2013 Legislative Session: First Session, 40th Parliament
HANSARD
The following electronic version is for informational purposes only.
The printed version remains the official version.
official report of
Debates of the Legislative Assembly
(hansard)
Thursday, July 4, 2013
Morning Sitting
Volume 1, Number 7
ISSN 0709-1281 (Print)
ISSN 1499-2175 (Online)
CONTENTS | |
Page | |
Orders of the Day | |
Budget Debate (continued) | 133 |
Hon. T. Wat | |
K. Corrigan | |
Hon. D. McRae | |
S. Fraser | |
S. Gibson | |
G. Holman | |
J. Thornthwaite | |
THURSDAY, JULY 4, 2013
The House met at 10:04 a.m.
[Madame Speaker in the chair.]
Prayers.
Orders of the Day
Hon. T. Lake: I call continued debate on the budget.
Budget Debate
(continued)
Hon. T. Wat: It is my great honour today, as the new MLA for Richmond Centre and the new Minister of International Trade, Asia Pacific Strategy and Multiculturalism, to speak for the first time at the Legislature.
First of all, I would like to offer my condolences to the flood victims in southern Alberta and Calgary, to the families. We wish to express our deepest sympathy for their loss. We share in your sorrow with love, friendship and support. May we also salute the hard work of the emergency responders and government officials. During challenging times we learn to treasure the people around us.
[D. Horne in the chair.]
Now I would like to thank Premier Christy Clark and all my colleagues in the Liberal caucus for their very strong support and encouragement. I am so proud and honoured to be associated with such a great team.
I am also very grateful to the constituents in my riding, Richmond Centre, for their trust and confidence in me. I will try my very best in the next four years to represent their concerns in the provincial government and be a very strong and effective voice for my constituents.
I would like to take this special moment to recognize some of the people whose help and support are very important to me. First, to my late husband, Stephen. He always reminded me that I should give back to the community, and this is why I chose to take part in politics, to best serve my constituents in Richmond Centre and all British Columbians.
I must also mention my parents, who are in their 80s. Mom and Dad: thank you for always supporting me throughout the years. To my daughter, Tin, who has so strongly supported my decision to serve the public: I take so much pride in calling you my daughter.
Another individual I would like to express my gratitude to is James Ho. Without his very strong encouragement and support, I wouldn't have run for this political office.
I need to thank my excellent campaign team and the former MLA for Richmond Centre, Rob Howard. He has knocked on so many doors with me, connecting me with my constituents and countless community groups. Without you, Rob, this campaign wouldn't have been a success.
To my other election campaign and campaign cabinet co-chairs: Wayne Duzita, Juliana Yung, Henry Fetigan, former MLAs Olga Ilich and Ken Johnston. All of them have longstanding ties to Richmond.
Many thanks to my communications team: Bruce Rozenhart, Chad Pederson, Rob Howard, Eric Yung, Charles Mak and Christopher Chan. Eric Yung and Don Grant made the election day a success. Johnny Cheung, Julie Liu, Michael Ng and Rick Lam kept fundraising, volunteers and the campaign team in place.
My very committed and hard-working supporters and volunteers: Clara Chow, Tse Pak Hang, Johnny Fong, Albert Fok, Victor Qin, Grace Tsang, Kenny Chui, Alice Wong, Alice Tan, Woo Kar Mou, Ma Zaixin, Pius and Cindy Chan, Ludia Li, Endora Fan, General Tsang Man Cheung, Penny Choi, Elsa Wong, Janie Law, Stella Li, Agnes Wong, Andrew and Lucy Wong, Trudy Howard, Erika Simm, Louise Young, Victor Lucak, David Ma and Mary Pak.
There are so many others, too many to mention today. Thank you so much for your support.
Our entire team worked so hard, not only because they believed in me but because they believe in this government. They worked hard to ensure that this government would return to power, and they were successful. Even though the voter turnout in Richmond Centre was low, it rose from 40 percent in 2009 to the present 43 percent. This means that 1,700 more people cast their ballots in this election.
We also had a much stronger volunteer team this year, which indicates that more citizens of Richmond are involved and want to maximize their roles in our society. This has been very encouraging for me, because one of my goals is to encourage more people to get involved in our society.
Richmond Centre has undergone enormous change in the past several decades. It is an ethnically diverse, growing and dynamic urban centre. For food lovers, Richmond is a daily dining adventure, promising fresh seafood from its resident fishing fleet and the best Asian restaurants in the country. Richmond is also a shopper's paradise. Steps away from Canada Line transit stations are Lansdowne Centre and Richmond Centre. The city is also home to the largest Asian malls in western Canada. You can shop in Asia without going to Asia.
Vancouver International Airport, YVR, is located at Sea Island in my riding, Richmond Centre. In 2011 it was the second-busiest airport in Canada by aircraft move-
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ment. It is the only North American airport named top ten in the world in 2013. Richmond Olympic Oval has hosted numerous provincial, national and international championships in a wide variety of summer and winter sports. In all aspects, Richmond has grown into a world-class city, thanks to the Liberal government and what they have done to push forward the economy in the past 12 years.
Richmond Centre is home to many small businesses. They understand the need for a vital and healthy economy. During the campaign, I spoke to hundreds of business owners and constituents whose primary concern was for a stronger economy to make way for a secure tomorrow.
Last May British Columbians spoke clearly. They want a government that would protect the fundamentals of the economy. With a sustainable economy, the government was able to replace the Samuel Brighouse Elementary School in Richmond Centre and build it to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design gold standards. It is home to a neighbourhood learning centre.
With a sustainable economy, the government was able to provide $90.7 million in financing for the Kiwanis development, which will provide 296 new rental units for seniors affordable housing. This project is currently underway in the core of Richmond Centre. With a sustainable economy, the government was able to fund and complete a $10.2 million renovation project to expand Richmond General Hospital.
I would like to spend a minute talking about the Canada Line. It does so much for our economy and our environment. Ridership has grown steadily since opening in August 2009. I thank and extend my congratulations to the Richmond airport Vancouver task force and to the rapid transit coalition. In particular, I want to thank the Premier. This is another example of strong leadership, getting results for our province and for the citizens of Richmond.
Sustainable funding requires a strong and sustainable economy. Moving forward, I will utilize my cross-cultural, cross-business and cross-continent experience in organizing trade delegations to China and Asia to identify key government and private partners, to promote our province's core strengths and to strengthen the trade relationships between Asia and British Columbia.
I am so proud of the progress this government has made in diversifying our markets in Asia, and I'm thrilled about the Asia-Pacific gateway. I forecast that China's economy will advance 8 percent this year. In other parts of Asia, especially South Asia, we see a slowdown but steady growth as well.
As the Minister Responsible for Multiculturalism and an immigrant myself, I'm so proud of the competitive advantage of our multicultural and diverse community. Our province has business and family connections to key countries and markets around the world. We must leverage these connections to strengthen our trade relationships, attract new investment and create and protect jobs for British Columbians.
During the election campaign I spoke to hundreds of business owners and constituents who expressed their interest in expanding our markets and to further promote our local products and services in Asia. The aim is to promote British Columbia as a reliable source of products and services with quality that meets global standards.
In this increasingly interconnected world, in which we see the breathtaking rise of countries such as India and China, Richmond has an exciting role to play. Having said that, we should also value our trade partners in other parts of the world. The GDP of the United States is projected to expand 1.9 percent this year and then accelerate to 2.8 percent in 2014, which would be the country's best raise since 2005. The eurozone is projected to remain in a recession this year but will return to growth next year with a rate of 1.1 percent.
Thanks to the efforts of the Liberal government, not only has B.C. weathered the economic storm in the past few years, but we have come through it stronger than ever. It took us years to rebuild this economy from a have-not province. I'm excited that the throne speech places an undeniable emphasis on pushing forward our economy. I'm pleased that Budget Update 2013 continues to control spending and helps to grow the economy by keeping taxes low while continuing to look for ways to make life more affordable for British Columbians and their families. I am so proud to be part of a government that recognizes this with determined action. That is what strong leadership is, and we can only be excited about our future.
Deputy Speaker: I thank the minister and recognize the member for Burnaby–Deer Lake.
K. Corrigan: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I looked up, and I was about to congratulate the new Speaker on her position, and she was no longer there. But it's nice to see you back again.
I want to congratulate all of my fellow members, those that have been re-elected and, of course, the newly elected, particularly. I have to say particularly that I'm so pleased that my colleague in Burnaby-Lougheed, who is sitting beside me, was elected for the first time. I know that she is going to make a wonderful representative for the seat of Burnaby-Lougheed. Of course, my good friend and colleague from Burnaby-Edmonds was also re-elected.
I want to also start off by thanking my campaign team in the recent election. They were a wonderful group of people. We worked very hard, but we also had a lot of fun. So to Chantel O'Neill, who was the campaign manager, and others like Tiffany Kalanj, Shannon Powell, Lorraine Shore and Carol Riviere…. Of course, now that I've men-
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tioned five or six names, there are dozens of people beyond them that worked so hard in the campaign, and I thank them for giving of themselves and volunteering their time without getting any of the accolades or public notice. But they're wonderful people, and I thank them for what they did.
Of course, part of that campaign as well were my wonderful constituency assistants, the inimitable Cate Jones and someone who has newly joined us, Isaac Vallee, who both do wonderful jobs helping the people of Burnaby–Deer Lake.
I also want to thank the people of Burnaby–Deer Lake, my constituents, for re-electing me. It is an honour to serve the people in my constituency, which is a wonderful and interesting constituency with a great deal of diversity, both financially and demographically. I know that many communities…. I think I've heard many MLAs claiming that theirs is the most diverse community perhaps in Canada. But certainly Burnaby, if not the most diverse, is one of the most diverse communities in Canada. We are simply a reflection of Canada. We are wealthy, some of us. We are poor, some of us. We were born in Canada, some of us, and we were born in all corners of the globe. So we truly are a reflection of the Canada of today.
To the budget. I've always believed that the foundational principle for life is that things should be fair. When you are making decisions, you need to be fair. When you deal with people, you need to be fair. Government policy needs to treat people fairly. When you're on a sporting field, you need to be fair. When you deal with your own children, you need to be fair.
Dwight Eisenhower said: "Though force can protect in emergency, only justice, fairness, consideration and cooperation can finally lead men to the dawn of eternal peace."
After the election one of my sons came to me. He was disappointed about the result, to be sure — not mine, but the overall result — and he said: "It's not fair, Mom." And I think he was right. In a way, I think that this election was won in a way that was not fair. It was won by a party that thought that it was all right to conduct a smear campaign against our leader and ran what has aptly been called a fact-free campaign.
This budget — this record of the B.C. Liberals, the record of budgets — also, I believe, does not reflect fairness.
Is it fair that a child born into a house that is poor, or where parents, through no fault of their own — maybe having disabilities — or is born into a family where the parents are drug addicts should go to school hungry, should have fewer chances at life, should have a much lower chance of post-secondary education or should be at much higher risk of later criminal behaviour?
Is it fair that people are living under bridges? Is it fair that single mothers walk into my office with their young children, desperate because their rent has just gone up, they're on the edge of being homeless, and we have to tell them that there is little or no hope of them getting into B.C. Housing? Is it fair to those children? Their only fault was being born into a family that was poor or troubled. Is it fair that children born in this province of British Columbia have the highest odds of being born into a poor family?
Is it fair that there are children spending virtually all their childhood bounced from foster home to foster home, sometimes being abused in those foster homes, and that the system that is supposed to protect those children is in crisis, despite report after report begging for help and supports for those kids?
Is it fair that women are going to court, sometimes up against abusive husbands in divorce cases, fighting to keep their children and asserting their property rights, and are going there unrepresented, because this government has cut legal aid and has cut social services?
Is it fair that post-secondary students have the highest student debt and that post-secondary education is getting farther and farther out of reach for those that do not come from economically advantaged families?
This budget and previous budgets of this government do not treat the citizens of this province fairly. What does this government say about that? Essentially, they say: "So sad. Too bad." They say: "At some distant point in the future, some dubious scheme is going to come true, and there will be billions and billions of dollars that are all going to make all of our dreams come true. Buy a lottery ticket, and buy a dream."
But lottery tickets on our future aren't going to help children in care today. Lottery tickets on a dream aren't going to help families getting tossed from their apartments because they can't afford the rent and can't get a job today. Pipedreams and lottery tickets on our future won't help the Christian Lees of the world, murdered — who we know was let down by a community unable to support him because a choice was made not to invest in the services that might have helped him and his family.
I know that we can't spend every social dollar that is worthwhile. I understand that. But this government has abdicated our responsibility to our future. Investment in healthy children is just as important as investment in infrastructure. We need balance. In deflecting to the mantra that somehow, some way, billions and billions of dollars are going to come our way, the B.C. Liberals are abdicating responsibility for building a healthy society now.
There is also, I believe, an underlying assumption held by many on the other side — this is reflected in policy and this government's budget — that there's something the matter with government, that there's something wrong, that government is a bad thing. And there's certainly an overt contention that red tape is bad.
Well, what is red tape? Red tape is rules. Red tape is regulations. Red tape is laws put in place to do things like prevent workers' deaths. Red tape is regulations put in place to protect our drinking water, our food, our forest lands and our health. Red tape is policies put in place to protect vulnerable citizens.
I don't want unnecessary regulation more than anyone else, but I think it's very dangerous that we have a government that once again is returning to the ideology that they want to cut regulation and rules without regard to the purpose of those regulations — cutting rules, regulations and laws simply for the sake of being able to say that they've done it.
I've talked earlier about the belief that there must be fairness in government and in how we treat each other. The second standard by which I judge government is whether dollars are spent effectively and efficiently in the best interests of the public. Getting the most bang for the buck, I guess, is the way to put it. The Liberals claim to stand for fiscal prudence and effective deployment of tax dollars.
My husband and I had a small law firm for many years, and then I stayed home to look after our children for many more years and administered the law firm while he brought in the money. I was also on the Burnaby school board for nine years — two years as chair. I know how to balance a budget. I know how to deploy every last precious dollar, whether it's my own or whether it's tax dollars, in the most efficient way possible, in one case for my family and in another for the students and families of school district 41.
I've turned my critical — and, I hope, somewhat discerning — eye to the deployment of funds by this government, and the record, I believe, is, frankly, atrocious. While members on the other side talk about fiscal prudence, they are simply irresponsible with public funds. I sit on the Public Accounts Committee, and I have seen report after report from the Auditor General pointing to the mismanagement of government funds and government programs.
Evergreen line report: "Business cases omitted assumptions and explanations I considered critical to understanding the project's costs, benefits and risks, and none of the agencies documented the substance of their reviews of the material presented to Treasury Board." End of quote from the Auditor General.
Again, the Auditor General on the management of timber: "We concluded that the ministry has not clearly defined its timber objectives.… Existing management practices are insufficient to offset a trend towards future forests having a lower timber supply and less species diversity in some areas. The ministry does not appropriately monitor and report its timber results against timber objectives."
On JUSTIN: "The audit reveals serious security flaws in JUSTIN, the province's computerized criminal justice system…Much of the information found in the JUSTIN database is highly sensitive. The audit concludes with more than 100 detailed recommendations that address JUSTIN deficiencies, many of which are many too sensitive to include in this report."
Environmental assessment: "The environmental assessment office is expected to provide sound oversight" of major projects such as mines, dams or tourist destination resorts. "However, this has not been happening."
Finally, on the effects of rate-regulated accounting at B.C. Hydro, which effectively allows B.C. Hydro to defer to future years certain expenses that would normally be recorded in the current year's financial statements. As of March 31, 2011, when the report was made, a net total of $2.2 billion in expenses had been deferred. By government's own estimate, that balance was predicted to grow and has grown. It's predicted to grow to nearly $5 billion by 2017. As the Auditor General at the time, Mr. Doyle, said: "It's a bit like using a credit card. You have to pay it off, or you have lots of problems." This has allowed government to siphon money out of B.C. Hydro, put it hopelessly in debt, and it's a mess now.
Some of these reports that I've quoted speak to straight ineptitude and mismanagement. But it is also, I believe, a product of what I think are poor priorities exercised by this government over the last decade, misplaced priorities that continue on with this budget. Some of my colleagues have talked a little bit about the over-budget projects we have. Again, mismanagement by this government.
The northwest transmission line — $342 million over. The South Fraser perimeter road — $464 million over budget. The Port Mann Bridge and Highway 1 expansion — $1.8 billion over budget, 120 percent over budget. The Vancouver Convention Centre — $341 million over budget. And the B.C. Place roof — $149 million over budget.
More than three billion dollars over budget. It could have bought a lot of child care spaces. It could have bought thousands of surgeries. It sure could have paid for a lot of wheelchairs. In addition to that, and probably contributing to the debt, are those projects, so now we have a debt that is consistently rising as well. I won't go through that, because many of my colleagues have done that. But for a government and a Premier that claims to represent a debt-free B.C., I find it absolutely astounding that they can have the debt that they have racked up over the last several years and continue to rack up over the next many years.
In addition, contractual obligations — $96 billion worth of contractual obligations — P3s and other contracts that are going to lock this province into payments generations into the future. Whether we need those services in the future or not, we are locked into those contracts. Those contracts are going to be paid for by my kids
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and my children's children — $96 billion that we're going to have to pay the bill for and they're going to have to pay the bill for. Debt-free indeed. Prudent management — malarkey.
Interjection.
K. Corrigan: It is.
There are those that are benefiting from these deals. There are those who are getting along very well under this government. Who will benefit under this budget? Who have seen the primary benefits? I'll tell you. The largest businesses, the biggest businesses, the businesses whose head offices are in Ontario and New York and London — not local businesses — businesses that contributed heavily to the B.C. Liberal Party at election time and had a heck of a lot of government largesse to lose if the B.C. Liberal Party lost.
Who gains under the B.C. Liberals? Stellar companies, companies like SNC-Lavalin, disgraced around the world for corruption, banned from dealing with the World Bank because of its corruption. SNC-Lavalin, whose chair Gwyn Morgan was a major adviser to the Premier. SNC-Lavalin — lucky bidder on P3 deals in British Columbia. SNC-Lavalin — illegal party financer to municipal and provincial politicians in Quebec. Great company that the members on the other side are keeping.
Who doesn't benefit from the B.C. Liberal government budget past and present? Certainly not small businesses. No, they got the HST. Not the hard-working local entrepreneurs in the film business in my community. They haven't benefited. They could have used a break. Not Simon Fraser University and BCIT, being starved by a government that does not value post-secondary education or skills training, despite grossly misleading election ads to the contrary. Not the average taxpayer, who got the HST but fought back.
The average taxpayer — my neighbours, my constituents — who have seen their wages stagnate under this government, if they have a job at all, who have seen hydro rates go up, who have seen MSP rates go up, have seen charges of all kinds go up — they're not benefiting.
Not immigrants, who can't get their credentials recognized, who are going to the new Work B.C. centres and are unable to get help where they used to be able to get help from organizations like SUCCESS.
Not the businesses in my community, who were gobsmacked because post-election they got a rude surprise when they found that the provincial school tax, which the province forces municipalities to collect on their behalf, has just doubled in one year. That policy was quietly brought in across the province in February. Businesses didn't find out until now, after the election, where they got a doubling….
Interjections.
K. Corrigan: I have heard from dozens of businesses…
Interjections.
Deputy Speaker: Members.
K. Corrigan: …that are appalled. No notice before the election, doubling of their class 5, light industrial rates after the election. Sounds like a familiar theme: one tax story before the election….
Interjections.
Deputy Speaker: Members, please allow the member to have the floor.
K. Corrigan: One tax story before the election; a different one after the election.
This budget doesn't help the people of Hummingbird Creek who had their properties destroyed — dozens and dozens of them last year — and cannot get help from this government to build a new culvert in their community. Every year they face the devastation of floods because this government refuses to act on their behalf.
This is a government that claims it's an expert at managing our money, at creating jobs, when in reality, since the Premier brought in her jobs plan, we've had a glorious net 31,000 — oh no, wait; I think we're up to 32,000 — private sector jobs disappear in this province.
This budget certainly does not help the vast majority of women in this province. It particularly does not help struggling single-parent women, who, along with their children, will suffer the most under a government that has an unwavering and blind ideological obedience to trickle-down theories that have failed for the past 12 years.
Now we have a core review. I can tell you that I can predict what this core review is going to mean. It's going to mean exactly what it meant the last time there was a core review: less services, less health care, less employment services, less investment in children, less services for the sick, less services for seniors, less services for the young, cuts to mental health services and no investment in child care in this province.
It will be cloaked in a bogus mantra of administrative savings, bogus savings just like their bogus budget. But their friends, their big business friends that have always done just fine under this government, will continue to do fine for the next four years.
Mr. Speaker, it probably will not surprise you to hear that I will not be supporting this budget.
Hon. D. McRae: Before I begin my remarks today I just want to take this opportunity to express my gratitude
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and my thanks. I would like to thank the RCMP and the legislative security staff and other security forces for doing what we expect them to do so well. When they do it well, we need to make sure we recognize it. The events of last weekend were something we never want to see in British Columbia or anywhere, but it's just nice to know that the men and women who serve in these capacities serve us well.
I'm honoured to rise in the House today to speak to the budget. I'm honoured to rise in the House today to speak to the budget from this side of the House. The election of May 2013 basically expressed the will of the voters.
Now, I knocked on a lot of doors during that campaign, like many of the candidates on both sides of the House. One thing I was so pleased to find out as I knocked on door after door in British Columbia was the issues that were important to men, women and children in society. I can say with very clear and concise detail that the things that came up in my community were the economy, the economy and the economy — the economy today and taxation levels that are low — and making sure the economy grows for our children and their children going forward.
I'd also like to take this time to express my gratitude and my thanks to the constituents of the Comox Valley. Democracy is alive and well in the province of British Columbia and no more so than in the Comox Valley. Over 32,000 individuals in the Comox Valley cast their votes. Our voter turnout in the Comox Valley, as usual, was one of the highest voter turnouts in the province of British Columbia.
For that reason, I want to express a thank-you to my campaign team — individuals like Darryl Pippin — who worked tirelessly to organize and make sure that we ran a campaign that was optimistic, that was talking about what we're going to do as a province and not fearmongering. It's about being optimistic and making sure that we have an opportunity in this province to embrace the resources that we have.
I also would like to thank some people who are very important in my life — my family. To my wife, Deanne: thank you very much for allowing me to serve once again for four years for the people of the Comox Valley and the province of British Columbia. You go the extra mile when I'm not home, and my apologies for spending time away from the house. I couldn't do this job without your support.
Tomorrow we celebrate in my community, at my house, in my backyard, my daughter's tenth birthday. Gracie is turning ten. We're having a sleepover, which I know is important to all the members of this House. I don't think I've ever had a sleepover at my house with six young women to join us. But you know what? My daughter has also made sacrifices, because sometimes I'm not there. I've missed school plays, and I've missed dance recitals, and I feel bad about that. But I want to thank Gracie and Chloe.
Some of you may even remember in November…. It was November 6, actually. I got called out of the Legislature for the birth of my second child, Chloe. She is outstanding. She is also a great giver of things — a great giver of love and a great giver of my summer cold. I want to thank her very much for that and the smile she puts on my face.
One other family member I'd like to recognize, because we have this opportunity, is my niece Michelle Gambecorda. She's recently a graduate from G.P. Vanier high school, the school I went to school at, the school I taught at. Michelle, congratulations. You worked hard for it. We look forward to seeing you go forward in your future and what you become.
Now back to the message at hand. B.C. is a resource-based province. It has been, is and always will be. I'm always reminded, and I think some members of the House know, that I am a teacher of history. When you look up in the rotunda you see some of the heritage industries, industries we still depend on and will always depend on, be it mining, be it fishing, forestry or agriculture.
We have an opportunity in this province which is unprecedented: LNG, liquefied natural gas. B.C. has been blessed to have a resource that the world wants and needs. I'm so impressed with the Premier and this party for realizing that we must take advantage of this opportunity. We are not the only game in the world. Qatar, Indonesia, Australia also have this resource. But industry is looking to this province and the private sector, saying this is a place they want to invest in and they want to do business in. It will be a benefit for our residents.
It is something we need to make sure we do not come in second or third place. It's an opportunity to make sure we can do great things for this province. We talk about paying down debt. We talk about making sure the legacy for our children is there. It would be a disservice to the voters of British Columbia to not do everything in our powers to make sure that the jobs and those dollars are going to be available to British Columbians. I applaud the Premier for making that choice.
Now let's talk about my community and things that we can do well. In the Comox Valley, as many of you probably know, tourism is very important. We have been blessed with geography. On Vancouver Island we have Mount Washington, not only in the wintertime. It is one of the largest private sector employees, with about 800 employees.
It is a key attraction for lifestyle. People come to the Comox Valley to live, because we have an opportunity to enjoy the summer slopes, to walk around, to mountain bike, to hike. In the winter we get some of the most snow not just in British Columbia but in North America. We have been very fortunate, and I'm sure many of us in this room have been there before.
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Now we're in summer, and the beaches of the Comox Valley will attract. Coming next week in the Comox Valley is one of the best music festivals, MusicFest. Over 10,000 individuals will descend upon the Comox Valley. Why? Because the organizers of that event know that the arts and culture are very important to our community and our province. We will enjoy the benefits of their hard work as they continue to provide one of the best music festivals in western Canada.
Coming forward we have Nautical Days and the Filberg Festival in early August — a great opportunity to, again, embrace arts and culture and celebrate the great community of Comox in the Comox Valley.
Last weekend I also had the opportunity to spend time at the July 1 celebrations, at Courtenay House every year. The weather was absolutely stellar, and to the volunteer committee, I want to take time to say thank you for the literally hundreds of hours that you folks put in to making sure that the Canada Day celebrations were such a success in our community.
Comox Valley also has one of the most vibrant small airports in British Columbia. You know, when we saw the great recession of 2008 and 2009 come, airlines did not bode overly well, but in Comox Valley we held our own. I'm pleased to say that last year 327,000 people went through the Comox Valley Airport, an airport and terminal station that was provided by this government, an opportunity we realized.
By making investments in communities, we can grow a region and grow an economy. It's investing in the past to make sure our children have opportunities in the future — 327,000 people through a small community on Vancouver Island. Why? Because this province knows how to make investment.
Now, some of you may know I used to be a Minister of Agriculture. Farming, while it's not part of my career, is something I have grown to love and realize just how important. Comox Valley has embraced agriculture in ways like no other community in British Columbia.
I think people would recognize investments this government has supported in the past and will continue to support. Farmers markets — over 125 in British Columbia. Comox Valley, in my opinion, has, if not the best, one of the best farmers markets in the province. Why do we have such a great farmers market? Because there are 225 commodities grown in British Columbia. In Comox Valley we grow 185 of those commodities between the community of Fanny Bay and the Oyster River, on over 500 farms.
We have embraced Buy Local. We have embraced the opportunity to buy fresh, quality food because it is healthy, it is enjoyable, and it's part of our fabric.
This province wants to make sure that farmers have the chance to be competitive. I'm very pleased to see in the budget of 2013, both in February and when it was reintroduced, that we talked about the carbon tax rebate for farm fuel. Why? We want to make sure that our farmers are competitive and that when they buy marked farm gas, they are not being punished.
In 2014, when that rebate comes in, it will allow, again, farmers to be competitive on the global scale. I think it was the right thing to do, and I thank the Minister of Finance and my colleagues for realizing that. It'll be a benefit to every farmer in the province of British Columbia.
I'm also very pleased to see, in the Minister of Agriculture's mandate letter, that we're going to grow farming. In the Comox Valley we have the agricultural land reserve. One of the sad realities in the Comox Valley is that much of our agricultural land reserve is being underutilized. Arguably, 60 percent of the Comox Valley's ALR land is either not being utilized or being underutilized.
It is a great opportunity to ensure that we take a success story — like I said, 185 commodities are being grown in the Comox Valley — and make sure that we continue to grow the farming community of our community and other communities, whether it be in the Peace, in the Okanagan or on Vancouver Island. I want to thank the Minister of Finance for the great work that we have done on this.
As I mentioned earlier, I have a young daughter, Chloe, born in 2009. Like myself, there are many parents who have had children since 2007. I'm so pleased that we are bringing in what we are calling the B.C. training and education savings plan. It is an opportunity for parents to invest in their children's future.
One of the sadder facts is that only about 50 percent of parents actually have an RESP for their children, and for lots of reasons. Well, putting $1,200 into an RESP for every child born after 2007 is the right thing to do. It costs the parents nothing. It will be a great opportunity to remind parents that making savings when and if they can afford it is going to be a benefit for their children.
Post-secondary education is something that's absolutely essential, whether you're going to go into the skilled trades; going to go off to a research university; or perhaps becoming, like a Vanier grad…. One of the most popular professions that young people were talking about was early childhood education. All these jobs are important and require some form of post-secondary training.
If parents can take the $1,200…. If it's all they ever do, at least that's $1,200 that they will invest and that will grow for that period of time. But if they have an opportunity to put in $5, $10 or more dollars in a month for their child's education, we know we are investing in the right thing.
We're investing in the young people. Why? There are going to be one million jobs in British Columbia by 2020. As generations go and retire, we need to replace them. Over half of those jobs will require skills, skills
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that you'll get in post-secondary and advanced education, and this is something we need to make sure we continue to invest in.
As many members in this House know, I have been newly appointed to the Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation. At the Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation, or SDSI, we remain committed to helping individuals and families in their greatest time of need and challenge. That is why I'm proud to say we are continuing to put forward $2.5 billion towards providing assistance for individuals and families with need. That is a $30 million increase over last year.
As part of this commitment, we intend to do everything possible to improve services to people receiving assistance. Policy reforms have been well underway since last fall, with the introduction of a suite of balanced changes. This will continue, because for this ministry, a responsible budget means being sure we're helping to improve the financial outcomes for vulnerable individuals and their families, at the same time providing the right supports for people to get back into the workforce. For people who can work, who want to be self-sufficient and contribute to their communities, we're also committed to helping them, to helping people find and keep a job.
This ministry continues to invest dollars, $344 million, in employment services, which include apprenticeship training, of which more than $280 million will be recovered from our federal government partners. We have 85 Work B.C. employment service centres across the province. We have provided employment supports and services to more than 94,000 individuals since launching last year. Of those who have completed services through a case manager, almost 50 percent have successfully found employment. This is very encouraging. The success rate speaks to the fact that the program is working and that people are finding the supports they need.
In this province we know that we can be innovative. We also know that we can create partnerships. This year we intend to raise awareness of this potential to make a difference by leveraging resources from business, government and non-profits to help B.C. as a North American leader in social innovation.
For people with a disability and for their families, this year is also going to be significant in British Columbia. We have made a platform commitment to develop a white paper on the issues facing people with disabilities in British Columbia. This paper will be developed as part of a consultation process that will culminate in a provincial summit. The work goes hand in hand with the policy reforms underway in our continued efforts to ensure ministry programs and services are meeting the needs of people who depend upon them.
We are also fully committed to improving supports for people with developmental disabilities and their families. The progress in implementing the recommendations from the Deputy Ministers' Review of CLBC is well underway, and this process supports a sustainable and long-term strategy to strengthen supports for people with developmental disabilities and the services they rely on.
This government commits to balancing our budget. The opposition claims and debates that our budget is not balanced, and they will say this over and over again. But I heard on the doorstep, as I knocked on door after door during the 28 days of the campaign, that the citizens of British Columbia do not want to be burdened with higher taxes. They want government to live within its means. They want to make sure we do not have our children pay the debts of today.
I am so pleased that we are forecasting a surplus of $153 million in 2013-2014, a $154 million surplus in 2014-15 and almost a half-billion-dollar surplus in 2015-2016. In the past we have worked to make life more affordable for British Columbians. We are committed to do that to secure the future for British Columbians for generations to come.
[R. Chouhan in the chair.]
I'm sure it comes as no surprise that unlike the member opposite who spoke earlier, I will be supporting the balanced budget of 2013.
Deputy Speaker: The member for Alberni–Pacific Rim.
S. Fraser: Thank you, hon. Speaker, and congratulations on your appointment. The robe looks fantastic.
It's always an honour to stand in these chambers, and I do so today in response to Budget 2013. I'd like to acknowledge the traditional territories of the Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations. We're in Coast Salish territory in this magnificent building.
It's always wonderful to have new members elected to this place, I know; many new members on the government side. We have seven members on the opposition side. There's a Green member. There's an independent returned. The new members bring an energy to this place, and we all need that, I think.
This is my third time that I have been elected to this place, re-elected twice, representing Alberni–Pacific Rim, initially Alberni-Qualicum. We should never forget how much of an honour it is to be here and the thrill that happened the first time when we spoke in this place. We should never lose that. We can regain that vicariously through the new members on all sides of the House. I congratulate all members for their successes in their own individual ridings in the election.
I'd like to thank my wife, Dolores, for standing with me. This is the ninth year I've been doing this job. It's
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difficult on the family, and she's put up with much. So thank you, Dolores.
My daughter has always been supportive too. She's learned a lot, and I've learned a lot from her because of the elections and because of this job and the issues. I think we've fed off of that as a family.
It's been gratifying to get the strong support from the constituents of Alberni–Pacific Rim. Being elected the first time was…. Sometimes you wonder: "Well, they're going to give you a shot at it and see how it goes." But to get re-elected, it's somehow more daunting and more gratifying to know that the direction, the path I've taken on behalf of the people of Alberni–Pacific Rim, has been supported by the people of my riding, of my constituency. I will redouble my efforts to make sure that their interests are represented fully in this House.
I'm a big fan of the carrot before the stick. There are many issues that I don't think necessarily have to be partisan in this House. I've raised issues cooperatively — initially, at least — with ministers of this House dealing with trying to bring palliative care, hospice care, quality end-of-life care to my riding. We've had some success, but it actually took a bit of the stick, as the carrot didn't work.
We have a new university in Port Alberni, dealing with workplace disability management. I've had some success in working with members on the other side, ministers on the other side, and I look forward to continuing that.
There are issues that are important, that should be important to all members of the House regardless of the political leanings, if you will, hon. Speaker. Issues like the spectre of losing the Coast Guard transportation and communication centre in Ucluelet, so vital to marine lives. The potential closing of that should be of concern to all members of this House, not just myself as the representative for Alberni–Pacific Rim but also for anyone that is aware of the needs for marine safety on the coast.
I like to think that this place, while it becomes raucous sometimes and it becomes aggressive and adversarial many times, there are many…. That's what people see. There is cooperation that does happen here. I note that the minister is agreeing with me on that. But we do need to push back. The check and balance of the parliamentary system requires that. Hopefully, we do that all respectfully.
I think we'll learn, also, from the new members on this. We'll get some new tips on how best to hold government to account, and I'm sure that the government will have some interesting insights there too.
My constituency, Alberni–Pacific Rim, is an interesting one. It's the Nuu-chah-nulth territories of the west coast; Clayoquot Sound, beautiful, just world-class beauty — a spectacular place to call my constituency. The Nuu-chah-nulth territories of the Alberni Valley, the magnificence there — the lakes, the tourism that's happening and the new initiatives that are coming forward there. I mentioned the university.
On the east side of the Island we're seeing major attempts north of Qualicum Beach, Bowser and Errington to show the world how to regenerate salmon streams and how to fix the ecosystems. The Nile Creek Enhancement Society is doing world-class work. Warren Cook and the Cook Creek enhancement systems that they've put in place — award-winning.
I'm a proud MLA for Alberni–Pacific Rim. The issues are many. I just came back from a surf competition. I witnessed this in Tofino — the Rip Curl surf competition, the only one in Canada of its kind, the only sanctioned one, an international sporting event here in my constituency.
The 40th anniversary of the Mid-Island Pensioners and Hobbyists Association in Coombs last week. So a wide range of issues and interests within Alberni–Pacific Rim.
I guess I'll move towards the theme of this speech at this point, the response to the throne. I listened with interest to the previous speaker, the member for Comox Valley. It's very interesting how this election played out. We've just gone through a provincial election based on a budget that was purported to be balanced. The member for Comox Valley was suggesting that it was balanced. It's simply not true.
We have a budget investment in families update, Balanced Budget 2013 Highlight, and it opens by saying: "B.C.'s budget is balanced, but it hasn't been easy." Well, it is not balanced. There are hundreds of millions of dollars being brought over from B.C. Hydro while they're running major losses, and those losses are being hidden in deferral accounts, taking a dividend from a Crown corporation that is essentially having to borrow money so that the government can call their budget balanced.
One-time sales of surplus British Columbia is not the way to balance the budget. It's a one-time sale, and the money is not there unless it actually happens. We've had the Auditor tell us that this is simply not the proper way to do business, not the way to balance a budget. The lift in this Budget 2013 is lower than it has been for all previous years that I can remember.
We have a pretty lean and mean system now. There is not a lot left within ministries. Staff have often been let go. In the Ministry of Forests there aren't even enough staff to do basic inventory work. Having a lift that is lower than all of the years previous to it means that we'll have to do drastic cuts to public services, which was an assurance of this government not to do.
Either the budget is not balanced, or the government has been misleading the public about the true nature of cutting services, vital services to the people of British Columbia. Either way, it was an election of misrepresentation.
I would note that this June update from the government says balanced budget for British Columbia: "Budget
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Update 2013 confirms government's prudent, realistic plan to guide B.C. for the next three years."
Interjection.
S. Fraser: I'm sure this will get applause as I continue, hon. Speaker.
The next three years, the plan, the fiscal outlook is to increase the debt of the province of British Columbia by about $14 billion. Where is the applause for that? The debt bus, hon. Speaker.
You've got to give it to them — the gall of running an election on budget statements that are simply false. It's like you pick: "What are two things we have failed the most at, as government?" Well, gee, 30,000 people have lost their jobs in the forest sector alone since the jobs plan.
At the beginning of the election the jobs plan put us at No. 9 out of 10 in the country for job losses in the private sector. During the election, after the writ dropped, we went to No. 10, and that's 10 out of 10. That's the worst record in the country, yet they ran on jobs, jobs — the gall — and actually, they did it successfully. Repeat the misinformation enough times…. They're doing the polar opposite — the worst in the country on job creation, and they run on a jobs plan.
They are consistent, very consistent. It's the exact same MO….
Interjections.
Deputy Speaker: Members. Members. Let's have one speaker at a time, please. Thank you.
S. Fraser: Thank you, hon. Speaker.
The same MO used on debt. "Debt is bad. We don't want to pass on debt to future generations." This is the government that doubled the debt, and it's not slowing down. While they're running on a platform and while their budget is talking about fiscal prudence and how debt is bad and must be avoided for future generations, the current Premier…. She is going to be going through an election very soon, obviously — another by-election so that she can sit in this place — so I can use her name, apparently, officially.
Christy Clark is telling British Columbians that their main platform is: not having to pass on a debt to future generations. In the first two years as Premier she has overseen the raising of the debt by $11 billion. That's the worst record in British Columbia, it's the worst record in Canada, and it's increasing over the next year.
In their own fiscal plan, the next three years will bring the debt increase over the five years from Christy Clark being Premier, moving it out to the three-year fiscal plan…. That means in that five years we'll see the debt increase by $24 billion — in five years. Nobody's done that.
You've got to hand it to them — running on a platform that we must rein in the debt, that we don't want to pass the debt onto future generations, while you're increasing it at geometric rates. It's quite brilliant in its deviousness, and it worked. So we have the Liberals return, and we have a core review.
Interjection.
S. Fraser: The Minister of Health, I can tell, is very interested in this. I don't know if he's done his response to the budget yet, but I look forward to it also.
Since the jobs plan was talked about, was introduced in September 2011, we have lost 31,300 private sector jobs — we in British Columbia. So people are leaving the province under the Liberal jobs plan.
I don't know. Maybe the Liberals will…. There are always statistics, but maybe they'll spin that one into: if they hadn't had the jobs plan, maybe more people would have left. Maybe they've mitigated something here, but it's not a good record. It's disingenuous to suggest that they have a jobs plan that's working when we are the worst in Canada. People in my constituency, in Alberni–Pacific Rim, have family members that are going to Fort McMurray to work. They're going elsewhere to work.
We have a skilled workforce that's woefully lacking in numbers in British Columbia. Industry has been saying for five years to this government that we need to…. Trades training. We need to boost the completion rates for skilled-trades training. We are going to have a big shortage.
The government, in this budget, too, actually have cut the resources for post-secondary and trades training at a time when we are already seeing companies, mining companies, bringing in skilled-trades-trained people from outside the province. So we're not seeing the benefits of jobs when they do occur here. They're not necessarily going to British Columbians first.
The writing was on the wall. We're seeing a trend in the Liberal government of their failure to even provide for future generations, the generations they're talking about not wanting to pass the debt onto, when they're passing the biggest debt ever.
If the panacea for the province of British Columbia is one commodity — LNG, liquid natural gas…. It's like we are blessed with it. If I hear that again…. It's a commodity. The Liberals didn't invent liquid natural gas. New Brunswick has trillions of cubic metres of liquid natural gas that they have discovered recently. It's all over the world.
But to say: "Well, we can go into as much debt as we want to, because sometime in the future this one commodity is going to pull us all out…." And there's going to be a pony for every child too, I'm sure. This is simply foolish. Yes, liquid natural gas is a piece of the mosaic of re-
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sources in the province of British Columbia. But we have no crystal ball to know…. There's no way to know what the world markets will be like in two years, five years, ten years. There's no way to know that at all.
In the meantime, we have the highest child poverty rate in the country. That's, like, ten years in a row under this government. We've got massive homelessness. We have seniors that are being charged now for wheelchairs, increases in taxes on some of the most vulnerable people. We have all of these things — current problems — and the whole plan is based on one commodity that sometime in the future is going to save us all. Putting all of your eggs in one basket is something we've all learned not to do through our personal lives.
So it's simply not pragmatic to ignore the issues of the day in a budget and just keep deferring, saying: "Oh, we have LNG. Oh, we have LNG." Well, maybe. In the meantime, we have needs here, right now. We need to train. We need to support post-secondary and trades training. That's the best investment we could make — not make cuts, as they're purported, as shown in this budget.
I would notice that this is a deficit budget, unless we have massive cuts. We have a core review coming forward. We already saw the devastation that that did in 2001 — the cuts to children and families with tragic results, cuts at a time when the government was implementing a new strategy for children and families, the kith-and-kin strategy, a massive cut of the resources while bringing in a new strategy. It was a disaster, and the children of the province of British Columbia in care were the ones that were the victims — the collateral damage for that folly.
The spectre of that is happening again, because there is no way that this budget can be balanced without massive cuts at a time when there's nowhere to cut. We don't have anything left there.
We've had seven deficit budgets under this government. Even yesterday in question period, in the heckling from the government side, they were talking about "under the NDP have-not province." Well, a have-not province based on transfer payments. That's the definition. We are blessed in this country with having a system where those provinces that are going through maybe not the best economic times can have some compensation for that, to try to equalize things. Those are equalization payments.
There were, I think, two years in the '90s where, yes, under the NDP, there were equalization payments to the province of British Columbia. It was, I think, a couple hundred million dollars — not insubstantial.
Well, during the Liberal decade there were billions in transfer payments. By the very definition of equalization payments, that's a have-not province. The Liberal government…. They will say something, which is….
Interjections.
S. Fraser: Oh, you've got to be careful, the words you say in this place. They'll run on a platform, and they'll make statements that are simply on the wrong side of the facts. They're not true. Then they repeat them, and they won an election on this.
But we are going to be paying. We, as in the people of British Columbia, are going to be paying a very steep price for this election result.
The member for Comox was saying they have a resounding mandate. Well, they have the mandate. They are government. It was 20-some percent….
Interjections.
Deputy Speaker: Members. Members, please.
Let the speaker continue to speak.
S. Fraser: I digress, hon. Speaker.
I will not be supporting this budget. It is a misrepresentation at best. It is a betrayal to the people of British Columbia, I would submit, through an election process that was skewed by misinformation, which is going to play out now through Budget 2013 and beyond. We will have to do our best on this side of the House to try to mitigate the damage to the people of British Columbia from Budget 2013.
H. Bains: I seek leave to make an introduction.
Deputy Speaker: Leave granted. Carry on.
Introductions by Members
H. Bains: In the House are a few visitors from my home town, Surrey — as our mayors will say, where the future lives. We have Mr. Sukhraj Singh Toor with his wife, Rajinder Kaur Toor, and two beautiful daughters, Kiranjit Kaur Toor, Arleen Kaur Toor and their son, Jasraj Singh Toor.
They're out of school and taking advantage of and the benefit of having some time off and visiting Victoria. We met them when Mr. Speaker and I took a stroll last night and invited them to the House. Please give them a warm welcome and make them really feel comfortable.
Debate Continued
S. Gibson: It's a pleasure for me to be here to speak in this House, and I'm excited to be here in my first term representing Abbotsford-Mission, probably one of the most beautiful ridings in the province. Many of you know the bridge that runs through it, and if they had made a movie about Abbotsford-Mission, the title of it would be A River Runs Through It. The Fraser River is one of the most important rivers in our country, and it's symbolic
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of the beauty and majesty of the area. It's a privilege for me to represent it.
I served in local government for three decades, and I'm hoping to be able to bring that experience here to the Legislature be able to make intelligent decisions for the good of all of the people of the province.
We have a clear vision for the province, and I'm excited about that. Our government has a mandate and a vision that I think we can all support. We talk about fiscal responsibility. Every speech from both sides of the House has talked about fiscal responsibility, and that's why we're here. We're united. Whatever party we believe in, we want fiscal responsibility, and you can count me in.
We talked about developing the natural gas sector, and that's something that we all are thrilled about. We don't quite know the time frame, but we know it's on target. That's the exciting thing — expanding markets to create jobs.
I teach at a local university. I teach business. I'm very conscious of that, and I encourage my students to have a vision for their lives, to focus. There are three things I always share with my students: don't be afraid of rejection, don't be afraid of criticism, and don't be afraid of defeat. I've lived those — all three — in my life, and here I am today, perhaps symbolizing that just a little bit for my students.
I do want to acknowledge the fact that our government is a champion of families — very important. The Premier has committed that, and I think we all embrace that. Fiscal restraint, balanced budgets and wise investments — the precious resources. The taxpayers trust us to do that, and that's one of the reasons why our side of the House did so well in the election, I believe.
I want to acknowledge, very briefly, the hundreds of passionate volunteers that helped me when I ran in Abbotsford-Mission. People came forward. They'd phone me and say: "Can we help?" Three people I want to acknowledge in particular: Abe Neufeld, Colin Reimer and Jean Dykshoorn — those three. Many others to acknowledge.
My wife, Joy, was always there helping out, sometimes with misgiving, but she always was with me; my two daughters, Shari-Anne and Alisa; and my two little grandsons, my little miniature buddies who, I'm sure, later on will be glad to know that I did make it.
The community itself, like for many of us, is lots of little communities. I just want to acknowledge some of those people. We have the communities of Deroche; Dewdney; McConnell Creek; Lake Errock; Matsqui, some of you know Matsqui; Ridgedale; Ten Oaks, near where I live; Eagle Mountain; and parts of downtown Abbotsford.
Many people came forward to support me for the first time, which was really inspiring. People were kind of a little bit cynical of politics, and they said to me: "We want to get involved. We want to help you." That really, really inspired me.
I do want to talk a little bit about the fact that we are representatives. In our political system, sometimes it's hard to be representatives. It is difficult at times, but I really want to make sure that I'm a good advocate and representative for the people of Abbotsford-Mission. We were sent a message, clearly, by the people of the province, and we're going to listen to that message. The privilege that we have is to represent those people for future generations so that my little grandsons and your grandchildren will look forward to a prosperous future here in our community.
Balancing a budget isn't easy. We know that. I believe there is only one other province in the country — I think Saskatchewan is the only other province — that's balancing it. There's some cynicism, suspicion, on this over here, on this side of the House. But we believe in it. It's for real. I'm very thankful that the Minister of Finance has done such an amazing job doing that with the new budget, which is basically a very similar recapitulation of the original budget.
Now, families know that balancing a budget isn't easy. For some of you, when you had your young kids and you were just kind of getting started, entry-level job, it was tough to balance the budget. You could easily put things on Visa, pay for your groceries on Visa, but you know it wasn't a smart thing to do. We know that, as well, in government. So that's something that I think we all believe in.
Working with the agricultural sector is an important aspect of that, and we have a lot of agriculture in our community of Abbotsford-Mission. We have blueberries, dairy, raspberries. Pick up some raspberries. They're out there right now — delicious raspberries from the Abbotsford-Mission area. Enjoy those, and make sure you pay full retail for them.
The farmers of our community understand planning for the future, don't they? They've got to plant the seeds, till the soil, and that's just what we're doing here. That's a symbol of what we're doing. It's a metaphor for what we do in government.
We're facilitating partnerships. Some of you heard about the $1 million to expand the successful school fruit and vegetable program with the B.C. Dairy Association. That will allow local farmers to provide healthy dairy products for young kids in kindergarten to grade 2, and this will improve healthy eating habits.
Also, I want to add an additional point about agriculture improving people's lives. For young people, we're looking at jobs, and the agriculture sector is improving that. We're adding an agricultural component to the university where I teach, University of the Fraser Valley, through the assistance of the provincial government.
The training and education grant — some of you know a lot about that. For every child born in 2007 or later, we're going to provide a one-time $1,200 grant towards a registered education savings plan. A tremendous thing.
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We're getting a lot of good comments around the province on that, and we hope everybody can get behind that. It's not conditional on parental contribution.
Another thing that's a promise long term that goes back a couple of terms of this government is the plan to develop a trail network — discover the Fraser project and Experience the Fraser. That's a huge, significant benefit to all of British Columbia — the tremendous tourist potential for the Fraser River. I know all of us are very proud. When we go by the Fraser, we feel very proud of that river.
So the Experience the Fraser is something that's coming along very nicely. Eventually, there will be a trail network right from Hope to the ocean so that families and others can experience the Fraser — a tremendous asset. It will bring tourists here.
That concludes my comments. I just want to say one thing. The balanced budget is attainable. We've proved that. I want to encourage everyone in this House to get behind it. As a representative, an MLA from Abbotsford-Mission, I know our people are thrilled to be able to say that this government has balanced the budget.
Deputy Speaker: I recognize the member for Saanich North and the Islands.
G. Holman: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and congratulations on your appointment. You look good up there, sir.
I do want to speak to the budget, but as a new member, as other members have spoken here, I want to make some introductory comments. I will be opposing the budget and will make comments on that later.
But first of all, I want to thank voters from Saanich North and the Islands, who've given me the honour to represent them in this Legislature. I want to congratulate all my colleagues in this House who've been elected and re-elected to represent their constituents.
My promise to my constituents is that I'll work hard to represent their interests. My promise to the members of this House is that I will be as constructive as I can in carrying out the important work of this Legislature.
I want to take this opportunity to thank my parents, Elizabeth and Lawson Holman, who have now passed away, for all that they've given me; and my grown children Eren, Amber and Owen for their love and support.
I want to briefly introduce myself to the House. I am a resource economist by background and was privileged to have worked for the Nisga'a Tribal Council on the fisheries component of their treaty, the first modern-day treaty signed in Canada. I also had the opportunity to provide technical support to a number of land use planning processes throughout British Columbia during the 1990s, processes that resulted in a doubling of parkland during that period.
Both of these were very important legacies of the NDP government of the 1990s, which also oversaw higher GDP, employment and population growth than we've experienced in the last 12 years of the Liberal government, despite myths to the contrary.
I've been involved in land use and in the land trust movement in south Vancouver Island for over 20 years and was elected as Saltspring CRD director for two terms.
Those of you who've spent any time in the southern Gulf Islands or the Saanich Peninsula know that Saanich North and the Islands is one of the most beautiful places in British Columbia, in a province blessed with beauty. I invite all of you to visit Saltspring, my home; the Penders, Galiano, Saturna and Mayne islands; and the municipalities of Sidney, Central Saanich and North Saanich. Please come and spend your hard-earned dollars in our communities.
There's a strong social justice and environmental ethic in Saanich North and the Islands as well as a high level of community and political engagement. I'm proud to say that volunteerism is alive and well in our constituency and that, at just over 70 percent, Saanich North and the Islands had the second-highest voter turnout in British Columbia, second only to Oak Bay–Gordon Head.
I also want to acknowledge and thank the Saanich First Nations — the Tsawout, Tsartlip, Pauquachin and Tseycum — for allowing us to live and prosper on their lands. The First Nations of southern Vancouver Island are among the few who've signed a treaty in British Columbia, in this case the Douglas treaties. In their view, and in mine as well, we've not lived up to the spirit of this treaty.
As I promised in the campaign, I'll work hard to establish better relations with First Nations to defend their culture and heritage, support economic development initiatives and be their advocate in this Legislature.
As all of my colleagues have done in their turn, I want to offer my heartfelt thanks to my campaign team and the hundreds of volunteers who worked so hard to elect me. I can't name everyone who worked on the campaign, but I want to give special thanks to Irene Wright, a longtime political and community activist who learned how to canvass with Tommy Douglas. I knocked on thousands of doors with Irene, and she is probably the single most important reason that I'm standing here today.
I also want to take this opportunity to thank Murray Coell, former MLA for Saanich North and the Islands, for his years of public service. And thanks to my fellow candidates, who throughout our ten campaign debates — ten debates — were respectful and constructive.
What was striking to me during the campaign was the degree of consensus on some very key issues of importance to our constituency — about the need to manage and support B.C. Ferries as if it was part of the public transportation system; about addressing the highest child poverty rate in Canada and, in particular, conditions in First Nations communities; about the need to provide
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more help for kids with special needs in our classrooms; about the risks of oil tanker traffic and the need to address climate change; about the importance of encouraging local food production; about building affordable housing, improving public transit and better protecting old growth forests and our precious marine environment. There was a great deal of consensus in those debates on these issues.
I was very proud of the platform our party put forward in the election that addressed all of these issues — and not only that, but how we would pay for it. I still regard the commitments made in this platform as my touchstone. I promised my constituents that I would pursue these issues, and I'll live up to that commitment.
In hearing some of the discussions this morning…. I'd actually crossed out this paragraph, but I'm going to read it anyway. I believe in the importance of partnerships and a collaborative approach among all government levels to achieve community goals. I'm committed to playing my role in this just as I did for six years as CRD director, working with MLAs Murray Coell, Ida Chong and the Liberal government.
There was rhetoric in the throne speech and budget about the importance of leaving legacies for future generations. I share my colleagues' skepticism on this side of the House about the supposed debt-free legacy that LNG development will bring. This skepticism is shared by professional analysts who point to LNG and natural gas suppliers throughout the world already investing in projects to serve Asian markets. This will shrink the market and drive prices down.
You don't need to be an economist or an opposition member to notice the obvious contradiction between claims of a debt-free B.C. and the fastest increase in levels of provincial debt in our history. As our Auditor General has pointed out, the debt reported in the provincial budget does not include the liabilities associated with so-called P3 projects and B.C. Hydro's deferred accounts.
We've seen this movie before. Previous Liberal budgets have relied too heavily on natural gas revenues while reducing taxes for banks, large corporations and very high-income earners. The collapse of natural gas prices in North America has resulted in deficit budgets for five years in a row, including, in my view, this budget.
There are other legacies we should be mindful of — environmental and social — that are not addressed in this budget. We heard the Minister of Environment a couple of days ago speak about complications in her portfolio. But we now have an environmental assessment process that is so broken it approved the draining of Fish Lake in the B.C. interior, destroying a fishery relied upon by First Nations for millennia in order to construct a mine tailings pond.
The ceding of authority to a federal Conservative government regarding the approval of oil pipelines and tanker traffic is another example. These are not complications. They demonstrate continued disregard by this government to protect the natural heritage of this province.
The social and economic legacy of this government is also troubling — the doubling of ferry fares on many minor routes that is bleeding small coastal communities dry, the legacy of poverty and homelessness at rates that are unprecedented and an embarrassment within Canada. We will ultimately all, as taxpayers, bear the social costs of these impacts.
We continue to hear of this government's mismanagement of B.C. Hydro that has transformed this crown jewel into a financial basket case, in part, due to the gutting of our independent regulatory watchdog BCUC.
We have been talking about the northwest transmission line in recent days and the substantial cost overruns that are being incurred and still have yet to play out completely. The problem isn't just with the cost overruns on the construction of the project.
The problem is an ongoing subsidy to mining companies, who pay half the rate for their power that residential users in British Columbia do, and also the independent power projects that will be connecting up to that line or selling us, selling ratepayers in British Columbia, power at a rate that's higher than we can generate from our own dams. That is a much more significant concern — and cost, ultimately, to the taxpayers of this province — than the initial construction overruns for the project.
Balancing the budget should not come at the expense of the vulnerable or our precious environment. We can do better than this. That is why I don't support this budget. I know we can do so much better in balancing economic, social and environmental goals.
As stated by others on this side of the House, the election of a Liberal government doesn't mean that it can ignore the wishes of hundreds of thousands of voters or the 37 constituencies that elected opposition MLAs, especially given the disingenuous — is that an allowable word, Mr. Speaker? — campaign statements by Liberal candidates about paving the road to Zeballos and supposed outrage over the dumping of contaminated soil in the Shawnigan Lake watershed.
In my campaign…. I believe the Liberal candidate was sincere in stating his support for increasing the provincial service fee to B.C. Ferries and rejecting cuts to health care. But we know that the stated intention of this government, despite the statement by the Minister of Transportation yesterday about affordability, is to further increase ferry fares, fares that have already doubled on many minor routes, and to further cut service. Already my constituents are telling me that important health services in our area are being eroded.
I am honoured to have been appointed as deputy critic for Environment and also for B.C. Ferries, as well as critic for democratic reform. I'm passionate about these issues, and they are important to my constituents.
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There were some very important commitments in our policy platform regarding all of these issues, including opposition to increased oil tanker traffic on the coast, freezing of ferry fares and restoring the integrity of the environmental assessment office, an office created by the NDP in the 1990s.
There were also some very important governance reforms proposed in our platform, including Auditor General control over government advertising, banning of donations from corporations and unions, and the restoration of BCUC authority over power projects. We also proposed early voter registration for students. I'll continue to advocate for these reforms. The conversation about democratic reform also has to include the electoral system itself.
In conclusion, it's an honour and a privilege to be standing in this House, the 914th of 915 MLAs elected to this place in the history of British Columbia and the first-ever NDP elected in Saanich North and the Islands. I've been very fortunate in my life, and I believe that those of us who have been fortunate have a personal responsibility to give back to our communities and to leave the world a better place than we found it.
The responsibility to leave a positive legacy also extends to governments. The budget does not meet this test. This is not just because the budget is founded on a one-time sale of assets, most of which have not been disclosed; a so-called dividend from B.C. Hydro, which is awash in debt; cuts to essential services that will only be identified after the election; further increases in a variety of regressive user fees; and claims about private sector job growth, which is in fact negative.
Aside from the dubious claim about a balanced budget, it does nothing to address climate change. In fact, it will exacerbate it. It promotes unsustainable resource development in the context of an environmental assessment process without integrity and the absence of an independent regulatory oversight over B.C. Hydro. Finally, it does nothing to address the second-highest child poverty rate in Canada. That's why I will be opposing this budget.
J. Thornthwaite: I rise today to give my support to this budget.
First of all, a few thank-yous. I'd really like to thank my kids, because they're the ones that have to put up with my busy, hectic schedule — Jeremy, Mallory and Zoey — who actually, the day after the election, were with me on the front page of the North Shore News in a good-news story which was very, very nice to have. Their smiling faces were there, so it kind of made it worthwhile because they were stars for a day.
I'd also like to thank my campaign helpers. I had a great team, led by Greg Wilson. Then, Nick, Edward, Brendan and Brooke were there every day, helping me out. Of course, my staff also volunteered — Carol and Lynn — as well as my volunteer coordinator. Her name was Lynn Embury-Williams, and she really stepped up to the plate. I very, very much appreciate her efforts in organizing all of my volunteers and getting them motivated.
Trudy, my riding association president, was always there as well. Hilda Colwell has been an avid volunteer for the B.C. Liberals since the beginning of my interest, at least, in provincial politics, and she volunteered for my predecessor, Mr. Daniel Jarvis, who served my riding since 1991, until 2009. I wish him always the best. I had big shoes to fill for that.
Anyways, I thought that I would just go over a little bit of what I learned campaigning. I actually was door-knocking between four and eight hours a day for pretty much the four months and then really pushed it up during the last couple of months before the election. I got a really, really good idea of what I heard on the doorstep and what my constituents felt about what was going on in British Columbia.
I did hear a lot. Obviously, if a government has been around for a decade, we've made mistakes. Certainly, we've recognized that. I've recognized that. Obviously, we have to deal with them and do what we can to make them right.
But one thing I heard overwhelmingly, every time at the door, was we do get the good, big things right. Despite the mistakes and the bumps along the way, our government has done an excellent job of leading British Columbia to the forefront and to influence the positive economy, and basically, to make us weather the storm of the 2008-2009 economic downturn.
If it wasn't for our fiscal prudence, it would have been a different state of affairs. I think we've weathered that storm. We've come out of it pretty good. Things are not perfect, but they are going in the right direction. In my riding of North Vancouver–Seymour — filled with a lot of families with double incomes, a lot of people that work two jobs for their families, lots of small business owners, free-enterprisers, those who work out of their homes — support for business is very, very high. There's a strong desire to build the economy.
I heard many, many people comment that they wanted the economy, number one, to be maintained. That's why they were supporting our government. They commented on the fact that it is the private sector that is the true job creator, and shrinking government and boosting the private sector will help us in that. Many, many people thanked me personally for the work that I've done for the constituents, because I'm a very hard worker in my riding. I'm very constituency-driven.
But the economy and the jobs being number one, one of the things where I think we could do a better job here, as well as educators could do, is to try to get the connection between the revenue end of the economy and the spending end of the economy. With regard to the rev-
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enue end, we all recognize that it is the so-called dirt industries that still are the majority of the breadwinners of the province.
I do respect my rural members, particularly our member for Cariboo-Chilcotin, who makes it very, very clear that we have to understand the importance of the mining, forestry, oil and gas, etc., industries as the economic generators of our province. Now with the commitment to LNG, it will definitely boost our economy even further.
Yes, we have a balanced budget, and I'm very pleased about that. The chambers of commerce, as well as other economists, have confirmed our triple-A credit rating, which is great, a reward for the strong fiscal management.
What do we do with all of that money that we're generating? Health. Health is the number one spender of our budget. I was a registered dietitian before I became a politician, and I specialized in preventive health, and this is the direction we have to go. We have to look at innovative ways to keep people out of hospital longer, keep our elders out of hospital or extended care facilities longer. Prevention — health and keeping people healthy longer — is our emphasis. Certainly, dietitians help in that regard, and our health dollars should be focused more onto that.
I really like the emphasis in the budget on our local growers — buying B.C., supporting our local farmers — which is not only good for nutrition and health, but it's also good for our local farmers and our local businesses and our food security. I also very much, when we're talking about health, want to focus on the number one health infrastructure project that's happening in North Vancouver, the Lions Gate Hospital Greta and Robert Ho centre for psychiatry and education, the so-called HOpe centre, which is on time and on budget. I'm looking forward to the sod-turning ceremonies there.
My background, as you know, before I became a provincial politician, was as a school trustee. I was the chair of the North Vancouver board of education. I was also a lecturer out at UBC as an educator. I am still in the K-to-12 system with my youngest, and I will be there for another couple of years, so I've got a strong interest in education. That's the reason why I was reappointed to be Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Education. I'm very, very much looking forward to renewing my role as the Parliamentary Secretary for Student Support and Parent Engagement.
After I had conducted the special needs roundtables last year in North Vancouver and I got together many, many specialists involved in special needs — like a retired superintendent, trustees, parents, teachers, SEAs and principals — we presented some recommendations to the minister, which they have looked at. I want to continue that work of reaching out to parents and students, but this time I'd like to focus a lot on getting our kids more interested in their careers after school, while they're in school.
Our emphasis with this government, with the new Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training focused on skills training and getting our citizens job-ready, is a really refreshing emphasis — the combination of that ministry and Advanced Education, as well as the K-to-12 education system. I'm looking very, very much forward to helping to drive that message to our students and our parents that they've got to look holistically out there as to what the jobs are that are available and what we have to do to train our students and get them hyped up and interested in the trades and the jobs that are available out there that will be exciting, high-paying, successful, family-supporting careers.
That's where the parents come in. A lot of parents, I know, in my riding in North Vancouver–Seymour, as well the North Shore — and certainly, I was part of that — thought that, you know, all of our children were going to go to university. We didn't really look at the skilled trades as an option. I think I could help that, in my new role as parliamentary secretary, to talk with the kids about the benefits of the trades and to get to these kids early — not just in grades 10, 11 and 12 but maybe get them excited about these new careers when they're little, maybe even grade 5 or 6, or certainly before they head to high school.
In talking about education, I would be remiss if I didn't mention all of the great infrastructure projects that have occurred in North Vancouver — as well as continue to do so.
I've just been a politician for eight years, four years as a school trustee and four years as an MLA. During that very small window, there has been tremendous growth of infrastructure in schools in North Vancouver. I'll just name off a few: Lynn Valley, Westview, Sutherland, Ridgeway, Carson, Highlands. We've got Queen Mary that's just getting finished right now. And in my own neck of the woods, where my own child goes, at Windsor Secondary we've got a brand-new artificial turf and sports complex with a nice bubble for the soccer players. Me being a soccer mom, that all fits too.
I'd really like to congratulate the school district, the province and the federal government, as well as an independent industry partner, for getting that whole complex coming to fruition. Again, partnerships are the way to go with regards to these infrastructure projects. I was very pleased to be part of that very successful project as a parent, as a school trustee, as a soccer board member and as an MLA — right from the beginning to the end.
Of course, the next infrastructure projects that will be coming in North Vancouver are Argyle and Handsworth, and I'll be looking forward to helping them with those projects. This is all in addition to the all-day kindergarten and the StrongStart centres that are all over North Vancouver and the rest of the province and that have been very, very successful in our education system.
Recently, last week, I was at an announcement for
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Capilano University, which is also in my riding. The provincial government is providing almost $500,000 in funding through the Canada-B.C. labour market agreement and the Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training. They announced this project at Klahowya Village in Stanley Park on National Aboriginal Day.
This is a partnership program between the Cap U Aboriginal Skills Group and the ITA. It's an essential skills boot camp, I think they call it. It's six weeks of intensive construction boot-camp training and learning resources which will actually prepare them for employment when they're finished with their session. So training, job ready — this is what we have to do. I'm very, very pleased that we were able to announce that project for Capilano University.
Other education things that I think are really positive and going on are the open textbooks. I've got two children that are in post-secondary right now, and I can tell you things get expensive. That's why I'm very, very happy with the RESP program that we've announced in this last budget, as well as carrying on for any child that's born after 2007. I understand that by the time they would be 18, if in addition to the $1,200 that is being provided from the ministry, parents give an extra $50 a month, then it is up to $18,000 or something like that — very, very helpful for students when they become ready for post-secondary.
But in addition, we've got the free textbooks. Apparently the first open textbooks — about ten of them — will be available this September. There are going to be, hopefully, about 60 of them. That will definitely help with the cost of post-secondary.
Then, before I finish and summarize, I just wanted to make a small comment about the film industry, because the film industry is really, really important in my riding. I will continue to support the film industry. Everybody in my riding knows how much I care about the film industry. Apparently, I'm the third-largest employer for film workers in the province — in my riding.
But we are committed. Our government is committed, and it was recognized in our election platform. We are very, very committed to working with the film industry to maintain B.C.'s competitiveness.
[Madame Speaker in the chair.]
I look forward, again, in concert with the industry and professions in my riding to ensure we continue to keep workers employed in the North Shore and we maintain our competitiveness. I know our Minister of Finance and our Minister of Jobs and Skills Training are working very hard to make that happen.
In summary, Madame Speaker, I'd just like to reiterate my support for this budget. I'm very, very pleased to be able to stand here with my colleagues on this side, supporting a balanced budget and one that is very forward-driven and will be moving our economy forward and provide the services that all of us here in British Columbia need and desire.
Madame Speaker: Member, noting the hour, you would move adjournment of the debate?
J. Thornthwaite: Yes. Sorry. Noting the hour, I move adjournment of the debate. I don't need to reserve my right because I'm finished. Somebody else will do it.
J. Thornthwaite moved adjournment of debate.
Motion approved.
Hon. T. Lake moved adjournment of the House.
Motion approved.
Madame Speaker: This House will reconvene at 1:30 this afternoon.
The House adjourned at 11:55 a.m.
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