Orders of the Day

Private Members’ Statements

WORLD OCEANS DAY

J. Sturdy: June 8 marks World Oceans Day. I wanted to take the opportunity this week to highlight the importance of oceans to our daily lives, especially as British Columbia is Canada’s gateway to the Pacific.

[S. Chandra Herbert in the chair.]

From a global perspective, the ocean covers more than 70 percent of the planet. We depend on the ocean to produce 50 percent of our planet’s oxygen. As you may also understand, it’s a main source of protein for more than one billion people around the world. We also depend on the ocean for our global economy, and the United Nations estimates that 40 million people will be employed by ocean-based industries by 2030.

However, with 90 percent of the big fish populations depleted and 50 percent of coral reefs on the way to being destroyed, we’re clearly not on a sustainable path. “The ocean: life and livelihood” is the theme for World Oceans Day 2021. It’s followed up by a substantial commitment by member nations. This includes a declaration of intentions to get to sustainable development goal 14, which is to “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources” by 2030.

This year’s theme is especially relevant in the lead-up to the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, which will run from 2021 to 2030. The decade will strengthen international cooperation to develop scientific research and innovative technologies that can connect ocean science to the needs of society. That’s what makes recognition of World Oceans Day so important, especially here in British Columbia.

The coastline of British Columbia stretches 954 kilometres, from the southern tip of Vancouver Island along the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the community of Stewart at the head of the Portland Canal.

[10:10 a.m.]

However, when we take into account the coastline of more than 40,000 islands of varying sizes, the actual total length of British Columbia’s coast is more than 25,725 kilometres, or approximately 10 percent of Canada’s entire coastline, divided up into subregions that I think most British Columbians will be familiar with: the north coast, the Central Coast, Haida Gwaii, Sunshine Coast, south coast, Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island.

As MLA for West Vancouver–Sea to Sky, I represent a constituency that takes into account some of the most breathtaking and thoroughly accessible parts of that British Columbia coastline. As the name suggests, West Vancouver–Sea to Sky is nestled between the Pacific Ocean and the rugged Coast Mountains of it and the hillsides of Howe Sound, allowing the visitors to easily admire the natural beauty of our coast.

The scenic drive on the Sea to Sky Highway is popular with tourists visiting British Columbia for the first time, as well as locals. This route features mountainous rock faces that plunge into the sea, rivers cascading off cliffs and the intense colours of the sea clashing with the glacier ice in black jagged peaks against the blue sky. Now, isn’t that a pretty picture? In fact, it is on many a Destination B.C. advertisement. These sights can hypnotize even the most well-seasoned traveller, and for the local daily traveller, it’s a sight that never gets old.

What’s below Howe Sound is equally fascinating. Among other things discovered over the last number of years is the existence of glass sponge reefs. Once thought to be extinct, these ancient, delicate, filter-feeding animals not only help store carbon and fertilize the oceans; they also provide vital habitat to a range of marine animals, including endangered rockfish.

While the ocean is to be admired, we must also acknowledge its importance as a significant part of our provincial economy. Our ocean-based industries account for $17 billion worth of economic activity annually and employ 170,000 British Columbians in coastal communities stretching from the Salish Sea right up to the Alaska border.

In 2019, total sales of primary seafood production in B.C. amounted to $1.1 billion. B.C. led Canada with the production and sales of wild salmon, farmed salmon, hake, halibut, wild clams, wild sablefish, rockfish, flatfish, tuna, oysters, sea cucumbers, sea urchins, farmed clams and skate. In 2019, we exported $1.4 billion worth of seafood products to 70 markets worldwide, with the top markets being the U.S., China, Japan, Hong Kong and, interestingly, Ukraine. Our largest export, by far, is Atlantic salmon, with $562 million worth of sales in 2019, followed by $207 million in crab, $103 million in hake, $62 million in geoducks and $58 million in shrimp and prawns.

In addition to our seafood exports, British Columbia is a portal province that truly is a gateway for all Canadian exports via the Pacific. We therefore have a marine industry that forms the backbone of our portal facilities. As a matter of fact, the Association of British Columbia Marine Industries was formed to represent the interests of our industrial marine sector and its supply chain, which will be vital as our province lifts itself out of our economic slowdown caused by the pandemic.

While constitutional authority for the management of B.C.’s coastline falls under federal jurisdiction, at least as far as the water part goes, the province does have a very active role to play, in cooperation with Ottawa, on everything that touches the land.

I’m hoping the reply from the government side might help us provide an update on the province’s marine planning partnership for the Pacific north coast. My understanding is that the marine plan is a co-led initiative between British Columbia and partner First Nations, so I’m hoping to learn what’s taking time for this implementation.

As we’re on the eve of World Oceans Day, it would also be appropriate to get an update on the progress of the recommendations delivered for the wild salmon strategy in 2019 by the Wild Salmon Advisory Council. Therefore, I do look forward to hearing from the member opposite.

F. Donnelly: June 8 is World Oceans Day, an international day to celebrate our oceans and encourage conservation. It was Canadians who first proposed World Ocean Day at Rio’s Earth Summit in 1992. However, 29 years later, the issues are more overwhelming than ever. Oceans are being impacted by climate change, plastic pollution, open-net salmon farming, illegal unreported and unregulated fishing and habitat destruction.

[10:15 a.m.]

Oceans are vital to the health of the planet. They cover more than 70 percent of the Earth, produce more than 50 percent of the planet’s oxygen and are home to most of the planet’s biodiversity. Oceans absorb carbon dioxide and reduce impacts from a changing climate. Oceans provide the main source of protein for more than one billion people. More than 200 million people fish for a living.

Here in B.C., coastal waters are vital to our culture and our economy. “The ocean: life and livelihoods” is the theme for World Oceans Day 2021. It’s an important theme, as many people don’t realize the critical role of oceans to life and livelihoods. Clean coastal waters keep us healthy and generate tens of thousands of B.C. jobs, as well as billions in economic activity.

Canada is home to the world’s longest coastline, with more than seven million Canadians living on a coast. Nearly 2.4 billion people live within 100 kilometres of a coast on the planet. Yet now more than ever, oceans need support. With 80 percent of the world’s fish population depleted and 50 percent of coral reefs destroyed, we are taking more from the ocean than can be replenished.

More than eight million tonnes of plastic enter our oceans annually. That’s equivalent to one garbage truckload of plastic every minute. Marine debris is harming ocean species. Forty percent of marine mammals and 44 percent of seabirds are affected by marine debris ingestion. According to some estimates, by 2050, oceans may carry more plastic than fish, and 99 percent of seabirds may have ingested harmful plastic.

Abandoned, lost or discarded fishing gear in the ocean makes up about 10 percent of marine litter and continues to catch fish through ghost fishing. Each year more than 250,000 marine turtles; 300,000 whales, dolphins and porpoises; and hundreds of thousands of endangered sharks are trapped and die in commercial fishing gear. According to Dr. Rashid Sumaila, a fisheries economist professor at UBC, 66 percent of the marine environment has been significantly altered by human actions.

More than 55 percent of the world’s oceans are covered by industrial fishing; 33 percent of marine fish populations are being harvested at unsustainable levels; and 33 percent of the world’s fish catch in 2011 was from illegal, unreported and unregulated fisheries.

To protect and preserve the world’s oceans, we must better understand how they sustain life and livelihoods. We must steward oceans sustainably and protect marine ecosystems. They need to be preserved and protected through smart ocean management plans that make ocean health a priority.

Our west coast economy depends on healthy, thriving ocean environments. We must protect oceans by lowering emissions, adding more marine protected areas and investing in First Nation guardians. We must support sustainable local fisheries and eliminate microplastics and ghost nets. We need to transition open-net salmon farms to safe closed containment and invest in new ocean technologies and ocean science.

We must protect killer whale habitat and other marine ecosystems. As parliamentary secretary, I’m honoured to be working with the Minister of State for Lands and Natural Resource Operations on the development of a new provincial coastal marine strategy, in partnership with First Nations and federal and local governments, to better protect coastal habitat while growing coastal economies.

I’m also working with the Environment Minister to step up protection of fish habitat through our biodiversity strategy and a new watershed security strategy and fund. And I’m leading work with the federal and First Nation governments to develop a wild salmon recovery strategy in B.C. and ensure B.C. processing of B.C.-caught fish.

World Oceans Day is a great time to remind each other of the role oceans have in our everyday life. Together, we will better steward the ocean and coastal communities that rely on it.

[10:20 a.m.]

J. Sturdy: Thank you to the member opposite for his response. Without question, salmon is, as mentioned, an iconic symbol that most would associate with coastal British Columbia and does need protection and enhancement. The annual migration of salmon represents a prime source of protein for First Nations, historically and to this day, despite all the threats to their survival.

It’s more than just humans who depend on salmon. More than 137 different species depend on the rich nutrients that the salmon provides, including killer whales, bears and sea wolves being chief among them, as well as providing critical nutrients to forests.

Pacific salmon fuel a $3 billion industry, supporting tens of thousands of jobs up and down the coast in local communities and economies.

When the Wild Salmon Advisory Council submitted its final recommendations to develop a made-in-B.C. wild salmon strategy for British Columbia’s review and consideration, it was quite specific, including 13 recommendations for immediate and mid-term actions with three goals in mind: increase the abundance of wild salmon; protect and enhance economic, social and cultural benefits that come to the British Columbia community from wild salmon and other fisheries, placing emphasis on adjacent communities; and develop mechanisms, processes, practices and structures to engage citizens and governments in an effective stewardship and management of B.C.’s wild salmon.

It was interesting. The member opposite mentioned the development of a wild salmon strategy, and I thought that was what the point of the Wild Salmon Advisory Council was intended to do — to provide those recommendations and develop that strategy. The member for Nanaimo–North Cowichan was the co-chair, I believe, of that.

I’m wondering why none of those recommendations have been acted on so far, while now we’re talking about further development of a strategy. Regardless, this time salmon have been under threat from a number of sources. It leads to the conclusion that we have to protect our wild coastal zone in order to preserve iconic species like salmon for the future.

In terms of aquaculture, B.C. ranks among the fourth-largest Atlantic farmed salmon producers in the world. While the member referenced moving them onto land, I’m very interested in what the strategy is. As I mentioned earlier, it’s the biggest, largest export. We do need an understanding of how the industry will be supported to adjust, recognizing that there are some very abrupt government policy changes that are being imposed and how this integrates with the federally and provincially endorsed DRIPA legislation.

Shellfish, seafood, fish, aquatic plant farms provide substantial employment opportunities for remote coastal communities, and changes to policies are making employment futures very much more uncertain. That’s why it’s vital that British Columbia step up to the plate and begin developing a science-based coastal strategy that supports sustainable fisheries and our aquaculture industry.

SENIORS AND SENIORS WEEK

M. Starchuk: Today I rise virtually to speak about seniors and Seniors Week. Before I start, I’d like to acknowledge that I’m speaking to you today from the unceded traditional territories of the Coast Salish people, which include the Kwantlen, Katzie and Semiahmoo First Nations. I ask you to reflect on the lands that you work, live and play on.

Every year, starting on the first Sunday of the month of June, we celebrate older adults and their many contributions during Seniors Week. This year B.C. Seniors Week runs June 6 to 12. The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected seniors. My heart goes out to the families and friends of seniors who have lost their lives to this virus. We know how incredibly hard it is for people who are unable to visit their loved ones. I know this firsthand, as I was only able to visit the number one senior in British Columbia once in 2020, and that, of course, was my mom.

Seniors represent a very important and valued part of every community. They bring a wealth of skills, knowledge and experience that enriches the lives of all British Columbians. It is vitally important that they’re empowered to be actively engaged in our communities.

[10:25 a.m.]

The office of the seniors advocate monitors and analyzes seniors services and issues in B.C. and makes recommendations to government and service providers to address systemic issues. The services which the office monitors are in five key areas: health care, housing, income supports, personal supports and transportation. Those five key areas are some of the considerations for the World Health Organization’s categorization of an age-friendly community. Age-friendly describes a movement to make communities more welcoming and livable for older residents and people of all ages.

What makes a community age-friendly? Well, the World Health Organization asked seniors around the world, and they said an age-friendly community has pleasant, clean and secure public places. They also said that seniors had accessibility to transportation. They said they want to choose a variety of affordable housing without having to move to a different community; that they have employment and volunteer opportunities, and information and services tailored to their needs; perhaps most importantly, that they’re respected and active participants in community life.

Communities all over British Columbia are working to create those conditions. There are a lot of things that individuals and local governments and others can do to become an age-friendly community. As many in the House will see from the successful activities in communities around the province, it doesn’t have to cost a lot. I hope the actions of many communities will inspire others involved in community development to make their own communities more age-friendly.

Communities all over the world are aging. Some see this as a challenge, but many are embracing the opportunities that come from healthy, active older populations. Seniors are a valuable resource that have experience an unprecedented period of global growth and innovation.

The baby boomers, who were born between 1946 and 1964, have been changing the way we live, work, play and think for 65 years. They’re not about to stop as they move into their senior years. They’re rethinking our concepts of retirement, assisted living, fitness, rehabilitation and wellness, and dispelling myths about aging.

Age-friendly communities are emerging all around the province, and it’s my pleasure to describe to the House how they’re improving the quality of everyone’s life.

In 2014, the city of Surrey created an age-friendly strategy which supports active, healthy aging for senior residents. Their mission was to ensure all seniors living in Surrey are aware of the initiatives being done for their safety, health and wellness, transportation and mobility, home, and buildings and outdoor spaces.

Surrey’s age-friendly strategy for seniors is based on the following key features, which have been adapted from the World Health Organization’s work on global age-friendly cities.

One, outdoor spaces and public buildings are pleasant, clean, secure and physically accessible. We spoke in the House last week about the Accessible British Columbia Act, and it would definitely apply here. As well, public washrooms are very important in an age-friendly community.

Two, public transportation is accessible and affordable. You also need to make sure that there’s a place to sit while we’re waiting for transit to arrive. Some parts of the province should also consider including covered shelters for rain and snow.

Three, housing is affordable, appropriately located, well-built, well-designed and secure. We need to ensure that the considerations are there for persons with disabilities in the design phase and the build phase.

Opportunities exist for social participation and leisure, social, cultural and spiritual activities with people of all ages and cultures.

I have to admit that when I was introduced to a group of lawn bowlers a number of years ago and they saw how poorly I rolled, I was quickly asked if I wanted a match. I explained I wasn’t very good. They said: “We only play for buttons.” I soon found out that buttons, the blue ones, were worth 25 cents. The red ones were worth 50 cents, and the green buttons were worth $1.

Five, older people are treated with respect and included in civic life. We need to ensure that we’re reducing social isolation by increasing community connections, services and programs.

Six, opportunities exist for employment and volunteerism. Volunteerism allows a senior to keep that community pride and engagement and sometimes, just sometimes, it leads to an employment opportunity they never saw coming their way.

Seven, age-friendly communications and information is available. Not everyone wants their news from a laptop, phone or a tablet. Some still feel the need for the feel of a magazine or newsprint.

Eight, community sports and health services are tailored to older persons’ needs. When I think of community sport and health services, I instantly think of PICS. The Progressive Intercultural Community Services Society has a range of services for housing and tailored to the South Asian community. PICS diversity village is coming to my riding in Surrey-Cloverdale in 2024 and will be open to all seniors in need of long-term care and provide culturally sensitive services to people in the South Asian community.

[10:30 a.m.]

I ask the House to join me in a round of applause to the approximately one million seniors in British Columbia as we celebrate Seniors Week 2021.

S. Bond: It’s my pleasure today to rise and acknowledge B.C. Seniors Week and celebrate the integral roles that older British Columbians play in our communities right across the province. I also want to thank the member for Surrey-Cloverdale for his remarks this morning.

When I took on the role of Leader of the Official Opposition, I also chose to take on the role of the opposition critic for seniors services and long-term care. That’s because the issues facing seniors across British Columbia matter a lot to me, as I am confident they do for all members of this Legislature.

For many years, as the MLA for Prince George–​Valemount, it has been my honour to host an annual seniors Christmas tea, where older residents from our community come together. They socialize, and they are celebrated for the very special people that they are. When we were last able to hold the event in person, attendance was more than 1,000. But sadly, like everything else, COVID meant that we could not proceed last year.

Seniors have often been a focus of attention throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, because as the member opposite noted, they have been disproportionately impacted compared to other demographics. None of us will ever forget the heartbreaking stories and scenes of loss, loneliness and separation for seniors in our community and in long-term care. Together, we will need to be sure that work is done to review what happened and to ensure that a model of long-term care is in place so that this never happens again.

At the same time, we have to remember that seniors are a vibrant mix of people, ranging from active volunteers to those supporting families, those who choose to continue working and those who live in long-term care. With such diversity, let’s take a look at the over one million seniors we have here in British Columbia, who make up 19.7 percent of British Columbia’s population. Ninety-three percent of people aged 65-plus live independently, and just 15 percent aged 85-plus live in long-term care. Over 30 percent of seniors between the ages of 65 and 69 are still working, and 40 percent of all seniors 65 and over volunteer in their communities.

As you can see, Mr. Speaker, B.C. seniors are playing a vital part in our cities and communities across the province. But the COVID-19 pandemic changed many things. Even though seniors not living in long-term care encountered serious challenges during the pandemic….

It’s been my honour to host a series of regional round tables with Isobel Mackenzie, B.C. seniors advocate, allowing us to speak with countless older British Columbians on how the past year has impacted them. Technology challenges, as well as loneliness, were major factors facing seniors as they tried to cope with pandemic reality. The importance of places like libraries, seniors centres, rec centres has never been more apparent to them than in the past 15 months, when they’ve been unable to spend time in community.

Meanwhile, those living in long-term care and assisted living faced additional challenging situations, such as staffing levels, the marginalization of family relationships, the value of the quality of life versus sustaining life and the variation in visitation rules for assisted-living facilities. One of the lessons learned speaks volumes about how British Columbians feel about seniors in the province. I was asked by the Minister of Health to join an all-party committee to look for ways to support seniors in community during the pandemic.

As a result of the work done, there was an increase in resources for the Better at Home program to support seniors who want to stay independent and the expansion of the bc211 service to northern B.C. so that the entire province would be able to use this valuable resource. And bc211 was absolutely inundated with offers of help for seniors, who were forced to stay home because of the pandemic. In fact, at first, the offers of help for seniors outnumbered the number of seniors asking for help, and that is something we should all be proud of. It is so important to remember that most seniors want to live at home as long as possible, and, in fact, the majority do just that.

[10:35 a.m.]

Seniors are our friends, our neighbours. They’re workers and volunteers, and, most importantly, they are a vital part of communities and what makes B.C. great.

Each year, the first week of June is designated as Seniors Week. What a perfect time to connect with the seniors in your life. Let them know that you care, that you appreciate their contributions and, most of all, that if they need help or support, they just need to ask.

M. Starchuk: Thank you to the member for Prince George–Valemount for your kind remarks regarding Seniors Week. I couldn’t agree with you more. Our seniors are our true gems of society.

I see those seniors as active as I’ve never seen them before. Every time I ride my bike by the pickleball courts — you just hear the laughing and playing and keeping in shape.

Last Monday a few of us attended a ceremony and can­dle­light vigil, which was held at the Royal B.C. Museum in front of the Mungo Martin House, to remember the 215 children and the remains that were discovered from the former Kamloops Residential School site. People were invited to place teddy bears and children’s shoes in front of Mungo Martin’s Big House.

We heard stories from a number of Elders regarding their experiences with the residential schools. These Elders shared their stories to educate and teach those of us that were there. They spoke about the treatment they received while attending these schools and how it impacted their lives. It’s inspiring to see the network that’s there for the Elders to teach all of us of their lived experiences. They ensured that those of us that are no longer with us are remembered.

The next day I received a text from a former colleague, Wayne Schnitzler. We were volunteer firefighters together in 1981. We went on to become career firefighters. Wayne went on to be the fire chief in West Kelowna and is now the interim executive director for the First Nations Emergency Services Society. I hadn’t had a text from Wayne since Christmas Eve, and what he sent me had not registered until that time.

While Wayne is not technically a senior, he was, however, a Sixties Scoop baby who was fortunate — very fortunate — to be adopted by great parents. Wayne is now connected to the First Nations Leadership Council, and I wish him well as he commits himself to the health and safety of First Nations.

I was drawn to the publication called B.C. Elder Communications Center Society, and their e-newsletter called Elders Voice. In this communications e-newsletter, there’s a wide variety of subjects — everything from health, lifestyle, safety, elder abuse, cooking and even some humour. This e-newsletter provides critical and current information for the Elders, along with some of their leisure articles. The content of this e-newsletter speaks well to the issues at hand of our senior population, as well as to our Indigenous Elder population.

Before I bring my comments regarding Seniors Week to a conclusion, I must share one of the articles in the Elders Voice. It’s titled “…‘Shower Thoughts’ That Will Genuinely Blow Your Lil’ Brain Apart.” This article was written by Allie Hayes of the BuzzFeed staff. Allie provided 27 items that make you go: “Hmm.” One that caught my eye was: “You can remember that you forgot something, but you can’t remember what you forgot.”

Finally, if anyone is wondering how to honour our seniors this week, I ask you to do your part to keep B.C.’s COVID-19 curve flat.

PROLIFIC OFFENDERS

L. Doerkson: It is with deep concern that I present this morning’s statement on prolific offenders. More specifically, I’ll focus on how a small number of prolific offenders can make our communities feel as though they are under the siege of a crime wave.

For the record, it should be fully recognized that communities in my riding of Cariboo-Chilcotin have in the past been — and are now — experiencing gang activity violence similar to what has been witnessed in the Lower Mainland. The local inspector in command of the Williams Lake RCMP detachment publicly confirmed this on May 31.

I’ll focus my thoughts on the situation in the Cariboo-Chilcotin, but first, we need the context to explain what’s happening in smaller communities like Williams Lake and throughout the whole province. In mid-May, the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of British Columbia took the unprecedented step of issuing a public warning about 11 prolific reoffenders with ties to the Lower Mainland gang conflict. The police statement indicated that anyone with or in proximity to these individuals may be putting themselves at risk.

[10:40 a.m.]

The CFSEU says it’s expecting the violence to continue and to escalate. They took this unprecedented action out of fear for the safety of the general public. Police are advising anyone to avoid any interaction with these 11 men, as investigators believe they may be targets for future violent incidents.

Since then, we’ve witnessed gangland violence escalate in other parts of the province. The death count continues without remorse, and it appears the violence now occurs in public places during daylight hours, without any regard for the lives of the innocent.

Since the CFSEU issued the public warning, we are now witnessing this activity firsthand on an altogether too regular basis. Just days after that special warning was issued, the gang conflict quickly extended itself well beyond the Lower Mainland.

On May 20, a brazen daytime shooting in the parking lot of a fast-food restaurant in downtown Nanaimo took place at 3:30 in the afternoon in broad daylight. Again, this killing took place without any regard for innocent bystanders, and again, police authorities say this is likely linked to escalating Lower Mainland gang conflict.

All of this comes after a longtime United Nations gangster was slain outside the departure terminals of YVR. How many more innocent victims will be injured, or worse, before this is a priority and there is a more active, targeted approach to ending these conflicts?

On the quiet evening of May 31, in Williams Lake, it really hit close to home for our residents when the sounds of multiple gunshots were heard coming from a residence in the 1900 block of South Lakeside Drive. I credit members of the Williams Lake RCMP for quickly and safely bringing the situation under control and making five arrests. But the fact remains that this was similar to events that we have been hearing about in the Lower Mainland. As I mentioned earlier, the RCMP detachment in Williams Lake publicly confirmed on May 31 that this was likely related to gang activity.

I know police are doing their very best with their current resources. Clearly, there’s a demand for a more effective approach.

In March, the city of Williams Lake also took the unprecedented step of writing directly to the Hon. Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia. In a letter dated March 11, Mayor Walter Cobb issued a request for a public inquiry into the repeat offenders and their effect on entire communities. The mayor and council want to know why…. Repeat offenders have little regard for the court process, knowing that they will end up released, on the streets, seemingly without consequence.

As you can imagine, Mr. Speaker, people in the Cariboo-Chilcotin feel threatened. They’re frustrated. In 108 Mile, a robbery of a rural postal box has resulted in $100,000 in damage. The 100 Mile House post office now has to lock up at night because of multiple robbery attempts.

It’s not just post boxes. Very often when I look at social media, I see people suggesting that they have been robbed the evening before or warnings for people to be alert, as people have been seen peeking in cars or caught on personal cameras looking through people’s backyards. Yesterday I read with frustration as people were reporting stolen quads and some work equipment in Williams Lake and, by someone in 100 Mile House, a stolen chainsaw.

People are at their wits’ end, fearful and frustrated. Our residents have endured thefts. They’ve endured break and enters, along with much senseless vandalism to both pri­vate and public property. Something has to change regarding the treatment of prolific offenders. Our local RCMP detachments are tasked with so many calls and complaints. They’re working full out already.

That being said, the Public Safety Minister and Solicitor General kindly responded to a letter I sent to him about my concerns about the justice system and crime in the city of Williams Lake. The minister noted that under the Police Act, it is his responsibility to ensure that an effective and adequate level of policing and law enforcement is maintained. The minister also noted that the Minister of Public Safety is responsible for setting the goals, objectives and priorities for law enforcement throughout the province.

[10:45 a.m.]

That being said, I am looking forward to hearing the member opposite provide some reassuring information regarding repeat offenders and how the government will address the issue of a stricter justice system that will give the courts a means to deal with prolific repeat offenders. The people in the Cariboo-Chilcotin and, certainly, the rest of rural British Columbia need to know what the government will do to finally address prolific offenders.

A. Singh: I’m going to quote from one of my favourite poets. I’ve done this often.

From Kahlil Gibran:

And when one of you falls down, he falls for those behind him, a caution against the stumbling stone.
Ay, and he falls for those ahead of him, who though faster and surer of foot, yet removed not the stumbling stone…
And still more often the condemned is the burden bearer for the guiltless and unblamed.
You cannot separate the just from the unjust and the good from the wicked.
For they stand together before the face of the sun even as the black thread and the white are woven together.
And when the black thread breaks, the weaver shall look into the whole cloth, and he shall examine the loom also.

The term “prolific offender,” though often used, betrays, in its simplicity, what is a complex problem. Like the poet Gibran surmised, in what is actually, for its time, a prolific statement, in the real sense, the ones who go ahead — i.e., society itself — have some burden for removing the metaphorical stumbling stone.

I practised criminal law in this province for 21 years. Very early on in my career, I had this incredible opportunity to attend a conference of jurists from all around the globe in Kuala Lumpur: the Commonwealth Lawyers Association. All of these jurists share the traditional lineage from the British Commonwealth. Many eminent jurists attended, including our own Chief Justices of our Supreme Court of Canada and chief justices from India, New Zealand, jurists of note and lawyers from all over the Commonwealth.

As a young upstart lawyer who had entered the profession to help change the world, I wasn’t shy about approaching those senior to me. And it paid off. I got to attend several private receptions and had numerous conversations with people that were far smarter than I am. There was one thread that united these, and that was the absolute reverence that these brilliant jurists from all over the Commonwealth had for our justice system in Canada, especially our criminal justice system.

Our judicial system, with all of its reserve and compassion, is seen as a beacon of the idea of the rule of law, a system that is the right mix of compassion, justice and efficiency. Of course, all systems have their flaws, and ours is ever evolving. That’s the beauty of the common law and of parliamentary democracy. I’m proud to be standing, virtually, again, in this hall, which really is a hall of laws and is defined by that.

That’s one of the things that we have learned in the last few decades — to evolve from thinking of crime as the mere moral or ethical failing of an individual but as more of a societal failing. It’s easy to blame the individual. It’s much harder to look at how that individual got there, how they got involved in gangs or whatever situation it is, and to really examine that and see where we, as a society, can do better. Or as Gibran would put it: how do we, as a society, remove that stumbling stone?

My 21 years as a criminal defence lawyer have confirmed what many academics have written. Crime is closely related to substance abuse and mental health issues and poverty and affordability. Without fail, most of the cases that came across my desk had some form of a mental health component embroiled within the story. For many years before I ever started attending Alcoholics Anonymous, I was sending my clients there. That generally worked. Those who were successful were not repeat clients.

Again, this is not…. This is just my allegorical observation, but various academic papers have attributed anywhere from 70 to 80 percent of all crimes being somewhat causally committed due to underlying mental health and addiction issues and poverty. Our government recognizes that and has, over the last few years, taken on the task of challenging and creating solutions for these very problems. We have a minister dedicated to mental health and have directed more resources, more money than ever before into tackling these issues.

B.C. Corrections recognizes that and understands the importance of working through rehabilitation. We have an integrated transitional and release planning program and a homelessness intervention program that is a partnership with B.C. Corrections, the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction, the Attorney General and the Ministry Responsible for Housing. Through these programs, the case coordinators identify high-risk individuals and engage them in creating a multilevel case management plan that looks at homelessness, substance abuse and the whole holistic method.

Also, as part of its core programming, B.C. Corrections delivers substance abuse management programs for individuals in custody and in the community who are dealing with addiction issues. That helps recidivism.

[10:50 a.m.]

All these programs are aimed at individuals within the criminal justice system, but we also have all those other programs and initiatives that the Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions has undertaken. Here I can’t forget or fail to mention the decriminalization steps.

Poverty is another big factor in our society’s failure, and this government, I’m proud to say, has taken so many significant steps — too many to list. But before my time runs out, I will mention a few: raising the minimum wage; raising the wage for liquor servers; tackling a housing crisis that was out of control; dealing with speculation and thousands of good homes sitting empty because they were not viewed as homes but as part of a stock portfolio; making life more affordable; getting rid of MSP premiums, tolls; $10-a-day child care; and the list goes on.

L. Doerkson: I appreciate those comments. My fear is that those attempts are not working. I’ll try to demonstrate that in my comments now.

They were general comments. But I’m afraid that a lack of an actual plan means that no resources can be made available to the police. It also means that prolific offenders will have free rein until the Premier and this government take this situation we have on the ground in Williams Lake and the Cariboo-Chilcotin seriously.

Clearly, our justice system is not performing adequately if small numbers of criminals can put fear into entire communities. With respect to the May 31 shooting incident in Williams Lake, the RCMP did convey that that incident was likely gang-related. In February, the Williams Lake RCMP also took the unusual step of issuing a news release about one individual who was arrested after failing to appear in court on seven outstanding warrants.

However, after a bail hearing that included opposition by the Crown counsel to release the offender, this individual was released again — released under seven warrants and over 20 criminal charges. His conditions will likely be ignored once again.

Despite the best efforts of police, with existing re­sources, our justice system is failing to provide the public with the protection required from a small number of repeat offenders, who seem to not know or perhaps not care about the boundaries. This is happening far too frequently. As I said before, the frustration from my constituents is running high.

It is so much more than frustrations. They’re angry. I can convey the anxiety that people in my community feel when it seems that prolific offenders face no legal consequence. That’s a failure of our system. Police are doing their best, given the limited resources. But what is lacking here is a commitment to stricter penalties for prolific offenders. This is what the people in my riding of Cariboo-Chilcotin want to see.

Will the government see this threat to public safety as a first priority for the people of Williams Lake and every other rural community in British Columbia?

PUTTING PEOPLE FIRST –
COMMUNITY COLLABORATION
AND INNOVATION

G. Lore: I’m grateful for the opportunity to speak to something I care deeply about: community care, community collaboration, creativity and innovation as a way to put people first. In fact, it is the only way.

We in this House have a critical role to play. We must support and lift up the work of community organizations. We must trust in the expertise of those on the front lines and those with lived experience. We must learn from the innovators, both in and outside the private sector.

I’m grateful to be part of a community, a government, and indeed, a province where examples of this are abundant. Let me start with the example of the tiny home village in the Victoria neighbourhood of North Park. Just outside Royal Athletic Park, 50 shipping containers have been turned into tiny homes for members of our community who had, for months, been sheltering in tents in parks. This people-centred solution was made possible by creativity, collaboration and a belief that both action and change are possible.

A private developer in Victoria, Aryze Developments, and more than 550 community donors came together. The city of Victoria ensured available space, and a few short months later, converted shipping containers became temporary homes. Amazing local businesses, including Dodd’s Furniture, Biophilia Collective and dozens more, donated mattresses, insulation, landscaping, heaters, and so on.

[10:55 a.m.]

This collaboration and innovation has been rooted in community. The North Park Neighbourhood Association, the Coalition to End Homelessness, PEERS, the Cool Aid Society, AIDS Vancouver Island and others have been essential. An extra shipping container was added to ensure a flex space so community organizations will be able to come in and provide residents with job counselling, training, support and other services.

Government has a key role to play to support this community care. Island Health has been critical, and B.C. Housing has provided funding to the Cool Aid Society to ensure 24-hour staffing and support. We have committed resources to ensure this community collaboration continues to be a success.

Of course, life is more than a roof over one’s head. At the last minute and at the request of the community organizations and residents moving in, Aryze Developments built big, beautiful picnic tables in the shared outdoor space. A group of neighbours fundraised for flowerpots on the doorstep of every new tiny home. The house across the street put up a big sign welcoming new neighbours. Local artists Kay Gallivan, Caitlin McDonagh and Lydia Beau­regard were commissioned, and the grey shipping containers were transformed into incredible public art.

After too many years of underinvesting in community, this is a beautiful thing to see in my neighbourhood. I talked to a neighbour yesterday. She said: “What a positive change for our community.” One of those newly housed said: “I have a place over my head, and now I can move forward with my life.” For those doing the work in the tiny homes, one told me yesterday: “Agency, collaboration and purpose. That is what people need.”

This success has created community optimism and a commitment to the design of new supportive housing coming to the same neighbourhood. It’s incredible.

I want to speak of another example in my community. For survivors of recent sexual assault, the needs are complex. Many need medical care and attention, emotional support and crisis intervention. Some wish to have forensic evidence collected or to speak to police. Navigating these diverse services and finding appropriate care can be challenging in the aftermath of trauma, all the more so for those who have been marginalized and feel the shame of victim blaming.

The Victoria Sexual Assault Centre has worked, again, with creativity and the belief that better is possible. They’ve worked with partners to ensure access to care is survivor-centred, trauma-informed and culturally safe. It was relationships with local and regional police, including Saanich, Victoria, Central Saanich and multiple RCMP detachments, relationships with forensic nurse examiners, Crown counsel — these partnerships led to Canada’s only integrated sexual assault clinic. Survivors can access medical care, police reporting options, forensic exams and emotional support in one safe and accessible location.

Again, this government provided the resources to support and lift up what the community had created with their experience and diverse skill sets and with a com­mit­ment to putting survivors first. And $10 million announced last year and $10 million again this year, in partnership with the Ending Violence Association of B.C., means support for community-based sexual assault response services — again, supporting and building on the expertise in and of community.

For a sector that was hollowed out, this investment is game-changing. For the Surrey Women’s Centre, it meant not only increased hours of operation for culturally relevant and trauma-informed sexual assault response but the opportunity to work and collaborate with the special victims unit in Surrey.

Half this fund is for sexual assault response by and for Indigenous communities. Around Williams Lake, this has meant victim services for seven remote Indigenous communities. For the Tahltan, the community will be able to support access to medical assistance and support networks and safety planning and court advocacy.

In the Downtown Eastside, I want to offer another example of this kind of collaboration. The WISH Drop-in Centre worked with B.C. Housing and the city of Vancouver to create Canada’s only 24-7 shelter for women working in street-level sex work. Women can now wake up safely and not have to worry about trading low-cost sex work for a safe place to go.

[11:00 a.m.]

I want to end by saying that I am proud of my community, and it’s such a pleasure and a gift to speak about all those I’ve mentioned today. I’m proud of the partnerships and the innovation of the agencies involved and of those with lived experience. I’m proud of a government that supports the work, lifts up this collaboration and always takes a people-centred approach first.

Deputy Speaker: Apologies to my friend the member for Peace River North, but as it’s 11 o’clock, under the standing orders, we are to move onwards with the private members’ motions.

Unanimous consent of the House is required to proceed with Motion 10.

Hon. B. Ma: Mr. Speaker, I ask that the House proceed to the consideration of Motion 10, standing in the name of the member for Vancouver-Langara.

Leave granted.

Private Members’ Motions

MOTION 10 — ANTI-ASIAN RACISM

M. Lee: Today I rise to move the following motion.

[Be it resolved that this House stand against anti-Asian racism.]

Over the pandemic, we have seen a troubling rise in anti-Asian racism and hate crimes in B.C., particularly in my community of Vancouver. So much so that last month Bloomberg gave Vancouver the unfortunate and shameful title of the anti-Asian hate crime capital of North America.

[N. Letnick in the chair.]

There were more anti-Asian hate crimes reported in Vancouver last year than in the top ten most populous U.S. cities combined. This is a staggering figure. Let this sink in. One out of every two British Columbians of Asian descent reported experiencing a hate incident in the past year. This should be a call to all of us to do our part to be vigilant in actively combating racism in our communities.

What has led us to this point? The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly triggered a sharp rise in racism and hate crimes. However, the pandemic has really only exacerbated the underlying racism that has existed in our province. Unfortunately, we can point to countless examples of systemic racism throughout our province’s history.

The head tax was instituted by the Canadian government in 1885 to limit Chinese immigration to Canada and was largely a result of pressure from B.C. politicians at the time. It remained in place for 38 years before the Chinese Immigration Act of 1923 limited Chinese immigration all together.

This act was not repealed until 1947. This was only six years before my father came to B.C. from Hong Kong as a student. Still, for another 15 years, there remained immigration restrictions on the basis of race and national origin. These restrictions weren’t completely removed until 1962, which is the year that my mother emigrated to B.C.

However, as evidenced by current events, the removal of these laws did not signify the end of racism in B.C. For the past ten years, much of the conversation surrounding Asian immigration to B.C. has been closely tied to the rise in housing prices throughout the province. It has been difficult to have a conversation about the housing market without someone mentioning the impacts of foreign buyers, and only those of Asian heritage are typically mentioned.

But how exactly have these two topics become entirely linked in the public consciousness? Much of it has to do with the language and narratives that have originated from the other side of this House. Rhetoric and narratives carefully constructed and proclaimed by members of the current government — in particular, the Attorney General, during his years as opposition Housing critic — have directly and indirectly contributed to encouraging anti-Asian sentiment in our province.

[11:05 a.m.]

B.C. was grappling with a hot housing market, and there was a complex set of circumstances that was driving it. However, to score cheap political points, the NDP decided to fearmonger, using foreign buyers as a scapegoat for all that ailed the housing market. The Attorney General was even instrumental in the work of a 2015 study on housing that has since been revealed to have an incredibly flawed methodology that is widely considered to be racist.

When money laundering first started gaining media attention in B.C., the NDP wasted no time in tying it to the same foreign influence, and quickly, largely because of the purposeful narrative spun by the Attorney General, Chinese money became synonymous with crime in our province and served to further fuel racist narratives about B.C.’s housing market.

This reminds all of us, as public figures, of the impact of our words and actions on the people of B.C. The NDP capitalized on an ugly sentiment that, unfortunately, was still held by some in B.C., and the NDP did so for their own political gain. They made it socially acceptable to complain about a group of people simply because of their country of origin. Using this kind of racially charged language, especially as elected representatives, is reckless and has real-world impacts that are playing out in front of us in the worst possible way.

As public leaders, we must be much more responsible and be held accountable, and we must do better — much better. I hope that all members of this House choose to stand with us on this issue and help work to actively reverse these narratives as we fight anti-Asian racism in B.C.

Deputy Speaker: Before I recognize the next member, just a couple of points. Remember that you cannot use your electronic devices while you’re on Zoom, so no telephones next to your ear and speaking.

Also, according to Parliamentary Practice, 6.11.1, based on Standing Order 40.(2): “The conduct of a Member cannot be canvassed in debate.” So I would ask members to avoid specifically identifying the conduct of members through this debate. Thank you.

R. Singh: I thank the member for Vancouver-Langara for creating this space to talk about this issue. For the last one year, we have been hearing about the rise in anti-Asian racism. I just can’t tell you how heartbreaking it has been. I’ve had a number of conversations with community partners, with stakeholders and have heard numerous stories, heart-wrenching stories about women being spat at, our seniors being pushed and being targeted with racial slurs. These are our community people. I understand COVID-19 has affected us all, but how disproportionately it has affected our Asian community.

I have been talking about this for the last so many months. We have been talking to the partners, as I said. We are, as government, trying to bring out the resources to help eliminate racism. It is not just with COVID-19 that we are seeing the rise of anti-Asian racism. As the member has pointed out, systemic racism has been imbibed in our society, and that’s what we need to tackle.

It is important to create that space. It is important to talk about these issues. That’s why we started the anti-racism awareness campaign, making that space, making talking about racism much easier, because it is not an easy topic to talk about, even for a racialized person like me. It brings a lot of emotions, a lot of trauma within us.

I know that words are not enough. We need to bring in concrete actions, and that’s what our government is doing. As I said, we have launched our anti-racism awareness campaign, which was talking about allyship — how, if you see a racist incident, to be a strong ally, how to combat it, how to interfere in it in a safe way. We are creating that education.

But along with that, we have heard from the community partners that there should be a safe place where they can call and report these incidents. The police are not always the right resource, not always the safe resource for a lot of people.

[11:10 a.m.]

That’s why we announced…. As the member might recall, a few weeks ago we announced that we will be launching an anti-racist hotline which would be multilingual and, hopefully, would be operating 24-7. Talks are happening for that line to be active as soon as possible.

Along with that, I’m so proud of the work that the government is doing, especially in creating the legislation to collect the race-based data. That will follow our anti-racism legislation.

I think these are very important steps for the government, first of all, to recognize that the systemic racism is imbibed in our system and to recognize the historical wrongs, whether that was the Chinese head tax, Komagata Maru or the Japanese internment. We need to take the steps. We need to recognize what has happened in our past but also what is happening in our current situations, how to help people in these situations.

I know racism is such a topic that it is not…. We don’t have a magic bullet where, suddenly, we say the words, bring in the legislation, and it will go away. That’s why we need the community partnerships, and I really, really am very encouraged with the members opposite talking about it and also giving the offer to work in collaboration with all of us.

I don’t think this is a partisan issue. It is an issue that affects us all. These are our communities, and we all need to stand up together for that. I really appreciate creating this space, Member, but also really hoping to work in a collaborative way with all of you, with all the members of the Legislature, whatever side of the House they sit on, to work on this issue, because it affects us all. These are our communities. These are our people, and we need to work together to fight racism.

K. Kirkpatrick: I’m pleased to rise in the House today to support the motion: “Be it resolved that this House stand against anti-Asian racism.”

My daughter has a Chinese name. She can use it if she wants. She also has an English name. Research shows me that she will receive more job interviews if she uses her English name than if she uses her Chinese name. This is name discrimination. It’s systemic, pervasive, dangerous and inaccurate. So it seems that non-Anglo names can have consequences beyond constantly having to correct their spelling and pronunciation.

Vancouver is the Asian hate crime capital of North America, according to Bloomberg. Why is that? When populations are led to believe that there are winners and losers in the economy and that this is caused by immigration from a certain region, the local population begins to equate people who look or sound like they’re from that region with causing them some harm, with making them victims of something in their economy or not allowing them to have something affordable, such as housing. But it’s not just immigrants. It can be individuals or families that have lived here for generations but have non-Anglo-sounding names.

B.C.’s Chinese community has made significant contributions to this province — to its economy, to its infrastructure and its cultural fabric. In 2014, B.C. issued the Chinese Historical Wrongs Consultation Final Report and Recommendations. B.C. had a long history of anti-Chinese racism that included legal, professional, labour and social discriminations as well as impediments to education, land-ownership and business operations. Discrimination was systemic, extending through economic, social and political life.

Now, that was, we said, the history of British Columbia, not the future of British Columbia. When Vancouver’s housing market was rocketing to high heights in the 2010s, some politicians looked to point to a certain ethnic group to blame this on. At almost the same time that our former government formally apologized for the treatment of the Chinese in British Columbia’s history, the then NDP opposition critic was promoting casual anti-Asian sentiment.

[11:15 a.m.]

In 2015, an NDP MLA critic participated in and pro­vided information to a non-scientific survey which concluded that foreign buyers were infiltrating Vancouver’s housing market and driving up prices. Well, this conclusion was made based on one criterion — buyers’ names. This conclusion then became a study supposing the racial profile of the buyers of 172 expensive homes in a small Vancouver neighbourhood. Then this was extrapolated to represent buying trends across the Lower Mainland.

The data provided for this research was from then NDP critic and now the Housing Minister and Attorney General in the B.C. NDP government, where media then reported “such as more than 66 percent of the new owners had non-anglicized Chinese names.”

Statements like this from a politician result in broad stereotyping with a large audience. I remember hearing this myself and assuming this data came from a properly undertaken research study. It must have been right, or we wouldn’t have an NDP MLA promoting it.

Using non-anglicized names as the basis for a data set in research is discrimination and nothing less. After reviewing this so-called research, people spoke of the astronaut family phenomenon of moms and kids being brought out from mainland China.

So anti-Asian discrimination didn’t just start this past decade, but it was certainly perpetuated with false narratives about the Chinese coming to Vancouver. The reality was…. Foreign buyers this last year have barely registered, yet prices have been rising more quickly than ever. In 2018, foreign purchasers represented only 2.92 percent of all transactions.

Parents like me have to worry that their children will be victimized simply because they’re Asian.

B. Anderson: I am grateful that we are speaking out against anti-Asian racism today. Now, as a white woman, I have never faced anti-Asian racism directed towards me, obviously. But I have witnessed others experience racism.

I have learned more about racism in the past 18 months and witnessed more racism than I have in my entire life. This shows my privilege. As a white woman, I knew, of course, that racism existed, but I was, for the most part, unaware of how much racism there was in my community and across our province. The pandemic has only exacerbated it. I hear about a woman at the grocery store in my community who was told to go back to China. Nelson has been her home for decades. I have seen racist tweets directed at some of our colleagues in this room.

We all agree that in the B.C. Legislature, there is no place for racism. There should be no place for racism in our province or in this country. Our diversity is what makes us strong and resilient. My question today is: when we witness racism, do we have the courage to speak up?

Today I want to specifically address my white colleagues in the Legislature. When someone makes a racist comment, do we correct them, or do we let it slide? Do we laugh along, especially as leaders, or use our voice to let someone know that what they have said is inappropriate, hurtful and hateful? Our words matter. Our reactions matter, especially when we are talking about racism. Our actions speak louder than words.

I’m sure my colleagues are going to talk about the statistics, so I’m going to use my time here today to tell you a story. I have a friend who was attending an event. My friend was speaking to a colleague who was not able to hear well, so they leaned in to ensure they could have a conversation and that their colleague could hear what they were saying.

[11:20 a.m.]

Now, most people in this room, in this province would think nothing of it, except the woman is a younger woman of Asian descent, and the man, an older white man.

Upon this man’s retirement, his colleagues were hosting an event to honour his work. One of his colleagues brought up this story about the interaction I spoke of earlier. The younger woman of Asian descent had shown kindness to the older white man and was now being laughed at and sexualized because of her kindness.

What makes it worse is that not one person stood up and said: “What you are saying is racist and sexist, and the fetishization of young women of Asian descent needs to stop.” No. They all laughed along.

Today I ask you when you witness racism, please say something and do it immediately.

Our actions speak louder than words.

B. Stewart: I rise in support of this motion, and I hope that every member in this House can agree on how im­por­tant it is to stand against racism and hate in all its forms. It is our responsibility, as elected officials and public leaders, to condemn racism whenever it’s observed, to hold ourselves and our colleagues accountable to a high standard, and ensure that the words that we use within this chamber and that we engage with the public have the effect of making our communities more inclusive spaces, rather than sowing greater division.

Unfortunately, we know this has not always happened. As Housing critic, I spend a lot of time studying the housing market and how past critics have responded to the challenges in the housing market. It is deeply troubling to me that when the Attorney General was in my position, he decided to blame foreign buyers for all the problems he observed in the housing market. The narratives he and the NDP constructed, the connections they made, served to galvanize prejudicial and racist attitudes towards people of Asian descent, giving these views greater legitimacy in the public sphere.

Deputy Speaker: Member for Kelowna West, just a reminder that the conduct of members cannot be canvassed in debate. You may, however, bring charges of a personal character by substantive motion.

So we just caution all members to be careful on their debates. Thank you.

B. Stewart: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

To galvanize prejudicial and racist attitudes towards people of Asian descent was giving these views greater legitimacy in the public sphere, when such sentiments should never have been seen as acceptable. The NDP have never been quiet about their disdain for people that they described as foreign buyers. They never shied from resting most of the blame of the housing crisis squarely on the shoulders of this group.

In a 2015 article in the Globe and Mail, the now Attorney General said: “The outbidding is happening because the market is now international…. What an awful vision for the future of our city.” In a 2016 interview with the BBC, he further characterized the influence of foreign buyers in our housing market as: “An international freak show…. It’s so obvious what’s happening in our market here.”

This kind of language was seen throughout the NDP messaging and demonstrates the extent to which the NDP was set on adopting this narrative, which struck a chord with many British Columbians who felt disenfranchised in the changing demographics of their communities. Instead of working to close these divides, they were used as a political opportunity.

It was clearly evidenced through the now Attorney General’s participation in the flawed 2015 study, with racist methodology aimed at showing the impact of foreign ownership in our housing market. The member was so insistent about rising housing prices….

Deputy Speaker: Member for Kelowna West, again, for a second time, I would ask you to move away from describing the Attorney General in these ways and also by impugning any false motives to his actions.

By the way, this will be the last time I caution members of the opposition on this. Next time I will just stop the debate and move on to the next speaker.

B. Stewart: Mr. Speaker, I think the message we’re trying to raise here today…. The fact is that these anti-Asian racist sentiments are a derivative of the fact that direct attacks on this community have been taken by the government. I don’t think that that’s acceptable. These quotes are a fact. They’re published; they’re public information.

[11:25 a.m.]

We’re not necessarily trying to suggest that any one member of this House…. The bottom line is that we need to do better. That’s what we’re here to try to say. I think that the fact that the methodology of this information, in the way it was calculated, is clearly not factual, and it is insinuating that this particular group of British Columbians had an influence on rising house prices when, in fact, as of today, they represent less than 1 percent of the housing market, with the prices the highest that they’ve ever been in British Columbia.

I think what we’re really trying to do is…. The fact is that this resentment towards Asians in our community, in British Columbia, cannot be tolerated. That’s what we’re here to try to suggest. I think that the situation is that this type of anti-Asian rhetoric has been characterized, in discussions about housing and money laundering, and the bottom line is that it’s incredibly harmful. The fact is that this group and many other diverse members of our community should have the opportunity to participate openly in British Columbia, in whatever markets they see fit.

J. Brar: I’m pleased to speak to the motion, introduced today by the hon. member for Vancouver-Langara, that this House stand against anti-Asian racism. Hate has no place in B.C., but it has a long and painful history regarding the treatment of Asians and Asian immigration — and others. Vancouver came to exist as the Pacific coast terminus of Canada’s first Transcontinental railway. Two Chinese workers died for every mile laid on the final stretch through the Rockies in the late 1800s, according to records at UBC.

Other disturbing examples range from the hefty head tax on Chinese persons entering the country, to a decade-long ban on Chinese immigration, to the forced internment of some 22,000 Japanese Canadians during World War II, to the forced departure of the Komagata Maru in 1914 and heartbreaking stories of Indigenous children at residential schools. These are painful, disturbing, dark chapters of our history that took place between the 18th century and into the early 20th century.

It is even more concerning that after almost a century we are not free from racism, even today. The past year has been challenging for all of us, particularly racialized communities who have been impacted by a rise in incidents of racism. Throughout the pandemic, we have seen specific communities targeted by hate crime, particularly the Asian community and Indigenous People. Vancouver has also seen a 700 percent increase in anti-Asian hate crime. This is not acceptable, and it must be stopped.

We are the leaders of this province. We all have an important role in eliminating racism, whether it is speaking out or taking action. That work starts now. This is not the time to get into the blame game but to work together. It is completely unacceptable to blame someone who is not in the House and who is not able to respond to the members on the other side.

I am very pleased that our government is taking actions to address racism in B.C.….

Deputy Speaker: Member for Surrey-Fleetwood, you cannot mention if someone is in the House or not, please. Thank you.

[11:30 a.m.]

J. Brar: We have made some progress, Mr. Speaker, together by creating Resilience B.C., a network across the province to respond to racism and provide anti-racism tools; bringing back the human rights commission to help promote human rights and raise awareness of systemic issues; increasing grants to more than 190 organizations to tackle racism in their communities, including organizations dedicated to eliminate racism in Asian, Indigenous and Black communities; and starting an anti-racism public education campaign. But we know there is still a lot more that needs to be done.

We will continue to tackle racism by taking actions moving forward. Our government will be introducing B.C.’s first anti-racism act. With B.C.’s Multiculturalism Act now more than 25 years old, it is time to transition to more active and focused anti-racism efforts. My sincere thanks to our Attorney General and to the Parliamentary Secretary for Anti-Racism Initiatives for working hard on this very important file.

We will legislate race-based data collection. Race-based data collection is about dismantling systemic racism by patterns, identifying where gaps and barriers exist so that we can provide more equitable services for our communities. We also note and support the initiative to mark May 10 as the Day of Action Against Anti-Asian Racism.

We must all stand against racist words and actions and speak out against hate when we see it. It is an opportunity to honour and celebrate the rich Asian culture that makes our province rich in cultural diversity.

T. Halford: I rise in the House today to speak in support of the motion, “Be it resolved this House stand against anti-Asian racism,” brought forward by my colleague and friend from Vancouver-Langara.

This House has heard many speeches by now about the unprecedented nature of what has occurred in our communities since the pandemic began more than a year ago. While most have come together to support one another through this difficult time, a more troubling pattern has emerged.

Recent statistics have shown that in Vancouver alone, there has been a more than 700 percent increase in anti-Asian-related hate crimes. Last year more anti-Asian hate crimes were reported by police in Vancouver than in the top ten most-populous U.S. cities combined. That number is staggering.

To all of us in this House, it’s reflective of the seriousness of the situation that we’re talking of today. As public leaders, we not only have an obligation to meet a high standard, but we must ensure that we’re doing everything in our day to try and combat racism in our communities.

In fact, the situation has got so dire that it has attracted attention from around the world. To quote a recent Bloomberg article entitled This Is the Anti-Asian Hate Crime Capital of North America, “COVID-19 was the trigger, but the resentment has been building for decades.” This raises a lot of questions for us on how we get to the point where we are today. Perhaps we have to hold each other accountable and make sure that we do everything in this House to ensure that we are speaking out when racism occurs.

In 2015, a study with researcher Andy Yan, which has since been panned wildly for being racist through its methodology, determined that nearly two-thirds of houses in a relatively small sample size in his riding were bought by people with non-anglicized names.

It’s important to note that just because someone has a non-anglicized name, it doesn’t make them less Canadian than their neighbour. However, this study directed and created a fear of foreign-sounding names in the B.C. housing market. To take 172 names out of 42,000 sold homes and come to this conclusion is reckless and irresponsible. We need to do better.

[11:35 a.m.]

We need to ensure that British Columbians realize that anti-Asian racism will not be tolerated. Tying the housing market to racism is irresponsible. Having an Asian name should not make you guilty. As we come to the other side of the pandemic and look towards recovery, we must all reflect on what kind of society we are building. None of us can stand for casual racism, and we must all do our part to speak out.

M. Elmore: I’m pleased to rise and speak in favour of the motion: “Be it resolved that this House stand against anti-Asian racism.”

I note that this morning, the opening prayer was delivered by Elder Butch Dick of the Songhees Nation. He gave an opening prayer to honour the 215 Indigenous, the terrible tragedy that has been uncovered in Kamloops. It’s a moment that I want to reflect for all of us and a challenge, in terms of British Columbians and Canadians, to reflect deeply and reconcile with the reality of residential schools and colonization.

When we talk about this issue of anti-Asian racism — certainly, we’ve heard from all members about the rise of these incidents, particularly in the context of COVID-19 — we also know that the history of British Columbia and Canada is founded on the premise of racist, patriarchal, white supremacist norms. It’s our challenge to understand that, to reconcile that and to move forward.

Certainly, I have had many folks in Vancouver come to my office and share their experiences of racism in their communities and their businesses and at work. I wanted to address those issues at a systemic issue. We know that racism is an ideology that asserts that one group is inherently superior to others. It operates at many levels. We’ve heard, certainly, of the individual, societal and systemic levels and the challenges in addressing that.

I want to talk about and recognize particularly the impact of racism on racialized, marginalized workers in precarious employment. We know COVID-19 has brought to light the experience of many temporary foreign workers and migrant workers who are racialized. Certainly, the issues of systemic inequality that they face contributes to their precarious experience.

I want to talk about what our government is doing to address and take on systemic racism. We know that for the last 16 years, the experience of temporary foreign workers was ignored, and our government made the commitment to bring in the temporary foreign worker registry. We know that for racialized, precarious workers, their experience became more difficult under the previous government, for the last 16 years, and our government has moved to adequately fund employment standards and ensure that employment standards are able to be enforced and upheld.

Our government has also raised the minimum wage, which has contributed, as well, to benefit those workers working on the margins. Certainly, that’s important.

When we talk about addressing the systemic nature of racism, which undermines and is embedded in our institutions, and contributing to working to end racism, we also have to include the commitment to looking at ensuring that our public service is adequately reflective of our communities and that adequate hiring is available and opportunities are available for people from diverse backgrounds, particularly racialized communities, who are not well represented.

Our government has made a commitment to community benefits agreements, which give priority hiring to local people, Indigenous people, racialized folks, women and people living with disabilities to address their underrepresentation in these areas, which has been exacerbated. That’s the record of the last 16 years. These are some concrete steps and commitments to addressing systemic and institutionalized racism in our province.

As well, we know that racism is experienced by Indigenous people. Our government, in a great show of solidarity in the House, adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, the legislation underlying that. Our government is committed to bring in the first anti-racism legislation to look at providing a legislative framework to address these issues and move forward and to reconcile our history of racism and provide opportunities for all British Columbians.

[11:40 a.m.]

Previous speakers have mentioned, as well, implementing bringing back the independent human rights commission, which the previous B.C. Liberal government cancelled.

These are clear steps, in terms of solidarity, that we need to see across this province, standing up against individual acts of racism in our society and, also, institutionally to really bring change and to end racism.

T. Stone: “This Is Why Vancouver Has Become North America’s Anti-Asian Hate Crime Capital.” This is a headline in the May 12, 2021, story in Bloomberg News, and it’s a headline that every member of this House and all British Columbians should be ashamed of.

Last year more anti-Asian crimes were reported to police in Vancouver than in the top ten most populous U.S. cities combined. Many in the community have increasingly faced verbal assaults and insults, have been spat on and have had their property damaged. Sadly, most incidents go unreported, with almost one out of every two residents of Asian descent in B.C. experiencing a hate incident in the past year.

The historical context of anti-Asian sentiment, which has existed in one form or another for generations in British Columbia, is important to understand: the terrible treatment of Chinese labourers, who worked in mines or helped build the railway through British Columbia; the infamous head tax; a decades-long ban on Chinese immigration; the forced internment of 22,000 Japanese Canadians during World War II; the Vancouver covenants on land titles banning the sale of certain properties to those of African or Asiatic descent; the more recent rise in anti-Asian sentiments due to increasing levels of Asian immigration to B.C.; and, starting around 2014, a growing chorus blaming Asians as the primary reason for skyrocketing housing prices in B.C.

In 2014-15, researcher Andy Yan did an infamous report utilizing Multiple Listing Service area and land titles raw data. It assumed that a buyer was from mainland China if they had a non-anglicized Chinese name. It was based on just 172 sales out of over 42,000 transactions in 2015. More than 66 percent of the new owners involved in these 172 sales had those non-anglicized names or Chinese names.

Now people pushing these conspiracy theories had their report. This report fuelled a suspicion that foreign buying, especially by people of Chinese background, was the main factor driving up housing prices for everyone else. Despite others frantically pointing to a series of other factors that were actually driving up housing prices, like a tight supply of new housing at the local level or ongoing net immigration of Canadians moving to B.C. or historically low interest rates and a sharply increased money supply, those that were wedded to their useful political conspiracy theory refused to be swayed.

Some did push back on this false and destructive narrative. “This can’t be about race. It can’t be about dividing people,” said then Mayor Gregor Robertson to the CBC.

Evan Siddall, then head of CMHC, in a 2016 speech in Vancouver, pointed to evidence that Canadians were more likely to buy investment properties than foreigners, saying: “It makes for a tempting narrative. Them, not us.” The scapegoat is obvious. Blame foreigners.

Ng Weng Hoong told the Georgia Straight: “Having contributed significantly to Chinese scapegoating in the Vancouver housing discourse, the Yan study remains influential.”

Jennifer Bradshaw of Abundant Housing Vancouver said: “This smells heavily of extremely skewed data provided to a ‘researcher’ to extract a favoured conclusion.”

The sad reality today is that the Metro Vancouver housing market is hotter than ever, even with a sharp decline in immigration and a slowing economy during the pandemic. The current government isn’t doing anything about it, despite promising to make housing affordability their number one priority.

It’s not good enough to simply express regrets. The 2015 study in question should have never been published, and those who played a role in it should acknowledge their part in building this conspiracy theory that foreign buyers, especially Chinese, are responsible for ever-increasing housing prices. They should acknowledge their role in spinning this conspiracy theory and how it has stoked anti-Asian racism, and they should apologize publicly and unreservedly.

For anyone, let alone elected officials, to come to a conclusion that impacts so many people in so many ways is reckless. Tying someone’s name to a responsibility for rising housing prices is harmful. To continue to perpetuate such a damaging conspiracy theory is wrong.

[11:45 a.m.]

Leadership is about bringing people together, not dividing them. That starts by standing with our friends, co-workers, neighbours and, indeed, all British Columbians against anti-Asian racism.

Deputy Speaker: Thank you to the member for respecting the ruling of the Chair.

J. Sims: It’s my pleasure today to rise and speak in support of the motion: “Be it resolved that this House stand against anti-Asian racism.”

I’ve been sitting here listening to my colleagues stand up in the House to speak against this. I cannot imagine one person elected who would not be supporting this motion as it stands. At the same time, I will say that I have heard debate today and insinuations and pointing fingers which I do not agree with. I disagree with it very, very strongly, with the representation and with the kind of divisiveness that that kind of debate feeds.

I want to talk about what racism is. I looked in Wikipedia. “Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioural traits corresponding to physical appearance and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another.” A belief that race is a fundamental determinant of human traits and capacities and that racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.

It is no news to any of us that we are all historically part of colonialism. Canada, like many other countries, was colonized. During that colonization, the oppressions that occurred were absolutely horrific. When we look at the recent finding of the 215 kids, some of the horrors of colonialism come to the front.

Whether I look at the history from where my roots are in India…. Look at what happened there, where people were gathered into a contained area, and then cannons were shot at them. Whether I look at our own history here in Canada, where people born in China had to pay a special head tax just to keep them out. The Komagata Maru was not allowed to land, but for the Chinese, the discouragement was: “Let’s put a head tax on.” Or the horrific number of lives that were lost building the railway lines.

When I look at our history, our history is, let me say, not nice. Racism is inherent in so many of our systems, and it’s still there. Collectively, we have an opportunity and a responsibility to address systemic racism. At the same time, we also have to stand up.

Yes, there are things we have to do as governments, and we should be doing them together. We do not do the area of racism or the kinds of attacks, the growing attacks on Asian Canadians that have been happening…. We do not do that justice when we try to link it to the money laundering or to the rising prices of houses, as I have witnessed today.

[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

Those are very serious issues that Chinese Canadians, Canadians from India, wherever they’ve come from…. Everybody was concerned about the money laundering. Everyone was concerned about the rising prices of houses. No matter where we come from, we want our children to be able to have a roof over their heads and to have affordable housing.

What is it that we all have a duty to do? Yes, we have to stand up and speak out. That isn’t enough. As a government, we’ve got to look at some concrete actions. I’m proud of the fact that our government is looking at bringing in legislation to address some of those issues. The human rights commission was brought in.

We always want to be known in the world, but I’ll tell you. There were many Canadians, British Columbians, who were absolutely devastated to be named as the Asian hate centre when Vancouver got identified that way because of all the attacks on our Asian community, on those of Asian descent. What I will say is that every one of us has a role to play, and we need to start by modelling that ourselves — how we talk to each other.

[11:50 a.m.]

We need to have these tough conversations in our communities, because racism is insidious, it does hurt, and it goes in many different directions. Nobody from the ethnic community is looking for pablum. They’re not looking for a sweet, magic pill. They’re looking, wanting, to be treated like Canadians, as equal citizens, with just as much right to be here as anyone else.

T. Wat: I have dedicated much of my career as an MLA to promoting multiculturalism and ending racial stigmatization and hate in B.C. I’d like to believe that every MLA goes into public service for the right reasons. Regardless of our personal politics, I believe we put our names forward with a desire to make B.C. a better place to live for all.

When I first learned about the past action of the member, I was absolutely shocked and heartbroken. The member was so fixated on achieving a personal political objective, so determined to weave this dark narrative about our housing market being destroyed by dirty, foreign, Asian money. The member was willing to use whatever means necessary to achieve this goal. Along the way, he clearly lost sight of the very real harm this would do to the people we have sworn to serve.

Thirty years ago I chose to call Canada home because I respected our multicultural policy, because I felt this province was taking steps in the right direction to make every aspiring British Columbian feel welcome. Now, I’m scared to walk the streets alone, and many Chinese Canadians share the same fear.

British Columbians are opening international newspapers like Bloomberg to see our city labelled as the anti-Asian hate crime capital of North America. To learn that we have seen a 700 percent increase in anti-Asian hate crimes, and experienced more racist incidents — just Asians — than the ten most populous U.S. cities combined, I am at a loss for words.

For a political leader to use his influence as an MLA to participate in a study that is now widely considered to be racist is shameful. The fact the member intentionally focused on a small sample size of foreign-sounding names to help reinforce a racist stereotype is unconscionable. As a result, the Chinese community has been all lumped together, with all Chinese-looking people being seen as culprits for the skyrocketing housing crisis. Is this fair?

As responsible as the member is for feeding this anti-Asian narrative, this government is just as responsible for supporting him every step of the way. Just listen to this passage from this government’s economic framework, which scapegoats foreign workers and immigrants for their failures to provide affordable housing: “Much of B.C.’s technology sector is currently concentrated in downtown Vancouver. This constrains growth, as technology investment in B.C. often requires significant immigration or temporary foreign workers, which adds to pressures on the availability and cost of housing in Vancouver.”

Last year, despite foreign purchases making up less than 1 percent of housing sales in Vancouver, housing prices reached an all-time high. What did happen, though, was an unprecedented rise in anti-Asian racism and hate crimes. I don’t want to live in a province where our children will face more discrimination or have to overcome more barriers because their last name is Lee, Chen, Chow, Kang, Yao, Ma or Wat. But this is the reality we now live in.

Asian Canadians who have worked and saved their entire lives to buy homes and start families are facing more suspicion and scrutiny from sellers and neighbours. All of a sudden, they need to explain where their money came from, because heaven forbid they are simply hard-working British Columbians.

[11:55 a.m.]

Every day Asian Canadians are facing actions and aggressions intended to make them feel less Canadian and less welcome in their own homes. I feel the same, too. When you think of B.C.’s legacy, how horrifically we have treated those who have done so much to build our province — the Chinese head tax, residential schools and the Komagata Maru incident….

I think it’s time for this member to stop and reflect on what he has done, and what legacy he truly wants to leave in B.C. history books.

Mr. Speaker: Members, I’ve been watching the debate this morning. We will be watching the Hansard, and I’ll review all the comments made more carefully.

People, keep in mind that Standing Order 40 clearly states that the conduct of a member cannot be canvassed in debate, nor can charges of a personal character be made, except by a substantive motion. So we’ll be carefully reviewing all the comments made today. It seems like some members crossed the line, so I’ll have further comments later on.

Member to adjourn the debate, noting the hour.

T. Wat moved adjournment of debate.

Motion approved.

Hon. B. Ma 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.