Hansard -- Thursday, September 15, 2005 p.m. -- Vol. 1, No. 7 (HTML)

The following electronic version is for informational purposes only.
The printed version remains the official version.

Official Report of

DEBATES OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY


CONTENTS

	Routine Proceedings
		Page


Tributes		93
	Terry Fox Day
	Hon. G. Campbell

Introductions by Members		93

Introduction and First Reading of Bills		93
	Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Act, 2005 (Bill 4)
	Hon. M. de Jong

Statements (Standing Order 25B)		94
	Tri-Cities baseball teams
	I. Black
	Whalley Little League
	B. Ralston
	Dalai Lama centre
	L. Mayencourt
	Riverview Hospital lands
	D. Thorne
	Terry Fox
	H. Bloy
	M. Farnworth

Oral Questions		95
	Budget priorities and corporate tax reduction
	C. James
	Hon. C. Taylor
	Hon. G. Campbell
	J. Kwan
	Funding for child protection
	A. Dix
	Hon. S. Hagen
	Government support for seniors
	M. Farnworth
	Hon. C. Taylor
	Funding for long-term care beds
	K. Conroy
	Hon. G. Abbott
	Government action on crystal meth
	K. Conroy
	Hon. J. Les

Petitions		100
	H. Lali

Budget Debate (continued)		100
	Hon. R. Thorpe
	M. Karagianis
	Hon. L. Reid
	S. Simpson
	D. Hayer
	B. Ralston
	Hon. R. Neufeld
	N. Macdonald

Hon. G. Campbell: On Sunday thousands of Canadians will join together to carry on the vision of a remarkable British Columbian, Terry Fox. This year the annual Terry Fox Run marks the 25th anniversary of Terry's Marathon of Hope. It was April in 1980 that Terry took the first steps in his epic journey with the dream of helping those who had — and helping us eradicate — cancer. It was 25 years ago this month that he was forced to abandon his run. He did not make it to his destination here in Victoria, but his run did carry him into history and into the hearts of Canadians and people around the world.

Today it is an honour to welcome to the House some very special guests: Terry's parents Rollie and Betty Fox, and Rob Reid from Victoria who has led the effort to erect a memorial for Terry at Mile Zero that will be unveiled at a ceremony tomorrow.

I know that Rollie and Betty are incredibly proud of their son and his living legacy, and I know all of us are also proud of Terry as one of B.C.'s greatest sons. To this day we're all inspired and we are all humbled by the remarkable courage of a young man who dared to dream and to put his dream into action. He remains an enduring hero — an enduring icon of courage, hope and all that those two qualities mean to Canadians.

With the leave of the House, I would like to read a proclamation that will be proclaimed shortly.

I. Black: I rise today to recognize over 25 players, coaches, parents and supporters of the Coquitlam-Moody Reds baseball club, whose reasons for being here will be explained further in the two-minute statements. I am delighted to have these championship ballplayers in Victoria today and hope that they enjoy the scintillating debate and discourse that is unique to this chamber. Would the House please join me in making them welcome.

K. Conroy: It gives me great pleasure today to introduce to the House — to some of you, he doesn't need an introduction — the former MLA for Rossland-Trail, my husband Ed Conroy. He is here today, and he is quick to say that he is enjoying the role reversal in our relationship.

Hon. M. de Jong presented a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: a bill entitled Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Act, 2005.

Hon. M. de Jong: Mr. Speaker, I move that Bill 4 be introduced and read a first time now.

Hon. M. de Jong: Bill 4 amends the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act to ensure that this House, in fact, has the broadest range of candidates to choose from when selecting an Information and Privacy Commissioner to serve as a watchdog for access and privacy rights in the province.

The amendments proposed in this bill specifically allow for the Committee of Selection that will shortly be struck to consider the candidacy of the incumbent. It also ensures that the acting Privacy Commissioner has all of the legal authority necessary to continue in his role, pending the selection of a new Privacy Commissioner.

I move that Bill 4 be placed on the orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Bill 4, Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Act, 2005, 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.

I. Black: I'm honoured to be here representing the constituents of Port Moody–Westwood in this Legislature. In the coming days I will share in my inaugural response to the budget more about this great and diverse riding and the four municipalities within it.

Today, however, it is a pleasure for me to rise in this House to acknowledge a remarkable sporting achievement within our province. I would like to pay tribute to an organization from my riding that is a shining example of the ongoing pursuit of our goal to lead the way in North America in healthy living and physical fitness.

When a local individual or a team achieves national success, it is not unusual for this House to pause and share in the thrill of the victory. What I'm bringing to your attention today, though, is something even more commendable. Two teams of different age groups from the same baseball club were crowned provincial champions: the triple-A peewee and the bantam teams from the Coquitlam-Moody Reds baseball club. But the story does not end there. At the end of August they represented our province with honour at the national championships in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, where the peewee team won the Baseball Canada national championship, while the bantam team won the silver medal.

Today we are lucky to have players, coaches and parents from both championship teams in our gallery. For two teams from the same club in the same year not only to win the provincial championships but also to carry this momentum forward to capture first and second place nationally is simply an extraordinary achievement and reflects years of commitment in program development within the club. Please join me in congratulating the Reds players, coaches and the parents for all their hard work and dedication in representing our province. They are a shining example of how British Columbia is the best place to live and raise a family, and they are the current pride of Tri-Cities athletics.

B. Ralston: There's obviously a baseball theme here today. I want to speak about the Whalley Little League all-star baseball team who returned from their recent trip to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, where they were the international division semi-finalists. Equally importantly or perhaps even more importantly, they were also awarded the 2005 Little League World Series team sportsmanship award, which is an award where everyone, including the people who work in the stadium, votes on it. It's quite an honour, because you really have to be on your best behaviour at all times, and you can't fake that.

B. Ralston: That's why it's part of the new spirit of this House. But I do want to mention the players individually: Justin Atkinson, Mitchell Burns, Matt Catonio, Nathan de la Feraude, Jeff Degano, Alexander Dunbar, Christopher Fischer, Conrad Gallagher, Jerrod Gray, Richard Lankmayr, Tanner Morache, Kristopher Robazza, Nick Rohla and Talon Van Horn — coached by Joe Burns and John Atkinson and managed by Glenn Morache. I know that all members will want to join me in congratulating this team from Whalley for their great job in representing Surrey, British Columbia and Canada.

I also want to extend an invitation at this time, on behalf of the Whalley Little League, to the Canadian Little League championships which will take place in August 2006 in Whalley. Teams from across Canada will be represented, and I look forward to seeing you all there at that time.

L. Mayencourt: As some of the members will know, I had the privilege last year of working on the visit for His Holiness the Dalai Lama. We had great success with this, and the group that worked with me on this committee decided that we wanted to create a legacy. So we began a discussion in our community about creating the Dalai Lama centre for peace and education in Vancouver.

The centre will bring together experts from around the world, and they'll do research and educate people about basic human values and proactively promote peace everywhere. Our goal is to make this an international institution that would make B.C. a leader in promoting peace and basic human values that will one day be shared around the globe. It could be a centre that works proactively with other post-secondary educational institutions in B.C. to do research and promote everyone's goal of peaceful societies.

His Holiness has agreed to return to Vancouver every two years to host dialogues in our community at the proposed centre. We're all very honoured that he has taken a personal and active interest in this initiative. I look forward as I go to visit him in Tucson this weekend…. We can continue our work on this valuable initiative in our community.

Mr. Speaker, just to give you a sense of how important it is, imagine if, 40 years ago, we had created the Gandhi centre for peace. We might have advanced the basic human values that he represented. We have a wonderful opportunity to do this with the Dalai Lama.

D. Thorne: Today I rise with pleasure to speak for the first time in this venerable institution. I will talk

about the Riverview Hospital and lands, another venerable institution, with which the riding of Coquitlam-Maillardville has been blessed. Well-known provincially as a haven for the care of the mentally ill for the past century, the Riverview Hospital lands themselves are less known as a significant environmental and heritage site.

This Sunday, September 18, the annual Riverview TreeFest will be held in the afternoon. Sponsored by the Riverview Horticultural Society, the Arts Connect, the Burke Mountain Naturalists and the city of Coquitlam, this event will showcase the Riverview lands — their beauty and tranquility; their educational, cultural and artistic opportunities; and especially their ecology and history.

Contained within the Riverview lands is a unique collection of historic buildings, which are an outstanding example of British Columbia architecture. There is an exceptional arboretum with a world-class collection of mature rare trees throughout the site. There is greenspace, watercourses, biodiversity and excellent wildlife habitat.

There is a history of heritage landscape and building by the patients themselves, which is little known outside the city of Coquitlam. It is well worth going to see. Of course, we can't forget the cemetery, which has been there for very many years.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to invite all the members of this House to attend on Sunday. I think it would be well worth their while. If they can't make it Sunday, please make an effort. We have a lot of these walks, and the Riverview lands are well worth a visit. We'd like you all to come out on Sunday to Coquitlam after the Terry Fox walk in your own communities.

H. Bloy: I would also like to take this opportunity to talk about Terry Fox and his legacy. Not only is Terry Fox a hero, but he is also an inspiration to us all. I cannot think of any other person who has made such a positive impact on people's lives.

Terry never felt sorry for himself. He refused to blame others for his cancer. Instead of complaining about it, he made the decision to help others afflicted by this disease.

Setting off from St. John's, Newfoundland, Terry's Marathon of Hope captured the imagination and hearts of Canadians. It was moving to see this young man cheered on by hundreds of thousands of people at roadsides as he ran a marathon every day.

Despite Terry's bravery and determination, the cancer spread to his lungs. After 5,073 kilometres he was forced to stop in Thunder Bay, Ontario, on September 1, 1980. One day after the marathon Terry said this: "Even though I'm not running anymore, we still have to try to find a cure for cancer. Other people should go ahead and try to do this thing on their own now."

Terry's call to arms was answered when the first Terry Fox Run took place in 1981, including one in New Westminster in which I participated. Raising over $360 million, the Terry Fox Run is credited as the largest single-day fundraising event for cancer research in the world. From Canada to Korea to Dubai, 55 countries hold runs annually.

This Sunday marks the 25th Terry Fox Run, and communities right across British Columbia will hold runs. I urge as many people as possible to participate and donate money so that we can complete Terry's dreams and find a cure for cancer.

M. Farnworth: I would like to thank the Premier for his comments and the member for Burquitlam for his comments. I would like to extend a special welcome to Rolly and Betty Fox, whom I have known for many, many years, as they were longtime residents of Port Coquitlam. It is really great to see you here.

I, too, am going to talk about Terry Fox, on a personal note. We grew up in Port Coquitlam, we went to the same junior high school, and we were in the same class. I don't think anybody at that time realized the true greatness that would emerge some ten or 15 years after those junior high school days. But 25 years ago he captured the hearts of our communities, our province, our nation and its people. He showed the power of a dream and the determination to achieve something, through the Marathon of Hope, to find a cure for cancer, which I doubt anybody in this room has not been touched by.

This weekend we will have the Marathon of Hope runs right across our province, our country and around the world. I know the Premier will be attending in Port Coquitlam, and I know all of us will be attending the runs and walks in our own communities. I think that is a testament to the power of a dream and the Marathon of Hope and what it sought to achieve, because cancer impacts everybody.

I would like to mention an individual. She worked in my office for four years as my administrative assistant. She was a terrific person who worked to keep me organized. I know she is watching right now. She is facing her own very tough battle. I think it would be terrific, given the statements that have been made, if she knows that all members of this House, the Fox family and the members in the gallery send her their thoughts, their prayers and their best wishes and that we're standing with her in her very difficult battle.

C. James: Study after study shows that ordinary families are pushed to the limit these days. Saving rates are hitting record lows, and families are falling further and further behind. In the campaign just four months ago the Premier promised to help these families and to follow his 43-page platform "point by point, page by page, day by day." I would like to ask the Premier if he

could point to where in his platform he promised another large corporate tax cut.

Hon. C. Taylor: I'm pleased to be able to stand up and speak to the House today about the budget we presented yesterday. We're proud of that budget. We believe that it is a balanced approach going forward and that it looks at the needs of many people in our communities. But as I said then and I will say many, many times, this is step one going forward. Part of that budget, of course, set aside $242 million for seniors, the seniors who are in the most difficult circumstances — low-income seniors in our province.

We also committed to $100 million for the First Nations New Relationship fund, and on the other side of this we said that we must keep our economy…

Hon. C. Taylor: …competitive. As we said throughout the campaign, we will lose businesses and we will lose jobs if we return to the policies of the '90s, which were overspending and overtaxation.

Part of our response has been, and it will continue to be, to monitor taxes constantly. We will ensure that we do the best that we can afford to do to keep our businesses competitive. Businesses are only about jobs, and we need jobs to stay and grow in British Columbia.

C. James: There's no question that seniors are important. There's no question that first nations are important. I'd also agree with the comments made about a balanced approach and how important that was. In fact, that was the key message that we heard throughout the campaign. But if we take a look at this budget, it's very clear that seniors are only going to receive a fraction of what corporations will receive each year, based on the numbers that were in the budget.

We also believe it's important to make sure that our economy moves ahead. We believe that targeted tax incentives are important. In fact, it was this party that put forward targeted tax incentives for the film industry, which the other party across the bench actually agreed to after we pushed them.

This is an issue of trust. Nowhere in the platform in this election campaign did the Premier suggest that his first priority was another big tax giveaway — $500 million over three years.

Just a couple of weeks ago a leading Bay Street economist said the corporations are saving too much…

I'm asking the Premier again to explain why he didn't tell British Columbians that a tax cut was going to be his first priority in this budget update.

Hon. C. Taylor: I am pleased to be able to talk about the budget today. I thought that I might not get the chance. I will say that the platform material that…

Hon. C. Taylor: …we ran on included very specifically the idea that we will work to keep taxes competitive in British Columbia. We are doing it now, and we will continue to do that.

Furthermore, we said that it was very important for people to realize that the power of a strong economy — the reason why we say it over and over again — is so that we can have the revenues to do priority and targeted spending. While we talk about seniors because they were featured in the new budget that we presented yesterday, the updated budget, I will remind everyone that it was built on the base of the February 15 budget, which went a long way to help low- and middle-income families and individuals across the province.

Hon. C. Taylor: …which in fact results in British Columbia having the lowest tax rate for low- and middle-income earners in all of Canada. Furthermore, anyone under $16,000 a year pays no provincial taxes.

C. James: I'd just like to refresh the memory for the Premier and for the Finance Minister about their election campaign. Nowhere did it mention that corporate tax cuts would be the first priority of this government after the election.

I come back again to the issue of trust. It's about what British Columbians were told in the election campaign just four months ago. The Premier promised to build 5,000 long-term care beds, he promised to cap tuition, and he promised more skills training. These promises were ignored in the budget.

Again, I'd like to ask the Premier to tell British Columbians why we should trust his government now, when during the campaign he kept quiet on his issue of bringing forward a corporate tax cut in this budget.

Hon. G. Campbell: It's great to be able to stand and rediscuss the campaign. What we said in the campaign was that we were going to keep an economy going

strong. We were going to keep a competitive tax regime. In the campaign we said to British Columbians that if you earn $15,500 or less, you will pay no personal income tax in British Columbia.

In the campaign we told British Columbians that we would continue to work to grow the job numbers in British Columbia so that families had the kind of jobs they needed to support their families and build the kind of future they want. In the campaign we told seniors that we would build the 5,000 beds, and in the budget there are 150 million additional dollars to build exactly that number of beds.

In the campaign we said that we would respect and honour our seniors in British Columbia, and in the budget there are 242 million additional dollars to help seniors in need.

In the campaign we said that we would keep looking forward in British Columbia to build a future for children, for seniors and for families, and that's exactly what the budget did.

J. Kwan: Nowhere in the campaign document did the Liberal Party promise $500 million of corporate tax cuts. Maybe the Premier can explain why, then, even B.C.'s business community is surprised.

J. Kwan: They assumed, like everyone else, that the Premier's priorities were health care, seniors and, of course, the challenges faced by ordinary British Columbians. The president of the B.C. Chamber of Commerce said that he was surprised by the budget's "corporate focus," and the vice-president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business said that the cut was deeper than they expected.

Can the Minister of Finance explain why she spent more money on a tax cut than the members of the business community were expecting or even asked for?

Hon. C. Taylor: I'm pleased once again to make the link between corporate tax cuts and the importance of those businesses being competitive, staying in our province and expanding in our province…

Hon. C. Taylor: …so that we can have jobs. Jobs are crucial to our economy. They're crucial to everything we're trying to do in this province, and the only way we have jobs is if we keep our tax rates competitive and keep our businesses here. I think, in fact, that the critic for Finance agrees with me. This morning on CFAX she said that there is a piece around tax incentives, and that will take an effect next year. It's good to do that.

J. Kwan: What the Minister of Finance forgot to quote for this House is that I said yes, it is good to grow the economy, but that when there are successes in our economy everyone in British Columbia should benefit from them. Do we see that in this budget? The answer is no. So it's good to read a quote, but it would be very good to complete the quote.

Let me say this. Maybe I can make the link for the minister, for this government and for the Premier. Under this government, ordinary British Columbians have been forced to pay more and more for less and less — millions of dollars in new fees for everything from parking in provincial parks to filling up at the gas station. I will remind every member of this House that average British Columbians helped pay for the budget surplus with those fees.

Can the Minister of Finance explain why, after three months on the job, she managed to come up with another corporate tax and did nothing to reduce the tax burden on average British Columbians — nothing for children in need, nothing for students, nothing for the average British Columbians who actually need the support of government?

Hon. C. Taylor: I am pleased to talk about the B.C. tax reduction for the lowest and second-lowest income tax brackets in British Columbia. In this budget we have reduced those taxes to the level that they are now the lowest for any province within Canada.

This budget has also increased assistance to the Medical Services Plan for those who most need it. In fact, 215,000 people in British Columbia will have their MSP premiums either reduced or eliminated as part of this budget.

While it's true that I focused on the 242 million new dollars for seniors, in important ways….

Hon. C. Taylor: What we also did, if you read the budget, is more than half a billion — $543 million — in this budget just for services to children.

A. Dix: During the election campaign, the Minister of Finance and I attended a forum at SUCCESS where she said, as B.C. Liberal politicians tend to say, that children were her number-one priority. Yet in this budget, after the report of the child and youth officer and after the report into the Sherry Charlie case, there

Can the Minister of Finance tell this House when she decided that new money for protecting children at risk went to the bottom of the list in favour of a tax cut, a big corporate tax cut, that nobody asked for?

Hon. S. Hagen: I want to assure the member opposite that the health and safety of children are indeed the number-one priority in the province of British Columbia. Because of the power of a strong economy, we are increasing the budget of the.…

Hon. S. Hagen: We are increasing the budget of the Ministry of Children and Family Development over the next three years by $138 million.

Our government has five great goals to achieve over this decade, and one of those goals is to develop the best system of support in the nation for persons with disabilities, special needs and children at risk. Our budget will allow us to do that.

A. Dix: Yesterday's minibudget shows there may be five great goals, but there is only one big group of donors to the B.C. Liberals.

I say to the minister: in August of 2005 an audit in his own Fraser region of the Ministry of Children and Family Development showed that less than 40 percent of child protection investigations were done in what the ministry — and I repeat: the ministry — calls a timely manner.

This indicates, as did the Sherry Charlie report, that this government has cut too deep and too hard into child protection in B.C. So I want to ask the Minister of Finance, because the Minister of Children and Family Development surely didn't make the case to her before this minibudget: can she explain why another big-business tax cut took priority over the government's fundamental responsibility, indeed all of our fundamental responsibility, to protect kids?

Hon. S. Hagen: You know, the neat thing about this ministry is that we have great people in this ministry. I'm confident and I know in my heart that those front-line workers are doing their job and they're doing it well.

Hon. S. Hagen: We now offer families more options. We want to keep kids in their families, in their homes, in the homes of relatives or in their communities. We don't go around like in the '90s, snatching kids out of the homes. Our philosophy, which is backed by research, is that children respond better when they're kept in their homes or in the homes of relatives. We've managed to keep roughly 1,300 kids in their homes…

Hon. S. Hagen: …or in the homes of families since 2001. That's a 15-percent reduction in children in care as opposed to a 45-percent increase during the 1990s.

M. Farnworth: Business leaders were expecting less, while seniors and low- and middle-income earners expected a lot more. Right now British Columbians, many seniors, are worried about huge winter heating bills that are going to stretch their budgets to the limit. But this budget does absolutely nothing to give those people a break. In fact, the government doesn't even acknowledge that there is a problem.

Will the Minister of Finance explain how she can justify spending half a billion dollars on a corporate tax cut that the corporate community didn't ask for?

Hon. C. Taylor: I am pleased to say why we did the tax cut for businesses to try and keep them in this province. In 1999 I was asked to go around the province and co-chair a task force because the economy during the '90s under the NDP was in such difficulty, the policies were so bad that businesses were leaving our province and jobs were leaving our province. As a result, we were put together. We went around the province. We did town halls all over the province. Anyone could come and speak. Union leaders came — community leaders, health care workers, business people — and everywhere we went there were two things that we heard clearly and were non-controversial. One was that if you have a punitive taxation system, businesses and people will leave the provinces, and they did. Second of all, if regulations are complex and contradictory and conflicting and overlapping and it's too hard to do business, businesses will leave, and they did.

So we came out of that, and I presented to the NDP Premier at the time, Ujjal Dosanjh. I also presented to the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Gordon Campbell. I presented to both of them exactly the same report that said we have got to get our taxation regime competitive, or we will continue to lose people, jobs and businesses in this province, and this spiral that was so negative will continue. We also have to clean up our regulations, and I'm proud to say we're doing both.

M. Farnworth: Well, the Minister of Finance has just talked about talking to people and travelling

around the province. Had she spoken then with small business leaders, who have already said that that tax cut went significantly further, twice as far as they expected…. Had she talked to them and listened to them, she could have done a tax cut that would have met business expectations and had half that money left over to spend on services to seniors and education, on health care, the environment, emergency protection and a host of all the other priorities that she said yesterday are choices. How true. We know where her choices lay, and they weren't with low- and middle-income families.

Again, can the Minister of Finance explain why the biggest spending priority in yesterday's budget was a tax cut that wasn't asked for, which is twice as large as the increase that's being given to seniors so that they can get some of their money back and maybe have a little left over to give to their grandkids to pay for the school fees that their parents can't afford?

Hon. C. Taylor: The hon. member is correct. We did make choices. We made the choice to spend 242 million new dollars on those seniors in our community who are the most vulnerable. We chose to spend 1.5 billion new dollars on the health system. We chose to increase the budget of the Ministry of Environment by $123.

Hon. C. Taylor: We chose to look at our children, and we spent over half a billion dollars — these are all new dollars — on children. Now, to say that everything is done and everything is solved would not be correct, but what we are saying is that these are significant, important steps forward on our goal of improving social justice supports within our province.

K. Conroy: Mr. Speaker, let's be clear here. For four years this government has hammered seniors. They cut income supplements. They closed long-term care beds. They even tried to take away their bus passes. Now they have given a little back and want to be treated like heroes. This government promised 5,000 new long-term care beds — not assisted living, not supportive housing — but this budget didn't even come close to funding those beds.

Can the Minister of Finance explain why the business community is so surprised by the size of its tax cut while seniors are being betrayed once again?

Hon. G. Abbott: It's perhaps a little bit early in the session to form conclusions about the new NDP versus the old NDP, but there are three observations I'd make at this early stage in the session. The first is that the….

The new NDP doesn't seem to do their homework any better than the old NDP. That's pretty clear already. Secondly, the new NDP seems as genetically indisposed to recognize good news as the old NDP was.

Third, and this is really unfortunate, it appears that the new NDP hasn't learned any of the lessons that were so apparent from that decade that I dispassionately describe as the dark decade of neglect under the old NDP.

Mr. Speaker: Listen. Order, please. We listened to the question. We'll listen to the answer.

One of the challenges that our government faced in 2001, as we moved towards providing more long-term care, was that decade of neglect. Only 1,400 beds by this government over that ten years — only 1,400.

Further, when we did the first-ever provincial inventory of long-term care in the province, what it showed was that many of the units did not meet fire codes. They didn't meet building codes. Fully 50 percent of the units that existed needed upgrading to appropriate levels of care. We've made a huge investment in respect of this area. I'm very proud of what we achieved. We're going to achieve even more.

K. Conroy: Thank you to the minister for the history lesson that was uncalled for. But thank you anyway. It's actually a question of priorities. The B.C. Liberals were sent a very clear message in the campaign, but they didn't listen. Instead, they've gone back to their old ways — tax cuts that were never promised and critical priorities that are being ignored.

In the election the B.C. Liberals promised action on crystal meth. Can the Minister of Finance explain why she broke that promise, with absolutely no funding to treat crystal meth addiction?

Hon. J. Les: I'm pleased to respond to the member's question. As a matter of fact, we have been taking ac

tion on the crystal meth file in British Columbia. As a matter of fact, we stand as leaders in Canada in addressing that very serious problem.

For example, last year we made available to communities $41 million of additional funding for policing through traffic fine revenue to help them deal at the community level. On a provincewide basis, we have made available an additional $122 million to hire an additional 215 RCMP members across the province to help with the enforcement and dealing with the meth labs that we have across the province. I'm told today there was another major crime lab bust in the city of Richmond. That, too, is evidence that the enforcement is working across the province and dealing with this very serious issue.

We also worked with the pharmacies across the province and the retail sector to institute the Meth Watch program so that the precursors that are often available at these locations are monitored closely to alert authorities to the inappropriate access to those precursors.

Hon. J. Les: If any members opposite would like to learn more about some of the things that we're doing to deal with this issue, I would offer my ministry to give them a briefing.

H. Lali: Hon. Speaker, I have the honour to present a petition. I'm presenting a petition with 1,500 names, and it's to the hon. Solicitor General. Can I read the Crier on here?

Where I left off was that British Columbia, after many hard choices and a lot of work from 2001 to 2005, was positioned to move forward. On May 17 the people of British Columbia gave our government a mandate to move forward. I know there are some folks on the other side of the House that do not believe we should have a vision or goals, but our government believes you should have a vision and you should establish goals.

The goal which members over there seem to be fairly cynical about…. I don't know why they'd be against having the best-educated, most literate jurisdiction on the continent. I don't know why they do not want British Columbia to lead the way in North America in healthy living and physical fitness. I don't know why our third goal — to build the best system of support in Canada for persons with disabilities, special needs, children at risk and our seniors…. I don't know why they'd be against that. I don't know why the NDP would be against British Columbia leading the world in sustainable environmental management. I don't know why the NDP would be against our fifth goal: to create more jobs per capita than anywhere else in Canada.

Those are our goals. Those are our objectives. That is what we are going to work on hard over the next four years to show British Columbians that it will and can be done once again. Let me tell you what our budget does for education. It recommits $268 million — new dollars — for funding over three years for the Ministry of Education. It will improve access to school libraries, quality learning resources, music and art programs, and resources to support those students with special needs.

There is $15 million to expand the number of post-secondary seats and help keep tuition fees affordable. Funding for post-secondary education will increase by $386 million over three years to create 16,025 new post-secondary seats by the year 2007-2008. This budget commits $450 million over the next three years for student financial assistance, including loan reductions for students in need, debt relief, a loan forgiveness program and grants for students with disabilities. Our government is committed to having the best-educated jurisdiction in North America.

When it comes to British Columbia leading North America in healthy living, let me say very proudly that our province and our government will invest an additional $1.5 billion in health care and fitness initiatives by 2007-2008 — the largest increase of any function of government. We have, over the past five years, increased funding to health by 32 percent.

Over the next three years $465 million will go to Pharmacare; $200 million over three years for better access to hip and knee replacements; $100 million over three years for public health initiatives like Act Now B.C.; $100 million to the B.C. Ambulance Service; and $77 million over the next three years for recruiting, training and retention of nurses. This budget confirms the plan to provide an additional $73 million for infant

and early childhood vision, dental and hearing screenings — the first jurisdiction in Canada to do this.

Since 2001, when we formed government, to 2007-2008 we will have increased funding by $3.7 billion for health care. One of the things that is most important to me — I know to colleagues on my side of the House and, I want to believe, to colleagues on that side of the House — is helping those truly in need: persons with disabilities and special needs, children at risk and our seniors.

We've heard the NDP opposition be critical and cynical of our $242 million additional funding to seniors. We are renewing the seniors supplement. This is a monthly benefit for those seniors with the lowest incomes. We are doubling the funding for SAFER, Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters.

You know, it's fairly troubling to me that those folks over there were in government for ten years, and they did not increase funding one penny to those on SAFER. We have now expanded SAFER so that another 7,200 folks in British Columbia are going to be eligible. Those seniors that live in manufactured homes on rental pads will now, for the first time in the history of British Columbia, be eligible for our SAFER program.

We are committing $254 million to address income assistance caseloads and increase assistance for persons with disabilities by $70 per month, the largest one-time increase in the history of British Columbia, the most significant increase in the past ten years; $91 million for adult community living; $37 million for transition homes, outreach programs and related services for women and children fleeing domestic violence; and $140 million to enhance services to children and youth with special needs.

When we look at having the best sustainable environmental management program in the world, we must actually walk the talk. That is why this budget puts $5 million more to accelerate the new $80 million B.C. community water improvement program; $66 million to remediate contaminated sites on Crown lands; $5 million additional to increase the capacity at the environmental assessment office; $16 million to establish the B.C. conservation corps, with up to 150 new members in addition to the 150 new park rangers and conservation officers; and $8 million to implement the Drinking Water Protection Act.

I know my colleague from Esquimalt-Metchosin is very interested in the exemption that we put in place to reduce the provincial sales tax to save money for those people buying hybrid electric vehicles — a $2,000 tax credit for that and a two-year PST exemption for eligible energy-efficient residential heating equipment. So we are moving forward.

I do hear the NDP say that we're not doing a thing on the pine beetle. Well, we have the most comprehensive plan — $143 million over the next three years for initiatives to address this issue. Interestingly enough, if my memory serves me right, the beetle was first found out about in 1993 in Tweedsmuir Park, and the NDP were on watch for seven years. For seven years they did nothing. For seven years they allowed that beetle to take control of our most prized forests, and now, ladies and gentlemen, they're critical that people aren't moving. It's really a little bit too much to take.

Now we hear that the NDP are against creating and having an investment climate and environment where people want to invest and create jobs in British Columbia. Our government happens to be for that. Since December 2001, 231,000 new jobs have been created in British Columbia — an all-time record. I am proud to stand here today on behalf of the constituents of Okanagan-Westside and say: "Yes, continue the actions required to make sure that we have an investment climate here that attracts investment and that attracts and creates job creation." If that means keeping our taxes competitive, then that's what we'll do. If that means increasing the threshold for small business from $200,000 to $400,000, that's what we'll do. If that means having a 4.5-percent tax rate for small business — the third-lowest in Canada — that's what we'll do.

It's important that we continue to move our economy forward. As we saw, and as some of my colleagues have talked about, we did see the very dark and sad decade of the NDP as they not only drove companies but drove families and our best and brightest out of this province. I am proud to be part of a government that has been able to work with the people of British Columbia to create a climate where those people and those families are moving back and creating opportunities in every region of our province.

You know, Mr. Speaker, we've done more. We've done more for those who need our assistance. We've put in place a new non-refundable personal income tax credit, the B.C. tax reduction, to reduce or eliminate provincial income tax for about 730,000 British Columbians. Most individuals earning $16,000 now pay no provincial income tax. Those earning up to $26,000 pay very little tax.

We've increased the MSP threshold by $4,000. We've eliminated premiums for 215,000 British Columbians. Our government does care about people. We do care about those that need our assistance. We will continue to work with our communities to make sure that those in need are there, and we will be there for them.

Let me talk just a little bit about the riding that I represent, Okanagan-Westside, and the commitments I made during the election campaign, the commitments that I will work as hard as I can work over the next four years on behalf of my constituents — that is, for the establishment on the west side of a new health care centre.

I will continue to work on seniors housing. I am proud of the progress I have been able to achieve working hand in hand with the non-profits in the communities in my riding. We have new and increasing seniors housing in Summerland, at Angus Place and the new Summerland care facility.

In Peachland we're working with the council and task force leader, Mr. Graham Reid, to establish seniors housing in Peachland.

The Westbank Lions — we are working with them. They have a new addition, a new opening coming up

here very shortly. We are working with the Interior Health Authority to make sure that those needs of our seniors in our community are met. It is a goal that those in our community and I have worked on, and it's a goal we will continue to work on and a commitment we will continue to achieve.

With respect to education, I am working very closely with the community, with school district 23 and the Minister of Advanced Education to ensure that the expansion of Mount Boucherie Secondary School takes place.

Most recently, a week or two ago, we had the opening of Okanagan College and the new UBC Okanagan. Those two new post-secondary education facilities in the Okanagan will now have an additional 5,500 spaces in the Okanagan so that those who want to learn trades and skills can do that at Okanagan College. They can also take courses that will ladder up to UBC Okanagan, and of course, they can go to UBC Okanagan.

We are proud in the Okanagan to have UBC Okanagan there — one of the top 50 research universities in the world now in the Okanagan, where our students and other students from the southern interior can come to study, to work and to create an opportunity.

I will continue to work tirelessly for Summerland, Peachland and Westside to ensure that infrastructure programs for water and sewers are in place when they need them.

I will continue to work on the four-laning of Highway 97 from Summerland to Okanagan Park and will continue to work with the residents and communities that are serviced by Westside Road where we have seen some significant improvements in the past year.

Let me say that it's a pleasure to have as part of my constituency the opportunity to work with the Westbank first nations. This is without question one of the leading first nations groups in all of British Columbia, and I am pleased to call Chief Robert Louie my friend and his councillors my friends. They are setting a tremendous economic opportunity and social opportunity for all members of the Westbank first nations, and I look forward to continuing to work with them.

Finally, it really is about what my constituents tell me every day. It's about having a competitive investment climate for small business, for medium-sized businesses and for larger businesses, because my constituents know that's where jobs are created. That's where their children can get jobs, and that's where people can have opportunities.

The constituents of Okanagan-Westside have told me time and time again that they want a balanced approach from government. I am proud, on behalf of my constituents, to say that I will vote strongly in support of this budget, because it is a balanced approach. It's a balanced approach to provide assistance to those that built this province, our seniors — $242 million. It's about creating a $100 million First Nations New Relationship fund, which will create opportunities for first nations and all British Columbians. It's about creating stability and certainty so that we can all move forward.

I am pleased that this budget confirms the tax cuts for those earning $16,000 and less, reducing taxes for 715,000 citizens of British Columbia. I am pleased that this increases the threshold for small business from $300,000 to $400,000. I am pleased that this creates tax benefits for 20,000 small, medium and large companies in British Columbia, because investment stability creates jobs for the future.

I'm also very pleased that in this budget, the Minister of Finance has announced international financial activity to enhance competitiveness for our life science patents. This is a tremendous opportunity, one that I first worked on four years ago. It gives us an opportunity in genome, biotech, forestry, mining and aquaculture. This allows us to keep our best and brightest here in British Columbia to protect our patents, to enhance the opportunities, to create clusters around our universities in Prince George, around our universities in Victoria, around our universities in Vancouver, around our colleges throughout the province and around Okanagan College and UBC Okanagan.

This is a good-news budget item. This budget is a prudent, balanced approach. It is the first step in our first budget of five budgets that we will table in our second mandate. It's a budget for our seniors. It's a budget for our low-income citizens. It's a budget for our children. It's a budget about moving forward, and as I said earlier, it's a budget for our grandchildren. I'm very pleased to support this budget.

M. Karagianis: It's a great pleasure and a privilege to stand here today as the member for Esquimalt-Metchosin. I have to admit that so far, the experience has been a bit dazzling. I still have my training wheels on, but I expect that I will get up to speed very quickly.

I'd like to respond to yesterday's budget, but first I would like to preface it with a few personal remarks. To everyone who helped me arrive here, I owe a great debt of thanks. I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to my family and to my husband Todd Gray-Owen, who has quietly and steadfastly offered his support in all ways from learning to clean the house and do the laundry to hauling around election signs. Todd has always just gone ahead and done what was needed, and that has allowed me the freedom to attain this member seat here.

My children and their spouses are my best friends. My son Nigel Gamracy and his wife Robin, my daughter Devyn Flesher and her husband Kurt, my daughter Rebecca Fahey and her husband Rob, and my three grandchildren Hunter, Payton and River. Hunter and his family live in Campbell River, and Hunter frequently asks: "Grandma, can you just mention me when you're on the news sometime?" I've actually had to tell him that that's not always possible when you're doing a news story, but today I'm mentioning Hunter in this speech. I'd also like to thank my youngest daughter Aubrey Karagianis. My children are truly representative of the best of my life's work.

I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to my mentors and friends, those who have awed and inspired me and those who have guided my footsteps to this place. Dave Barrett, who kindled the political fire in me back in the early '70s. Dave is one of my most famous constituents, and to this day he has continued to share his wealth of knowledge with me as well as his fabulous sense of humour. Frank Mitchell, who was the MLA in this riding for many years. His indomitable wife Kay and the whole Mitchell and Starkey family are mentors and great friends. My friend Randall Garrison, who got me directly involved in politics by persuading me to run for office in the first place. And of course, my good friend Moe Sihota. Moe has given me the greatest motivation, sharing with me his burning passion for right and fairness as a voice for ordinary people, for those who cannot speak out for themselves, for a better and more just society. There is no one like Moe, and I am very privileged to call him my friend.

I would also like to extend my thanks to a good and loyal friend, Ray Rice, who served as the mayor of Esquimalt for six years. Special regards to Ray and his wife Cheri, who is currently waging a battle with cancer. I would like to offer special thanks, as well, to Lawrence Herzog, who is now my constituency assistant. Lawrence is a kindred spirit, someone who shares a similar approach to the world that I do, who's always been a terrific sounding board, who has a quick wit and a really great sense of the absurd. That comes in really handy when you're in politics.

With all of those I've mentioned and with the many other dear and wonderful friends along the way, I share the success in this past election. I would also like to acknowledge my most recent predecessor, Arnie Hamilton, and I know you will all join me in sending regards to him and his family at this time.

My constituency of Esquimalt-Metchosin is a combination of unique communities, ordinary working communities with a rich history that forms the very genesis of what is British Columbia. Yesterday's budget had many real implications, some good and some less than satisfactory, for those constituents in my riding. The Esquimalt and Songhees nations lands are at the heart of my community. Chief Andy Thomas of the Esquimalt nation, Chief Robert Sam of the Songhees nation and Chief Russell Chips of Beecher Bay are and will continue to be the masters of destiny for many of us in this region. My thanks and acknowledgment to them for the lands upon which we conduct business today.

Esquimalt has a history of trade and commerce here in the capital, as one of the oldest townships on the Island. Shipbuilding has always been a strong part of the heritage, and the Esquimalt graving dock is still a significant economic factor in the region. Esquimalt is also the home of Pacific fleet at CFB Esquimalt, a significant component in the global peacekeeping efforts that Canada is so famous for.

It was my great honour to serve as an Esquimalt councillor for nine years, and I am very proud of the work I did there, much of it with my good friend Ray Rice.

Next door, View Royal is a newer but vigorous community that bridges the core of our region with our Western Communities. It is a municipality that is on the move, forging a new vision for itself. View Royal is also home of Victoria General Hospital, which plays such a vital role in the health care of this region.

Langford and Colwood are the two fastest-growing communities in the region. Both are expanding their commercial bases, building housing at an amazing rate and developing identities as aggressive business centres. Royal Roads University is a jewel in the crown in Colwood with world-class extended education options, an ambitious vision and enormous potential for expansion in the future — all attributes that are very well suited to the West Shore.

Metchosin is the far anchor of my constituency, rural and idyllic. But Metchosin, too, is building a community with the pressures of growth, development and affordability challenging that community to create a balance between its rural preservation and its desire for new economic opportunities.

There is one thread that binds all of these communities: the commute — the famous crawl with workers heading out of the Western Communities each day and each evening, threading their way through the entire length of Esquimalt-Metchosin.

In the past four years my constituents have been particularly hard hit by the policies and cutbacks of this Liberal government. The regressive referendum on aboriginal treaties set a tone of deterioration with first nations relationships, and little has improved for our first nations neighbours in the ensuing four years. The coming days and months will show if this government will fulfil the reconciliation long overdue to these great leaders and their communities, and if the land claims issues will be settled in this community

The loss of thousands of shipbuilding jobs to a foreign country undermined the economy of my area and deteriorated the job opportunities here in the region for many of my constituents. Cuts to health care jobs and the incomes of health care workers across the riding have caused hardships and strain for many families. In no other capital regional area has the term "working poor" been more of a reality.

At one door I knocked on during the election campaign, I met a man and his wife who had spent 30 years working in the health care industry — their entire working lives. Recently their jobs had been privatized by this government and both of their wages cut in half. They ended up having to sell their home and move into subsidized housing. The man admitted to me that he was ashamed of having to go to a food bank for the first time in his life, something he had never imagined would happen after working all those years in this province. I did not see anything in yesterday's budget for that man and his wife.

My constituency has seen the expansion of liquor stores and the continued expansion of gambling, both

of which contribute to a reduced quality of life for many. Increasing homeless numbers that now include families with children are a reality in this region as well. Yesterday's budget held nothing for those families.

Health care needs in the riding have also deteriorated. Aside from the loss of the health care workers, the failing privatization of health services that resulted in dirty hospitals and poor food, as well as underpaid and undertrained workers, we continue to have a desperate need for seniors care, home care and complex care. The reality is that this government has not put seniors first for the past four years. Yesterday's budget only partially replaces the cuts that seniors have experienced, and we are grateful for the few crumbs that have been given back to the seniors, penurious as they are in the face of inflation.

We have a long way to go to provide real care options — not independent living, not rental supplements, but real long-term health care. The budget did not adequately address that need. One-quarter of VGH, Victoria General Hospital, is currently shut down, and the lack of beds for treatment in neonatal care is causing wait-lists and hardship for families, for seniors and for mothers needing newborn care.

Several days ago this chamber heard the story of Melissa White, the young mom who was separated from her tiny new baby due to this government's cuts and the complete lack of adequate neonatal baby beds here on the Island. Melissa initially called my office, and I spoke to her personally. Melissa was forced to try and provide her baby with much-needed breast-feeding from a long distance. She was here on the Island while her baby was in Surrey Memorial Hospital.

Those of us who are mothers in this chamber can easily imagine how we would feel in the same situation. We can imagine the emotional hardship and anxiety the situation caused for Melissa. She is only one of a number of mothers who had to leave their homes and travel to the mainland or, in some cases, out of this province to seek the care and the beds they require for their newborn babies. Yesterday's budget didn't offer anything for those moms.

The dramatic growth in population in my riding has created an education crisis. No schools have been built despite the urgent need for a new high school to reduce the pressure on Belmont School in Langford. Crowded classrooms and the complete lack of special needs resources continue to undermine the quality of education our children are receiving at a time in history when education holds the key to a prosperous future for our young people in our province.

Without a good education, how can our young people hope to function in a new and highly competitive technology-based world? Our young people will be destined to serve the lowest-paying job sector because of the lack of foresight of this government. A very good example is unfolding at this very moment as the residents of View Royal circulate a petition to protest further cuts to their local school that have resulted in one more teacher being lost this year.

Increased tuition fees have put huge burdens on young people in my riding and are possibly entirely out of reach for many. I'm sure that was the motivation for the 35 young people who worked on my campaign so that I could stand here and represent them. Yesterday's budget has not helped provide the education needs for my constituents.

Our transportation needs in Esquimalt are one of the most urgent in the region. Anyone who drives to and from work in any of my communities will testify that the traffic pressures along Craigflower and the old Island Highway are now intolerable. Both Esquimalt's and View Royal's OCPs call for small area plans that develop village centres, but those are very much at odds with the crush of traffic that commutes by this area every single day.

Despite the crying need for transportation solutions, this government has failed to provide the transit expansion that was planned for the Western Communities four years ago, and it has not taken any steps towards realizing a light rapid transit solution or needed upgrades to Highway 1. This week we saw yet another accident on the Malahat — luckily, without a death.

Yesterday's budget did not hold any solutions for those problems. I took special note of the Finance Minister's careful wording on how the current surplus will be used as well. It will not go to pay down the provincial debt. In fact, the debt will grow. Government will continue to borrow. Indeed, that seems obvious given the massive cost overruns of their capital projects.

It is a commonly held view in Esquimalt-Metchosin that government spending is going to the Vancouver convention centre, the RAV line, the Olympics highway and this government's other pet projects. As those costs skyrocket out of control, it's obvious that that's where the surplus and the borrowing will need to go, not into hospitals, schools and transportation needs in my constituency. It is evident to me and all in my constituency that Esquimalt-Metchosin urgently needs jobs, health care facilities, a school, affordable tuition and transportation solutions.

Our first nations communities deserve an apology for past wrongs and need a commitment to restore the integrity of our relationship with them.

My task for the next four years is to encourage, cajole or harangue government to provide the things that are needed in my communities. My constituents deserve to find work opportunities here on the Island. I want shipbuilding jobs here, not in Germany, Utah or anywhere else. I want apprentices to train and work here in British Columbia, not to have to go to Alberta for their certification and training, not to have to change their career choice in midstride because the work is sporadic here in Greater Victoria in the shipbuilding and repair industry.

I want to see ongoing maintenance for B.C. Ferries, providing jobs for British Columbia and here in British Columbia. Not only will it prevent the epidemic rash of ferry breakdowns that we've been seeing, but it will

put jobs and money back into the economy of this region. My community wants to see the B.C. Ferry Corporation returned to the citizens of British Columbia as a public corporation, open and accountable to all of us.

More optimistically, there are endless opportunities for new jobs to invigorate the economy in my constituency as well. Tourism opportunities abound in my riding. Royal Roads not only offers an amazing array of continuing education options, they have begun to draw enormous tourists to their gardens, the castle and their fabulous location.

From there, a whole world of ecotourism opportunities can grow along our fabulous trails and ocean shoreline. Cycling has become a huge tourist business, and we could capitalize on that very easily in my riding.

As well, I'd like to see the region pursue more ethnic film production to add to our successful film industry. The opportunities for new business from the Chinese and Indian film markets are huge and lucrative, and those industries far outstrip Hollywood in market share and output.

I think it's very clear that the region also needs an expanded convention centre. It will offer new options for tourism in the area and give our current drop in U.S. visitor numbers, which I don't imagine are going to increase with the U.S. implementing the new passport requirements…. The new convention centre will give us a huge bolster for our tourism economy.

My communities want to see and need an expansion of the Victoria General Hospital — VGH. I want the 25 percent of those wards that are now closed down to be reopened for patient care as well. We need a more sensible approach to emergency admission, a treatment centre for non-life-threatening needs, a seniors care centre, as well as the true and traditional emergency care options. We need community health and treatment centres out where the new growth is occurring in the Western Communities as well. We need complex care for our seniors.

We need a new high school, and we need it immediately. Belmont is in a crisis situation. The government needs to help the school district identify property and move immediately to start construction on that new high school. In addition, I would like to see all new schools built in my riding be fully equipped with sight- and hearing-impaired and disabled student amenities. It is the kind of investment that will pay for itself by attracting students who are looking for those added-value education situations and will also allow them to obtain and maximize their potential.

Most certainly, I will be pressuring government, along with my fellow South Island MLA members, for some real and practical solutions to our transportation crisis. That may mean expanded bus service, an overpass at Admirals and Highway 1. That most certainly means light rapid transit. It also means recognizing alternative transportation options — non–gas burning, like electric bicycles and electric scooters — by implementing a PST exemption for those. Some of you may know that I have a fully electric motor scooter that I ride back and forth to these chambers. When I purchased it, I paid full PST. Had I bought a hybrid car that was also gas-burning, I would have received a rebate on my PST, but none for a non-fuel-burning motorcycle.

As the Small Business critic I also take my role very seriously as an advocate for small business. Many small business owners have already spoken to me about their concerns for all the issues that I've mentioned here today. They, like every other ordinary citizen in British Columbia and in my riding, want good health care and good public education. They definitely want a thriving economy with good, well-paying jobs, and they want transportation systems that are effective. So my job for the next four years is to remind government every single day of my responsibilities and its responsibilities to my constituents. I will continue to do that to the best of my ability.

Hon. L. Reid: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and may I take this moment to congratulate you on your rise to this venerable post. I think you will do us proud. May I extend my greetings, as well, to your deputies. I know that's a historic moment in British Columbia that, indeed, that role has been expanded.

I would like to pay respects to the individuals who reside in the riding of Richmond East, and I would like to say thank you for the opportunity to serve at their pleasure once again in this chamber. I have great support in my riding, particularly from those that we have been of assistance to over the course of this past administration but certainly over the 14 years I have spent in this chamber. I would like to say a firm greeting to the family members who have stood by. Each of you newly elected to this chamber will certainly come to realize that it is your family that stands by you, and frankly, you will spend more time with us in the days ahead than you will spend with your family members. So I trust it will be pleasant.

In terms of my husband; my mom; my little girl, who's five; and my son, who's 18 months old — each of them has been in this chamber and has been welcomed. I would wish the same to extend to your families as well. In fact, my children were born into elected life, and this place has gone out of its way in many respects to make them welcome. I believe that's important. I believe that if you wish to make law in the province of British Columbia that impacts the lives of families, you do so from the vantage point of a myriad of different perspectives, and I welcome the opportunity to bring my perspective to this place.

The team that brought me to this place over the past four elections. Again, I extend my highest accolades, my greatest gratitude, because it's important that we continue to honour those who give their time freely to promote the democratic process.

The civility we have in this country for those of us who are elected is unparalleled anywhere in the world. We cannot for a moment take that for granted. The notion of democratic undertakings that have opportu

nity, support and regard is not something that legislators across the world share with us, oftentimes, and we need to always acknowledge how vitally important that is.

I want to say that I was intrigued yesterday to listen to members who were elected with me in 1991 give some of the same speeches they gave in 1991. I think it does a disservice to the growth and the development that this province has undertaken in the decade. There has been enormous, enormous growth in the last three or four years around science, technology and research; around Genome British Columbia; around expansion of cancer centres. All of those things are only possible with a balanced budget.

There's a purpose to balancing the budget in British Columbia. It's not something one does for its own sake. It is about opportunity to create better opportunities as we go forward. My hon. colleague from Nanaimo-Parksville talked about how it's the economy that pays the rent. It isn't anything else that pays the rent or that provides the services for individuals and for supports that we believe to be important.

I wanted to spend a moment, too, dedicating my remarks today to the early childhood educators in British Columbia, because I firmly believe that the quality of this economy, of this life that we want to put in place for our children, begins and is honoured by the fact that we put in place supports for very young children and their families. I fundamentally believe that. I can tell you: you will know that the shelf life of childhood is extraordinarily short. I want to thank early childhood educators in British Columbia for giving their time and their talents to extend the joy of childhood to countless thousands of British Columbia children — vitally important.

We know — and we will continue to have these discussions over the next months and years — about the challenges facing British Columbia families in the context of the modern family. It's not what it was. It is varied, stimulating and enriching, but there's always, always going to be the opportunity for government to ramp up and do some things that actually are a kindness to families. There is no question about that.

Families take all forms and inhabit every corner of this province. Over 40,000 babies were born in British Columbia last year; at least that many will be born in 2006. My cabinet colleagues and I want to make this place the best place on earth to raise a child. I want that opportunity for this province. I can tell you that we have committed resources, energy and time to achieving that goal, and it will always be a work in progress.

I am a firm believer that early learning starts in the home and that we must have as our priority supports to families, supports to parents. We can, indeed, have a multitude of discussions about how best to support families in the province, hon. Speaker. Supporting parents, supporting community, supporting delivery systems — building a continuum of care across the province that balances, honours and hinges more dramatically to the other service deliverers we have in the system today — is the goal.

This discussion today, I believe, is about partnership. We want very much to have a whole array of providers onside when we talk about increasing graduation rates in the province. That's just one example. We have a fabulous graduation rate in the province. We have more work before us. We will do better in that regard if we pull in and bring to bear greater learning on behalf of very young learners.

Learning in an infant begins at the moment of conception. There are individuals today who believe that learning begins when children begin at school. That means that they have no appreciation for how much of a missed opportunity there is for the first six years of a little person's life. We have to come to grips with how we proceed from there.

I want us to build greater partnerships as we go forward. I want us to look at schools, community centres, public buildings, housing developments, Boys and Girls Clubs, neighbourhood houses, family resource programs and partners such as the Salvation Army. I want us to exhaust every possible opportunity on behalf of supports for families. I think it's vitally important.

Just last week we attempted to support families more directly, in terms of a child care subsidy, lifting the income threshold from $21,000 to $38,000 — tremendous news on behalf of British Columbia families.

Not only that, last year we decided that student loan income would no longer be counted when a family's eligibility is assessed. I had the best experience last year with a Kwantlen College student who had the ability to take that issue and refine it — to the point that it came to our table and was reflected in a change that made us understand how completely this would be of support and benefit to the students of this province. That is in place. I'm extraordinarily proud of that. It makes good sense.

We should do everything we can to support students with young children today, because they want for their children what I wish for mine: every possible opportunity. Completion of grade 12, ongoing training or a college program will only assist their ability to be better parents. There's no question about that.

The steps taken to expand access will continue, because it's vitally important. Government's contribution to child care capital funding that enables providers to offer more spaces, improve their facilities and offer further training is an ongoing priority. It is about professional development. It is about who all of us would choose to leave our children with. There is no one more precious in our lives than our offspring. How we manage the time away is vitally important and, again, is something this province is paying incredible attention to.

Every initiative I speak of today is a government initiative. They are issues that we believe as a government to be important. We have allowed dollars to be available for an additional 32,000 spaces to be eligible for funding in British Columbia, and 10,000 more children will be able to benefit from subsidized child care because of increased capital expenditure and the new subsidy income threshold.

Expanded access to child care was an election promise. Our child care plan fulfills several more: professional development opportunities, supported child development. We're pushing ahead with discussions around converting public space today, because we very much want this discussion to have at its core whether a variety of mechanisms are a greater kindness to families or not.

The best example I can give my hon. colleagues today would be a parent on the way to work in the morning with a six-year-old, a four-year-old and a two-year-old. In some communities in British Columbia that family goes to three different places on the way to work in the morning to secure care for the children. That needs to be addressed and streamlined, and we need to build on the model of community hubs across British Columbia as a government initiative, because we believe it's important.

Housing developments. Oftentimes transportation is an issue for individuals who reside in housing developments and cooperatives across this province. They often have unused amenity buildings. It makes perfect sense that we explore that opportunity so that a parent with a number of small children is not faced with the daily struggle of seeking access and transportation to arrive at that destination. If we can provide some of those services on site and build the hub model around where very young children reside, we absolutely should. There's no reason we cannot do those things.

Community partnerships. I mentioned earlier that the Boys and Girls Clubs in British Columbia do extraordinary work. Family Resource Programs of British Columbia, under the leadership of Marianne Drew-Pennington. It's vitally important that we continue to build those linkages and networks, because those are the people today who we must honour when it comes to delivering services for children. There is no doubt. There's absolutely no doubt.

Last Friday I had the opportunity to attend the Canadian Expertise round table on fetal alcohol. It was called the FACE meeting. It's vitally important because it's the first time the country has come together to take the best researchers and providers and bring them together to talk about how the entire country can strengthen their response to those affected with fetal alcohol and, frankly, strengthen the prevention response. It is something that we can address, manage and treat much more effectively.

I am pleased to tell you that our Premier was incredibly involved in the delivery and the presentation of the first-ever strategic plan for fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, which we presented in Burns Lake in 2003. The work from that report is ongoing. It made enormous strides. We'll continue to build on that as we go forward.

The throne speech calls for fresh, creative and innovative ideas. How we tackle the challenges that have been besetting communities across this province, across this land…. We will only do better if we partner effectively. Interministerially and interprovincially there have to be governmentwide initiatives. There has to be the thrust of provinces to go forward to tackle some of these issues. We can certainly do that.

I'm pleased to tell you that British Columbia is a partner at the Canada Northwest Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder table. We are a partner. It was our pleasure to chair that entity last year. Those ministers mightily believe in bringing this preventable birth defect down so that no child lives their life suffering from issues that, frankly, are preventable. We have partnerships in this administration with the Ministry of Health, and our commitment to this task is unswerving. We will continue to address this challenge as we go forward.

Starting this fiscal year, the B.C. government will be investing new funding over three years towards assessment, diagnosis, intervention and support services specifically geared towards families affected by fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Our commitment is clear.

We certainly have had great opportunity over the past four years to do work with aboriginal communities. Work with aboriginal communities is about respect and regard and relationship-building. I understand that. My colleagues in the Ministry of Children and Family Development understand that. We have spent a great deal of time honouring the work and learning lessons from aboriginal communities in terms of building aboriginal early childhood development programs and services that make sense to aboriginal families. It's vitally important that we continue to do that. We absolutely believe that the work we are doing supports the Premier's vision to eradicate the inequities that have plagued our aboriginal peoples throughout history.

B.C.'s first aboriginal infant development adviser is Diana Elliot, a magical, absolutely magical, individual mentored by Dana Brynelsen, who's the provincial infant development adviser. The first connection a family has with individuals who've come into their home to teach them how to respond to someone who is incredibly vulnerable, a child at risk, is vitally important. That work is ongoing today in the aboriginal and non-aboriginal communities in British Columbia, and it's work which we will carry forward.

Certainly, there is much work to be done. We recognize that, and my colleagues on this side of the chamber will have heard me invite those interested to come to the table to share with me their ideas and insights. We have had some great discussions over the last number of years with aboriginal communities in British Columbia, with child care providers in British Columbia, with specialists in the area and with university academics, because this is all about arriving at the best possible decision. We want to take advantage of the expertise that is available.

We have a tremendous push in the area of literacy. I say — and I come to you today as a previous teacher, a previous school administrator — that literacy underpins every aspect of our lives. It's vitally important that we understand how important it can be in the life of

every single young learner in this province. Those of you who have children, grandchildren: read to them every single day, every opportunity, even if you have to phone them and read to them. Do that. It would warm my heart. We want British Columbia to be the best-educated, most literate jurisdiction on the continent. We will only get there if we pull together and understand how important that is.

Governments have just announced $1.8 million towards libraries. Libraries are part and parcel of the package. Access to public libraries open every evening, open Saturdays, open Sundays…. It is about increasing access. I thank the hon. colleague who has put that gift in place.

Mary Gordon, some of you may know, is the founder of the Roots of Empathy. Roots of Empathy is a program that teaches vulnerability to youngsters in public schools today. What the research will tell us today is that instances of bullying have come down as a result of children understanding how vulnerable youngsters are on playgrounds, in community spaces and in schools in British Columbia. I am pleased to tell you that Mary was just recognized with the Order of Canada in British Columbia. The enormous contribution she has made as an educator and as a founder of this program….

The Seeds of Empathy is a program that we are piloting in British Columbia beginning any day, in terms of the training being underway, so that that program can be expanded to four-year-olds and three-year-olds in British Columbia. We want civilized, humane behaviours. To teach them to very young children, to place them into environments where that is being demonstrated, is a wonderful thing.

Child care and early childhood development in British Columbia are inextricably linked. Of that, there is no question.

I want to thank those of you who understand how important it is to have a balanced budget in the province, because a balanced budget is about choice. I want to thank particularly my budget guests from yesterday: Tracy Lakeman and Lorenzo Lepore, from the Tourism Richmond association. It's vitally important that we understand the contributions they make. They are about bringing opportunities. They are about looking at this budget and understanding the kinds of opportunities they can bring to Richmond as a result. A trade and exhibition centre is up for debate — a great opportunity.

We have opportunities as we continue to go forward, certainly, to do things that matter in the lives of families. But if there's one message I can leave with folks today, it's that the private sector economy, which has the ability to provide for excellent public services, gives us that opportunity. It is about choice; it is about flexibility. But it has to flow from a budget that's balanced. It has to be managed growth in the province. We've lived in this place when it wasn't. We've absolutely lived in this place when it wasn't. Frankly, the ten years that the NDP were in place — great opportunity and not very much activity in terms of the things that I value.

Budget 2005 invests growing provincial revenues to boost the capacity of families and communities to care for their children. Our ministry will spend an additional $331 million by 2007-2008 to enhance programs and services for children. This is a cumulative 9.2 percent budget lift on 2004-2005, a base budget of $1.497 billion over three years. That's $80 million, or 5.3 percent, in '05-06; $113 million, or 7.5 percent, in '06-07; and $138 million, or 9.2 percent, in '07-08.

Great, great opportunities are before us. In fact, government's contribution to the child care capital funding that enables providers to expand or upgrade their facilities is the highest it's ever been in British Columbia's history — the highest it's ever been in the history of this province. More spaces are eligible for funding. More families will receive support.

Another milestone was reached this year by raising the income threshold. Those things are important, and my challenge and your challenge on behalf of your constituents is to ensure that every single person who is eligible in your ridings understands the process and makes application. That is your challenge as MLAs: to ensure that those individuals in your ridings come forward.

So when asked if there are more dollars for child care now than there were in 2001, I can tell you the answer is yes, and there are more to come. A commitment to early learning and child care was one of our earliest election promises in 2001, and I am delighted to report that it's a promise we've delivered on consistently every year since then, and with increased funding each year.

Our plan for child care looks ahead to what tomorrow's families will need. We know that the demands of the modern workplace change continuously. That is the notion of staying abreast of those needs, staying responsive and flexible, being adept thinkers around how we go forward, because families have a range of needs. We have moved well beyond the typical family in British Columbia. This is addressing the families of British Columbia.

Any of you, all of us, don't work typical nine-to-five office hours, no question. Again, choice and flexibility are what B.C. parents need. I see great potential for meeting that need with the signing of the child care agreement with the federal government. As you know, that will be done less than two weeks from now. The first round of funding is, in British Columbia, $92 million. We can now devote more resources than ever before to expanding quality child care across the province. We will invest every cent of that new funding to provide more accessible, affordable, inclusive care that emphasizes early learning.

Parents will have more choices; children will have more opportunities. Funding will be targeted to those in need, and we will see those dividends for generations to come — incredible investments in our future. I see exciting work being done for the children of British Columbia, and many more important milestones are ahead.

I believe the budget does hold promise, and I was certainly delighted to see the Finance Minister yesterday talk about this being the first of five budgets, because this is a series of ongoing commitments that matter. The babies that are born in the year 2005 will be coming up to entering their kindergarten year when this mandate draws to a close. It's vitally important that the supports and the decisions we put in place today make a difference in their lives, absolutely make a difference in their lives. The response yesterday around seniors, around aboriginal populations, around first nations, around keeping the economy competitive: all of those things are a package. It's about British Columbia. It's about making this province the best place on earth and about seeing that as a goal that's shared by every single member of this chamber. That is important.

Certainly, we have opportunities, and I will speak for a moment as the previous critic in the area of science, technology and research. The intellectual property in this province I'm extraordinarily proud of. I was the critic when those companies ten or 12 years ago came on line to begin the work and the investment, the creativity and the innovation to get them to the point today where they have a product. They have a patent. Why would we ever wish to see that intellectual property dispersed so indeed those jobs and that investment are not available to British Columbians?

This government has taken a very, very fine step in terms of heralding, honouring and respecting the intellectual property that got us to this point. I want those benefits to be enjoyed by British Columbians. I can't imagine why anyone in this chamber would wish otherwise. You only have to spend an afternoon every other month in some of the finest science, technology and research companies anywhere in the land, and they're in British Columbia. They're in my riding. They're in Richmond. They're in Langley. They're in Fort St. John. They're in Dawson Creek.

There is great opportunity for each and every member of this chamber to pay their best regards, best accolades, to individuals who every single day labour away laboriously in university laboratories and small offices, in tiny cramped quarters, coming up with a response to a family's need, doing research in Alzheimer's care and breast cancer research — things that matter to the families of British Columbia and things that should matter desperately to every single member of this chamber.

The research answers are available to British Columbia in ways unparalleled. We have the ability. We have the opportunity. We now have some of the finest venues, some of the best research facilities, some of the best laboratories anywhere in the world. I am proud of that. I'm intensely proud of that, and for our Finance Minister yesterday to secure that investment on behalf of British Columbians is first class. An absolutely first-class decision, and I thank the Finance department and this government, because it's vitally important, and I would pay my absolute thanks to the minister.

It's important that we understand that it is a strong economy that takes us forward and allows us to have the choices we believe to be vitally important on behalf of British Columbia families.

S. Simpson: I want to thank you for the opportunity to make my first speech in this House. It truly is an honour and a privilege to be here and to be able to take this time with you today. My congratulations to the Speaker and to all of the deputy speakers who have been named and selected, and congratulations to all the members in this House on their election. It truly is, as others have said, a great privilege for us all to be able to be here and to represent our constituents in our respective communities.

I want to thank my family, my partner Cate Jones and our daughter Shayla. Without their support, I clearly wouldn't be here today. Also, I want to thank them for their commitment, and I know the sacrifice that they'll be making allowing me to do this job and to be away from home.

I want to thank my friends and supporters who worked with me throughout a very competitive nomination process and through the May 17 election campaign. They've continued to work with me today on issues in the community and to work with me and support me. I know my victory is largely of their doing and that I owe them a great deal, and without their support I wouldn't be here today as well.

I want to acknowledge my constituency assistant Brenda Tombs and my legislative assistant Raj Patara as well as Norah White and Rich Overgaard from NDP research and communications. They're all working extremely hard on my behalf and deserve much credit for any success that I have in this place or in my constituency. I appreciate their efforts very much.

I want to acknowledge and thank someone else for leaving Vancouver-Hastings in such good shape and for setting the bar so high for me to strive for in my time here. Joy MacPhail reached somewhat of a legendary status over the past four years in this chamber for her heroic efforts, along with the member for Vancouver–Mount Pleasant. However, I believe the real story for her is a very distinguished 14-year legislative career where she met every challenge put in front of her with her own style, always doing her best, working hard for her constituents, her party and the things that she believes in.

The thing I heard probably more than anything else during the campaign was: "Boy, you've got big shoes to fill." I never minded, because they were very true words, and I'm very excited by that challenge.

On behalf of the people of Vancouver-Hastings, I want to thank Joy for her commitment and contribution to our community and for continuing the wonderful tradition of NDP members in East Vancouver. I am sure, on behalf of the members here on both sides, to thank her for demonstrating the commitment, effort and ability that any member would be proud to be remembered for during their time here.

Most of all, I want to thank the people of Vancouver-Hastings for affording me the great honour and privilege to represent them in this House. Vancouver-Hastings is a diverse community with a mix of cultures, interests and income levels. Vancouver-Hastings is the second-poorest constituency in British Columbia. It has the largest urban aboriginal population and a cultural mix that includes a 40-percent Asian population.

However, what truly makes Vancouver-Hastings such a remarkable constituency is its people. They are diverse in their makeup, progressive in their views and compassionate in their concern for the human condition. Vancouver-Hastings has a rich history of activism, and its neighbourhoods rally together quickly in defence of each other.

What I love most about our community is that these values are not fleeting. They were here when I was a kid growing up, and they remain today. They are truly ingrained in the traditions and fabric of Vancouver-Hastings and of her people. I am very proud and very honoured to represent these people in this place.

Now let me turn to the budget, a budget that clearly fails to meet the standard around the Liberals' five great goals. More importantly, it fails to meet the needs of British Columbians.

When I look at my community of Vancouver-Hastings, there are a wide range of issues that are falling between the cracks because of government inaction, lack of funding and ideological intransigence. In my community there are many critical issues, and I want to talk to you about three of those today — housing, poverty and education.

While I applaud the government for increasing SAFER funding, I see nothing here for the thousands of other British Columbians who are either without stable housing or are struggling to make their rent. The government is simply wrong not to invest in affordable housing. British Columbia has a proud record for housing through our term in government. We recognize that safe, affordable housing, which is obviously critical for everyone, is particularly essential for those who are trying to put their lives back together and to get back on their feet.

How can you ask someone to go get training or go get a job when they don't know where they or their family will sleep or they can't be sure someone won't kick the door in, in the middle of the night and assault them? Secure, affordable housing is one of the most fundamental resources people need to get back on their feet.

From my own experience of growing up poor with my sister and mother in the downtown east side, I know that our ability to get into Raymur housing project — while it was hardly great housing — took away a huge concern for my mother and, I believe, played a large role in my ability to have the success that I've been able to have in my life.

I had the opportunity, along with the member for Cariboo South, to meet with a number of key organizations in the mental health community. When they talk about solutions, housing is always at the top of their list.

I have constituents who have teenage children who face serious mental health issues of paranoid schizophrenia, and they can't live at home because of it. Unfortunately, they have no place to go, and they spend much of their time on the street.

This government has walked away from housing for those who need it. They have abandoned the most needy, and they have done it in what can only be considered a most cavalier fashion when you consider their punitive measures like the Safe Streets Act. That said: "Now that we've created the poor and the homeless, we're going to punish you for your circumstances."

If there is a glimmer of hope in all of this, and I believe there is, it probably rests with Jack Layton and the federal NDP. They succeeded in negotiating a housing allocation through the federal government that will bring some relief, regardless of the lack of concern of the other side of this chamber. British Columbia will see over $200 million in housing money over the coming years thanks to the federal NDP. Hopefully, it will be spent wisely to meet the needs of those who have been so sorely neglected by the B.C. Liberal government. If this government had any vision, it would announce its intention to try to match those dollars and create a real affordable housing fund in our province.

When we talk about poverty and homelessness, too often we're talking about mental health issues and the complexity of dual diagnosis around serious addiction-related issues. When we talk about poor kids, what we are really doing is talking about poor families that have seen no increase in their support in many, many years. Rather, under this regime, thousands have lost their welfare cheques because of tightening requirements that have slashed people off the rolls, all too often whether there was need or not. We have seen regulations that restrict social workers from truly doing the job they face.

I was told a story by a social worker a couple of years ago of a gentleman who lives in my community. He had been a carpenter, and he had had some very serious addiction issues, and he was getting his life back together. He was able to get some work banging nails out in Langley. The problem was that he went to his worker and said: "I have this job opportunity." He had a letter from his employer, and he said: "What I need is some steel-toed boots and a bus pass. I need 150 bucks, essentially." Well, that worker was very sympathetic, but that worker had no latitude to give that person the $150 that would have got him off welfare and back into his life. He never got off welfare. Thank you, government.

We need a real dialogue on how welfare works and on changes that will make the system work better so that it will better meet the needs of British Columbians and the many who live in communities like my community. I would note that that dialogue needs to involve more than politicians and bureaucrats and policy wonks. It should involve a few people who collect a welfare cheque.

We're a wealthy province. We can do better, and it has to start with those of you on that side of the chamber.

Education is a critical issue in my community. Through my many years involved in my daughter's school PAC, I know the challenges that we've faced and that parents continue to face today. Regardless of the rhetoric of the Education Minister, the reality is there are not enough resources in our school system to meet the needs of our kids. While parent fundraising may work in the constituencies of the Premier or the Finance Minister or the Economic Development Minister, they don't work very well in my community, where people are struggling to pay the rent or put food on the table.

I was talking to my daughter last night, who's in grade nine. Classes in her school are overcrowded to the point where in at least one of her classes there aren't enough desks for all the kids that are enrolled in the class. Some are sitting on the tables on the side. Is that what the government meant to accomplish with its great goal on education?

I was speaking to a secondary school shop teacher the other day who told me that over the past four years the funding he has for supplies has reduced from $40 to $14 per student. He asked me how he was supposed to motivate students to get engaged in these career options when he can't afford enough materials to let them do their projects. Of course, we all know this is exacerbated by the increased costs of materials. But for this government, it thinks nothing of adding tens of millions of dollars to cover cost overruns on a RAV line or a trade and convention centre, but it can't find new money for the kid who wants to learn to be a welder.

In my community we have more inner-city schools than any other constituency in the province. These schools play a critical role in the lives of the children who attend them. Often they are the one place where these kids find some real stability and support to give them a better chance to break out of a cycle of poverty that many of them are caught up in. But this government doesn't have a sense, I believe, of the fragility of the infrastructure and the demands on the teachers and the counsellors who work in those schools.

Yesterday's budget demonstrated that in its total lack of support for children at risk and for people living in poverty, there is nothing great about the conduct of this government in the way they are treating tens of thousands of people in this province who are at risk and who got nothing yesterday.

I want to speak a bit about my critic area now, which is environment. First, I would like to congratulate the minister on his appointment. I believe he is very sincere, and I believe he is committed and that he will make his best efforts on behalf of the environment. However, the reality of his situation will probably make these efforts largely futile, I suspect.

Over the past four years we've seen a 30-percent cut in the staff in that ministry — what was Water, Land and Air Protection — some 320 positions. For example, with conservation officers last year, we had fewer than 130 conservation officers across the province while our neighbours to the east, in Alberta, who have a million less people and about two-thirds of the land base…. Well, they have more than 220 people doing that job.

In parks we've seen situations like in Strathcona Park, where we have one full-time staff and three seasonal staff. Again, if we go to Alberta, in a park like Kananaskis Park, about the similar size, they have 75 full-time staff and another 19 seasonal staff.

Or just staying in British Columbia and looking at the differences between how the federal government and how this government deal with our parks. Mount Robson Park has less than two full-time staff and three seasonal employees, while Mount Revelstoke and Glacier parks — two of our national parks, which jointly have about half the land base of Robson — have 37 full-time staff and 39 seasonal staff.

Our parks are being denigrated. If we want to be truly honest here, we can no longer claim to have the best park system in the world. This government threw that away.

In Abbotsford we saw the hazardous waste situation a few weeks ago that caused an emergency. It's going to cost $2 million to clean that up — two million taxpayer dollars. "Why did we get in that situation?" people asked. "The government knew four years ago about the mess in this warehouse. How come they didn't do anything?"

Well, what we know is that you have a manifest system where nobody knows where things are. Nobody knows what was in those drums, and that's because you didn't do the job on the manifest system. It's dysfunctional.

You have an honour system for dealing with these matters. You call it stewardship. What this says is: those companies, presumably, are supposed to do the right thing after you set the standard. Well, that system only works if you actually have an audit function that works and an oversight function so that you can go to those warehouses, test what's in those barrels and make sure that it corresponds with the manifest system so that you can stop those trucks that are moving hazardous goods periodically and say: "Are you shipping what you said you are supposed to be shipping?"

But that doesn't happen here, because you gutted the staff in the ministry. So it doesn't happen. Instead, we'll pay $2 million to clean this up. What is even more disturbing is how many other warehouses like that there are all across this province that you as a government have no clue about, because you simply don't care about the environment. It's not a priority.

Whistle-blower. Effective whistle-blower legislation is something we should all be looking for. If you believe in transparency and you believe in accountability, then your task should be to make sure that your employees get that message too.

But what's the message we have here? We have the message of Gord McAdam from Nelson. What happened with Mr. McAdam? He deemed that the government was acting inappropriately when he was an employee of the government in Nelson. He didn't go to

the media. He didn't try to make a big deal out of this in the media. What he did do was submit documents to the court. He told the courts.

Do you know what reward he got for helping the courts to make a good decision? The reward he got is that on the day before his retirement he was fired by this government, and it cost him $20,000 out of his pocket. That's what you do to a good employee. That's how you treat a civil servant who acts with honour.

Climate change. We know the pine beetle situation. We know that for years we were being told that if the weather dropped to 30 below or 40 below and stayed that way for a period of time, the pine beetle would be managed. But we never saw those temperatures for a number of years.

We know that the recent sockeye salmon situation, the confusion over the salmon…. Fisheries and Oceans and other biological experts tell us it has to do with the warming of the waters because of global warming. We know that in communities like Invermere they're concerned about the low snowpack and what that does to fresh water. In all of those cases it links to climate change and global warming questions.

What did we hear about climate change in the budget? We heard nothing. This government doesn't care. I suspect that part of the problem this government has is that it's hanging its hat on oil and gas from here on in. The Minister of Energy, the Premier, and others in that cabinet don't want a discussion of climate change that might get in the way of the oil and gas industry coming and exploiting every opportunity they can find in this province. That's what I think.

If we want some sense of priorities here, the federal government has a program looking at sustainable ocean management that they're partnered on with British Columbia. Well, British Columbia has come to the table. There are two staff people in this government who were assigned to deal with ocean management questions. Contrast that with what was the offshore oil and gas exploration and market team of five people. So I guess offshore oil and gas was two and a half times more important to this government than our oceans.

On a matter that's before the people today: the question of the sale of Terasen Gas to Kinder Morgan. Kinder Morgan has one of the most questionable environmental records in that industry in the United States. Recently the Department of Transportation has cited them for 44 violations. They have given Kinder Morgan 120 days to clean up their act, including an independent review. If they don't do it, they're threatening them with $100,000-a-day fines.

What did we do? I wrote to the Attorney General and to the Minister of Environment, and I asked them: "When B.C. Utilities Commission looks at this question, don't you think it would be a good thing for them to at least look at the environmental question?" But because B.C. Utilities Commission doesn't consider those things without special direction from government, I said to the ministers: "Why don't you get cabinet to provide some special direction to the Utilities Commission to look at the question?"

We're talking about a public utility here. Well, I'm still waiting for a response to that letter a month later, and I know that the Utilities Commission certainly hasn't heard from them. I guess the environment isn't as important as selling our utility to Texas.

Transportation. There are a lot of complex transportation issues in this province. We've seen many of them, and many of them are on the table now. We need to have important discussions about all of those issues, and we need to have everybody at that table to have those discussions. The problem we have with…. And I'll just put this as a single example; there are many others. Let's take the example of what's going on in the lower mainland. The Minister of Transportation refuses to even consider the interests of local governments. He tells the GVRD: "I'll write the reports. I'll make the decisions. I'll talk to you afterwards, and as long as you agree with me, we're on side. If you don't agree with me, tough luck." That's consultation, Liberal style.

So my concern for the Minister of Environment is that he has neither the resources nor, I'm concerned, the clout to stand up to his colleagues like the Forest Minister and the Energy Minister and the Transportation Minister and the Economic Development Minister and the Premier when they put their agendas on the table — agendas that will not put a priority on our environment or on sustainability.

Unfortunately, while this minister may be very sincere about the environment, I don't believe the same can be said for his government, and I worry that he will face the same fate as every single one of his predecessors in Water, Land and Air Protection, where the environment was never an issue for this government. It was just dig it up or cut it down or whatever.

What has resulted? British Columbia now has one of the worst environmental records of any province in this country and has had for the last four years. It is an embarrassment to the people of British Columbia.

I look forward to working with the many interests in this province to develop a meaningful and successful sustainability strategy for our environment and for our economy. I look forward to helping our leader put those forward to the people of British Columbia.

All of these comments aside, I truly do look forward to working with the government to help you, to encourage and push you to do the right thing, as well. This is important, both for the people of British Columbia today…. It's also so much important for our caucus, because we look forward to the day this House sits after May 12, 2009, when we're on those benches, and we don't want too big a mess to clean

G. Coons: I would like to introduce Chief Willard Martin from Greenville, from the Nisga'a Nation. He is with us here today. I'd also like to introduce from the Ashcroft first nations band, Chief Greg Blain, his first time in the House, and a couple of other friends of mine — who, during my campaign trail along with Chief Willard Martin, I ran into from Kincolith, also from the Nisga'a Nation — Ellen Torng and Valerie Doolan from Kincolith.

D. Hayer: May I first offer my congratulations to the Deputy Chair of the Committees of the Whole, the member for Burquitlam, and as our new Speaker, the member for Penticton–Okanagan Valley, on their election as a Chair.

Also to two new Deputy Speakers. The member for Kelowna-Mission — who, in addition to winning re-election for the third time, has also been successful in a personal battle against cancer. The congratulations of my constituents also goes to the MLA from my neighbouring riding of Surrey–Green Timbers, who for the first time in our province's history represents the opposition in the role of Deputy Speaker. I wish all of you much success in your new role over the coming years.

I'm very proud to be among the first to speak to the budget, the September budget update presented yesterday by the new Minister of Finance. This update confirms everything that was in our full budget presented last February. Plus, it adds a great deal more, made possible by the vibrant economy we created over the last four years.

Our new minister presented some very good news yesterday — for seniors, for first nations and for the creation of more jobs. The first full budget contained much, and I spoke at length about the good news and positive things in that budget during the last session of this Legislature in February.

What we heard yesterday in the budget update was a strong reminder of how good our full budget really was and how well we have managed to revitalize the economy, taking us from the last in Canada to first place in just four short years. That incredible financial turnaround was made possible by making some tough decisions and living by them. There was some pain, I must admit, but yesterday we all heard in this House that we can now afford to give back to the people from both fiscal management and those difficult decisions.

It isn't easy to manage money and at the same time increase education and health care spending every year, as we did in the past. But we did, and we will be able to continue to do that now that we have the economy back on track. That's the benefit of creating an economic climate that people will want to be part of and that business wants to invest in.

The good thing is that everything in the February budget and the September budget update is open and accountable. Our government now operates under generally accepted accounting principles, the CA Institute of British Columbia. We have nothing to hide and everything to show for what we have accomplished since 2001.

This session of the Legislature will operate on the financial guidelines set out in the February budget, and I will talk about them and their benefits in a moment. But first I want to touch on the main highlights of yesterday's budget update, such as an additional allocation of $242 million to improve the lives of seniors who built this province; a $100 million allocation for the first nations who are so important to us and for the New Relationship fund we started; a reduction in the corporate income tax rate to spur even more job growth, so our children can stay here instead of leaving for Alberta, Ontario or the United States as they were doing in the '90s; and infrastructure investment that will see more than $12.1 billion being invested over the next three years on roads, schools, universities, colleges and health care facilities.

On top of that, we heard yesterday that we will have a further surplus of $1.3 billion this year, of $600 million next year and $400 million in 2007-2008. This surplus will support the new budget measures and assist in accomplishing what we set out to do in February's full budget.

When I spoke in the House in March about our full budget, I began by pointing out the success of having a robust economy. In less than four years, we have seen the economy of this province soar from the worst to first in Canada. We have seen a record-breaking housing boom and a remarkable return in investment, jobs and opportunities for everybody. We have seen thousands of people and hundreds of businesses come back to this province again, all in less than four short years since this government took office.

All that happened because this government promised to get our financial house in order. We promised to kick-start the economy, and we did. We promised to take us from a have-not province to a national leader, and we did. When we were first elected in 2001, the economy was job one. We have delivered on that. Back in 2001 we made it clear that while there may be some short-term pain, there would be long-term gain, and the budget we are talking about today makes it very clear that all British Columbians are benefiting from the long-term gains we promised.

One of those gains will be in health care in Surrey. When this government came to office in 2001, the province was spending $9.5 billion on health care. Today that figure is $11.8 billion and growing. By the end of a three-year plan, it will increase to a record-setting $13.3-

billion — a total increase in annual spending of $3.8 billion. That is 43 percent of the total budget. In other words, 43 cents of every dollar that government spends goes into health care. That kind of commitment sends a signal to all British Columbians that this government truly cares about our health care system, understands the demands that all of us place on the system and is taking steps to cope with those demands.

Those investments are being made at Surrey Memorial Hospital to alleviate the crowding and to improve the services in our emergency ward, the busiest emergency centre in the province. That is why I was happy to hear that our Premier called for the $28 million surplus from Fraser Health Authority to be spent immediately on planning and providing for an increase in capacity for Surrey's emergency ward.

Yes, we also needed to expand Surrey Memorial Hospital or perhaps even add a new hospital to the city. All those decisions will come very soon. We are also waiting for a report on the situation from the Fraser Health Authority, and we have made a commitment to act on them by the end of the year.

The demands that are being placed on Surrey Memorial Hospital are severely impacted by huge growth in Surrey and the growth of the population. Surrey grows by a rate of 1,000 people per month; that's 12,000 more people every year. That is like taking the entire population of towns like Quesnel and Merritt together and dropping them into Surrey each and every year.

The demand on our health care facilities is huge and ever-growing, and I want to point out that this growth isn't new. It has been happening in Surrey for years, yet during the entire decade of the '90s, the NDP government of the members across the House did nothing. Ten years of inactivity. Ten years of ignoring the crisis facing the Surrey hospital. They sit across the House in opposition today and say this government isn't doing anything. We are spending far more on health care than they ever did or ever considered doing.

We are spending far more on health care than the NDP ever did. We have increased the funding by $200 million. That's by 16 percent to Fraser Health Authority this year alone. I know and the government knows the needs of the expansion for Surrey Memorial Hospital. Over the past four years, I have met on many occasions with doctors, nurses, health care workers, union reps, patients and other individuals concerned about the Surrey Memorial Hospital, and I can tell you that Surrey Memorial Hospital is not a Third World hospital. It is one of the best hospitals in British Columbia and Canada.

I have met with the volunteers and the foundation board of directors and the president of the Surrey Memorial Hospital Foundation and other members of the hospital who do a great job for all of us at Surrey Memorial Hospital. I have met with the Fraser Health Authority, the Minister of Health and my fellow MLAs to talk about the pressing demands for the expansion, so despite what the opposition says, there is nothing new in their words.

Perhaps I should remind them that when we took office just over four years ago, the South Fraser Health Region, which the Surrey Memorial Hospital was part of, was the most underfunded on a per capita basis of any health authority. That's why I'm frustrated and angered by the complaints and criticism of the health care system and the situation of Surrey Memorial Hospital.

They never moved forward on any improvements in the decade they were in power, but now they are politicizing the effort we are making to resolve the crisis in Surrey. We are trying to resolve the crisis in Surrey, and they're not really helping with that. That is shameful and hypocritical. The NDP didn't recognize the power of a strong economy and what it can do to accomplish all the things British Columbians want and need.

The decisions we made to make the economy as strong as it is today are what make this budget so powerful. I know how these decisions come about because, as a member of the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services, I spent much of last year touring the province talking to and listening to British Columbians from all walks of life who told us what they wanted in this budget and how they wanted the government to invest the surpluses.

We listened to them, and we've passed on their recommendations to the Minister of Finance. This budget and yesterday's update reflect the priorities of all those people we met, all those people who wrote and sent e-mails to us, those people who made an effort to become part of this budget and part of forming the future of this wonderful province of ours.

I really want people to understand the many, many positives in this year's budget, and I will try to touch on just some of them that will benefit my constituents in Surrey-Tynehead and that will, in fact, benefit the constituents of all 79 ridings in this great and wonderful province of ours.

This budget, like all the others this government has presented in the last four years, is a plan that ensures long-term prosperity, long-term growth and long-term stability. This budget sets the course that families can bank on and creates a climate for long-term job security and long-term business success. That course, particularly for my constituents, contains $290 million in transportation infrastructure through the gateway project that will benefit Surrey-Tynehead.

We will see a new bridge cross the Fraser River in Port Kells to Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge area. We are also four-laning 176th Street, also called the Pacific Highway, from the U.S. border to Highway 1, and a new intersection light will be put on at 80th Avenue and 176th Street, once it is four-laned. We will be adding more lanes to the freeway, Highway 1, widening it from Langley to Vancouver.

We are widening Highway 10 from Delta to 176th Street in Cloverdale; four-laning the Fraser Highway from 160th Street beside my constituency office to 176th Street, and the plan is to go all the way to Langley; improving and upgrading the freeway interchanges and overpasses in my riding, especially at 160th Street and Highway 1 and 192nd Street by Port Kells and Highway 1; planning for twinning of the Port

Mann Bridge; and designing a route for the South Fraser Perimeter Road, which will take commercial traffic all the way from the freeway in the Port Kells area to Deltaport.

All these projects, most already underway, will benefit the commuters, the residents and businesses of my riding. They will benefit the entire economy of our province, because the gridlock caused by the Port Mann Bridge alone costs our economy some $1.5 billion a year. Twinning of the Port Mann Bridge will reduce wasted time and slash pollution for my constituents stuck in the traffic gridlock going to work and coming back home to their families. It will move commercial and tourist traffic faster and more efficiently. This is forward thinking and long-term planning.

Another example of long-term planning is the commitment of substantial funding to combat crime. Municipalities will now receive 100 percent of the fines revenue to assist in the fight against crime. Surrey has already taken advantage of $3.5 million in fines revenue by hiring 41 new police officers, 50 auxiliary officers and 28 RCMP staff members. As well, in communities across B.C., 215 more RCMP officers will be added this year as part of the crime-fighting strategy.

This government is investing an additional $122 million in policing, corrections and courts over the next three years. Add to that the new Safe Streets legislation, and we have come a long way in just a few short years in the battle against crime. That is something the people of Surrey really welcome and appreciate.

This is a budget that will stand up extremely well to the scrutiny and to the questions the opposition will pose during the budget estimates debates. It is a budget based on a strong economy, something that was sadly lacking in this province until 2001. This budget, because we now have a strong, vibrant and dynamic economy, provides almost half a billion dollars in tax relief to the low- and middle income people who need it most. In fact, in an unprecedented move, people of British Columbia who earn less than $16,000 a year — those who are most in need — will now pay absolutely no provincial income tax, no B.C. income tax, at all. That's hard to argue with. That's the first time in British Columbia it has ever happened, and those are the people who need the help the most.

We can now afford to share with people all these benefits that come from a strong economy, from those difficult but prudent decisions and from good, open and accountable financial management. When we entered government in 2001, we were facing a structural deficit of almost $4 billion because of the mismanagement of the economy and because British Columbians and their children, as well as businesses, were leaving for Alberta, Ontario and the United States.

This spring we were able to do a remarkable thing: we paid down the province's long-term debt by $1.7 billion, the largest one-time down payment in British Columbia's history. This government is running its finances and planning its budget responsibly. That is why this government can now begin to pay off its mortgage and begin the steady march toward a debt-free legacy to pass on to our future, to our grandchildren.

I was very pleased to hear that our new Finance Minister intends to keep the economy rolling and to ensure that our plans for job creation continue to provide the opportunities all British Columbia needs. And more changes to the small business corporate tax threshold….

Yesterday we heard the Minister of Finance announce the tax rate is now 12 percent, down from 13.5 percent and down a full 4 ½ points from when we took office in 2001. That is the reason our economy is growing. This will mean more money available to small business operators, who provide 90 percent of the jobs in this province. This incentive will mean that small business people will have more money to invest and grow their businesses, to create more jobs and continue to grow our economy.

Economic growth is key to our future — the key to opportunities for our young people and for all British Columbians. Without that growth, without economic stability, a plan for long-term stability — and that is particularly in this plan — our province will slip back into the economic dark days we faced in the 1990s when the NDP was in power.

Today we are working to ensure that never happens again. To prove that, let me just recap a few of the highlights of yesterday's budget update: $224 million over the three years to improve and support our seniors, who built this province; $100 million for the First Nations New Relationship fund; $320 million over the three years from the federal government to improve early learning and child care programs; $100 million over the three years from the federal government to support B.C.'s pine beetle action plan — let me tell you that I have visited all those people in the interior and Prince George and Quesnel and other areas affected by the pine beetle, and they said that in the '90s, no government did anything; we are the first ones who are trying to address that — and $150 million over three years to increase the contingency budget.

This budget and this update demonstrate clearly that the government has a plan — a plan to ensure our future and the future of our children and grandchildren, and I encourage the opposition to look carefully at the plan. Perhaps they will realize that this government is truly on a course of action that will create a secure, prosperous future for the constituents and their families and everybody else in British Columbia.

In closing, I would like to offer thanks to my family, my friends, my volunteers, my supporters and constituents for having faith and confidence in this government and in me, and for re-electing me to represent them once again in the south. It is an honour to serve as their representative for the Surrey-Tynehead constituency, to pass on their opinions and input to the government and to ensure that their interests and those of all British Columbians are served.

It is a privilege and a humbling experience to be able to stand in this House and be one of 853 who have served in this capacity over the past 150 years. I am proud to represent Surrey-Tynehead, and I trust they are proud of what we have accomplished over the last four years and of what we intend to accomplish over the next decade.

May I begin my first speech in the House by offering my congratulations to the member for Penticton–Okanagan Valley upon his election as Speaker. He is certainly fortunate to be ably assisted by the Deputy Speaker, the member for Kelowna-Mission, and the Assistant Deputy Speaker, the member for Surrey–Green Timbers. To all three of them — and I'm sure they will work well together — I offer my congratulations.

I should also like to begin, naturally, by thanking the voters of Surrey-Whalley for the confidence they have placed in me. I look forward to representing not only those who supported me but those who didn't and those who come after them over the next four years. It is customary — and I think it would be entirely appropriate — to note the support and helpful advice of my wife Miriam Sobrino and my children Daniel, Martin and Sonya, without whom my journey to this place never would have ended successfully.

I would also like to acknowledge, at this point, my parents and their influence and guiding hand upon me to get me to this point, I suppose. They are perhaps among that relatively rare group of British Columbia citizens outside the aboriginal community who were actually born in British Columbia. My father was born here in Victoria on September 3, 1921, and grew up not too far from here on Acton Street attending Victoria High, Victoria College and the University of British Columbia and serving in the Canadian navy in World War II. My mother was born in Prince Rupert on March 11, 1922, when her parents immigrated to northern British Columbia from Britain.

The family bought land which had formed a Grand Trunk Pacific Railway camp and set out to farm near Evelyn, which is north of Smithers. They cleared the land and built a log cabin and established a farm. I suppose that's my connection to my new critic role in Agriculture and Lands — that I come from a farming family, although somewhat removed from the farming context myself. From them, both my sister Delia Olson and myself learned an importance and a sense of our obligation to make the society in which we live a better place for all.

I should also like to acknowledge at this point the support and guidance of my campaign chair, Brad Bastien; my campaign manager Laurie Winstanley; and in the complex matters that face the candidates involving the Election Act, my financial agent, Jim Moynham, although my finances are perhaps not as complicated as those of the member for Surrey-Cloverdale.

Rising as I do on this first occasion to speak in the House, I want to say how impressed I am by the surroundings. Quite apart from the late Victorian decor, it stands as a symbol of the strength of the democratic tradition here in British Columbia. This is a democracy. It is a democracy that was fought for by the earliest assembly members and must be renewed in each generation.

This legislative chamber, as some of you will know from reading the history that's provided to us upon arrival here, was not the first. The previous one stood over on Superior Street and burned down in the 1940s. In the first legislative chamber, members like Amor De Cosmos and John Robson — with their African-American associate, Mifflin Gibbs, and many others, including late 19th century premiers like Walkem and Beaven — fought to establish British Columbia as a province in Canada with a democratic assembly, or responsible government, as they called it, with full control over its resources.

Both Manitoba and British Columbia would have entered into Confederation in the 1870s as colonies of Canada, and I use that word advisedly, if the Manitoba Métis had not stood with guns in their hands under their leader Louis Riel to insist upon provincial status with equality to the already existing eastern provinces — and hence, perhaps, the genesis of some of the long-standing western grievances in this country.

This chamber has seen its own extensions of democratic franchise, notably with votes for women during the First World War and for first nations and ethnic minorities after the Second World War.

I want to call the House's attention to another aspect of this chamber: over a hundred years of the presence of the democratic left. When in 1903 the use of party labels began, three of the 42 successful candidates were left supporters — two from the Socialist Party of B.C.: James Hawthornthwaite, representing Nanaimo city, now represented by my colleague to my immediate left, the member for Nanaimo; and his running mate, Parker Williams, from the adjoining Newcastle constituency. A third member, William Davidson, was elected under the Labour banner from Slocan in the Kootenays.

Left membership continued, under slightly different labels, until the 1920 election, when the postwar upsurge of the Labour movement returned three members for the Federated Labour Party. One of them, Tom Uphill of Fernie, was to sit for the next 40 years in this House. Left Labour's voting strength through the early 20th century varied between 10 and 15 percent. This situation was transformed during the Great Depression of the '30s, when the newly formed Cooperative Commonwealth Federation rose to major party status, receiving from then on approximately one-third of the vote, a stability disguised by the distortions of the first-past-the-post system of voting.

As any student of B.C. political history knows — and some members opposite will be familiar with the

more recent variations of this theme — this forced a series of realignments on the right, realignments called first the Coalition, then the Social Credit and latterly the Liberal Party. As the left vote has continued to rise over the past 20 years, with perhaps the noticeable exception of the election of 2001, all the cynical expedients have begun to fail.

The future of the province, no matter what changes to the voting system may visit upon us, lies increasingly with the centre left. I look forward to the challenges that face us in the future and, with my colleagues, I look forward in particular to the election in 2009, which will be the focus of our efforts over the next four and a half years.

I should like now to turn to speak a little bit about my constituency, Surrey-Whalley. The first inhabitants within the present boundaries of the constituency, which is located in the northwest corner of Surrey, if I can put it that way — when you look at the map, in what is now called South Westminster or Bridgeview, across the Fraser River from New Westminster — were the Stó:lô nation.

Every year in September thousands of Stó:lô from throughout the traditional territory, particularly up the river, would travel to pick or trade for cranberries at a settlement known as Kwayakwot. It was identified and labelled as a Douglas reserve by Governor James Douglas before it was gazetted in 1864 but reserved for the Stó:lô nation. However, in 1867, as was so evident throughout the province, Joseph Trutch, Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works, unilaterally and without consultation cancelled the existence of that reserve, and it disappeared forever.

The Stó:lô continue their presence in my riding in a somewhat diminished sense, but they are not forgotten and are an important part of the fabric of this province. I welcome the mention of the theme of reconciliation in the Speech from the Throne and the steps that the government has promised to take in this vein, but one should be aware that this example only illustrates just how deeply the land question runs in our history in the province and how difficult it will be, over the long run, to make full reconciliation.

Transportation issues are issues that are of concern to those who live in Surrey-Whalley now, and the early history of the area now forming part of the riding reflects that concern about transportation. Early transportation to north Surrey was by ferry from New Westminster to a place called Brown's Landing, which is near the site of the present day Pattullo Bridge.

The railways. The arrival of the railways later transformed the north part of Surrey. An initial railway, the New Westminster and Southern Railway, was built from Brown's Landing or Brownsville to Port Kells along the river and then to Clover Valley to Hazelmere, then to the border. Gradually, other railroads followed, and they used a common railway bridge, which you'll see still exists beside the Pattullo Bridge itself.

The present Pattullo Bridge was opened in 1937 with its present four lanes. With the arrival of that particular bridge, obviously, car traffic increased. The original name from which Surrey-Whalley is derived originated as the name of Harry Whalley, who had a gas station at Whalley's corner up at the top of the hill, Peterson Hill and Ferguson.

As the riding has grown, so has its religious and ethnic diversity. The religious diversity is reflected in various Christian denominations, be they Roman Catholic or Protestant; the Sikh religion; Eastern Orthodox; and, increasingly, a Muslim presence in North Surrey.

I've spoken — obviously, through the campaign and since the election — to my constituents. I want to turn now to the budget debate and the response to the budget. My constituents in particular are concerned about what I would call pocketbook issues. It's a riding not particularly of rich people but of middle- and lower-income people. No one particularly complains about that, but people are conscious of the value of a dollar and how far a dollar sometimes has to be stretched. They're concerned about the price of gasoline — particularly those in the trucking industry, which is important in Surrey; those who run taxi operations; and obviously, daily commuters.

The cost of public transit, if you choose to offset your drive with a ride on public transit, is a concern. Fees and charges at public schools, whether it's fees for field trips or school supplies. The cost of Pharmacare dispensing fees. Tuition fees, if you're concerned about your children attending post-secondary education, which is the aspiration of many parents for their children.

Those who work for the provincial government expressed to me the concern that given the wage freeze over the last several years, they're having increasing difficulty in making ends meet. Those who've worked in the health facilities and in hospital jobs who were laid off or forced to take jobs at much-reduced wages are not only concerned about economic matters but very angry about their new circumstances.

When we looked to the Minister of Finance — I looked at and listened carefully to the budget yesterday — I wondered what response there would be to deal with these issues on behalf of my constituents.

Despite what the member for Surrey-Tynehead said about Surrey Memorial, there wasn't any money in the budget for Surrey Memorial. Indeed, the Minister of Finance confirmed that prior to the budget being released. The $28 million that was committed prior to the election campaign was to be paid out of the authority surplus. It was never really properly viewed as new money. Since then there is no commitment from the Minister of Finance for any new money in the budget.

The Premier visited Surrey. He seems to have belatedly discovered the second-largest city in the province beginning in January of this year, and he visited nearly every week from January until May. A number of commitments were made, particularly to health care in the region and in particular to Surrey Memorial, but if those commitments are not funded in the budget,

then they're really empty words. Perhaps not surprisingly, we haven't seen much of him since the election in Surrey.

When people tell me their child wants to attend university, college or technical school, BCIT…. The fees required are usually in excess of $4,000 a year. There is nothing in the budget to assist those parents and those students with that education.

There's nothing in the budget that would really assist to deal with the skills shortage. There is a crisis in the apprenticeship system brought on by the previous government, which basically destroyed the apprenticeship system and deskilled the process of training workers in this province. One can look to Alberta, under Premier Ralph Klein, for a much more effective and functioning apprenticeship system, which really suggests the degree to which ideological pressures forced the government to deskill and shatter the pre-existing apprenticeship system.

Those are not simply concerns of the residents of Surrey-Whalley. Those are, properly, in my view, concerns of business, because business, whatever form it takes — whether it's non-profit business, cooperative business, social entrepreneurs, small business or big business — requires skilled labour in a modern economy. If you make it difficult for those people who want and aspire to better jobs and require the education to do that, if they're not assisted, then in the long run you create and add to a skills shortage here in the province. You create problems for business in attracting and managing growth.

Particularly in the area of apprenticeship, what some jurisdictions in the United States have seen is that construction of housing or apartments has had to cease entirely because there simply aren't the trained people to perform the work. If I were a developer or a builder, that would be of intense concern to me. In my view, the government is short-sighted and not really assisting business and not particularly assisting and meeting the aspirations of the residents of Surrey-Whalley.

Let's look at the corporate tax cut. I think it's important to recognize that this tax cut is not a cut for small business. I believe small business income for which you qualify for the lower rate is a maximum of $400,000 a year. If your company is earning $400,000 a year in taxable income, given what one can do in terms of tax planning, obviously that's a major enterprise, and you have substantial business with a number of employees, likely. The corporate tax cut that's been talked about in this budget statement is a tax cut genuinely to the biggest businesses in the province.

I think there's another way of looking at it. Business — corporate British Columbia — donated $7.9 million to the Liberal Party in the May 2005 election. For that donation, they received in return, yesterday, the annual reduction of tax of $143 million a year. If you look at it in terms of ROI, or return on investment, an investment of $7.9 million and a return of $143 million is pretty good going by any measure of investment. It certainly exceeds venture capital rates.

The slogan that the government has chosen to adopt is that hard work is paying off. In my view, the paying-off element is the one that should be focused on. I think the appropriate slogan is "Paying off is hard work," rather than the other way around.

The focus of the statement by the Minister of Finance — the alleged focus — is seniors and some changes in the budget that are directed towards the most elderly members of the population, in recognition of the important part they play in our society. I don't dispute that for a moment. But when you compare and calculate the dollar amount that they have been allocated, it is simply far less than the $143 million a year that results from the corporate tax cut.

The seniors supplement has been restored. It was available only to those receiving the lowest income in the province. The annual cost of that is about $20 million a year. That's 14 percent of a corporate tax cut. The SAFER shelter aid — that's aid for elderly renters — will increase by $17 million a year — again, approximately the same small percentage of what the big corporations of the province have received in terms of a corporate tax cut.

I think it's important to understand that although it wasn't quite the Christmas in July that we saw back in 2001, this cut of $143 million doesn't just happen this year. It continues next year and every year into the future. It's cumulative, and it represents a significant transfer of wealth from the government to the biggest corporations in the province.

In my view, speaking as the newly elected member for Surrey-Whalley, the vision of the future from Vancouver–Point Grey or Vancouver-Langara may be golden, but the perspective from Surrey-Whalley is considerably more clouded and tarnished than the government would have it. I look forward to participating in the debates of this House, I look forward to serving my constituents in the future, and I thank you for your attention during this speech.

Hon. R. Neufeld: It gives me pleasure to rise in this House and have an opportunity to speak to a budget which I think is very good. It's a budget that's good for British Columbians — all British Columbians, regardless of where you live or who you are — and good for our province in the long run, in looking forward to how we continue to grow our economy here in this great province.

Before I start, Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate you on your election to the chair. Prior to 1996 you and I had never met. At that time — you'll forgive me for using your name just quickly; I know better, but I'll use it — I met you over in that corner of the House when I was in opposition, and we referred to you as Landslide Bill. You won your election by just a handful, I think, of votes. Until all the votes were counted and it was all done by Elections B.C., you had to sit behind us. It was a good time for you and me to spend some time together. I've grown to respect you, and it doesn't sur-

I also want to congratulate everyone in the House that was re-elected, from both parties. I know, having gone through four elections, that they're not always easy. It's a lot of work, it's time-consuming, and it takes a toll on your family and your friends. As I've done, having been elected four times, I want to again thank my family and my friends for standing beside me. My wife Montana — who works very hard on my campaign and with me — for her hard work. My children, all four of them, and their spouses: my oldest daughter Chantelle, who worked with me in Fort St. John on the campaign; my oldest son and his wife, who couldn't — unfortunately, they were in Taiwan — but they've always helped; and my youngest son, who was busy in the oil patch. It's interesting that there are a lot of jobs happening in northeastern British Columbia, as it relates to the oil and gas industry, and he was busy but spent some time. And of course, my youngest daughter, who is going to Camosun College and is with me now — Katherine, here in Victoria, worked very hard on my campaign to make sure I was re-elected.

Along with that were a host of people in the constituency of Peace River North. Whether they lived in Fort St. John, in the rural part around Fort St. John, in Fort Nelson, in Charlie Lake or in Hudson's Hope, I appreciated all the work that each and every one of those individuals did on my behalf to make sure that I was re-elected and came back to Victoria.

I'm humbled. This is an awesome place. None of us should forget how awesome a place it is, how big a responsibility and how it feels so good to have that many people elect you to come here and represent them in this House, regardless of what party you come from. That makes no difference. There are people out there that believe in you, whoever you are. It's awe-inspiring when you walk into this building and look around and you're one of fewer than 1,000 people that have been here, elected to sit in these chairs. That's pretty awesome.

When we became government in 2001, our Premier said we were going to again lead Canada in a whole bunch of areas, not just economically but in leadership and a whole host of other areas — whether it's health care or education, whether it's relationships with first nations, whether it's business, whether it's people, all of those things. British Columbia has led, prior to 1991, every province in Canada in all aspects of economic growth — in job creation, in people moving here, people wanting to be in British Columbia. We suffered a decade of decline where we lost businesses and we lost people. We lost our young people to other parts of Canada. At a time when the economy was probably at its peak across Canada in the '90s, we were going downhill, unfortunately.

Our Premier had a big job when he was elected — along with the rest of us here — to turn that process around, to actually say to Canadians: "B.C. is a leader in Canada, and it's a world leader in a whole bunch of areas." I'm proud to say that our Premier is taking us there, and we are going there regardless of what measure you want to look at it by. When you read the newspapers and watched the TV and talked about leadership — whether it was the Minister of Health at conferences or the Premier at first ministers' meetings — B.C. was leading. We're leading again because the rest of the country is starting to look at British Columbia as that economic giant.

Last year economic growth outpaced every other jurisdiction in Canada, including Alberta. You know, that kind of a turnaround — to go from, in 2001, being almost the last of the pack, at the bottom of the pile, in three years to the top — meant a lot of hard work for a lot of people. A lot of people in British Columbia worked really hard, gave up a lot of things, did a lot of things that maybe they didn't want to do and didn't think was the right thing for them to have to do. Thank goodness all British Columbians pitched in. British Columbia is back on top. I'm darn proud to be a part of the government that put it there.

There's optimism in British Columbia like never before. People are moving back. Where I live, in the northeastern part of the province, they are coming back — lots. Businesses are starting to view British Columbia as a place to invest again. Four short years, going into our fifth year…. Can you imagine? To try and get that kind of confidence again in the business community, in people's lives, for people who moved out of British Columbia and bought homes in other parts of the country to actually say: "You know what? I'm going to give that home up because I love British Columbia so much…." Who wouldn't love British Columbia? Let me tell you. Regardless of where you come from, whether it's the north or the south, to give up their homes in other parts of Canada and actually move back to British Columbia and set down their roots again…. It actually took a lot of work on behalf of government, and our leadership has been able to do that.

We've recorded record surpluses, record payment on the debt — what? some $2.6 billion in the last fiscal year — something that's never….We have a $1.3 billion surplus today. That's because we made choices. We hear a lot from other people about choices.

Our Finance Minister, when she delivered her update, her mini-budget just yesterday, made choices. This government made choices. We made choices to fund 242 million more dollars — not just $242 million but 242 million more dollars to seniors care across the province. That's on top of what we committed to do at the start of the year when we reduced income tax for seniors, eliminated it for thousands. In fact, we eliminated MSP premiums for thousands of people, helped thousands of young people. We actually put in the equation the ability for young people to better pay for their MSP premiums than what was there before.

Those are moves that are bold, but they're moves that had a big plan ahead of them. That's one thing this government's been able to do: to plan and look into the future. But 242 million new dollars for seniors. I hear

some people say: "That's not enough — should add more." I guess it would always be nice to have more. When I hear them talk about the SAFER problem…. When I hear them say, "The seniors' supplement — it's not much…." Well, we had ten years — I was here through those ten dismal years in this place, from 1991 to 2001 — for the government of the day, which is now the opposition, to actually increase any one of those. You know what they chose to do, Mr. Speaker? They chose to not increase the SAFER at all — nothing.

They chose to only build 1,400 new units for seniors. They chose to let most units go into total disrepair. They chose during the election to accuse me in northeastern B.C. — and I'm just talking about Peace River North — of not looking after seniors. You know, in ten years while I was the MLA in Peace River North, they never built one unit — not one. Interesting, isn't it?

When the election came around, all of a sudden they were saying: "Well, you haven't built any." There were 18 that came on stream in Peace River North under our administration. There will be a further 76 that come on stream in the next few years. There will be a further 18 or so to come on stream from government that are being planned right now. Who didn't build? Who caused the problem? We're trying to actually respond to that problem.

We've also committed in the long term $100 million for first nations, to actually start reconciliation with first nations.

My business is the natural resource industry. I am proud of it; I'm happy with it. I'm sure the Minister of State for Mining, who works closely with me, will actually speak about how good mining is in the province, how we've moved mining forward and how we finally have investment coming back in the province, when it had left for Chile and every other part of the world under the NDP because they booted it out. We've actually invited it back. You know what, Mr. Speaker? They're coming back. There are mines opening as we speak. There will be another one reopened tomorrow. As we move forward, there will be other new mines across British Columbia. Claim-staking is up — absolutely unbelievable amount of claim-staking, up.

People are feeling good about British Columbia. Isn't it wonderful to have that happening again? You know what happens? People move here. They raise their families here. They train and educate their people here, and contrary to what we just heard about the apprenticeship program, there are more people enrolled in the apprenticeship program today than there have ever been. There are people coming back here because everyone's looking for trained individuals to come to British Columbia to work, and they're coming in droves.

We need to actually look at how we reconcile with first nations, how we work with first nations so we can continue to have them benefit — to actually have first nations have jobs in this economy that we have. No longer shall we drive by and say: "I'm sorry. If you're not on the train, you don't get anything." We want to work closely. I'm sure the minister responsible for that, who I have great respect for, is going to be able to do that very well.

We'll look forward to actually having a good relationship with first nations — not that we haven't had; we have had over the last four years. That will continue, and this $100 million that's been allocated will go a long ways over a long period of time to be able to start bringing that back so that we can continue to be out there on the land base actually exploring minerals, oil and gas, agriculture, forestry — all those things that need to happen out there that create the jobs for British Columbians, that create the wealth here for all of us.

When I took over this portfolio in 2001 in the oil and gas industry in British Columbia, there was just over one and a half billion dollars a year invested in the oil and gas industry in northeastern British Columbia. We've put some programs in place. We've worked with industry. We've worked with the communities. We've worked with the people that actually do the work. We have a strategic approach to how we deal with the service sector in northeastern British Columbia, and today that investment is four and a half billion dollars on a yearly basis. Let me tell you, that creates thousands and thousands of jobs that are well-paying, in the $100,000 range. Those are family-supporting jobs. That's what this Premier said he was going to do. We're creating those family-supporting jobs.

This year there will be about 600 new businesses opening up in Fort St. John, Fort Nelson, Hudson's Hope and Dawson Creek — in just those communities, almost 600 new businesses. Those are the ones that some folks say we should tax really high. Interesting approach. You know, we had that approach for ten years. We had that approach where taxes were maxed out because someone didn't like the corporate world, where taxes were maxed out because they didn't care about those businesses.

Do you know what happened where I live? I also know other places in the province. Those corporations moved; those people moved. Grande Prairie was just a little city when the NDP took over. Today it's an economy that's…. It's a city of 40,000-plus. It is booming like you wouldn't believe, and that's in Alberta, just across the border.

Ten years — they chased them all out. Companies that had their roots in Fort St. John and Dawson Creek that were…. Men and women that were born in Fort St. John and Dawson Creek took their companies, everything, and moved them to Grande Prairie.

You know what? I'm going to have a hard time getting them back. We're working at it, but let me tell you, we're slowly getting to where we're getting them back into northeastern British Columbia, where they can provide jobs for everyone and where they actually have their head offices.

The communities in the northeast are busting. It's unbelievable what's happening. People always refer to the fact that you're urban if you have a Starbucks. Interestingly enough, Fort St. John got its first Starbucks the other day. I guess that means I'm an urban MLA

from here on forward. We're looking to increase that investment in the oil and gas industry.

I want to just touch briefly on electricity. Electric energy is something that each and every one of us uses on a daily basis. We all actually take it for granted, to be perfectly honest — the lights that are in here. We have the third-lowest hydro rates in all of North America. A big part of that is the vision many years ago of someone by the name of W.A.C. Bennett to build dams on the Columbia and the Peace. They're serving us well. They're keeping our rates low. They're encouraging people to come here. They're encouraging all kinds of development.

What we need to do is to look at how we actually meet those needs going forward. Incremental growth in British Columbia is almost 2 percent. Power Smart is a huge part of B.C. Hydro. It is anticipated to look after about 30 percent of that new growth going forward, but there's still a lot more electricity that has to be generated. Regardless of where you go in the province, and I don't care where you go, you're going to have someone say: "Don't do it in my backyard, because I don't want it here. But I want to turn my electric switch on and have my lights come on, and I want it cheap."

So there's a challenge there. There's a challenge for us as government, and there's a challenge for everyone in this room to actually start thinking about how we move this process forward. We've not built anything new or large since the 1980s. In fact, during the '90s we hardly built anything. In fact, for the last four years we are net importers. There are a lot of people who think we just sell a whole bunch of excess electricity to the United States. Well, that's not true. We trade a lot of electricity with the U.S., but we are net importers. To those people who say that we should just turn off the switch to teach them a lesson: remember, it's our lights that go out. For the last four years — and actually previous to that, in the mid-90s — we've been net importers. Most of that comes from the United States of America, from plants down there.

We have to get back to being self-sufficient — in fact, better than self-sufficient — in this province. There are all kinds of ways we can do that. We have numerous small independent power producers across the province that are now producing electricity and selling it to BC Hydro under long-term contract. With our energy plan that we introduced in the fall of 2002, we made that commitment that we were going to look to the private sector to build those smaller plants across the whole province and actually sign long-term contracts with those people.

I'm proud to say that this year Hydro will make an announcement, once the B.C. Utilities Commission finishes reviewing it, of up to 1,000 gigawatt hours by this fall sometime, or early spring, and next year a further 1,000 gigawatt hours. You know, that's a lot of electricity, but it's a lot of opportunity for British Columbians, a lot of opportunity for small entrepreneurs to come into British Columbia and start building those small run-of-the-river…. Whether they're biomass or wind energy doesn't matter. They're all there, and BC Hydro is looking to buy that electricity from them, and we'll buy it. The energy plan says "at low cost." That's one thing they have to take into account.

Secondly, 50 percent of all new acquisition has to come from clean sources. That's the highest target of any jurisdiction across Canada. I'm proud to say that for the first four years that Hydro has had that challenge, they've met 100 percent of their new acquisition from clean sources across the province. For that we should be pretty proud. It's a great corporation. They do a great job for us here in British Columbia, and let me tell you that we as a group have to work together to convince British Columbians and other people that we do need some new generation. It's going to happen in different places, but it needs to happen if we want to continue to have these lights. I'm not just talking about Vancouver Island. I'm talking about the province as a whole.

I note that time flies in this building. When you get up and start talking about all the good news, all the good stuff that's happening…. You know, it doesn't matter whether it's mining that my colleague is looking after, or whether it's oil and gas that I'm responsible for, or electricity or energy efficiency. All those kinds of things are exciting. They're bold. We're moving forward with some bold initiatives in a whole bunch of areas, not just to do with my ministry. Whether it's child care, health care, education, services to senior citizens — all those kinds of things — this government has got it right.

Our leader has worked hard, and our leader deserves the respect for working that hard to make sure that British Columbia again came back from being the worst economy in Canada to the best economy in Canada, the best place in Canada, producing the most jobs — 230,000 jobs last year — and the best economic activity of any province in Canada in four short years. We ought to be happy that we have a B.C. Liberal government and a Premier that sees his way clear to lead this province and not be negative about business.

Let me tell you, we need business. Actually, that's where jobs come from. It's an interesting process, and I'd certainly like some people to actually look at that. When you have business, whether it's big or small doesn't matter. It produces jobs. People get to work at those jobs. People get to make family-supporting wages. They get to raise their children. They get to go to a number-one school system, bar none, across Canada. They get to go further to post-secondary education, bar none, across Canada. Look at our universities.

We have so much to be thankful for. I could stand here for a day and talk to you, without a note, about what's good in British Columbia. It's a great place to live. It's a great place to raise children. It's a great place for a beautiful future. Mr. Speaker, I'm sorry that you live in the Okanagan and I live in the great part of the province, in northeastern British Columbia. But it is a great province.

I want to once again say thank you to those folks that worked to elect me here again for the fourth time, and congratulate every one of my colleagues in this House for the hard work that they did. I look forward to lots of fun as we move forward for the next four years.

N. Macdonald: It's a privilege to stand here today representing the people of Columbia River–Revelstoke. I'd like to begin by thanking all those who worked so hard on my campaign, who gave time and effort and skills that allowed us to be successful in our part of the Kootenays. I'd also like to thank those who selected me on election day. Most of all, I'd like to thank Karen and my daughters for their understanding, patience and support. Finally, I'd like to recognize my predecessor Wendy McMahon for the service she's given to the area.

As I went door to door in the last election, I heard stories on occasion about previous MLAs and was told about characteristics people appreciated in an MLA. In Kimberley there were stories of Leo Nimsick, who served the area for over 20 years. In the Columbia Valley it was Social Credit's Jim Chabot; in Golden, Duane Crandall and Jimmy Doyle; while in Revelstoke it was Bill King. These people had very different personalities and belonged to different political parties, but the constituents saw them as representing their area's interests. They worked hard. They spoke clearly for an area that is better known to Calgarians than it is to Vancouverites or Victorians.

Columbia River–Revelstoke is an area of incredible natural beauty and historical significance — the Columbia wetlands; the Burgess Shale; the Bugaboos; wonderful parks like Kootenay, Yoho, Glacier, Mount Revelstoke, Cummins Valley, Mount Assiniboine; a host of incredible ski resorts; some of the best golfing in North America; rafting and hiking.

People live in a number of small communities: Kimberley through to Invermere, Golden, Revelstoke, Field. Each of these is unique, but in common each has a strong sense of community.

As a teacher I taught classes, and this reminds me of a Friday afternoon social studies 9 as people are ready to go. But I thought about the traditions of parliamentary democracy, and it's a tremendous honour to be here and to see it in person and to be part of it.

The reason I came here is that I want to be faithful to the people that sent me, and one of the things they asked me to do is to make sure I would give voice to their experiences. I have to say that the experiences I heard during the election process were very different than what I've heard from some members.

Home is a long way away from here. When I leave the door, it takes nine hours to get back to Golden. I think I'm the only MLA that will fly to a different province to get home. Over the last four years I can honestly say that many in Golden, many in Kimberley and Revelstoke and Invermere, have felt even more distant from this place.

I'll give you an example with Kimberley. Sullivan mine closed after a century of contribution to this province. The Liberal government thanks was to close the courthouse, close the government agent's office, leave the community without its community-built hospital, close three schools — basically, flicked the lights off on the way out.

Across the riding it has been the same — forestry offices closed, courthouses gone, recreation sites gone, and on and on. We're part of B.C. The coal to your ports comes along the railway lines that we work on. Your electricity comes from our dams — enough for 1.7 million homes each day, from my riding. The forest products that go through the port of Vancouver are harvested and milled in Columbia River–Revelstoke.

People in the Kootenays respect straight talk. We expect people to say what they're going to do and then do what they say. This budget, the throne speech around it, is going to be hard to reconcile with that standard. This Liberal government talks about the great goals of a golden decade, but the talk does not match anything that we experience in Columbia River–Revelstoke.

Your first goal is to make B.C. the best-educated, most literate jurisdiction on the continent. Those are your words. Our experience is the closing of schools. We have lost eight community schools. Now, you probably have not even heard of Wasa or Parson or Radium, but these were communities that used to have schools. We have students starting school now, this September, whose experiences will include long bus rides to a community other than their own.

The Social Credit believed in rural education. They built schools. The NDP believed in rural education — still does. They build schools. What has happened with this government? They've closed them — eight closed. How does that help make B.C. the best-educated, unless we're not included as part of the group you're trying to educate?

I was a principal of a small rural school. Because of your underfunding, my school was cleaned for six hours instead of eight, my library services were cut, and my special education was cut. When school districts are forced to four days of school a week instead of five, as they have been in the Kootenays, it is an act of desperation. We have been able to afford five days of schooling for a long time in B.C. How can we not afford it now? How does that help to make B.C. the best-educated?

Starting as a principal some years back, a fellow principal with years of success in administration, Ian Robinson, gave me one piece of advice. He said: "Look after your teachers. They have the tough job in a school. They are the key." It was good advice. When this government chooses to diminish them, to me it makes no sense. These are the people you should celebrate if you are in any way serious about education.

I'm proud to be a teacher. I have felt privileged to work with teachers as a principal. I trusted teachers with my children. How do attacks on educators help make B.C. the best-educated?

A grade 12 student, Aleta Salmon, asked at a school forum during the election about the cost of post-secondary schooling. She asked the same questions at

the all-candidates forum. Coming from a rural setting, she faces an incredible burden. As I look around this room, I cannot imagine that there are any of us who went to university who would have faced the same situation. In Golden, in Invermere, in Kimberley and in Revelstoke it is not at all unheard of for people to step out of university owing up to $40,000. It is a massive burden. None of us had to face that.

I wanted her to know that I would raise it here. I wanted her to know that she's right. I wanted her to know that if we're serious about educating our people for the future, then we should have seen something in the budget to help with that burden. There should be some sign that the government here cares about it. If the goal is to make B.C. the most educated jurisdiction, then that cost has to be addressed.

To lead North America in healthy living is another stated goal of the golden decade. Where I am from, the cutting of funding to women's centres seems inconsistent with that goal. They provide support services to assist women in making healthy life choices for themselves and their children. Closing forest recreation sites and abandoning forestry trails that were there doesn't show a commitment to affordable recreation. In Kimberley, every time they hear an ambulance, they know a friend or neighbour is 30 minutes further away from assistance.

Is a record number of people depending on food banks part of the plan for the golden decade? Does degrading home support meet the goal of leading North America in healthy living? In Columbia River–Revelstoke we don't get it.

To lead the world in sustainable environmental management is another goal for the golden decade, as you say. This time you're going to be the leader in the world. How can you do that if you get rid of biologists? How does that fit into the plan? You've changed the rules on park boundaries. You dismiss local environmental concerns about developments like Jumbo Glacier Resort. You get rid of conservation officers, leaving large parts of Columbia River–Revelstoke with no oversight.

I had a bear with two cubs coming into the school yard after school at the same time the students were waiting for the buses. We used to have two conservation officers in the area. You would always be able to get one to come and deal with the problem. With the B.C. Liberal plan, I was able to phone a number in Victoria. They kept a record of my phone call. The next day the bears came back earlier, and I was able to phone again. They took another record of my phone call. You're on your own. Is that the way to lead the world?

The most offensive thing that I want to talk about is the final golden rule, and it's the one that seems the least mismatched to the language that I hear here: to build the best system of supports in Canada for persons with disabilities, special needs, children at risk and seniors. The language is almost Orwellian, because unless your experience is different than my area's, that is not what I've seen at all. The reason I am here is because that is not what happened. Nothing like that happened in Columbia River–Revelstoke.

I went door to door in my community and in the communities around my area for a year getting ready for this. There is never going to be a time when I know better what people think. Was there one person in my riding who felt that support for persons with disabilities, special needs, children at risk or seniors was in any way important to this government? I did not meet one. I did not meet one who thought that was your priority.

Even those who voted Liberal — and in a rural riding they'll tell you why they're voting one particular way — would still concede that this was not a priority. They would hold their nose on this issue, because they weren't left with the sense that you care. They do not trust you on this issue.

I'll tell you some stories that were told to me during the election or that I witnessed. They're important stories because beyond all the percents and numbers you hear here, they are the real stories. There is a woman in Revelstoke — a very elderly, longtime citizen of Revelstoke. When her son was no longer able to take care of her, because he was in his 70s and had heart problems, she needed a place in a residential care home. Revelstoke had a seniors home that the community had built, with 21 beds. The Liberal government — you — tried to close this building, Moberly Manor, and when, incredibly, community opposition stopped it, it was closed one bed at a time to clear it out by attrition.

They were going to move our senior to Chase. With beds available in Revelstoke, they were going to send her out of the city. The family was only given one of the empty beds when BCTV came to Revelstoke, and the impression it left with the community was that there was more concern over bad press than for one of our seniors.

Is that how the Liberals build the best system of support for seniors in Canada? At least that worked out. The woman involved — it has worked out for her quite well.

In Kimberley, there are many, many more stories that cause deeper bitterness. There was a gentleman from Kimberley. He walked with me as I went campaigning from business to business. The reason he did that was because of something that happened when Kimberley Hospital was closed. He would visit his wife every day. She was in the acute section of Kimberley Hospital. When that was closed, that part of the hospital was going to be closed in a week. One day his wife was going to be moved to Fernie — it caused him tremendous distress — and the next day she was going to be moved somewhere else. Ultimately, she was moved to a place within Kimberley, but she did not survive that. It was turmoil for the husband as he pleaded for some decency, but there was none.

When you talk about having to make tough decisions, what do you mean? You have to ask yourself: was that building the best support system in Canada?

There was a woman in Golden. She and her husband actually helped build our seniors home, Durand Manor. She participated in the building of the community's seniors home. After closing beds, there was no

space for her when the time of need came. She passed away in Salmon Arm — this was during the election — away from her husband of 50 years, away from her community. They helped build the seniors home.

Before your changes, there were enough spaces to meet our needs. After them, we had tragedy. So it just seems like it takes a tremendous amount of gall to stand up and…. First off, I hate that slogan "the five great goals." It just takes gall to say that you're serious about the best system of support for seniors in Canada. I see no sign of it where I come from.

I tell you, I'm here because the people there don't think you care either. We don't trust you with our children. We don't trust you with our seniors. I honestly hope that you're successful as you go forward here, because there is a tremendous amount at stake.

As you talk about numbers, I honestly hope you'll think that with the decisions that sometimes seem decisive on these things, there's an element of recklessness with them. I'll give you examples. Moberly Manor I'm sure you've heard of. Three years ago the community-built seniors home was given a month to close — a month to close. Revelstoke fought that. It's a good thing. When will the new facility be built? In another 12 to 14 months. So what was the plan in the meantime? The same people that can, with a straight face, say we have a commitment to have the best system of support for seniors in Canada will say there's a plan, but it would be very difficult for you to go to Revelstoke and have people there trust you on it.

Kimberley Hospital — it's closed in a month. One hundred years of history, and where are the people supposed to go? To the regional hospital in Cranbrook, but changing the name of Cranbrook Hospital to Regional Hospital doesn't change the actual structure of the hospital. It is two years away from the new emergency room being ready — two years away.

At Durand Manor in Golden, reduced beds. In the hospital, our acute beds are reduced. When will the new facility promised for seniors be ready? Years have gone by, and the dirt is still not being moved. What kind of government closes facilities against the wishes of communities with the promised facilities yet to be built? What could you possibly have thought was going to happen?

There are many from my part of B.C. that think this government doesn't care, that they don't listen. You cannot be trusted with the things that are important to us. This budget does nothing to ease my concerns. There's more in the corporate tax cuts than there is in the new spending for seniors, and that says a great deal about the priorities.

When this is over, I'll go home. My golden goal is to keep faith with the people that sent me, to know that I worked as hard as I could to make the lives of these people I represent better. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank you for your attention.

Hansard Services publishes transcripts both in print and on the Internet. Chamber debates are broadcast on television and webcast on the Internet.