 70,000 spaces available for funding and increasing choice in child care options. New capital investments have created or supported 15,000 child care spaces since 2001, largely in the heartlands. Over the next few years more will be done to increase child care spaces and benefit young families throughout B.C.

           Your government will continue to ensure that women and their children have the services and support they need to be safe and secure. It will improve services for those most vulnerable in our society through regionalized service delivery in the community living and child and family development sectors.

           Later in the year the Premier will host a series of round tables aimed at engaging B.C.'s families in a discussion about their hopes and aspirations for the future. Building on the successful model employed to create the Citizens' Assembly, round-table participants will be randomly selected in several communities. They will be invited to share their views on the challenges and opportunities they see for their families and for their communities, and they will be asked to offer constructive suggestions on the steps they would like their government to pursue in a wide range of public policy areas that have a major effect on their day-to-day lives and futures.

           As a sound financial foundation is established, the province will continue to work with the Union of British Columbia Municipalities to create safer communities and to establish new responses to the aging of our population. Income assistance will continue to be targeted to those most in need — to persons with disabilities and those who have multiple barriers to employment.

           More than 80,000 British Columbians have left income assistance since your government came to office. They are no longer dependent on welfare and are typically employed and earning two or three times more money. Your government will continue to help employable British Columbians get the support and skills they need to find work and bring out their best.

           New steps will also be taken this year to increase public safety and target organized crime. New legislation will be introduced to ensure that criminals do not profit from illegal activity and that victims have new recourse for compensation.

           Your government will also act this year to bring out the best in our environment. In consultation with regions throughout the province, your government will act to expand our provincial park system by converting protected areas to parks. It will reinstate funding to maintain forest recreation roads and recreation sites in the heartlands, and it will work in partnership with other governments to preserve Burns Bog and create a new national park in the South Okanagan.

           Bringing out the best in the spirit of British Columbia. As we look to the year ahead, all eyes will be on the work of the Citizens' Assembly that your government established this year. The 161-member Citizens' Assembly is deliberating on how best to elect members to this Legislative Assembly. It is a groundbreaking initiative of which British Columbians are rightly proud. It gives British Columbians an unprecedented opportunity to bring out the best in our parliamentary system. Like all the other measures and reforms your government has introduced, it reflects your government's abiding confidence in British Columbians to choose their own destiny.

           The hard work of the last two years has opened new promise for our province. It is bringing our children home.

           There is so much our province can accomplish and will achieve in the years ahead. This is British Columbians' moment in the sun. This is our time in history to bring out the best for our children, our province and the world. This is British Columbia's time to show its true spirit.

           We can excel in every field of endeavour. We are leaders in job creation, resource management, environmental stewardship and first nations partnerships. We are leaders in sport, fitness, health and wellness, and student achievement. We are leaders in parliamentary reform, local government reform, health care reform and educational reform.

           But we can be better still. We can lead the nation in literacy and bridge the digital divide. We can give our children the gifts of music and lift ourselves higher through art and culture and volunteerism. Our economy can race to the future with new confidence and new pride of purpose in every region and in every field of endeavour.

           The Spirit of 2010 is the spirit of British Columbia. It is alive with opportunity and with hope. It is the Spirit of 2010 that will bring out the best in our great province.

           This is more than an opportunity. It is our obligation to the seniors who built this province, to the families who strive to make it the best it can be for their children, and to the next generation who will carry new dreams for all of us.

[1445]

           Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor retired from the chamber.

[ Page 8450 ]

           [Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

           Mr. Speaker: Hon. members, in order to prevent mistakes, I have obtained a copy of Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor's speech.

Introduction and
First Reading of Bills

AN ACT TO ENSURE
THE SUPREMACY OF PARLIAMENT

           Hon. G. Plant presented a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: a bill intituled An Act to Ensure the Supremacy of Parliament.

           Hon. G. Plant: I move that the bill be introduced and read a first time now.

           Motion approved.

           Hon. G. Plant: The introduction of this bill prior to consideration of the throne speech expresses the established right of parliament, through its elected members, to deliberate independently of the Sovereign. As such it is an important part of our parliamentary democratic process. It's a right that was first asserted by the Parliament at Westminster in the year 1603, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

           Mr. Speaker, I move that the bill be placed on the orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

           Bill 1 introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

APPOINTMENT OF DEPUTY SPEAKER

           Hon. G. Collins: I move, seconded by the member for Vancouver-Hastings electoral district, that John Weisbeck, member for Kelowna–Lake Country electoral district, be appointed Deputy Speaker for this session of the Legislative Assembly.

           Motion approved.

APPOINTMENT OF DEPUTY CHAIR,
COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

           Hon. G. Collins: I move, seconded by the member for Vancouver-Hastings electoral district, that Harold Long, member for Powell River–Sunshine Coast electoral district, be appointed Deputy Chair of the Committee of the Whole for this session of the Legislative Assembly.

           Motion approved.

PRINTING OF VOTES AND PROCEEDINGS

           Hon. G. Plant: I move that the Votes and Proceedings of this House be printed, being first perused by Mr. Speaker, and that he do appoint the printing thereof, and that no person but such as he shall appoint do presume to print the same.

           Motion approved.

APPOINTMENT OF
SELECT STANDING COMMITTEES

           Hon. G. Campbell: I move that the select standing committees of the House for the present session be appointed for the following purposes:

           1. Aboriginal Affairs;
           2. Education;
           3. Finance and Government Services;
           4. Health;
           5. Public Accounts;
           6. Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Standing Orders and Private Bills;
           7. Crown Corporations;

           which said committees shall severally be empowered to examine and inquire into all such matters and things as shall be referred to them by this House and to report from time to time their observations and opinions thereon, with power to send for persons, papers and records; and that a special committee be appointed to prepare and report, with all convenient speed, lists of members to compose the above select standing committees of this House under standing order 68(1), the committee to be composed of the Hon. G. Collins, Convener; Messrs. Wong, Krueger, Wilson, Nuraney and Manhas; Ms. McMahon, Ms. Orr and Ms. MacPhail.

           J. MacPhail: I rise today in support of this motion and to amend it. I move the following amendment, after which I will speak.

[By inserting the text highlighted by underline 8. Attorney General-Solicitor General Joint Committee so that the amended motion reads:

I move that the select standing committees of this House for the present session be appointed for the following purposes:

1. Aboriginal Affairs;
2. Education;
3. Finance and Government Services;
4. Health;
5. Public Accounts;
6. Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Standing Orders and Private Bills;
7. Crown Corporations;
8. Attorney General-Solicitor General Joint Committee;

which said committees shall severally be empowered to examine and inquire into all such matters and things as shall be referred to them by this House and to report from time to time their observations and opinions thereon, with power to send for persons, papers and records; and that a special committee be appointed to

[ Page 8451 ]

prepare and report, with all convenient speed, lists of members to compose the above select standing committees of this House under standing order 68(1)]

           On the amendment.

           J. MacPhail: I move that the select standing committees of this House for the present session be appointed for the following purposes…. In addition to the seven that the Premier has just appointed, add an eighth: Attorney General–Solicitor General joint committee.

           At certain times in the life of our province, issues of grave concern arise that demand the immediate attention of legislators, that demand strong leadership, that demand strong action. These issues rise above the daily partisan battles that we wage here in the Legislature. They are fundamental to the maintenance of a free, open and democratic society.

[1450]

           The spread of organized crime in British Columbia is just such an issue. Recently, every British Columbian watched as members of the RCMP organized crime and drug units descended on this building, carrying away boxes of evidence from the offices of senior political staff. Although we know little about what led to these raids on our most important democratic institution, we listened carefully to the words of RCMP Sgt. John Ward, who described the spread of organized crime as "a cancer eating away at the moral fabric of our society."

           That's a graphic and alarming description of a disturbing phenomenon in the daily life of our province. The impact of organized crime activity is reflected in rising crime rates, in the prevalence of new, powerful and widely available drugs and in — we can only assume — the activities of those charged with protecting the public interest. That's why the opposition has brought forward this amendment to the motion before us to establish, this session, a joint Attorney General–Solicitor General standing committee of the House, a committee whose first task we may respectfully suggest would be to investigate organized crime in B.C. with a view to proposing practical solutions to halt its spread.

           To assure the members opposite, I want to make it clear that the intent of this committee would not be to examine organized crime's links to this government. Indeed, that is the subject of a police investigation. Rather, the intent perhaps can best be understood…

           Interjections.

           Mr. Speaker: Order, please.

           J. MacPhail: …as our way of helping the Solicitor General keep his unfulfilled promise to hold a public forum on organized crime — a forum he said would involve the judiciary, the Crown prosecutors, police and the public — to examine fully how we can do a better job fighting organized crime. The Solicitor General will recall that he made that promise in March of last year at the Premier's annual congress.

           At the time the opposition fully supported this initiative, but we have been disappointed in his failure to follow through. Therefore, we bring this motion forward, a motion that is in keeping with the new-era promise to give all MLAs and citizens a better voice in government through active legislative committees. The government side of the House should not feel threatened by this motion, although I suspect they already are — by their disappointing reaction. Rather, they should view it as an opportunity — an opportunity to help their government take a stand against organized crime, an opportunity to stand up for their communities, an opportunity to contribute to a public discussion of an important issue for their constituents.

           There will always be a need for public scrutiny of this government's activities on this matter. Just last week the Solicitor General announced integrating the Organized Crime Agency with the RCMP, but integrating with the RCMP means there will no longer be a service plan forthcoming from the agency responsible for organized crime in this province. Therefore, unless we have this legislative standing committee, there will be no legislative scrutiny because of that action of the Organized Crime Agency. It will be through a standing committee such as this that information regarding the adequacy of funding and resources for organized crime fighters will be found.

           We cannot hide from this issue. We cannot ignore it and hope that it just goes away. Now is the time to match rhetoric with action and to get serious about our collective responsibility to tackle a mounting, dangerous problem that affects us all. I strongly encourage and hope that every member of this House will support this motion.

           Mr. Speaker: We are debating the amendment to the Premier's motion.

           Hon. G. Collins: I've been in this House long enough to know how opposition tactics work. I think it's fair to say that everyone is concerned with the issues that the Solicitor General has raised previously as well as the member opposite has raised. I think that if it were a genuine gesture to try and provide a forum for debate, discussion, public consultation around this issue, it's something we probably could have talked about beforehand. The fact that the member raises it here in the fashion she does, I think, is an indication of its intent.

           However, I think all members of this House would be glad if the member has some suggestions as to how we might grapple with this issue. There have been recommendations or suggestions put forward by the Solicitor General in the past. We'd be glad to do that, and we can certainly have that discussion.

[1455]

           Perhaps this isn't the best way to do it. Perhaps there are others that would involve the public in a

[ Page 8452 ]

more meaningful way than just having the Legislature members sit here and address something, which I think the member makes a point on — that this, according to her, impacts individual members of the Legislature and that perhaps the better forum would be some public forum. I think if she has suggestions on that, then we would certainly be more than happy to hear her suggestions as well as the suggestions of other British Columbians. Mr. Speaker, I don't believe this is the best forum to make that happen.

           Interjection.

           Mr. Speaker: Order, please.

           Hon. members, we are voting on the amendment proposed by the Leader of the Opposition. It reads as follows, under item 8, "the Attorney General–Solicitor General Joint Committee" so that the amended motion reads that this committee is incorporated.

           Amendment negatived on the following division:

           Mr. Speaker: The question, hon. members, is on the motion on select standing committees as put forward by the Premier.

           Motion approved.

Point of Privilege

           J. MacPhail: This being the first appropriate time, I want to reserve my right to raise a matter of privilege — not once, not twice, but three times. I put that before you, Mr. Speaker, I hope in the appropriate fashion — to reserve my right on three matters of privilege.

           Mr. Speaker: So noted.

           Hon. G. Collins moved adjournment of the House.

           Motion approved.

           Mr. Speaker: The House is adjourned until 2 p.m. tomorrow.

           The House adjourned at 3 p.m.

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