Fourth Session, 41st Parliament (2019)
OFFICIAL REPORT
OF DEBATES
(HANSARD)
Tuesday, February 26, 2019
Morning Sitting
Issue No. 207
ISSN 1499-2175
The HTML transcript is provided for informational purposes only.
The PDF transcript remains the official digital version.
CONTENTS
| Routine Business | |
Public Service Benefit Plan Act, annual report for year ending March 31, 2018 | |
Office of the Auditor General, Progress Audit: Correctional Facilities and Programs, independent audit report, February 2019 | |
| Orders of the Day | |
Budget Debate (continued) | |
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2019
The House met at 10:05 a.m.
[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]
Routine Business
Prayers.
Introductions by Members
R. Leonard: I’d like to introduce a constituent of mine, Cathie Talbot. I’ve known Cathie for an awful lot of years. Her daughter and mine are the same age and well on their way to being great successes in the world. Cathie is always willing to jump in and take up the challenge of whatever job is needed by the team, even while she’s looking after an aging parent at home, which is such an honourable job that she does.
I thank you for that.
May the House please welcome Cathie Talbot.
M. Stilwell: Today seems to be class field trip day in the Legislature, as I have multiple groups who are joining us here. First, it’s my pleasure to introduce two separate groups of amazing students from Ballenas Secondary in Parksville and their teachers, Ms. Olivia Hill and Ms. Mischa Oak. They’ll be joining us in the gallery soon. I understand they had some travel difficulties coming down this morning.
I spent time with the Ballenas Secondary students earlier this month at their school, and I was so impressed with how engaged the students are with politics and community issues. I welcome them.
Also joining us in the House today are a small but fantastic group of students and teachers from Claro. Claro is an alternative learning school in Nanaimo and Kelowna and serves 75 neurodiverse students, in partnership with B.C. independent schools. Claro is open learning. Students receive individualized support in the areas of academics, social and life skills in the environment, where diversity is viewed as a strength.
Students at Claro are active and contributing citizens, participating in regular, community-based social, recreation and volunteer opportunities. I would say that collectively, they are compassionate, intelligent, hard-working, strong self-advocates.
Would the House please welcome the mentors, Melissa Rombough and Ruth Christmas, who are accompanying the students: James Buckingham; Katie Dalton; Kieran Flood; Shyler Walther; and, of course, my son, Kai Stilwell.
D. Routley: I’d like the House to help welcome my constituency assistants, who have come down for meetings today: M and M, Patty McNamara and Kayla Mazer. And wait, there’s another M: Sarah Miller, who will be arriving soon. The three Ms — Patty McNamara, Cayla Masur and Sarah Miller — are the force of service in Nanaimo–North Cowichan, taking care of hundreds and, over the years, thousands of issues for people. As you all know, they come into our offices at the worst and most challenging times of their lives. We rarely have to face the stress that our assistants do.
With that, I’d like to welcome them and thank them for everything that they do.
N. Letnick: Today in the House, we have Dr. John Esdaile, scientific director of Arthritis Research Canada. He’s an internationally respected rheumatologist who spearheaded the creation of the Arthritis Research Centre of Canada, and he’s here today to talk to some of us about his research. May the House please make him feel welcome.
Hon. M. Farnworth: I have a couple of guests to introduce. They’re in the gallery today. They are Scott Hanna, the CEO of the Credit Counselling Society of British Columbia, and Tayt Winnitoy, the executive vice-president of Consumer Protection B.C.
They’re here to see whether the government has something in a few minutes to deal with consumer protection. Would the House please make them most welcome.
G. Kyllo: I have to say that procreation is alive and well in the Shuswap. I’m very proud today to rise in the House and announce the arrival of yet another grandchild. Georgina and I could not be happier to announce the birth of our eighth grandchild and our second grandson, Harvey James Michael Hansma, who arrived Friday, February 8. Harvey is the first child of our youngest daughter, Samantha, and her husband, Mike Hansma, of Sicamous. Would the House please join me in welcoming Harvey James Michael Hansma.
Hon. R. Fleming: I’d like to congratulate that member and also thank him for being a part of the growing enrolment in B.C.’s school system.
I’m here to make an introduction upon the request of the Minister for Advanced Education, who is losing her voice but who I know would want all of us in the House to give a warm welcome on B.C. Colleges Day to a number of our guests we have here with us. John Bowman is the chair and president of North Island College, Sherri Bell is the vice-chair and president of Camosun College, Lane Trotter is the past chair of B.C. Colleges and president of Langara College, and Colin Ewert is the president of B.C. Colleges.
Very important, the 11 colleges that we have in British Columbia. The reputation they have gained over decades for high-quality skills training and university transfer programs I think all of us know from our own constituencies. Very valuable partner in delivering post-secondary education. They represent 150,000 students, and I’m sure those students are delighted that they will now not have any interest on the student loans they pay. I would ask members of the House to please make these guests most welcome.
S. Furstenau: Today I’m delighted to introduce Amelia Hadfield. She’s in the gallery right now, and she’s going to spend the day shadowing me here. Amelia is a grade 11 student at Brentwood School who recently attended the Forum program in Ottawa, which gives the opportunity to high school students to spend a week immersed in the parliamentary world in Ottawa. I can attest to the benefits of this program because I attended it in 1987.
Amelia is also an accomplished debater. At the regionals earlier this month, Amelia’s team placed second, and she will be competing in the provincial debating championships this weekend in Oak Bay. Would the House please make Amelia welcome, and when you see her straggling along next to me, say hello to her.
Introduction and
First Reading of Bills
BILL 7 — BUSINESS PRACTICES AND
CONSUMER PROTECTION
AMENDMENT ACT, 2019
Hon. M. Farnworth presented a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: a bill intituled Business Practices and Consumer Protection Amendment Act, 2019.
Hon. M. Farnworth: I move that the bill be introduced and read a first time now.
I’m pleased to introduce Bill 7, the Business Practices and Consumer Protection Amendment Act, 2019. This bill proposes a collection of amendments to the Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act to strengthen financial protections and make life more affordable for British Columbians who use payday loans and other high-cost credit products and services.
There are consumers who have limited options and seek high-cost loans and other high-cost credit products from alternative lenders, often with terms and conditions that are unfair. This bill proposes measures to strengthen existing payday lending laws. The bill also establishes a new licensing and regulatory scheme for businesses that provide other high-cost products such as instalment loans.
In addition, certain business practices will be prohibited under the legislation, and licensed businesses will be required to adhere to specific disclosure rules in credit agreements. Overall, this bill aims to better protect consumers from potentially harmful and predatory business practices.
Mr. Speaker: The question is first reading of the bill.
Motion approved.
Hon. M. Farnworth: I move that the bill be placed on the orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.
Bill 7, Business Practices and Consumer Protection Amendment Act, 2019, introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.
Statements
(Standing Order 25B)
BRIAN MINTER
J. Martin: I recently had the opportunity to attend the Chilliwack Business Excellence Awards, where Brian Minter received the 2019 Chilliwack Chamber of Commerce Stan Rogers Legacy Award for his many contributions over many, many years.
Brian and his lovely wife, Faye, have been successful entrepreneurs in Chilliwack since 1970, when they purchased the Country Garden store. In 1980, they opened the 32-acre Minter Gardens, which, until it closed in 2013, was basically a horticultural Shangri-la and was listed among Rae Spencer-Jones’s 1001 Gardens You Must See Before You Die. No doubt many members in this chamber have fond, colourful, special memories of walking through Minter Gardens, taking in all its beauty, all its splendour.
Brian Minter is a recipient of the Order of Canada; the Order of British Columbia; the Order of Chilliwack, the Chilliwack person of the year award; B.C.’s Small Business Excellence Award; the spirit of enterprise award; and an honorary doctorate of technology from the University of the Fraser Valley, where he was chair of the board of governors when the then Fraser Valley College was transformed into a degree-granting university college in 1991. He served as UFV’s first chancellor in 2008, when it changed from a university college to full university status.
Brian was inducted into the Gardening Writers Association’s Hall of Fame in recognition of a lifetime of exceptional work and spirit promoting gardening and garden communication to the public, as well as winning the North American Perennial Plant Association Award of Merit and the 2015 Canadian Garden Tourism Award.
He is a best-selling author. He continues to write gardening and horticultural articles for numerous provincial, national and international publications and is a regular contributor to CBC and BBC. He has educated and inspired countless British Columbians and others on just how much is possible in horticulture.
His commitment and contributions to the educational, social, cultural and economic development, and fabric of the community could fill a book. He is an inspiration to all who know or knew him, and there is no one more deserving of this most recent recognition.
Please join me, everyone in this chamber, in congratulating Brian Minter for a lifetime of service to his community and fellow citizens.
ARTHRITIS
R. Leonard: Hon. Speaker, 1.2 million British Columbians have one of 100 types of arthritis. That’s costing $7 billion, with more than half that amount from lost work time. That doesn’t begin to capture the personal, human toll.
I was under 30 when I was told I needed a new hip because of advancing osteoarthritis, but I had to wait four years, with the prescription of taking enough aspirin until my ears rang, before I would become a bionic woman. It wasn’t known then, yet, how long my artificial hip would last.
It was right to be conservative. As it is, I’ve had two hip revisions since, but thanks to researchers; my surgeon, Dr. Clive Duncan; a vast array of health professionals; and the loving support of my family and friends through those years, I’m living the dream.
We’ve come a long way since those days. Research has been critical. Researchers like Drs. John Esdaile and Linda Li from Arthritis Research Canada and others are leading the way right here in British Columbia. Every year there are improved medicines to stem the advancement of joint degeneration and to control pain. Surgeries have advanced in ways that I never dreamed possible, and evolving activity protocols continue to improve lives.
Yet we still have a long way to go. We know the challenges of growing wait-lists, especially for hip and knee replacements. Arthritis is responsible for the vast majority of those joint replacements.
The Minister of Health has introduced a surgical strategy that will provide 34 percent more new hips and knees. That’s 4,000 more men and women being given a new lease on life every year. I look forward to the day when those numbers go down as we continue to find ways to manage arthritis and finally, one day, to nip it in the bud before it consumes our lives and our health care budgets.
DOCUMENTARY ON TRANSGENDER YOUTH
J. Thornthwaite: Gina Hole Lazarowich is a friend and constituent, but she’s also a successful producer and filmmaker. Her latest project is Krow’s TRANSformation, which follows the three-year journey of a transgender female, a former teen model, into his true, authentic self.
After six years as a globetrotting female fashion model, Krow embarked on the journey towards physically becoming a man at the age of 18. He never felt comfortable as a woman and struggled daily with his identity during his youth. Throughout the documentary, we not only witness Krow’s physical changes; we also witness some of the heartbreaking interviews with his friends and family and see how his decision to transition impacted those close to him.
We learn how his mother initially struggled with the revelation her daughter wanted to be a boy but then learned to embrace her son’s new life. She lost a daughter but gained a son. In the film, Krow says: “Sometimes trans youth don’t come out to their families because they would rather have their family love them for who they are not than risk their family disowning them for being who they are.”
He said that for the most part, it was exciting to share his transition with others but that it became more challenging to talk about whether he could survive if he had to go on living as a female. But he hopes this documentary will help educate people and create understanding, if not acceptance. He feels that even if the documentary could save just one life, it’s all worthwhile.
It is also worth noting that both myself and the member for Vancouver–West End were interviewed for this film. Gina asked me about our government’s decision to include gender identity expression into the human rights code to improve protection for trans people and about our government’s decision to bring SOGI policies to all schools in British Columbia.
Gina is in the final process of fundraising for post-production and is getting ready to bring the first screening of the film to fruition. If you’d like to help her campaign, visit FundRazr, or join us at 6 p.m. on April 11 at the Rio Theatre in Vancouver. I look forward to seeing you there.
TEESHA SHARMA
B. D’Eith: Teesha Sharma, one of my constituents and friends, passed away unexpectedly at the age of 27 on February 15, 2019. I would like to honour her by telling her story.
Teesha grew up in an abusive house, spent most of her childhood in foster care and shelters and eventually ended up living in a hotel at age 16. But notwithstanding these challenges, she was part of many leadership groups at school, was on the honour roll and graduated as valedictorian.
Teesha never thought of herself as a victim but as an advocate. She didn’t want other kids to face the same barriers that she did and became a champion for at-risk youth. She found a partner in advocacy with Christian Cowley and the Maple Ridge CEED society and centre. And through the CEED centre, Teesha started blue door youth services, which offers barrier-free programs to youth from 13 to 24 who are homeless, at risk of homelessness or experiencing mental health issues.
With her lived experience and caring personality, Teesha was able to reach at-risk youth in a way that no one else could in our community. Teesha actually credited the support that she received at the Iron Horse Youth Safe House in Maple Ridge, which is now closed, for saving her life. Before passing, she was working very hard on securing a new safe house in our community.
She was also part of the Youth Wellness Centre committee, which went from being a committee to a youth wellness centre and is now going to be opening as a Foundry. Last year Teesha was recognized in our community by winning the inaugural Citizen of the Year under 40 award from the Maple Ridge Community Foundation gala and was a finalist at the YMCA’s Power of Peace Award. She was known internationally for her work.
On behalf of myself, the member for Maple Ridge–Pitt Meadows and our staff, we offer our sincerest condolences to all of those who are affected by this loss. Our community is a better place because of Teesha. She reminds us all that if you act with strength, dedication and compassion, you can move mountains. I just never thought that the time I had with her as a friend would be so short.
She will be sorely missed but never forgotten.
SMALL BUSINESSES IN
WEST VANCOUVER–SEA TO SKY
AREA
J. Sturdy: I’m pleased to rise today to speak and to recognize small business entrepreneurs from my constituency of West Vancouver–Sea to Sky. Last week Small Business B.C. held their 16th annual awards event, which recognizes entrepreneurs from across the province for leadership in ten different categories.
Finalists from West Vancouver–Sea to Sky included, from Squamish, Glacier Interiors and Marwick Marketing; from Pemberton, Murphy Construction and Small Potatoes Bazaar; from Whistler, Whistler Photo Safaris, Lighthouse Mentor Network, RDC Fine Homes and Whistler Cooks. I’d like to congratulate Bob Deeks and RDC Fine Homes for winning the Best Apprenticeship Training Award. RDC has been building homes in the Sea to Sky since 1993. The company employs 37 people and is dedicated to building sustainable homes with a focus on customer service.
Murphy Construction and Whistler Cooks were also recognized as top-five finalists in the apprenticeship training award.
This is significant because this isn’t the result of some big government requirement. On the contrary, this is private sector, unlegislated, entrepreneurial commitment at work.
RDC Fine Homes, Murphy Construction and Whistler Cooks are committed to creating workplaces that not only attract but retain great people. Being recognized for apprenticeship training demonstrates commitment to building a team, and it means establishing a well-structured, supportive program that gives employees the opportunity to learn, to grow, to contribute to the success of a business and to advance within the company.
In a competitive labour market, employers who are committed to training and retention should be recognized. I’m glad to see that these Sea to Sky businesses are recognized for their focus on their employees. Small business powers this province. We’re fortunate to have so many committed, experienced, innovative and passionate entrepreneurs making a difference all across all of our communities.
Thank you to the small business entrepreneurs, and congratulations to all the nominees and winners at last week’s awards.
PUNJABI LANGUAGE EDUCATION
R. Singh: We all celebrated International Mother Language Day on February 21. Last weekend in my community of Surrey, Punjabi Canadians came together to celebrate the recognition and acceptance of their mother language in Canada.
The event was held under the aegis of the Punjabi Language Education Association, also known as PLEA, which was formed in 1994 for the progress of Punjabi language in Canada. This association has been celebrating International Mother Language Day for the past 16 years, and this event highlighted their ongoing efforts to promote Punjabi language education in B.C. This year the celebration had a very strong focus on student participation as we heard poetry, songs and stories from young Punjabi learners living across the Lower Mainland.
Along with this celebration, PLEA has been instrumental in promoting Punjabi language in B.C. public schools across the province. In Surrey alone, there are nine secondary schools where Punjabi classes are available, which includes two high schools in my riding of Surrey–Green Timbers, L.A. Matheson and Queen Elizabeth Secondary.
This association has effectively ensured that our local schools are now promoting and teaching the Punjabi language, with the support of the local communities. PLEA has allowed children and adolescents from Punjabi-speaking families to connect with their heritage and language through these classes.
In cities like Surrey, where Punjabi is the second most-spoken language after English, the importance of PLEA’s work in our community is key to promote the language at various levels. Their dedication and commitment to the Punjabi language is admirable, as through this endeavour they have been able to spread the Punjabi language with so many communities.
Being a Punjabi Canadian myself, I’m so happy to see their hard work to connect our youth with their roots, and I would like to congratulate PLEA for their great efforts.
Oral Questions
VACCINATION REQUIREMENTS
FOR SCHOOL
SYSTEM
N. Letnick: In past years, vaccination records for measles were maintained by schools, because all students were vaccinated at school, including myself and probably many of us in this chamber. In some Canadian provinces, children who are not immunized may be asked to stay home from school when an outbreak occurs. In other jurisdictions, proof of immunization is required for school entrance, with exceptions for medical or ideological reasons.
Can the Minister of Health please confirm he will be following the Ontario model and passing regulations to remove non-immunized students from school during an outbreak?
Hon. A. Dix: First of all, as the member will know, we have an outbreak of measles in British Columbia right now — I think as everyone knows — 13 cases concentrated in Metro Vancouver. Just to show how seriously we take this: one case of measles, which shouldn’t be there, is an outbreak. With 13, we take it very seriously.
There are significant protocols by public health officials. Under the Public Health Act today, we have the opportunity to exclude students from school, and that is, in fact, happening now. As of a few days ago, I think, 38 to 40 students and adults have been excluded from particular schools where the outbreak is taking place.
As the member will know, in 2010, there were 87 cases of measles in British Columbia, which were all over the province. In 2014, there were 342 cases that were concentrated in school communities in the Fraser Valley. At that time, the provincial officer of health, Dr. Perry Kendall, recommended — and today Dr. Bonnie Henry recommended — mandatory registration of students in the public school system and the independent school system, the entire school system in British Columbia.
That recommendation we’re following up and delivering on, and we hope to deliver on that by September of this year.
Mr. Speaker: The member for Kelowna–Lake Country on a supplemental.
N. Letnick: Thank you to the minister for the answer. Many parents, of course, are still upset that in this day and age, they need to be watching their children over measles. Misinformation about vaccinations is being spread on social media at alarming rates.
Now, we recognize that while governments in Canada cannot enact compulsory immunization, there is a compelling public health benefit from achieving a 95 percent or better rate of population immunity. What more does the government plan to do to better inform British Columbians about the importance of vaccinations?
Hon. A. Dix: I agree very much with the hon. member. One of the things we can do is what we’re proceeding to do, with respect to mandatory registration. It should be noted that he referred to Ontario earlier, that they have currently probably the most stringent rules with respect to school-aged children in Canada, yet their rate of immunization is 91 percent, well below the goal of 95 percent. In fact, in Newfoundland, where there are no such rules, they have the highest, which is around 96 percent. So there is more we can do.
What I am suggesting today, right now, is that everyone in British Columbia, especially for their children but for themselves as well: go and get immunized. It’s very straightforward. It is happening all around British Columbia now — 8,000 more doses in the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority; a 50 percent increase in the last two weeks compared to previous years in the Interior Health Authority; the Vancouver Island Health Authority. People are responding to this.
I think one of the things…. This is getting a lot of attention now. This is an opportunity to deliver the message — everyone to deliver it in constituency offices and everyone else — that being immunized is not just important for your child. It’s important for children who, for medical reasons, cannot be immunized. It is our public responsibility to do so, and I want to encourage everyone to do so.
As the member rightly says, it’s not just about rules. It’s about ensuring that people have the information they need. We have not, I think…. The levels of immunization in British Columbia are not sufficient. I think the hon. member would agree. We have to take every step possible to ensure that especially the children who cannot be immunized are protected from disease such as measles, which should not exist in British Columbia.
A. Wilkinson: I’d like to thank the minister for taking this constructive approach to a problem the public expect us, as a Legislature, to address constructively and effectively.
Now, we all know that some of the people in this room are old enough to remember being lined up in the school hallways with no consent forms, just mandatory immunization. Those days are gone, and since then, immunization has been widely dispersed between public health facilities, schools, doctors’ offices. It presents a challenge to parents to even know where their records might be.
In the spirit of cooperation to make this province a better and safer place, can the minister please advise us what steps are being taken to alert parents of where they’re going to find these records and how they might assemble the history of their immunizations, especially if they have moved locations and especially between provinces? Also, if he would be so kind as to provide an information packet and posters for our constituency offices.
Hon. A. Dix: The answer to the second question is, yes, that work is taking place now. I think that’s important work that we can do together. One of the challenges, as the member will know, with mandatory registration are these issues around records. There are some health authorities, on immunization, who still have paper records, which presents challenges.
You know, when this was proposed in 2014…. I’m not suggesting no action was taken at that time. In fact, action was taken to improve systems, but they did not move at that time, I think, for reasons that would be called systemic and not ideological or philosophical.
Right now we are taking action. The significant part of that action will not be the regulations pursuant to the Public Health Act. It’s in ensuring that that system of records is in place so that parents can reasonably be able to get access to their own records. That task is a difficult one, but it’s one that we are working on very diligently.
In the meantime, we’re also now, right now, making the public case everywhere, and our provincial officer of health…. Our outstanding provincial officer of health, Dr. Bonnie Henry, and all the people who work in public health around B.C. are making that case. Parents are making that case. People around B.C. are making that case to one another. You can see that in the response to immunization right now.
My hope, in this month — because there is more than enough vaccine to take care of this in British Columbia, although there are always challenges in delivering services — is that we can see immunization rates rise. It will require actions such as the members suggests. But it will also involve individuals making that decision for themselves, taking responsibility for themselves, for the care of their children and others’ and making this decision to be immunized.
Mr. Speaker: The Leader of the Official Opposition on a supplemental.
ACCESS TO
MEASLES-MUMPS-RUBELLA
VACCINE
A. Wilkinson: The Minister of Health outlined some positive steps. There’s one further step that could be taken. Given that the measles-mumps-rubella, or MMR, vaccine is cheap, highly effective and can be given repeatedly, there is a concept that’s widely known around the world — it’s been known for more than 30 years — of post-exposure prophylaxis, or PEP.
This is where MMR is made widely available, usually at schools, so that a parent who hears about exposure, whether they were in one of the shopping malls or on the SkyTrain or at Toys “R” Us, if they’re worried, why not just get another MMR? The issue is the logistics. How do they find the MMR; where do they go to get it?
Is the minister prepared to embark on a plan to get PEP vaccinations available at our schools, mobile public health units, with students being basically given the option of having an MMR on demand, readily available at no charge?
Hon. A. Dix: First of all, I was asked last week this question by an adult, who was asking whether they had to pay or whether it was free for children. It is free for everybody in British Columbia.
Right now all of our public health offices, in some parts of the province — those are the primary centre for immunization. In other parts, it’s doctor’s offices. But all of those public health units — nurses; nurse practitioners; doctor’s offices; and pharmacists, for those over the age of five, as well. We have to ensure that pharmacies have adequate access to the vaccine to meet demand.
There are lots of opportunities now to get access, and we are absolutely looking at the questions raised by the hon. member.
Mr. Speaker: The Leader of the Official Opposition on a second supplemental.
A. Wilkinson: Just to clarify with the Minister of Health, given that the MMR vaccine is cheap, effective and safe; given that there are about five million of us in British Columbia; and given that about half of us know that we’ve had it and the other half don’t know or, perhaps, possibly haven’t had it, can we make it more readily available so that any licensed practitioner — pharmacist, nurse practitioner, physician, nurse, public health nurse — could be prepared and armed to have this?
The obvious thing to do is to put up a sign in front of every pharmacy in British Columbia, saying: “If you were in any of the following locations, you may have been exposed. Come on in and get a free immunization.”
Is the minister prepared to take that retail-level action so that parents can be reassured and have the option to be sure their child has had the MMR?
Hon. A. Dix: As the member knows, of course, with respect to retail pharmacies, right now the rules are that pharmacists can deliver the vaccine, over the age of five, and there are some reasons for that to work through. But I think that’s a huge category of people who can access vaccines through pharmacy. Generally speaking, with the MMR vaccine, which is measles, mumps and rubella, you get the first shot at or around the age of one, and then the booster shot between the ages of four and six.
What is critical for our public health system as well…. This is where issues around lack of access to nurse practitioners and family doctors are important. We just announced, for example, in the Tri-Cities and New Westminster a primary care network which will expand access to primary care. What we found was that one of the areas where people were lacking care was in pre- and post-natal care in that area. Having access to a family doctor is critical, so that part of it as well.
The support for basic health of British Columbians is, I think, an important part of this. There are things we can do now. There are specific urgent actions we can take now. I agree with the hon. member. As well, we have to make the structural changes in systems to ensure that children’s health is better. That includes access to family doctors, access to nurse practitioners, access to basic health care and basic primary health care.
There are more than three-quarters of a million people in British Columbia right now without a family practice doctor, attached to a family practice doctor or nurse practitioner. That number is too high. Whenever an issue like this emerges, you see the impact of that in society. We have to make improvements there, and we are.
CALL FOR PUBLIC INQUIRY
INTO MONEY
LAUNDERING
A. Weaver: Please let me start by thanking members of the opposition and the minister for canvassing such an important issue and having the dialogue that led to some very informative answers that we can take back to our constituency. I thank you for the questioning there.
A recent article from the Vancouver Sun pointed out that the scale of money laundering happening here in British Columbia is still unclear. A report last year from the Paris-based financial action task force indicated that $1 billion a year was laundered through a “massive” underground bank in British Columbia that served Mexican cartels, Asian gangs and Middle Eastern crime groups.
Illegal gambling money, drug money and money derived from extortion was laundered in British Columbia to supply cash to Chinese gamblers, yet our government continues to take a reactive approach to money laundering. There’s a deficit of public trust in our province, and the people of British Columbia deserve a government that will take a more proactive approach to this issue.
My question to the Attorney General is this. Will the minister introduce a public inquiry into money laundering in British Columbia?
Hon. D. Eby: I thank the member for the question, and all members for the tone in the Legislature today. I think it’s great.
In terms of the member’s question about the approach that the government is taking, we were clear, from the very beginning, about why we have taken the approach of doing reviews into money laundering versus a public inquiry. We can move faster. We can get the information that we need, and we can stop the activity that is actually taking place in British Columbia. We saw that in the casino file. We were able to stop the activity of bringing bulk cash into the casinos very quickly, as a result of a review. A public inquiry takes longer to get to those kinds of results.
That doesn’t mean we don’t have the same questions that the member has about who knew what and when, what kind of accountability there should be — the kinds of questions that can be answered through a public inquiry. What it does mean is that we need to take action to stop the activity as quickly as we can.
The member knows that Dr. German is currently working on questions related to horse racing, luxury cars and real estate. I can tell the member that Dr. German is already uncovering some very disturbing information that’s causing government to take action and enabling us to take quick action. I’m very grateful for Dr. German doing that kind of work for us, but that does not exclude the possibility of a public inquiry.
I thank the member for making his party’s position very clear on this issue — and all British Columbians, frankly, who have written to me about this issue to express their interest in a public inquiry as well.
Mr. Speaker: The Leader of the Third party on a supplemental.
A. Weaver: I thank the minister for the answer to the previous question.
While I do appreciate the response I received, the question I’m left with is: how many reports and news stories do we need to be written to convince this government that more resources are required to solve the problem? This government needs to develop solutions, not wait for them to arrive on their doorstep and wait for other reports to articulate them.
Last week the Attorney General made reference to the fact that one of the top five transnational criminal organizations in the world was getting tax credits from Advantage B.C. A criminal organization getting tax credits in British Columbia to launder money — it’s absolutely unbelievable. It’s an unbelievable allegation. It’s clear that government doesn’t yet understand the scope of this issue and that one or two reports is not enough.
In order to get to the root of this problem, we need an independent approach that can address the broad scope of money laundering in our province. Previously the Premier stated that he prefers prosecution over public inquiry. However, transparency watchdogs and lawyers who are experts on transnational crime have called for a public inquiry. That’s the only way to effectively deal with this problem. A public inquiry, along the lines of what occurred in the Charbonneau Commission, can run in parallel to criminal investigations that may or may not be ongoing.
Again, my question is to the Attorney General. When will the minister institute a public inquiry on the issue of money laundering in our province?
Hon. D. Eby: A couple of pieces about the member’s question. One is in relation to prosecutions. The member knows that the federal prosecution fell apart. It was expected to go to trial; it didn’t. It was ultimately stayed just before it was going to go to trial. Those materials are being reviewed by provincial prosecutors right now to determine whether or not our independent prosecution service will be bringing charges in relation to those materials. That’s ongoing.
A public inquiry, itself, will not result in criminal charges. It provides accountability. It provides the public with transparency into what took place — who knew what and when. It is a political accountability tool, but it is not a prosecution tool — just to draw that important distinction. Now, that’s not to say it doesn’t have an important place in the tools of accountability of government; it’s just to say that it has that limitation.
The work that we’re doing right now is not reactive. We’re out there. We have experts on this issue. The Minister of Finance cancelled Advantage B.C., right? That is the program that gave the tax credits to PacNet. We are taking the steps that are needed. We’re getting the experts to provide advice. We’re actually taking steps — the Ministry of Finance on the beneficial ownership registry — so that we actually know who owns property, an important tool for police and for tax authorities. We have Peter German out there, working on important issues so that we can take action in relation to those other areas that I’ve told the member about. We’re taking a lot of action on this.
As I said to the member and as I would say to all British Columbians, that does not mean — the Premier has been very clear — that we have ruled out a public inquiry on this issue. It just means that we’re taking these steps, these necessary steps, first.
TRANS-CANADA HIGHWAY UPGRADE
PROJECT IN CHILLIWACK
AREA
L. Throness: Well, I hate to change the tone in the chamber, but my constituents are frustrated. Every day, 53,000 vehicles pass over the Vedder Bridge, west of Chilliwack, on their way to Vancouver. That’s 19 million trips every year, one-way.
The former government had Treasury Board approval to widen the freeway. It was in our capital plan. It was all ready, and then this government cancelled it. The Finance Minister forgot about it in her budget.
Why did the government cancel the plan to stop the gridlock on the No. 1?
Hon. C. Trevena: I have to say that I think the members opposite do confuse press releases with real structured plans and announcements. There was a press release that went out from the B.C. Liberals in March 2017 — which was, I guess, six weeks before the election — saying that they were going to be going ahead with six-laning that section of the Trans-Canada.
I would like to remind them and remind the former Minister of Transportation, as well as his colleagues who live and work down the valley, that there was no federal money attached to that press release.
L. Throness: The Trans-Canada is our national highway. It’s one of the main transportation corridors in the country for goods and services that travel in and out of Canada’s third-largest city. I can’t imagine a better illustration of the NDP’s lack of financial sense than to ignore this huge impediment to our economy in last week’s budget.
When will the government do what’s best for B.C.’s business, tourists, travellers, commuters, taxpayers and everybody else? When will they do it?
Hon. C. Trevena: The member is asking when we’ll do it — cognizant of the fact, I’m sure, that the B.C. Liberals were in power for 16 years. In our 17 months, we do continue to work with communities….
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members. Members, if we please may hear the response.
Hon. C. Trevena: We don’t intend to make premature announcements. We intend to continue to work with….
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members. Members, we don’t have a question. We’re waiting for a response.
Minister.
Hon. C. Trevena: I would say that the other approach we’re taking, as well as actually talking to communities and making sure we get the full involvement of communities, is that when we are building infrastructure, we are not going to be tolling people to ensure that it is paid for. We’re paying with our budget.
MASSEY TUNNEL REPLACEMENT PROJECT
I. Paton: Well, this morning I’m a little astounded by a couple of things. First, I was astounded by the non-announcement of the Massey Tunnel replacement a few months ago in Vancouver. Despite raising $5.5 billion in taxes, this budget offers nothing to fund the replacement of the Massey Tunnel. There is no bigger traffic bottleneck in the province than the Massey Tunnel, and the need for a replacement has been studied to death.
The other thing that astounds me is that the Premier has gone to Washington state and put thousands of dollars into a study for a possible rapid train that would cost as much as $40 billion. This makes a lot of sense. With the traffic congestion and gridlock on the North Shore, on Highway 1, south of the Fraser, we’d rather spend money to get a fast train from Seattle to Vancouver, which would get you to Vancouver in less than one hour. If you live south of the Fraser, you’re better off to move to Seattle and take the train to get to downtown Vancouver.
To the Transportation Minister, can she tell the people of Delta why there is nothing in the budget to fund the replacement of the George Massey Tunnel?
Hon. C. Trevena: Very interesting. The previous member said that Highway 1 was the most important project. Now we hear the member for Delta South talk about this being the most important project.
My responsibility is to make sure that people can travel safely on our highways…
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members, we shall hear the response. Thank you.
Hon. C. Trevena: …and that we are investing appropriately. As the member well knows, we had an extensive review done by a respected engineer, Mr. Stan Cowdell, who showed that the previous government’s approach, a $3.5 billion tolled bridge that people south of Fraser would be using and having to pay tolls for, was the wrong project for the region.
I’ve got to say that the previous government’s approach — their elbows-up approach, as the former Transportation Minister described it — is one of the reasons why this has been so delayed. We are now talking with communities, ensuring that communities who opposed a ten-lane bridge that they would have to pay for through tolls are actually engaged and helping in the decision-making.
Mr. Speaker: The member for Delta South on a supplemental.
I. Paton: After five years and 14,000 pages of consultation reports, incredibly, this government will keep studying the George Massey Tunnel replacement for another two or three years. And this government has suggested that spending $40 million more on new lightbulbs and a paint job will somehow ease the congestion of 80,000 truckers and commuters each day.
The minister threw away $100 million that had already been invested in the tunnel replacement, and because of this ongoing delay, companies such as London Drugs are threatening to relocate.
Again, to the minister, where is the money to replace the tunnel, and when will construction begin?
Hon. C. Trevena: I know that people are frustrated with congestion and bottlenecks at the Massey Tunnel. Mr. Cowdell’s review did confirm that a ten-lane bridge was the wrong project for the region. He showed that there are better options for the region that could provide benefits at a far lower cost. And unlike the former government, the B.C. Liberals, we are willing to discuss with communities the options that work best for them.
We know that people are eager for relief. We do know that. We’re not blind to this. We can see the congestion, which is why, in the meantime, we are working aggressively on congestion relief, on intersection relief and on what the former member dismisses as important safety measures to make sure that that tunnel is safer for people who are using it.
SCHOOL DISTRICT FUNDING
AND POTENTIAL SCHOOL
CLOSINGS
D. Davies: The government is now proposing to close dozens of schools, and that just rips the guts right out of our communities. And that’s not me saying that. That’s the…
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members. The member for Peace River North has the floor.
D. Davies: …words of the now Education Minister, said on June 10, 2015. Does the Minister of Education still agree with his statements?
Hon. R. Fleming: What I would say to that member…. I haven’t heard him comment on it publicly before, but he will have a chance to ask another question.
Budget 2019 is the best news the K-to-12 school system has ever had in the history of British Columbia. Our government has been in office for 18 months. We have never seen seismic investments so accelerated in British Columbia’s history. A quarter-billion dollars have been invested in Vancouver schools alone. There’s more on the way.
The operating budget for the school system today is $6.6 billion. That’s $1 billion more than under the old government. That’s leading to the hiring of thousands of new teachers, thousands of new educational assistants, the lowest class sizes we’ve seen in generations and improvements in the school system in every part of British Columbia and Vancouver in particular.
Mr. Speaker: The member for Peace River North on a supplemental.
D. Davies: Well, the best news? I’m not too sure if you can tell that to the Vancouver school board. Twenty-eight schools are on the chopping block in Vancouver — something, again, the minister said would rip the guts out of neighbourhoods.
This is what else he said. The people of British Columbia know that “the provincial budget decides what the funding level is for education.” The provincial budget decides. I further quote: “It would take a lot a money to stabilize school districts and to stop school closures.”
Does he still agree with what he said or not?
Hon. R. Fleming: Thank you very much to the member for the question. I welcome the opportunity to clear up the kinds of misconceptions he’s trying to spread out there. The reality is there has been….
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members.
Hon. R. Fleming: The reality is there has been a 100 percent sea change in education policy in this province, and it’s good for….
Interjections.
Hon. R. Fleming: I’ll give the members on the opposite side this. They’re experts in school closures. They closed 240 of them in British Columbia. What’s happening in every region of British Columbia today is quite different. We’re reopening schools that that government closed. If they’d done what we did in 18 months over 16 years, there wouldn’t be any seismic upgrades left to do in the province of British Columbia.
The members in Richmond know that we did in one year more than they did in 16 years. Parents in Vancouver know that we’re going twice as fast as the previous government ever managed to do. It’s a quarter-billion dollars already invested in Vancouver schools, and we’re just getting started.
[End of question period.]
Petitions
D. Clovechok: I’d like to take this opportunity to present a petition to the Premier with 972 letters. It’s of great concern that the government of B.C. has not provided adequate consultation opportunities regarding the closures in the back country that relate to the issues surrounding species at risk. Industry stakeholders and the general public deserve a say to their government about this critical issue.
Tabling Documents
Hon. C. James: I rise to table the B.C. Public Service Benefit Plan Act 2017-2018 annual report.
Mr. Speaker: Members, I have a report to table, and that is the Progress Audit: Correctional Facilities and Programs report, 2019.
Orders of the Day
Hon. M. Farnworth: I call continued debate on the budget.
[J. Isaacs in the chair.]
Budget Debate
(continued)
T. Shypitka: It gives me great pleasure to rise here today to give my response to Budget 2019 on behalf of the hard-working and fun-loving people of Kootenay East. Before I start with my response to the budget, I would first like to acknowledge the passing of four fine community citizens in the region of Kootenay East.
The names of Maxine Caldwell, Bud Abbott, Colin Campbell and Elkford city councillor Joe Zarowny will not be forgotten, although they have been taken from our lives. These four individuals separately contributed much more than anyone could think humanly possible. All of them cared deeply about their communities and were leaders in their own right.
Volunteers, promoters, Good Samaritans and ambassadors are something that all communities need to function properly. All four of these individuals were role models and exemplified what community service means. We can only stand back and bask in the glow of the legacy that they left us all. To the families of Maxine, Bud, Colin and Joe, we share in your loss, not necessarily as blood relatives — although some of us are — but as community family. They have touched us all, and they will all be sorely missed.
Also, I’d like to thank my assistants that make my job very manageable: Heather Smith and Christy Wheeldon in Cranbrook; Wendy King here in Victoria; as well as my expert researcher, Dylan Kelso; and comm specialists Adam Luk and Stu Bertrand. Thank you for all you do.
Finally, to my three children. Dustin, with his brand-new wife, Julie; Allie and Adam for their contributions of support, supporting my role as MLA; and my gorgeous wife Carrie, of course, for being the rock that she is and holding down the fort.
Now on to my response to Budget 2019. I wanted to do something a little bit different here today. I wanted to appease to the other side a little bit. Sometimes we have this left-brain, right-brain mentality. I wanted to not speak so much about numbers, but go to the artsy side of our brain so maybe we can relate a little bit better. So I will clear my vocal chords a little bit.
One evening as the sun went down
and the jungle fire was burning,
down the track came a hobo hiking,
and she said, “Boys, I’m not turning.
I’m headed for a land that’s far away,
beside the crystal fountains.
So come with me; we’ll go and see
the Big Rock Candy Mountains.”
That’s the first verse of a popular song that was written in 1895 by a fellow by the name of Harry McClintock. He recorded it in the late 1920s, and it’s entitled Big Rock Candy Mountain. Mr. McClintock wrote this song as a road traveller, describing what paradise would look like, a fictional place that he desperately would love to find.
However, after reviewing this whimsical tune — I was reminded by my astute colleague from West Vancouver–Capilano over there — I suddenly came to realize that Mr. McClintock was much more than just a songwriting hobo. He was truly a visionary, a 19th-century soothsayer, if you will. He had the ability to predict future events.
The event Mr. McClintock prophesied in 1895 was the NDP budget in 2019 — amazingly, almost 125 years later. In the next 20 minutes, we’ll see how clearly the lyrics to this classical jig perfectly align with the messaging of this year’s budget. The Nostradamical view of this musician would be proved much more than just coincidence. Let’s dissect the song line by line, shall we?
The first line: “One evening as the sun went down, and the jungle fire was burning.” Clearly, the reference here is to the sun going down, and the “jungle fire burning” is the political landscape the NDP was experiencing after losing the confidence of their core supporters over the acceptance of Site C; fracking practices for natural gas, which will prevent them from reaching climate targets; and the abysmal conclusion to the vote on proportional representation.
The next line: “Down the track came a hobo hiking, and she said: ‘Boys, I’m not turning.’” The hobo coming down the track — “the track” representing the budget process — would, therefore, logically be the Finance Minister saying to her cabinet that she has a clear direction and that she cannot be swayed.
The next line:
I’m headed for a land that’s far away
beside the crystal
fountains.
So come with me; we’ll go and see
the Big Rock Candy
Mountains.
Obviously, this is the Finance Minister selling her pitch to the Premier and cabinet on her glorious vision of a full-bounty budget, which is referred to in the song as “Big Rock Candy Mountains.” The budget is synonymous with the words “Big Rock Candy Mountains.”
The chorus of the song is somewhat self-explanatory, as it describes the litany of freebies that the budget — the Big Rock Candy Mountains — is prepared to offer. Let’s examine that for just a moment:
In the Big Rock Candy Mountains,
there’s a land that’s fair
and bright,
where the handouts grow on bushes
and you sleep out
every night,
where the boxcars all are empty
and the sun shines
every day.
All the birds and the bees
and the cigarette
trees,
the lemonade springs
where the bluebird sings
in the Big
Rock Candy Mountains.
The first chorus illustrates that the budget proposed appears to be a very happy place, with singing birds and “lemonade springs” — which clearly describes Site C. Also, with “handouts growing on bushes,” perhaps that’s referring to the child opportunity fund.
However, this part of the song does paint some conflicting foreshadows, pointing out empty boxcars, which is signalling an empty economy, with our natural resources such as mining and forest products not going out to export — an empty train, if you will. “Sleeping out every night” certainly predicts the lack of projected housing due to severe drop in housing starts — 26 percent over the next three years, as the budget mentions.
More disturbingly — and this is part of the foreshadowing I was talking about — the inclusion of “cigarette trees” proves that there is a cancerous overtone to this budget that is secretly hidden within the landscape.
Let’s skip to the second verse, which may pull some of this prediction even closer to reality, shall we?
In the Big Rock Candy Mountains,
all the cops have wooden
legs,
and the bulldogs all have rubber teeth,
and the hens lay
soft-boiled eggs.
This certainly refers to what the Attorney General feels about the enforcement on the money-laundering issue. The AG believes that police or the investigators have been ineffective — the cops having “wooden legs.” However, the reality is that the Attorney General has no bite to solving this crisis. That’s referring to the bulldogs with “rubber teeth.”
“The hen that lays soft-boiled eggs” means more goodies in the budget. However, they are soft, a meaning perhaps referring to the interest-free loans to postgraduate students, which is a good idea. On average, this benefit will save the average student $2,600 over ten years, which is just over 20 bucks a month. It’s admirable and welcome, but it’s not really a game-changer to strengthening our economy.
The next line:
The farmers’ trees are full of fruits,
and the barns are
full of hay.
This line clearly demonstrates the NDP singing the song to British Columbians: “Don’t worry; the budget is balanced, and we have oodles of money. We have a surplus” — exclamation mark. That being said, the surplus they are talking about here is on a razor’s edge.
At only $274 million, this budget is dependent on many variables and unknowns, such as global economic turndowns in China; a one-time federal transfer payment of $1.6 billion; emergency spending — such as forest fires, as we’ve seen in the last two years, at record levels, and flooding; trade, with the new U.S. and Canada trade agreement, which is just brand-new, and particularly, the U.S. steel tariffs on Canadian steel. That will affect our economy.
The success of LNG Canada is not a done deal, by any means. It’s on a grim course right now, perhaps. What about random costs, such as maybe a measles outbreak? These are all things that affect the budget, and the budget is on a razor’s edge.
Let’s continue, shall we?
Oh, I’m bound to go
where there ain’t no snow,
where the
rain don’t fall,
the wind don’t blow —
in the Big Rock Candy
Mountains.
This is clearly a hidden message directed as a slant on rural British Columbia. The Lower Mainland has an attractive climate, compared to the rugged regions of our province. The budget completely ignores rural B.C. It gives us nothing. It gives nothing to our search and rescue efforts, which are invaluable with our rugged terrain.
There’s absolutely nothing for wildlife in this budget — and ecosystem restoration. I come from the Kootenays, and a lot of us from rural British Columbia are majorly disappointed in the lack of funding for, as I said, search and rescue.
Our wildlife in my region is in total decimation right now. Ungulates are at an all-time low, and we’re seeing lots of other conflicting things as far as caribou recovery — uncertainty, no consultation. Clearly, in the message, Mr. McClintock prophesized this 125 years earlier. Truly remarkable.
So if you want the goodies, in this song, it clearly says: “Oh, I’m bound to go where there ain’t no snow….” Victoria, other than last week, has no snow. If you want the goodies, you have to go where there ain’t no snow, which is urban B.C. We see lots of stuff in the budget on some bridges and schools down in the Lower Mainland but nothing in rural B.C.
Let’s move on with the song, shall we?
In the Big Rock Candy Mountains,
you never change your
socks,
and the little streams of alcohol
come trickling down the
rocks.
This is another reference to the economy here, stating that nobody changed their socks, obviously, because they never get dirty from work, as the budget does not spell out a jobs plan. No jobs plan in here at all. So in this fantasy land, nobody changed their socks because nobody is working, clearly.
A jobs plan is critical to building an economy as well as building opportunities for all. The Premier himself has said that British Columbians are currently working two or three jobs, and he is the leader of government. That is why a high-skills job plan is so important. But it seems this government is complacent, with clean socks that never need to get changed.
The alcohol trickling down the rocks is symbolic for trickle-down economics, I would think. The irony placed here by the songwriter is the harm to the economy that will not come from a no-jobs plan and that trickle-down economics will not happen with all the taxes that have been implemented.
Nineteen new or increased taxes this government has brought forward — over $5½ billion. This is not something that’s going to drive our economy. This is something that’s going to stagnate us. And this, once again, has been prophesized.
I believe the songwriter was having a little tongue-in-cheek fun with this line in the song. It would be quite humorous if it wasn’t so devastating to so many families and communities.
The song continues:
The brakemen have to tip their hats,
and the railroad bulls
are blind.
This clearly illustrates the railroad being the substitute pipeline for the Trans Mountain pipeline. “Railroad bulls” is, essentially, a slang term for railroad police. You would probably remember that, Member for West Vancouver–Capilano, the old slang term railroad bulls. That’s back in the earlier days of transportation.
Transportation of oil by rail is a lot more dangerous than by pipeline. The fact that the government wants to use trains for the transportation of oil is for political reasons. The government, therefore, needs the public and all those associated with it to be blind to this fact, and that’s where the railroad bulls are blind.
Continuing on:
There’s a lake of stew
and of whiskey too.
You can
paddle all around them
in a big canoe
in the Big Rock Candy
Mountains.
There is a lot of symbolism here, and no question this segment speaks about the CleanBC plan. The paddling around in the big canoe is symbolic for electric vehicles. The lakes of stew and whiskey are the bounty of cash this project will receive from the budget. Unfortunately, these lakes will not be near big enough, as the NDP has shortchanged the plan, offering up only 15 percent of what the carbon tax brings in. The rest is going to general revenue for pet projects.
The carbon tax will bring in approximately $6 billion in revenue over the next three years, as we go from $35 a tonne to $50 a tonne, making our resource sector that much less competitive.
For the CleanBC plan to only get $900 million of that $6 billion is such a disappointment, especially to our members from the Green Party. We thought they would be able to have some influence over this current government.
The prediction in this song is truly amazing — 125 years ago. Wouldn’t you agree? I do.
As we head into the final stanza of the song of revelations, we tie it all together.
In the Big Rock Candy Mountains,
the jails are made of
tin,
and you can walk right out again
as soon as you are
in.
This is very apparent that the jails are symbolic for the revolving doors of promises that the NDP has made. There is no conviction to keep promises in place. Once a promise is made, it finds its way in and then out the back door again instantly.
The budget doesn’t address the big promises of $10-a-day daycare. There’s no $400 renters rebate. The 114,000 affordable units seem to be extremely out of reach. A land that welcomes broken promises is exactly where the NDP would like to go.
Next line:
There ain’t no short-handled shovels,
no axes, saws nor
picks.…
where you sleep all day,
where they hung the jerk
that
invented work
in the Big Rock Candy Mountains.
The reference to axes and saws is obviously talking about the forest sector, and the mining industry is symbolized by picks. The fact that none of these working tools have handles — or fail to exist at all — suggests that these sectors are not recognized in the budget and will fail miserably in the coming cycle. To Mr. McClintock’s credit, the 2019 budget does verify a drop in resource revenue of 30 percent. So this is essentially confirmed by Mr. McClintock’s prophecy.
Being B.C. Mining Day yesterday, this is undoubtedly disappointing for me, being the mining critic. The miners and the suppliers I talked to last night are very disappointed in this year’s budget, with essentially nothing to supporting the mining sector.
Interjection.
T. Shypitka: Well, I hear a member on the other side speaking about $20 million, but quite honestly, $20 million to add further bureaucracy and tie things up is really something they don’t want to see at all, I would think.
We’ll continue with the song. I’ve got the ear of some of the members over there. They’re actually truly amazed by the prophecy that this man wrote.
Where you sleep all day,
where you hung the jerk
that
invented work
in the Big Rock Candy Mountains.
The description of hanging the jerk that invented work is a distasteful insult to the B.C. Liberal Party that did have a jobs plan and was determined to put many British Columbians back to work with highly skilled and highly paid full-time jobs.
This budget does not mention anything about a jobs plan. It wasn’t almost until the very end, when I listened to the Finance Minister’s speech. About 55 minutes into the speech was the first time I heard the word “jobs” come up. That’s once again prophesized here.
It is truly amazing that Harry McClintock, the writer of this song, would be able to see the hatred the NDP has for B.C. Liberals 125 years ago, especially after the B.C. Liberals had 16 years of good governments that boasted the best economy in the country, lowest unemployment, highest triple-A credit rating in North America, lowest personal taxes to those under $125,000. The list is long. Maybe 16 years wasn’t quite as bad as the other side always seems to say. It was a very positive time in our provincial economy.
The final line of the song says:
I’ll see you all
this coming fall
in the Big Rock Candy
Mountains.
This, clearly, once again, states the continuous motion of this budget and the other things that have been put forward, kicking projects down the road, such as the child opportunity fund, which is planned to come on line in the fall of 2020 — almost two years from now. It’s 20 months from now, and it’s in this year’s budget.
It also speaks to the endless trough of task force consults, reviews and examinations that do nothing to actually consult with everyday British Columbians. The caribou recovery program immediately comes to mind when I think of that. Industry, user groups, stakeholders and everyday citizens have essentially been shut out of any input whatsoever.
I look at the child opportunity fund being proposed in this year’s budget, and it actually makes me shake my head a little bit, where something that’s not coming on line until the fall of 2020 is proposed in the budget of 2019.
If they understood — and they clearly do, because they’ve said it — that this plan doesn’t come on line until 2020, then why wouldn’t you put it in the budget of 2020? Why are you holding this carrot out for people with these false hopes that we’ve seen so many other times before? It’s a hollow budget.
When you think of famous soothsayers and prophets throughout history, we immediately think of the brilliant minds such as Nostradamus, of course. Stephen Hawking was quite a visionary. Benjamin Franklin. The blind prophet Baba Vanga. Biff Tannen. Well, he was from Back to the Future. I don’t know if you remember Biff. That might not be quite the same. He did have Marty McFly’s almanac, so he wasn’t really legit, but I’ll throw Biff in there as well. We should also be adding Harry McClintock, with his predictions of this year’s budget, almost 125 years later — truly amazing.
I think I’ve got a little bit more time. The budget highlights what we would expect from this government — taxing and spending at a record rate. Nothing about how we generate revenues. And there’s no jobs program on how we lift up British Columbians to highly skilled and highly paid jobs, no real funding to our natural resource sector, which is projected to drop 30 percent in the upcoming years, no funding to rural B.C. for agriculture, ranching and wildlife.
Our poor search and rescue operators. They give their volunteer time and save lives, especially in my riding and the riding of the member next to me from Columbia River–Revelstoke. These are really solid, salt-of-the-earth people. There’s nothing for them.
This budget appears to be more and more of a campaign speech than anything else, to me. I look at it, and I say: “This is a populist-type speech that’s trying to get the ear of people that want to listen to this stuff.”
Nothing about $10-a-day child care. That’s been ignored. Renters rebate. Like I said, 114,000 portable homes — not on the table. Truly hollow.
I’m going to cut it short there. I wanted to give you quality, not quantity here today. On behalf of myself; the Kootenay East riding; Mr. McClintock, who wrote the amazing song; and the constituents of Kootenay East, I cannot support this hollow budget.
Hon. M. Mungall: I’m very pleased today to rise in support of the budget that was delivered by the Minister of Finance just a week ago today, actually.
First, before I start conducting my comments on the budget, I just want to acknowledge some of the people that are in my riding who are holding down the fort at my constituency office. Laurie Langille, who has been with me since I ran for the nomination to be the candidate for the New Democratic Party for Nelson-Creston. She is just a stellar human being who works every single day for the people of our constituency and has just been delivering excellent service to them for almost ten years now.
Also in my constituency office is another wonderful person, Tessa Bendig, who is always answering the phones and making sure that people are connected to the services that they need throughout the community. The two of them combined are a real powerhouse and working for the benefit of people that I represent.
A new addition to my constituency office is a young woman from the Kootenays. Her name is Danika Hammond. She’s my executive assistant for the ministry, and she’s been doing a really great job at connecting people in the area to ministry services, helping people throughout British Columbia actually get connected with ministry services and get information, as well, about the ministry and the types of things that we do on the ground every single day. It’s wonderful to have such a bright young woman from New Denver, which is a metropolis of, I believe, about 600 people, in my constituency office — and having that background in the region.
Of course, let me just give a shout-out, as well, to my ministerial office staff. We have Kate Duncan, who is my administrative coordinator, and Lisa, whose last name I’m not going to brutalize right now. She’s our administrative assistant. She’s the bright, shiny face that you see when you come into the ministry office. Melissa Sanderson, who is just a phenomenal superstar of a staff person, is my senior ministerial assistant, and Scott Andrews has been working in my office for about six months now — seven months actually. He started the same time that my son was born, so seven months now. Prior to that was James McNish. I’ve just really been fortunate to be surrounded by such wonderful staff people.
Of course, I could get started on the senior executive of the ministry, but, Madam Speaker, I do need to start making some comments on the budget before you shut me down.
I want to just say thank you so much to everybody in the ministry for their diligent and hard work that they deliver day in and day out for the people of British Columbia. Before I do move on to my comments for the budget, it would be horrible for me to not recognize my wonderful husband, Zak Matieschyn, who is currently on parental leave looking after our little one, who is seven months old, Zavier. My family grew this year, and it’s just been such a delight to be a mother, especially to the little guy that I have who was with me last night at the reception for Mining Day and just absolutely enjoying the opportunity to socialize with so many people.
This budget. When I first read it and got to hear the Minister of Finance deliver her full speech and talk about all the things that are in this budget, the word that came to my mind to describe it was “beautiful.” This is a beautiful budget.
One of the reasons why I think it’s so beautiful is that it truly reflects the values of the people that I represent. Not surprisingly, I think that I come from the best riding in the province, Nelson-Creston. You can’t look anywhere in that entire riding and not see the beauty of British Columbia — the beautiful mountains, the forests, the wildlife. Kootenay Lake is just stunning. No matter what season it is and whether you are skiing in the wintertime, hiking in the summer — absolutely, no matter where you are in Nelson-Creston, it’s beautiful.
The people from this area are beautiful. They have strong values — the idea that we help one another and that government has a responsibility to provide services, to put people first. Not just rich people; everybody. That is the value base of the people that I represent. That’s why this budget is so beautiful. It represents the values of beautiful British Columbia.
I want to talk about some of the things that are going to have a really positive impact for the people that I represent. As you can imagine, when I call up my local media and talk about some of the things that we’re doing here in Victoria, what they want to know is what is in it for the people in our area, what’s in it for people who live around Kootenay Lake.
Well, this is for all British Columbians, and it’s also for people who are living around Kootenay Lake. We’re eliminating the medical services premium. We are eliminating MSP. This is equivalent to one of the largest tax cuts in B.C. history.
So what does that mean? No longer do we have a regressive tax that charges everybody, no matter what their income, the same amount just to get health care services. We don’t have that anymore in British Columbia. Rather, we have a more progressive tax system that’s going to be paying for our health care that employers are going to be taking on. And the thing is, when you are able to employ people, it’s important that we also have the health care services that they need so that they can come to work, every single day, healthy and ready to do their job.
And that we have eliminated the MSP is a huge benefit to the people I represent who are struggling to make ends meet. Whether it’s been the affordable housing crisis or not being able to get child care or having to pay MSP premiums going up and up and up over the 16 years of the B.C. Liberal government — and the effects rate increases at B.C. Hydro have on Nelson Hydro or Fortis customers as well, rate hikes at ICBC and how that all increased over 16 years.
People in my area needed a break. They were struggling. Things that we don’t have a direct influence over — food pricing, for example. We are actually doing a lot on agriculture. I’m going to come back to that. But broadly, food pricing is something that happens in the private market, and that’s been increasing quite substantially over the last decade or so.
All of these things come down on to the same people. That we’re able to put $900 a year back into the pockets of people in my area is going to make a huge difference for them.
For families, though, they’re getting more. They’re getting more than just the elimination of the MSP. They’re getting the child opportunity benefit. That benefit…. We’re changing the parameters around that benefit, because up until March 31, that benefit was only available for families with children six years and under.
Going forward, starting in October 2020, once we put the application forward to the Canada Revenue Agency and work with them to develop this new benefit and all the wonderful administrative paperwork that comes with this, and it’s on line, that benefit will now be available to families with children up to 18 years old. That’s another 12 years that families are going to be able to access this benefit.
That benefit is also going up, $1,600 a year for one child. The more children a family has, the more of that benefit they will also get. For example, $1,600 for one child, $2,600 for two children, $3,400 for three children, and so on. What this is going to mean for families in my area is that they’re going to have more funds in their pockets to buy school supplies, to put food on the table, to pay for running shoes, to pay for field trips. The list goes on.
I remember, when I was in opposition, bringing forward the issue of the child support clawback, speaking to parents of children with disabilities who relied on income assistance, on disability, and who weren’t getting their child support about what that meant for them. It meant those very items — school supplies, food on the table, new clothing.
I remember this one girl. She was 14, and she just really wanted to go to the movies with her friends and not have to ask her friends to pay for her. She wanted to pay for herself. She wanted the dignity to pay for herself, to just go hang out with her friends, like a normal 14-year-old. More money in the hands of families is going to mean that they are going to be able to do that. They’re going to be able to afford those activities for their children right up until 18 years old.
I know I used to go the movies quite a bit in Nelson and Creston. I haven’t done that in seven months. My nights are occupied now, such as they are. You’d always see the teenagers at the early show in the evening — so something as simple as being able to spend time with your friends. Now that families are going to be more able to afford that is a good thing, not only for the families but for my local movie theatre and its viability as well.
I did mention about disability. I was talking about my past experiences. One of the first things this government did when we…. Actually, the very first thing we did as a cabinet was we raised income assistance rates and disability rates by $100 a month. While those rates…. And we’re all very proud of that, thank you very much. We’re all very proud of that, and guess what. We’re doing it again. We’re raising rates again, by $50 a month.
People living in property, struggling to get by — it doesn’t need to be so difficult. That this government is prioritizing their needs is something I’m very proud of, and I’m very proud to be working with my colleagues, who prioritize everybody of all incomes every single day, looking to make a more equitable society.
On that note, we know that B.C. has been living through an affordable housing crisis for many years. The previous government didn’t do a whole lot about it. There was some talk about it, but at the end of the day, they didn’t crack down on speculation. They let those safety deposits in the sky keep getting built over and over again, rather than putting money towards affordable housing and making sure that we have a wide range of market as well as social housing available at more affordable rates for British Columbians.
This government is continuing on its path to tackle that crisis. We have announced a registry to deal with the presales of condo flipping. We’ve talked about the speculation tax and what that’s doing for British Columbians across this province in terms of making housing more affordable. We’ve addressed the cost of putting a school tax on very pricey homes of over $3 million.
We’re looking at how we can create greater equity in the overall housing market and the private market. But we’re also committed to delivering on new units that we can build as a government. We have a $7 billion plan over ten years for 114,000 units. This budget continues on that plan rather than abandoning it or pretending that somehow things are all better now.
We recognize that it’s going to take several years to address this, and that’s exactly why we have developed the plan that we have. British Columbians can have confidence that there won’t be a time when this government, our New Democratic government, is going to be stepping away from its responsibilities to make sure that we have affordable housing in British Columbia for British Columbians.
I think it’s important to note, as well, that we are not the only ones actually active on the file of affordable housing and developing affordable housing. I want to share with you a story that came from Mining Day yesterday. Teck, in Elkford, in the Elk Valley, just in the riding next door to mine in Kootenay East, sees a very strong need for worker housing in Elkford in conjunction with their growing mining operations, so they are investing in modular homes for their workers.
Once those homes are no longer needed for their workers, I’ve been told that they are going to be gifting that for seniors housing so that we can address the need for seniors housing and so that the seniors can stay in their community of choice longer.
This is a really big issue in rural B.C., where a lot of seniors will find that either they can’t afford their long-term home, their family home. It’s maybe too big for their needs anymore and so on, and they’re looking to downsize, but there are not a lot of places for them to downsize to. That this will now be available to them at an affordable level in Elkford is, I think, very, very positive.
When companies like Teck are getting involved in taking care of their communities where they operate, it just shows the extent to how many British Columbians, companies, industries, individuals and government are getting involved and taking this issue very seriously.
Of course, I have to point out that it’s really disappointing when I hear members opposite talk about things such as their constant criticisms of these mechanisms that are actually increasing affordability. Members opposite have, obviously, criticized the real estate speculation tax. They want it to end. Well, what would that mean? That would mean $200 million per year to owners of B.C.’s 2 percent most expensive homes by eliminating the progressive component of the school tax, which is something I mentioned earlier, because it applies only to $3 million homes and more. It would mean $185 million to people with multiple vacant homes, by cancelling the speculation tax.
When they criticize the speculation tax, what they are doing is saying that those who have vacant homes, the dark windows in our communities that actually function to reduce vacancy and drive up demand and, therefore, drive up pricing…. They want to give more money back to those folks rather than make sure that those units are actually open and available to improve the vacancy rate and improve the pricing in our rental markets.
It’s clear to me when I listen to members opposite that their dedication to affordable housing is lacking, which is in stark contrast to what we’re seeing from this government and also British Columbians and companies all throughout the province.
Another area that is going to be benefiting people in my constituency is the elimination of interest on B.C. student loans. I have several students that I represent. I represent two post-secondary institutions from the public side: Selkirk College and College of the Rockies over in Creston.
I also have several private institutions where students are able to access B.C. student loans. The traditional Chinese medicine school is one. We have an art therapy institute, which is another, offering both undergraduate and graduate degrees. The list goes on and on.
Now that students are not going to have to pay interest on their B.C. portion of their student loan, it means more money in their pocket when they need it. When you graduate from post-secondary education and you have this huge burden of debt…. As we know, under the B.C. Liberals, tuition jumped. The rate for student loans was the highest in the country under their watch. Of course, that burdened young people with debt just when they were getting started in life.
We’re doing what we can with this budget to reduce that burden and make life more affordable for our students, and that’s by eliminating interest on student loans. As a former critic for Advanced Education and a former post-secondary student myself, I’m very proud of this. I’ve already paid off my student loans, and I paid interest in full. I’m very happy that students going forward don’t have that same situation that I’ve had and are able to afford basic necessities right when they’re getting started.
There’s a lot in this budget that is going directly to my ministry, the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, because my ministry is responsible for delivering on several of the programs related to CleanBC. The idea that we have a responsibility to reduce our impact on climate change and do what we can to decarbonize our economy here in British Columbia is a value very, very strongly held by the people that I represent.
I’m very proud that I’m going to be working with my ministry staff and working with the climate action secretariat and the advisory council and working with all members in terms of delivering on CleanBC. In fact, what I told folks back home that when I calculated up the amount of mega tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions that we plan to reduce with CleanBC, my ministry is responsible for two-thirds of those reductions.
Some of the things that we are investing in with CleanBC…. I’m going to give you some large numbers, and then I’m going to break it down for how it will impact people on the day to day. We have $107 million to help British Columbians switch to cleaner transportation through point-of-sale incentives. That’s for zero-emission vehicles. It’s about moving our fleet of cars on the road from a carbon-based combustion engine that’s burning carbon-based fuel, to a zero-emission vehicle, whether it’s electric or whether it’s hydrogen. There are different types of hybrids out there. They’re called plug-in hybrids.
All of those types of vehicles are now a part of our zero-emission vehicle program but also part of our mandate. This is part of achieving that overall mandate that we announced last fall. The intention is that all new cars being sold by 2040, all of them, will be a zero-emission vehicle. I think it’s possible, because the demand in this province is so high. The wait-lists that car dealers are seeing for zero-emission vehicles…. For Tesla 3s, some of them are two, three years long. The demand is absolutely there. We need to make sure that we have the supply. This mandate actually helps us achieve that goal of getting enough supply of these vehicles into British Columbia so that we can meet the demand here in our province to reduce our impact on climate change.
A lot of these vehicles are fairly pricey. We acknowledge that, so we want to help people. We want to incentivize people to buy these vehicles. We don’t want price to be a barrier as we are transitioning. As I said, $107 million. How does that break down?
Well, for most British Columbians, they’re going to be able to save up to $6,000 on the purchase of their new zero-emission vehicle. Approximately, that will work out in terms of their annual fuel cost…. That’ll be a savings of $1,500 if they are switching to electric vehicles from your typical gasoline-fuelled vehicles.
One of the other areas in CleanBC that is integral to the overall program is ramping up EfficiencyBC. This particular program is focused on…. We announced it just last fall, in September. It’s to green our buildings. It’s to make our buildings more energy-efficient, hence the name EfficiencyBC. So we have $58 million in addition to capital funding to make buildings more energy-efficient. This $58 million is going to be including incentives for homes and businesses to install high-efficiency heating equipment and building envelope improvements. What does that mean for people back home?
This is, I think, a really great opportunity for people who live in my riding, because there are a lot of heritage homes. Nelson is actually known as a heritage city. You can’t go down a street in Nelson without seeing heritage buildings, with most of those buildings actually being heritage buildings.
This is a great program for people to access to make that heritage building — building codes were much different 100 years ago — more energy-efficient. That could be helping people to replace their windows or switching from a fossil fuel heat source to an energy-efficient electric air-source heat pump. So there’s $2,000 available, if you’re looking to do that. If you’re looking to make that switch, there’s $2,000 available to do that through EfficiencyBC.
Or if you want to upgrade to a high-efficiency natural gas furnace, therefore reducing your overall energy outputs, there’s up to $700 for that. And as I mentioned about windows and doors, I love my 100-year-old windows, and I love my 100-year-old door, but I really do need to replace that door, because it is not efficient. Let me tell you, it is just not efficient. So for those in my community who have the same type of situation as me, with a heritage door or heritage windows, there’s $1,000 to upgrade your windows and doors to be better insulated in your home.
There are a variety of things that people can access to ensure that they’re reducing their impact on climate change but to make it more affordable, because, at the end of the day, that’s what this government wants to be doing. We want to make life more affordable for British Columbians. As I’ve touched on many avenues in which we’re doing that, helping people to reduce their energy costs, to reduce their energy consumption and doing it in a way that makes it more affordable, I think, is part of why this budget is so beautiful.
Part of CleanBC, though, is also about electrifying our gas fields. If we can move industry from burning fossil fuels to run its processes, to run its operations, and move it on to clean electricity that we generate here in British Columbia through B.C. Hydro’s hydroelectric dams, through renewable resources that are emission-free, we are reducing our impact on climate change.
We have programmed to do exactly that, which is targeting specifically our natural gas fields up in the northeast. What a lot of people in British Columbia don’t know is the northeast actually provides more than 58 percent of British Columbians with their heating source for their home. And that’s not going away any time soon.
How can we make this industry…? This industry wants to know how they can become more energy-efficient. We have identified a way to do that as part of our CleanBC plan, and we’re going to be delivering on that as well.
One of the things, though, that we have to recognize is that not every jurisdiction has a carbon tax. So I want to talk about the carbon tax a little bit. Here in British Columbia, it was actually the previous government who instituted the carbon tax, and we’ve kept that carbon tax, recognizing that it actually does have value in terms of incentivizing industry and individuals to reduce their carbon emissions.
We also want to make sure that it is not hindering our competitiveness. Should we hinder competitiveness in our industries, that could have a negative impact in terms of job creation or maintaining the existing number of jobs that we have.
Many of our industries, such as mining…. I’ll come back to mining in a bit. Mining plays a considerable role in B.C.’s economy. It’s a foundational industry.
I just noticed that I’ve got two minutes left, and I’ve got so much more to say. I’m going to quickly say that we put $20 million into mining to put more boots on the ground so that we can clear up the backlog of permits that happened under the previous government and we can ensure that we are enforcing health and safety and environmental protection so that the industry is sustainable and so that people are not at risk of losing their jobs, should a situation like Mount Polley….
We want to prevent that from happening, not bury our heads in the ground. I know that industry is very supportive of this, unlike what the critic for mining said earlier in his speech. But we’ve also made permanent two important tax credits that are going to promote exploration so that we can grow the industry in this province.
I wish I was the designated speaker for this, because I could speak for hours about how great this budget is for the people I represent, for British Columbia. I am so proud to be standing here in support of what is a beautiful budget for beautiful British Columbia that is delivering on the needs of British Columbians every single day.
J. Martin: I probably have a few minutes before we’ll take our adjournment for lunch, resuming in the afternoon. This is the first opportunity to speak in the House in this context since the resumption of the session. Always happy to be here.
One thing I always like to get on the record every parliamentary session is just how fortunate, privileged and humbled I am to be here. I look around in this magnificent chamber — the architecture and the history that has gone on here. I know that every member, those that are part of the 2017 election cohort and those that have been there for several terms before me, would feel the same way.
I would hope that anyone who walks into this chamber and takes their seat and fails to recognize how privileged they are to support their constituency would think that maybe it’s time to do something else, because we are privileged. There’s such a short list of people who have ever been able to serve in this Legislature. For those that do have the opportunity and the distinction of having done so, it’s something that we’ll take to our graves as one of the most special opportunities that we’ve had in our lifetime.
Like everybody else, I’m not here by accident. It’s not a fluke. I’m here due to the support and the hard work of numerous people. I’d like to first give a shout-out to the people that keep my constituency office going in my absence. I’ve got an outstanding team. I’ve got a young woman just out high school, Montana Armstrong, who is holding down the fort. She’s the first person you’ll see when you come into my office. I’ve got Hank Pilotte in the office, who does the bulk of the casework that comes in when I’m over here.
I’m particularly fortunate to have Matthew Hawkins, who I introduced in the House yesterday, who is probably the best videographer I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. He’s just got such a keen eye for what’s special in Chilliwack and what should be recognized and put up on Facebook. He does all of my videos, almost all of the photography, so he’s part of the team.
The one that really keeps things going and the only reason I’m here is my wonderful wife, Margaret Martin. She’ll be coming over next week. She doesn’t get over here an awful lot because we have two shelties that are kind of awkward to travel with. Shout-out to Blue and The Dude. They miss me terribly when I’m away, and it’s mutual. I miss them as well.
[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]
The people that are on my riding executive, obviously, have done an immense effort to keep the riding of Chilliwack in the win column for the B.C. Liberals. They’re great people. Many of them have been serving the constituency for years and years, way before I became part of the family.
I will look forward to speaking to the budget, probably in a little less of a friendly, collegial tone when I get to resume. But, you know, that’s part of the business. I’m in opposition. There’s a job to do.
The members across, most of them, served in opposition as well. They more than anyone probably have an appreciation of some of the challenges that a member must go through in opposition. One of the things that we are to do is to hold a government to account, and I look forward to doing that with respect to Budget 2019 when I have an opportunity to resume my place.
Having said that, I would like to reserve my place in the debate, and I now call for adjournment of the debate.
J. Martin moved adjournment of debate.
Motion approved.
Hon. A. Dix: I want to move that the House do now adjourn. We’ll see everybody this afternoon.
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 11:57 a.m.
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