Orders of the Day

Hon. M. Farnworth: I call continued debate on the budget.

[10:55 a.m.]

Budget Debate

(continued)

R. Kahlon: I am proud to resume my spot here in the House to speak in favour of this budget.

[R. Chouhan in the chair.]

As I was talking about yesterday, this is a critical step to make a better B.C., a commitment that we had made to the voters of this province, a commitment to make life more affordable, a commitment to improve the services that people depend on and to build a stronger, sustainable economy that supports jobs throughout this province.

I spoke yesterday about the economic impacts, the importance of child care — the largest investment in B.C.’s history in child care that we’ve made. I’m proud of that investment. I’m proud of the minister responsible for child care. This is going to change lives for many people throughout this province.

I was talking about housing. I just wanted to touch on a point on housing. The member from Kamloops is leaving. But he and the member of Penticton talked about housing. They said: “Well, how do you define a $3 million home? A $3 million home doesn’t necessarily mean a person is rich.” I was just shocked by that comment. I was shocked by the tweets from the member for Penticton, who was talking about how all these people with $3 million homes are going to be affected and that they’re not actually millionaires.

To be honest, I’m shocked at the disgust that they face when they’re thinking about the $3 million homes. I wish that they had had that same feeling when they doubled MSP premiums for people throughout this province. Where was that concern when they doubled MSP? Where was that concern when they took back bus passes for people with disabilities?

Interjection.

R. Kahlon: Yeah, where was that concern? Were you concerned about those people at that time? I didn’t hear a peep from anyone in the opposition.

Now people with $3 million homes are having to pay their fair share, and now, oh my gosh, we have a problem. It’s clear who they’re working for. They’ve forgotten that this is about the province of B.C. It’s about the people in B.C., and people have been struggling. All I hear from the opposition is: “Well, we learned a lesson. We have to be thinking about people. We should have been doing all these things and providing services.”

Well, you know what? Clearly they haven’t learned. You listen to question period. They have not learned their lesson. And you know what? I hope they spend 16 years at least in opposition until they learn this lesson.

I think that I want to continue on housing for a little while. Again, I’m delighted to see the investment in social housing. I’m delighted to see the 34,000 units, direct-billed, plus working with the private sector to build additional social housing units for mixed-income social housing, new beds for students.

It just makes sense to allow universities and colleges who need space to be able to borrow money to build space. I mean, it just makes sense. I know that Premier Gordon Campbell had committed to allow that to happen, but it never actually happened. It was a commitment that never actually ended up coming through. I’m delighted that the Minister of Finance has put this piece in place.

I was just chatting with the Kwantlen student union representatives who are here. Maybe they’re watching right now. They were talking about how finally Kwantlen can build affordable rental units on campus for students so students don’t have to travel for an hour, an hour and a half to go to school and then drive back — and pay high amounts of rent. Now they can actually stay on campus.

Also, it allows the universities and colleges to build a culture on campus. How important building that culture on campus is. I think it’s a very exciting step.

We talk about affordability. Affordability is clearly a challenge, so I’m delighted to see the additional investments in our rental assistance program to assist those who have financial difficulties in paying rent. I’m very excited at the additional investments in the Shelter Aid For Elderly Renters, known as SAFER. It’s going to increase benefits.

[11:00 a.m.]

A working family will see the average payment increase by approximately $800 per year. That is going to make a real difference in many people’s lives. And 35,000 households will see money coming to them to make their rent more affordable. That is a critical step.

I heard from seniors in my riding, and this, directly, will affect them. The numbers are clear. Homelessness is the fastest-rising among seniors. This is a major concern for our government. In fact, I think it’s a major concern for everybody in this House. Seeing the support for those people, aligning with the federal government’s vision and their support, I think, is a critical step.

We just heard some conversation about the MSP premiums. The previous government doubled MSP premiums, and within two years of our government, MSP premiums will be gone. That is going to make a huge, huge difference for many people in my community. I think about that senior couple — I was knocking on doors — who invited me into their home. Never voted NDP in their lives, they said. They were talking about how they had both retired and, now that they had fixed incomes, how MSP was hitting them hard, and they weren’t expecting it. I think of them when I see this in the budget.

We phased out PST on electricity to help businesses, and we lowered the small business tax from 2.5 percent to 2 percent. There’s so much to talk about. I’m going to try to get through as much of this as I can.

So 3,700 new teachers — it doesn’t solve the entire problem, but it certainly takes a big step in the right direction — and $2 billion dedicated to maintain, replace, renovate and expand schools. We hear from all members in this chamber about their communities. You know, they want schools. They want to seismically upgrade their schools. They want to do so many things. There’s dedicated money now available.

We hear, from members on the opposition, questions about it: “I hope that my schools in my community get renovation money and seismic upgrading.” I know, certainly, the member for Richmond-Queensborough would like to see investments made in his community for schools as well. Now there’s $2 billion here to prioritize this. I think it’s a very important step, and I know the Minister of Education is working through this list as fast as possible.

So $15 million, additional dollars, for the Arts Council — a very important step. Now writers are included in the supports for the Arts Council. Again, I think it’s a critical step. And $3 million, additional dollars, for Creative B.C. I think everyone, most people in this House, would agree that supporting our film industry is a critical thing — film, music. I know the member from Maple Ridge is always talking about the creative industries, how we need to support the work that they do and how important they are to our economy. I think this $3 million to Creative B.C. will go a long way.

B.C. Ferries. Yes, I know, B.C. Ferries. The Minister of Transportation has been a long-time advocate in speaking about folks on the island and other places who depend on our ferries. So seeing that we’re freezing all major ferry routes is a very important step. I represent Delta North, proudly, but I was born and raised on the Island. I understand how important the ferry system is to people that live here.

You know, when we announced the budget, I went home that evening. Some of my colleagues joined me to have dinner. My mom cooked some dinner for everyone, and we had a conversation. When I told my mom that on the ferries, now, the discount rates for seniors were coming back Monday to Thursday, she didn’t want to know anything else about the budget. That was the only thing that she cared about in the budget. Yeah, and it was done. She walked, one by one, to give everybody a hug, because that is a very, very important thing. She was never happier to have her 65th birthday than this.

[11:05 a.m.]

What that means for my mom is the ability, now, to come to Vancouver to see my son, her only grandson — to spend time there. That’s just my example. There are so many other seniors that will see the benefits of this. My grandmother lives in Vancouver and is also very delighted. I know she’s not actually watching this right now, but I know she’s delighted about this, and so are so many other people.

I want to touch on some of the pieces in here around First Nations. Something that I’m very delighted about is that there’s $50 million for revitalization of languages. During the Human Rights Commission engagement, I met with many First Nations–Indigenous leaders across the province. This came up time and time again: the importance of language, the importance of protecting culture. For example, on human rights law, a lot of the laws were passed down through stories and through language. This $50 million investment is a critical step in that direction.

The other piece that I’m so proud of is the world’s first Indigenous and non-Indigenous law program. I don’t know if anyone else will get a chance to talk about this — I hope everyone gets a chance to talk about this — but at UVic, we’ll have the world’s first Indigenous and non-Indigenous law program. They do such good work there, and I’m delighted about it.

I know the green light is on. My time is coming.

Interjection.

R. Kahlon: I wish I could speak more. The Minister of Health wants to hear more. I could talk about the good work of the Minister of Health for the entire 30 minutes, if this House would allow, but I don’t have that.

I will say that I will be supporting this budget. I am very proud of this budget. I look forward to hearing from my colleagues about why this budget matters to them. I also look forward to hearing from the opposition members. I hope that a few of them will support some of the measures in this. I know that if we really wanted their support, we would have given millionaires a 2 percent tax cut. Millionaires would have had that 2 percent back, and maybe we would have gotten their votes. But we’re not having that in here, and I’m sad to say that I don’t think they’re going to support this budget.

With that, I will let the next person speak. Thank you, everyone, for your time.

J. Johal: I rise in the House today to share my thoughts on the government’s budget. Before I do, I do want to take a moment to thank my wonderful constituents in Richmond-Queensborough, who have given me the honour to represent such a vibrant constituency. I also want to thank my constituency assistants, Samantha Schaap and Regina Tsui, who have done an amazing job setting up our new office in our new riding. I thank them for their hard work and commitment to the people of Richmond-Queensborough as well.

Now, this budget certainly lays out its spending priorities for the people of British Columbia — and spend it does. I’m sad to say that while there are a number of laudable measures that benefit families and individuals, there are also plenty of false promises and tax hikes — $5.5 billion in tax hikes in this budget alone, in fact.

Since the NDP have been in office, they will plan to increase taxes by $8 billion — back to the ’90s for sure. Well, the present sure looks an awful lot like the past. The notion of $5.5 billion in tax hikes doesn’t seem to jibe with the theme of affordability that the NDP has been running with. Small businesses and the workers they employ are going to get hit hard by this. Why? It’s because the B.C. NDP promised to eliminate the MSP but never spoke about replacing it with a payroll tax. They left that part out.

Iain Black, president of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, noted to Province columnist Mike Smyth: “This is a hammer that came down that we didn’t see coming.” Here’s some further commentary from his organization in its provincial budget report card. “The government will be reducing the tax burden on individuals by transferring the majority of the $2.6 billion burden onto business. Because many larger corporations already pay this on behalf of their employees as a benefit, the incremental impact of this payroll tax will overwhelmingly affect small to mid-size businesses the most.”

What’s really interesting is that the new payroll tax kicks in a year before the MSP is phased out. These businesses will be hit with a double whammy, but it sure will create a nice tax windfall for the government.

[11:10 a.m.]

The Vancouver Board of Trade has more to say. “We also note with concern that the new small business payroll tax comes on top of a previously announced minimum wage increase of 34 percent over four years, an increase in the general corporate tax rate of 9.1 percent, a 14 percent increase to the personal income tax rate of most skilled professionals and a previously scheduled increase in the B.C. carbon tax of 16 percent, moving up a further $5 to $35 per tonne of GHGs emitted.”

On that subject of the NDP increasing the carbon tax, we also want to highlight that they’ve removed its revenue neutrality. That move hits the middle class, those who are struggling with affordability and don’t need more money taken out of their pockets.

At the same time that the NDP attack the business sector and the very people that create jobs in this province, we also see that this government’s budget pays very little attention to revenue generation. That’s a huge concern considering this budget has spending growing at twice the rate of government revenue growth. They flat out ignored a number of important sectors in this speech, including oil and gas, energy, forestry, mining and aquaculture. It’s pretty astounding.

Here’s another thing I’ll note. This government is actually projecting resource revenues to decrease over the next three years. That’s quite surprising given that the province has had strong growth in these sectors over the years. But we don’t find much in this budget to support those important major resource industries.

Here’s another interesting point. The Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Technology, for which I proudly serve as critic, has seen a decline in its budget. The total ministry budget has declined from $120 million to $105 million, a decline of $15 million. Economic development allocation has declined from $16 million to $6 million, a decline of $10 million there. The funding of the B.C. Innovation Council has declined from $21.6 million to $8 million, a decline of $13.6 million. Clearly, this government’s priorities lie elsewhere.

When you consider all these things that I’ve outlined, in their totality it’s clear that the negative impact of this budget will be far-reaching, from coffee shops to car dealerships.

We must also remind ourselves that these NDP tax increases will be implemented just as the United States introduces a package of tax reforms and reductions that amount to the largest tax overhaul in four decades. The federal corporate income tax rate will drop from 35 percent to 21 percent. Business will also be allowed to immediately expense 100 percent of new capital spending on machinery, equipment and digital property. There are also modest reductions in personal income taxes.

Here’s what the Business Council of B.C. had to say about the impact. It’s a long quote, but I think it’s a very important one for us to have on the record.

“The new U.S. tax provisions applying to business instantly erase any tax advantages from investing in Canada across a swath of industry sectors. For 15 years, Canada has had significantly lower corporate income tax rates than the United States. In many industries, effective business tax rates — which account for the impact of depreciation, tax credits and other provisions in the tax code — have also been lower here. These advantages have disappeared.

“In addition, the new U.S. rules permitting immediate expensing of business investment mean many companies will soon find that it makes economic sense to deploy incremental capital to the U.S. rather than Canada.

“Overall, it’s clear that any tax-related reasons for businesses to invest in Canada versus the United States have suddenly become much weaker. A lower individual tax burden on entrepreneurs and highly skilled personnel under the U.S. tax plan may also influence the future locational decisions of companies, managers and top professional talent.

“Canada faces a changed competitive environment occasioned by the implementation of far-reaching American tax reforms. While there is no need to panic, policy-makers in Ottawa and Victoria cannot afford to stand still. Put simply, the United States is engaged in an aggressive, multifaceted effort to repatriate corporate investment, head offices, intellectual property, employment and business generally.”

How does the NDP government respond? By raising taxes — $5.5 billion in new taxes. The implications are significant, particularly when we’re going to be competing for businesses from Washington state, Oregon and, especially, California and Texas.

B.C.’s economy is going to slow down, and that doesn’t help anybody. It doesn’t help affordability. In fact, it probably makes things worse.

[11:15 a.m.]

Now let’s turn to the NDP’s false promises. Yes, this budget makes investments in child care for B.C. families, but the NDP had promised something very specific to British Columbians. They committed to something called $10-a-day child care. But it’s not referred to in the budget, and I suspect we’ll never see it come to fruition like they promised.

What about affordable housing? The NDP vowed to build 114,000 new units, but there’s no evidence they will actually reach that goal. Actually, it’ll come short by 80,000, and it will not help families buy a new home.

The budget mentions assistance for renters, but those initiatives already exist, and that $400 renters rebate that so many people were looking forward to is nowhere to be found. Same with the elimination of student loan interest. It’s MIA, along with any plan to grow the economy, create jobs or bring in revenue to pay for all the NDP spending plans.

The only strategy they’ve got is that massive tax hike. Give with one hand and take away with another.

I’d like to move on to some local issues impacting my constituency of Richmond-Queensborough. As we approached budget day, I was hopeful that the NDP budget would contain some of the major projects and initiatives that mean a lot to my constituents and people throughout Richmond. Sadly, that’s not the case.

Richmond Hospital has been at the top of their minds. For weeks, people have been wondering whether the budget will address some of the key challenges faced by this aging structure. For more than 50 years, Richmond Hospital has served the community well. The medical professionals that work there do a tremendous job with what they’ve got. But they need a new acute care tower that’s seismically safe. They need updated equipment and state-of-the-art tools to work with. Patients need more modern, comfortable settings to aid in their recovery.

Now, the NDP did promise a new tower was coming. They put out a news release in March 2017, promising to build it “on the fastest possible timeline.” I believe those were the words of the now Premier, in fact. We’ll see no mention of it in the budget. The budget does contain some vague mention of upgrades to hospitals but definitely no firm commitment for the new acute care tower that our community has been rallying so hard for.

There’s been a petition launched by three Richmond councillors that has gathered nearly 2,000 signatures as of last week, and it’s still going strong. The Richmond Chamber of Commerce also rallied the local business community behind the cause, and 47 Richmond businesses employing about 8,000 people put their names to that campaign — because top-quality health care is key to attracting workers to a city and keeping them there. But the budget did not deliver for them.

Now wait and see what happens to the nearly $27 million in donations that have been pledged towards the new tower — $27 million. That says a lot about people in Richmond. Half of that is contingent on a commitment of funding by the province and a 2020 construction start date, so we may even lose that money that we’ve raised.

Moving on, another of the chief concerns of my constituents is transportation. A lot of that has to do with the fact that my riding of Richmond-Queensborough has more bridges and tunnels than anywhere else in B.C. We’ve got the Queensborough Bridge, of course, and Knight Street, Oak and Alex Fraser bridges, as well as the George Massey Tunnel.

For too long, commuters in Richmond-Queensborough have been waiting for a solution to the troubles that plague the Massey Tunnel. We know this aging structure is seismically unsafe. We know that 80,000 commuters a day travel through it, often getting stuck in traffic gridlock.

My constituents tell me about the missed appointments and time spent away from their families as they sit and wait and wait. Just yesterday a delegation from the Richmond Chamber of Commerce was visiting this House. One of their members, who owns a local pub, told me he’s looking for a new head cook because his employee of 12 years would be leaving soon. The employee was tired of being stuck in tunnel traffic. He was commuting every day from Surrey.

This is a common occurrence in Richmond, and it’s getting worse. We have a London Drugs distribution centre. It’s difficult for them around rush hour to get out of Richmond, around the tunnel at No. 5 Road and Steveston.

We also know that emergency responders have expressed concerns about how the congestion can get in the way of doing their job transporting patients from the scene of a vehicle crash to the hospital. And we know they’re extremely worried about how to respond to crashes inside the tunnel, where potential fire, smoke and fumes can be consuming.

The George Massey Tunnel is a problem. We all know that. Our former government worked hard to come up with a solution. After years of study and consultation, after some 14,000 pages of information were produced — including 145 technical reports, three rounds of public engagement, 35 meetings between Metro Vancouver and TransLink, 110 meetings with Richmond and Delta — after all that information was digested and thoroughly considered, it was decided that a new bridge was the way to go.

[11:20 a.m.]

It was the better option from a cost perspective as well as an environmental one. But today sand and equipment sit idle by the side of the highway, and there’s not a worker in sight — all because the NDP government cancelled the project. The Minister of Transportation thinks we need even more study on a project that’s been studied to death.

Last week we heard that the government will move forward with a new Pattullo Bridge. I’m not against the bridge being built. I’m not going to argue against the project, because we do need a new Pattullo Bridge, although I should note that the new bridge is only going to give an increased capacity of 10 percent. But the NDP has said that the span has only five years of life left on it. In five years, it will be unsafe to travel.

The George Massey Tunnel is unsafe now. Why isn’t the safety of commuters in my constituency and in neighbouring communities a priority for this government? To me, this move seems to solidify my suspicion that the NDP had never intended to do anything to resolve the problem with the George Massey Tunnel. That’s not going to go over very well with my constituents in Richmond-Queensborough, of course in South Delta, as well, and many other communities in the Lower Mainland.

This budget did nothing to address those very real concerns about congestion and safety on this important stretch of road. It’s important not only for local commuters but for commercial motorists, as well, and the emergency responders I mentioned earlier.

The Surrey Board of Trade told the Vancouver Sun it was “concerned by the lack of budget numbers for the Massey Tunnel.” Board CEO Anita Huberman told the Vancouver Sun: “We recognize for goods and movement throughout the Lower Mainland, the Massey Tunnel has to be replaced as well.”

I should also mention that Lower Mainland commuters are likely disappointed to learn the budget also doesn’t include the widening of Highway 1 in the Fraser Valley, Surrey rapid transit or the Broadway line in Vancouver. None of these issues are addressed in this budget.

What we’ve been focusing on the last ten days or so has been a wine war instead. We’ve been dragged into a wine war with Alberta. It was triggered by the Premier and his activist Environment Minister over the Trans Mountain pipeline, which has already been handed federal approval. Now Alberta has banned B.C. wine, and our provincial agriculture sector is suffering as a result. They feel they’re being used as political pawns in this needless spat, and they’re right.

This chaotic trade war with Alberta is also doing nothing for B.C.’s reputation as a good, stable place to do business. In fact, a lot of the moves made by this NDP government are chipping away at that reputation. They’re cancelling huge projects, like the Massey Tunnel, that would create jobs and move people and goods faster, as I already outlined.

They put a huge amount of uncertainty and unnecessary delay around the Site C project before they eventually moved forward with the project, as they should have from the start.

Some workers are benefiting from this budget. We saw the Premier’s office budget went up by $2 million — it rose from $9 million to $11 million — and staff budgets for minister’s offices have increased nearly 14 percent since the B.C. Liberals tabled the budget last year. That’s $2.1 million. That’s interesting to note.

I’d like to wrap up my remarks with some thoughts about trust as well. We as politicians often face comments from people who have become cynical about the political process. Now more than ever, they want to hold governments to account for their promises. Here we have a situation where the NDP made several specific commitments to British Columbians before the last election. These folks took the NDP at their word.

They were promised $10-a-day child care and didn’t get it. They were told to expect 114,000 housing units, and it’s extremely doubtful they’re going to get them. They got excited about a $400 renters rebate, but it seems to have evaporated into thin air. Students looked forward to the elimination of student loan interest, but that’s not happening either. The small business sector was promised support and success, and they got surprised with an absolutely massive tax hike.

What are voters in the business community to think? When you make a promise, you have to mean it. You can’t just say one thing and do another. People want certainty, not confusion. Not making good on your promises erodes your credibility, and it’s clear that some of the decisions being made by this government, outlined in this budget, will also erode B.C.’s competitiveness and hurt our economy.

We need to be doing the opposite. We need a plan that will actually attract investment and grow the economy. We need more support for our job creators, not less. The budget is one of the most important documents a government will use to outline its priorities. It should contain measures to bring in more revenue to meet the expectations of British Columbians who are left wondering what on earth happened to the many NDP promises they took to heart before the last election.

[11:25 a.m.]

Hon. K. Conroy: Before I begin, I’d like to acknowledge the territories of the Lekwungen-speaking people, the Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations, on whose land we do our work.

I’m also very pleased to respond in support of Budget 2018, which can truly be described as the people’s budget. As we can see from the details outlined by the Finance Minister, Budget 2018 is about investing in people to make life better for B.C. families, to increase opportunities and to pave the way for success for all.

Before I speak more about the budget, I want to take this opportunity to thank the constituents of Kootenay West for giving me the honour of being their MLA. It is truly an honour to not only represent such an incredibly beautiful area geographically but also one with such amazing people. I don’t get home as much as I used to, but when I do, it’s always such a pleasure to connect with you all. I will continue to work hard to make sure I represent your issues in the Legislature.

I also want to take a minute to thank the incredible people who work in my office in Castlegar, my constituency assistants Elaine Whitehead and Angelika Brunner. You provide excellent service to our constituents, and I’m incredibly grateful for the work you do.

I also want to acknowledge the hard-working people who support me in my ministry office — Paula Gunn, Serena Talbot, Edena Brown, Emily White and Kaitlin Morton. These past seven months have made me realize how multitalented you all are. Thank you to all of you amazing women who work with me here in Victoria and in Castlegar.

I also want to thank our family, who have always been so supportive of me in the work that I do — our kids, grandkids, brothers and sisters, our in-laws and nieces and nephews. We all know how everyone who works here works many long hours, often away from home. I think of our family, who not only supported my husband, Ed, in this role for ten years but have continued to support me since 2005.

I also want to make a special recognition to one of my biggest supporters, my dad. Dad will be 90 this year, still lives in the house we grew up in, curls, golfs, is incredibly active and is a great role model for our entire family. His team won the seniors bonspiel last weekend, and I know he just got home from the rink to watch me speak. Love you, Dad.

I feel I’m an incredibly fortunate person. Not only am I the minister of a very dynamic ministry with incredible opportunities for the future, Children and Family Development; I’m excited to also be the minister responsible for, as we like to say, all things Columbia — the Columbia River treaty, the Columbia Basin Trust and the Columbia Power Corporation.

As someone raised in the Kootenays, who raised our kids there and now gets to watch our grandkids growing up there, I know what a remarkable area we live in. I also understand the effects of the original creation of the Columbia River treaty and the construction of the dams on our river in the ’60s. To have them watch the creation of the trust and the CPC, to see that grow to become what they are today and to now be the minister responsible is, as I said, extremely exciting.

It is good to see the cooperation and collaboration between the trust and our government on a number of projects. The opportunities created have benefited and will benefit all citizens in the basin and will continue to benefit generations to come.

What we all know, though, with the treaty is that this time, as we enter into discussions with our U.S. neighbours, things will be different. This time our discussions won’t just focus on power generation and flood control but will include discussions about the ecosystem of the basin, the effects on tourism, trade, the environment, our economy, the people. We all agree that we don’t want to cancel the treaty, but we also agree that there need to be some changes.

I also want to thank the people who work on the treaty here in Victoria, as well as the many people who work for the trust and the CPC. Your commitment to the basin is greatly appreciated.

I’d like to start by sharing a story about a couple of children in rural B.C. Staff at their school called the Ministry of Children and Families because they thought the children were being neglected. When the social worker arrived at their house, she realized the family’s water system had broken down and they couldn’t afford to replace it. Clearly, the family was struggling.

The social worker was able to see that at the root of this family’s trouble was not neglect but poverty. Rather than separate the children from their parents, the social worker committed to helping the family. The ministry paid for a new water system, and the family got the help that they needed to get back on their feet.

This is an approach that puts people at the heart of decision-making, right at the ground level. It’s an approach that our government embraces and that I as minister want to accelerate and broaden in the work we do every day with children and families.

[11:30 a.m.]

As you heard in the details laid out by the Finance Minister, our government is making significant investments in people and in making life more affordable. The largest investment in affordable housing, the largest investment in child care, the first cross-government poverty reduction strategy. These are the kinds of investments that show how this government is putting people first.

This is a government that believes all British Columbians should share in our province’s prosperity, in progress, where everyone is doing better, not just a few.

Our government’s intentions and actions were made very clear just a few months into our term. Starting January 1, 2018, we cut MSP premiums by half and put money back into the pockets of families. By January 1, 2020, all MSP premiums will be eliminated. That means families will save $1,800 per year and individuals will save $900 per year.

We removed fees for adult basic education and English language learning, giving people opportunity and removing the roadblocks to the education and skills people need to improve their lives. We reduced student loans by 2.5 percent and reduced the burden students would face soon after graduating as they build their lives and join the workforce.

One of the actions that I’m particularly proud of involves youth leaving government care. Only a few months after forming government, we announced free tuition at all 25 of B.C.’s public post-secondary institutions for young people leaving foster care. We know this was the right thing to do, and the proof is in the numbers.

Between September last year and January this year, 229 former youth in government care signed up at B.C. colleges and universities, compared to 189 in the entire school year last year. That is a 20 percent jump in four months. These youth now have opportunities they did not have before. Some of these youths will go on to become the leaders of tomorrow.

I’ve met a number of former youth in care and have been so impressed by their passion, leadership and commitment to making things better for children in care now. This is proof that investing in people is not only sound public policy, but it is good for the economy. However, for youth who have been in government care, getting into post-secondary is only one of the challenges they face. Over the past few months, we have heard from former youth in care about what other supports they need to be successful, contributing members of our province.

At 19, most young people are supported and guided by their parents and families and not left to fend for themselves. As parents to youth in care, our government feels the same responsibility to make sure these young adults have every opportunity to successfully transition to adulthood and independence. We take this responsibility seriously.

Our Budget 2018 investments to expand and enhance the agreements with young adults program exemplify that commitment. The program gives youth the financial support and services they need to finish secondary school, learn job and life skills, get a trade, attend college or university or complete a rehabilitative program.

Over the next three years, the Ministry of Children and Family Development will invest $30 million to enhance and expand the agreements with young adults program. This will allow us to meet growing demand as more young people become eligible to participate in the program.

This year the ministry will invest $7.7 million to raise the eligibility to their 27th birthday, to align with the provincial tuition waiver program, and also to increase the maximum monthly support rate from $1,000 to $1,250 and to make supports available for the full calendar year for students enrolled in a multi-year educational or vocational program. All these changes will take effect on April 1, 2018 — in just a few months.

At the same time, we’ve hired more youth workers. We’ve improved practice, and we need to continue making improvements so that young people know about and can access the supports they need to thrive. While this is good news for youth, we know we can do more. We will continue to do all we can to set the children and youth in government care on a path to success.

As I travel through the province and speak to people, I am struck by just how many are struggling daily to pay the bills. Many people I speak to are understandably frustrated from years of being neglected and unheard. Parents in particular have been facing so many challenges, be it finding a decent home to raise their children in or finding quality child care so they can get to work. They have been feeling the pain of sustained cuts in the social programs that are meant to support hard-working British Columbians.

A government’s job is not to ignore the people it was elected to serve. It is the job of the government to listen to the people, understand their needs and make changes that let people know they have been heard.

[11:35 a.m.]

As a former early childhood educator and now as the Minister of Children and Family Development, I have heard from people across the province about the daily difficulties they face getting affordable, reliable services they can count on. Parents often have to make the tough choice not to work because they can’t afford child care. When the cost of child care is almost the same as your monthly rent — or even more, if you have more than one child in child care — you know there’s a problem. We’ve heard loud and clear from B.C. parents that there’s an urgent need for more licensed care throughout the province.

We have heard from businesses and employers, including the Vancouver Board of Trade and the Surrey Board of Trade, that the lack of affordable child care in our province has been making it difficult to recruit and keep skilled workers. That is why I’m especially proud of our government’s action to deliver a comprehensive child care program for B.C. families.

Our government is embarking on an exciting made-in-B.C. child care plan that will reduce child care fees for thousands of families, increase the number of licensed child care spaces, train the early childhood educators B.C. needs to provide affordable quality child care for every family that needs it, help thousands of children and families get a better start and grow our economy to benefit all British Columbians.

Earlier my colleague the Minister of State for Child Care provided details of our $1 billion investment over the next three years to provide accessible, affordable and high-quality child care in B.C. This will give immediate relief for parents with children under five. By investing $630 million, we will make child care more affordable for up to 86,000 families.

And $237 million will go towards creating more than 22,000 new licensed child care spaces right across the province. We’ll commit $136 million to deliver supports for new and existing early childhood educators to ensure that child cares are not only safe places for children to spend the day but benefit from the early learning to make the most of this important time.

Our government’s investment in child care is also getting a boost from the federal government. To address immediate service gaps, we have allocated $10 million per year of our early learning and child care agreement with the federal government to invest funds into supported child care and Aboriginal supported child care development to address wait-lists. We also will enhance Aboriginal Head Start programs on and off reserve.

We acknowledge that this will not meet all of the early learning and child care needs of Indigenous children. We know that further investments will be needed, guided by our partnership with Indigenous leadership. Making life more affordable for British Columbians is a key commitment for our government. Improving the child care system is a major step in making our commitment to B.C. families a reality.

There are a number of changes that make me feel confident our government is on the right path to making life affordable and improving services people can count on. By increasing income and disability assistance rates, our government is making life better for some of the most vulnerable among us. By taking action to end speculation and tax fraud in B.C.’s real estate market, our government is giving relief to many families struggling to find safe and affordable housing. In fact, by making the largest investment in housing in B.C. history, our government is giving housing security to people, including students, seniors, Indigenous peoples and middle-income families. By taking steps to increase minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2021, our government is helping B.C.’s lowest-paid workers get ahead.

These are just a few examples of how our government is investing in people to make a real difference. Our government believes that people are the foundation of a healthy, robust and sustainable economy. A strong economy is one where everyone is doing better. Our government will make sure every region benefits from the jobs and opportunity our province creates. In fact, it’s great to be at the helm of a ministry where we can see the positive results of this new approach.

There may not be any area of public policy where a new approach is more desperately needed than in Indigenous child welfare. Our government is committed to moving beyond talk and into action when it comes to reconciliation with the Indigenous peoples on whose lands we are privileged and honoured to work, live and play. The throne speech recommitted that our government will work in partnership with First Nations, Métis and Indigenous people to achieve meaningful reconciliation. This is a cross-government priority.

Our government committed to implement the UN declaration on the rights of Indigenous peoples and the call to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Tsilhqot’in decision. Moving beyond words, our ministerial mandate letters direct us to review our policies, programs and legislation to bring the principles of the declaration into action.

[11:40 a.m.]

Budget 2018 invests in housing, child care and skills training, with more than $200 million dedicated to Indigenous priorities over the fiscal plan. That includes funding to expand culturally based Indigenous child care. It includes 1,750 new units of supported housing for Indigenous people developed in partnership with Indigenous housing societies and First Nations. It includes additional funding for Aboriginal friendship centres that do incredible outreach work and serve all Indigenous peoples, whether they are status, non-status, Métis or Inuit.

Both the calls to action and the UN declaration on the rights of Indigenous peoples emphasize the need to preserve and revitalize Indigenous languages. That’s why our government is immediately committing $50 million to support the preservation and revitalization of Indigenous languages in B.C.

For my ministry, the importance of reconciliation means reducing the disproportionate number of Indigenous children in government care and working collaboratively and respectfully with Indigenous communities to make a difference for families. We all know the system has failed Indigenous people, and we all know it needs to change. This change needs to happen at a systemic level within my ministry, across different levels of governments, with our partners who deliver services to families and within communities.

This is another area where our government is changing its approach to focus on prevention. We are actively implementing the recommendations from Grand Chief Ed John’s report. We are shifting the focus to keeping Indigenous children at home, in communities and out of care wherever possible.

Many Indigenous communities are served by delegated Aboriginal agencies. We have increased funding to those agencies. This will allow them to hire experienced and qualified staff, carry smaller caseloads and provide culturally appropriate services to the children and families they serve.

In September, we launched a new $6.4 million program to support 203 First Nations communities and seven Métis-serving agencies to keep Indigenous families together. So far, nearly 160 have successfully applied for the $30,000 grant for programs that keep the family unit strong. In November, we took a big step forward on reconciliation with a new delegated Métis agency, the Lii Michif Otipemisiwak Family and Community Services. Lii Michif now has our government support to take over full responsibility for 50 Métis children currently in government care in the Kamloops area.

Our government believes that Indigenous people know best what their communities need, so they should be the ones helping us plan any strategy on reducing the number of Indigenous children in care and connecting them with permanent homes. Our government is doing just that. For example, this spring we are reaching out to Indigenous communities to better understand and support custom adoption practices.

Custom adoption is a cultural practice that Indigenous people have been practising for centuries. Children who cannot be with their birth parents are raised by extended family or a member of the child’s Indigenous community according to their traditions and values. It truly embodies the spirit of a village raising a child. With custom adoption, we look forward to being able to better support communities. Families and children find permanent homes connecting to their families and their culture.

We recognize that for meaningful change to happen, government policies, programs and services across the board must change to better reflect Indigenous beliefs and practices. A fundamental shift like this will take time and require ongoing, intentional effort on our part.

The Aboriginal policy and practice framework helps our ministry make sure our policies and programs are culturally safe and trauma-informed, and support and honour Indigenous peoples’ cultural systems of sharing and caring for their children and families. We are hiring more Indigenous employees and training all ministry staff to improve their cultural awareness and sensitivity to help them provide culturally safe services to Indigenous children, their families and communities.

We are on the right track. This was confirmed for me when I joined Indigenous leaders and my colleague the Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation at the emergency meeting on Indigenous child welfare hosted by the federal minister in Ottawa. We were all encouraged by the overreaching desire to honour and respect Indigenous peoples’ rights to care for their children, and we are hopeful, knowing that B.C. is making significant progress in a number of areas.

Last year the Wet’suwet’en Nation and the province of B.C. signed a landmark agreement for the nation to reclaim jurisdiction for child welfare services according to its traditional laws and governance systems. Our province is only one of three in Canada to have taken this step, Ontario and Quebec being the other two.

[11:45 a.m.]

I was honoured to attend a potlatch organized by the Wet’suwet’en here in Victoria in December to celebrate this commitment.

We were also active in discussions with the Wet’suwet’en, Splatsin and Lake Babine Nations and the Métis Nation of B.C. to explore jurisdiction and different models of child welfare led by Indigenous communities.

Through the tripartite First Nations children and families working group, we have been working with the federal government and First Nations leaders to explore fundamental and systemic changes to B.C.’s child welfare system, including Indigenous jurisdiction. With the recent federal government commitment to action and their decision to address the historic underfunding of delegated Aboriginal agencies, we can now move faster on making the changes to improve Indigenous child welfare.

There is much work to do, but our ministry has the added benefit of dedicated staff working throughout the entire province. I’m inspired by the women and men I have met, by their longtime service to the ministry, their excitement about the changes we are implementing together, and their commitment to make things better for the children and families that they provide services to.

The Minister of State and I visited the child care branch the day after the budget to thank them for all the work they have done on our new child care program and the work they will be doing to ensure it is implemented. The big banner saying “Welcome to universal child care,” the many staff gathered and the excitement in the room was contagious. We left knowing our government is heading in the right direction, and we have an amazing team to work with.

I know we are fortunate to live in a beautiful province that is rich in people, resources and wealth. However, for many years, only a select few have enjoyed those riches, while many have gone without.

It is no surprise that we are facing some of the worst crises in areas of affordability, equality and poverty. While we inherited some of them — the problems at ICBC and B.C. Hydro, to name a few — our government is doing its best to reverse some of that damage done.

With the largest investments in housing and child care in B.C., we’re taking steps to make life more affordable. By making different choices that put people first, our government hopes to transform lives and create a better future for everyone.

L. Throness: I will ask you, Mr. Speaker, to let me know when it’s time to break for lunch, as I see we’re arriving close to that time. But I want to stand, first of all, to speak to Budget 2018. It’s always a pleasure to do that.

I’d like to thank, first of all, my constituents for allowing me to continue to serve them. As I drive around my riding, it’s such a beautiful place. I always think that I’m very privileged to serve 52,000 wonderful people in a beautiful part of the world. I’m a blessed person.

I also want to thank my family for all of their love and support. I think of my brother Leon and his wife, Carol; my brother Lyndon and his wife, Heather; my brother Trevor and his wife, Jennifer; and my sister, Kathy, and her husband, Rob Jonker. They all live nearby. We enjoy great relationships. I love them all dearly, including their 13 children, who are my nieces and nephews. They’re all beloved.

Here I want to take note of a new addition to my family, our extended family. On Dec. 20, my nephew Chris Throness and his wife, Krista, had their third child, a beautiful girl named Mattea Belle, a wonderful name for a beautiful baby. We in our family are rejoicing together with them, and I promise to be a great, great-uncle to her.

I also want to thank my constituency assistants, Dagmar Lucak, Sheila Denis and Kathy Miki, who provide great service to all of my constituents. I couldn’t do my job without them.

I want to thank my local party executive, including Susan Mathies, my longtime president; Bill Raddatz, my vice-president; and so many others who sit on my board and who offer their time and energy to the democratic process. Democracy would not exist without people like this.

Now on to the big picture, on to the budget, the business of this House today. I must say that I was dismayed but not surprised to see a classic, stereotypical NDP budget that will constrict economic growth in B.C. by raising taxes and increasing spending and hobbling business.

I guess I should have expected it, but the scale of damage is sort of spectacular — sort of like watching a volcano explode from a long way away or an avalanche of snow coming down a mountain. It’s a big deal.

Benefiting from the years of fiscal discipline under the former government, this classic, big tax-and-spend NDP budget is balanced on the backs of employers and stands on the assumption that the economy will continue to grow.

[11:50 a.m.]

Now, given this assumption, it’s too bad that there are no significant initiatives in the budget to actually grow the economy. There are no mentions, for example, of backbone industries like forestry or mining, oil and gas development, aquaculture or energy generation in this budget. The NDP assume that the economy just happens.

Well, they set the stage for taxing and spending last September, when they raised taxes by $1 billion and whittled a $2.7 billion surplus down to about $100 million in just six months. That was quite a feat, but I must say they’ve topped it with this budget, the first full-year budget of the term.

Let me lay out for you the big numbers. The budget shows spending of $54 billion. Last year it was $52 billion. That represents an increase of spending of 4 percent. Over the three-year term of the budget, new spending will amount to $6.6 billion, and tax increases will total $5.5 billion. In their first calendar year — a total of $8 billion in increased taxes. The gap of $1 billion is expected to be made up with better revenue due to economic growth, and the government had better hope so.

Taxes are going up in many ways. There’s $1 billion more in income taxes; more at the gas pump, with a carbon tax; a payroll tax on employers, worth $1.9 billion in the first year; and other things that the public will find out before long.

I want to point out increased capital spending as well. Our debt will rise significantly. Here, I want to remark about how the NDP castigated us for years, severely, as a government, about the debt we incurred while we were in government. And now they’re boasting about how much they’re going to spend. In fact, a quote from the budget speech said this: “Budget 2018 invests $26 billion over three years in capital spending…the highest level in B.C.’s history.”

[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

Really, the hypocrisy of the other side never ceases to astound me. How quickly the working proletariat becomes the bourgeoisie on the other side.

I suppose the only good thing I can say about the budget — and perhaps I’ll close with this before lunch — is that it’s balanced, and it has a cushion in terms of contingency funding and a forecast allowance. So we’ll have some room to move in the case of a recession, which is not unexpected, given the recent jitters in the stock market, the growing debt and deficit in the American economy and the fact that it has been nine years since the last recession.

I will take up my remarks — if that’s all right, Mr. Speaker — on the budget after lunch. I would move that we now adjourn the House for lunch, and I will reserve my right to speak again.

Mr. Speaker: The member has moved adjournment of the debate.

L. Throness moved adjournment of debate.

Motion approved.

Tabling Documents

Mr. Speaker: Hon. Members, I have the honour to present a report intituled An Independent Audit of the Recruitment and Retention of Rural and Remote Nurses in Northern B.C. from the Office of the Auditor General.

Hon. A. Dix: I’m looking forward to the rest of the member’s speech after lunch. I move that the House do now adjourn.

Hon. A. Dix moved adjournment of the House.

Motion approved.

Mr. Speaker: This House stands adjourned until 1:30 this afternoon.

The House adjourned at 11:53 a.m.