Orders of the Day

Private Members’ Statements

BLACK HISTORY MONTH

J. Routledge: I rise to make a statement about Black History Month. February is Black History Month. It represents an opportunity for us to honour, celebrate and reflect on the stories, experiences and accomplishments of Black Canadians.

[R. Leonard in the chair.]

While it is important to take the time to remember and name Black professionals, artists and leaders who helped define Canadian and British Columbian society, it is perhaps even more important to take the time to acknowledge that members of Black communities have been and continue to be met with the same oppression and racism here in B.C. that they have been trying to escape from around the world.

To acknowledge that from Africville in Nova Scotia to Hogan’s Alley right here in British Columbia, Black communities have been destroyed and, with that destruction, the obliteration of the very history we profess to be celebrating this month. So a big part of our focus must be to uncover and mainstream Black history, not only the history we want to celebrate but that which we may want to mourn and reconcile.

[10:05 a.m.]

For many in our community, this journey is highly personal and deeply meaningful. It’s the history of themselves. It’s the history of the people who raised them, of the people they love. So I reached out to some of the Black people in my life and asked them what Black History Month means to them. This is some of what they told me.

Black History Month, for some, can be a joyous occasion to celebrate Black history and local Black leaders, I was told. For others, it can be an overwhelming and anxiety-inducing time — to try and meet the expectations and burden placed on the shoulders of community organizers to educate society at large, when that is the responsibility of our education system.

Black History Month is an important reminder, I was told, that Black Canadians have always been othered in Canadian society — enslavement, segregation and not having appropriate learning materials available in school. Black Canadians have never been accepted and integrated into Canadian society. They told me: “Our communities have never had space to flourish, and our monuments and achievements have been erased from the history books in current knowledge of society.”

I also asked: “From your perspective as a Black person, why should I, as a white person, know Black history?” I was told it’s important for all Canadians to learn and un­derstand Canadian Black history because Black history is Canadian history. People of African descent have existed in Canada for centuries and made large contributions to shaping the country we live in today. Unfortunately, people aren’t taught these facts in schools, and Black communities are burdened to teach the public — which can’t be said for any other racialized group, they told me.

I also asked: “What is missing now in what society thinks it knows about Black history?” Everything is missing, I was told. From what society understands about Black history — leadership, excellence, creations, innovation — so much of what we do and so much of how society has been formed has been shaped by Black Canadians and people of African descent around the globe.

Then I asked: “Is there misinformation about what we think we know about Black history?” The answer was yes, there is misinformation about what we think we know about Canadian Black history, because right now people are only learning about the transatlantic slave trade and the Underground Railroad, with the theme that there was never any severe racism in Canada and that once people reached Canada, they didn’t face discrimination.

The reality is that discrimination and racism have been just as prevalent in Canada as in the United States, and the systemic racism Black Canadians face is very similar to that in other jurisdictions of the world, yet Canadians tend to believe the situation isn’t as bad here, which perpetuates systemic racism and continues the cycles of systemic discrimination facing Black Canadians.

Then I asked: “Who should be teaching Black history — how and where?” The answer was: school teachers should be teaching Black history in the classroom as early as kindergarten and have Blackness integrated throughout the curriculum year-round, not only in the month of February.

My final question was: “If Black history were to be taught properly, what would change? How would society benefit?” This is what they told me. Teaching Black history properly could very well improve the confidence of Black Canadians and hopefully reduce incidents of racism and internalized bias currently being cultivated in our society due to a deficit of knowledge and understanding.

In conclusion, I am proud that the Burnaby board of education, having passed a motion unanimously, has already started the work to develop an anti-racism plan, update anti-racism policies and create a better path forward together. Led by vice-principal Beth Applewhite, in a position specifically created for this purpose, parents, students and staff are learning and unlearning what they know about racism and how to be active anti-racists. I understand that other school districts have adopted this model as well.

I will conclude my opening remarks here, and I look forward to hearing the reply from the member opposite.

[10:10 a.m.]

C. Oakes: I’m grateful to have the opportunity to rise today to lend my voice towards an important push for diversity, inclusion and awareness.

I am speaking of Black History Month. During this month, British Columbians celebrate the many achievements and contributions of Black Canadians and their communities who, throughout history, have played an in­fluential role in creating a diverse, compassionate and prosperous British Columbia. They have done this all while facing racism and discrimination in their daily lives.

Throughout history, the role of Black Canadians and their communities has been largely overlooked through­out our country, even though they have played a significant role in shaping this nation from coast to coast to coast.

I believe it’s our collective responsibility to raise Black voices and to learn their stories, stories like that of Dr. William Jones. Dr. Jones was a dentist from Barkerville who immigrated from the United States with his brothers, Elias and John. His work would help shape the rich history of Barkerville. Or the story of Rebecca Gibbs, who also lived in Barkerville during the gold rush of the 1860s, worked as a washerwoman and published several poems in the Cariboo Sentinel.

At this point, I would like to invite all members of this House to make sure they put Barkerville on their list to visit and to learn about these important stories.

Importantly for this chamber, the Hon. Rosemary Brown was the first Black woman to be elected to a provincial legislature in Canada. Representing the constituency of Vancouver-Burrard, she was elected as a member to sit in this chamber in 1972. During her 14 years as an MLA, Brown introduced legislation to remove sexism and racism from the B.C. education curriculum, to reduce discrimination based on gender and marital status and to advance human rights in British Columbia.

The 2022 theme for Black History Month is “February and forever: celebrating Black history today and every day.” It focuses on recognizing and celebrating the daily contributions made by Black Canadians throughout Canada.

It is not enough to just celebrate Black History Month, as the member opposite mentioned earlier. Each and every day we should be honouring, uplifting and re­specting the voices and lives of all members in the Black community as we work together to grow this beautiful province of ours. It is with that focus that I urge all members to advocate and work together to ensure the history of Black Canadians here in British Columbia is remembered and celebrated.

Moreover, I urge all British Columbians to call out racism and discrimination when you see it and to participate in local community events and educational opportunities. Let your community know that we stand united, and help play a role in teaching the next generation. You can also make an effort to support Black-owned businesses. In doing so, you support those in your communities and you help foster job creation and strengthen the local economy. British Columbia is home to many great Black-owned businesses, and I encourage everyone to go out and search for the ones in your local community.

I encourage everyone to be an ally this Black History Month and beyond. It is critical that we go beyond words and truly reflect on what we as individuals can do to ensure that the profound impact Black Canadians have had on this country is never forgotten.

British Columbia is home to many great stories, and it is our duty to ensure that those stories are brought to the forefront. We must work together to ensure that all people who call this land home, regardless of background or ethnicity, have equal opportunity to succeed right here in British Columbia.

I thank everyone here for the opportunity to speak on such an important month and to reflect on the beauty and diversity of our incredible province.

[10:15 a.m.]

J. Routledge: I thank the member for Cariboo North for sharing her reflections on Black History Month and for naming specific Black trail-blazers and highlighting their accomplishments. This is a really important part of unlearning what we think we know about our history.

In my opening remarks, I was honoured to amplify the voices of Black Canadians themselves — or, as I’ve come to learn to refer to them as, members of Canada’s African, Caribbean and Black diaspora, the ACB.

In my closing remarks, I’d like to concentrate on what Black History Month means to me as a white woman. I grew up in a white working-class neighbourhood in southeastern Ontario. Everyone was white, and I mean everyone. As children, we were taught in Sunday school that European missionaries came to North America to civilize the people who already lived here, to save them with a European system of values and beliefs that were superior. We were taught that missionaries were heroes who put their own lives at risk to enlighten others to a better way of being.

In school, we learned that our European ancestors came to an empty land and worked hard and made personal sacrifices to transform it into something productive and modern. I don’t recall anyone telling me that we were superior because we were white, but it sure was implied.

It wasn’t until I was in university that I was introduced to the idea that the history I was taught may have been a very sophisticated form of propaganda. As part of a course on social history, I wrote an essay about it. I recall returning to my high school to research my topic, and I recall the enthusiasm with which one of my former teachers helped me deconstruct the narrative in our history books. For me, it was the first step in a long journey of rediscovery.

As a white woman, I value Black History Month as a reminder that that journey is far from over. I know that it is my job to educate myself about Black history. To that end, and among other things, I will be attending Sankofa: African Routes, Canadian Roots at the Museum of Anthropology, an exhibit that explores some of the divergent and often fragmented paths of political mobilization and cultural assertation that African and Black people in the diaspora have taken.

I’ve also become a sustaining donor to the B.C. Community Alliance, a grassroots, Black-led organization dedicated to addressing the structural inequities created by racism within the education setting in British Columbia. In the words of my young friend Markiel Simpson, ACB Canadians are, in many ways, a people freed but never free, and achieving true liberation will require more than a month and also more than a movement.

I want to thank my colleagues who gave me the space to make this statement this morning and the many people who helped shape the content of this statement.

PANDEMIC DISABILITY SUPPORTS

D. Davies: I rise in the House today to take my place this morning during our private members’ debate.

At this point in the pandemic, none of us are strangers to the many challenges that this has brought to all of our communities across British Columbia and across Canada. Our businesses, community centres, religious groups and families are still making the sacrifices every day to keep the community safe and to keep our health care system supported and be supporting the people that are most vulnerable.

The challenges British Columbians are facing due to the pandemic, though, go beyond the health challenges and the significant economic challenges as well. Exacerbated by the province’s ever-growing affordability crisis, British Columbians are seeing the cost of rent, housing, gas, food and many other of life’s basic amenities skyrocket, and skyrocket like we’ve never seen before.

[10:20 a.m.]

Fuel prices have gone through the roof — $1.67 here on the Island, $1.80 today in Vancouver. A jug of milk is almost $7 in the stores now, and produce is pretty much out of touch for people that are most vulnerable.

All of this, combined with a slew of new and increasing taxes and fees, is leaving less money in the pockets of average British Columbians, let alone those that are on fixed incomes.

We’ve heard over and over again from different groups that people are one paycheque away from complete insolvency. To make matters worse, these health and economic impacts have disproportionately, as I have mentioned, affected the most vulnerable members of our communities — our seniors, our people that are living with disabilities, those who are immunocompromised and have been unable to work due to the pandemic.

In a recent MNP report on British Columbians’ personal finances, it backs up the comment that 46 percent of British Columbians are $200 away from being completely broke. These individuals face a disproportionate number of obstacles in their daily lives. While we are happy to see financial supports available to many British Columbians, we must recognize how carefully so many of these individuals specifically balance their budgets through various streams of income earned through their work as well as provincial and federal supports.

Unfortunately, we only need to scroll through social media, whether it’s Twitter or Facebook, to see the many people that are on fixed incomes, persons with disabilities that are supplementing their daily grocery bill by visiting the food bank or by doing asks on social media, asking for assistance, asking for someone to buy necessities so that they can get through their month.

Many of these British Columbians rely on the steady and reliable income, both federal and provincial assistance, to help pay for the things that they need: rent, gas, utilities, groceries, etc., and other life’s basic necessities. More importantly, these British Columbians depend on an open and transparent consultation and notification from their government so that they can plan accordingly. Their budgets are way too tight and difficult to maintain without notification on changes to their payments.

You can understand, obviously, why there was shock and disappointment recently when many, many folks saw a reduction in their disability cheques and income assistance, without warning. Last year we heard on the media — I heard, and I know others have heard from constituents — that people are no longer exempt from federal employee insurance as an income asset. You can imagine the shock and dismay to many of these folks that saw an already almost invisible paycheque become even less.

As a result, British Columbians collecting disability and income assistance did see their checks reduced. I’ve heard stories from constituents and many social advocates who have learned that, in December, their EI benefits would no longer be listed as that asset. It was still on the website, unfortunately, right up until the end of December before they were notified that there would be no exemption.

What might seem as a minor mistake has real impacts to people — catastrophic consequences to thousands of British Columbians. It means the difference of paying rent or missing a rent cheque, buying groceries or not buying groceries, and many other pieces of their budget. This kind of miscommunication and misdirection must not happen again, but it seems to be happening more and more as far as miscommunication.

There’s been a lot of criticism recently by social service support advocates for issues around COVID-19 pandemic supports. And together we must ensure, in this House, that British Columbians do indeed have the supports that they need and the assistance that they deserve so that they can endure the many challenges that this pandemic has already impacted their lives.

[10:25 a.m.]

With that, I’ll take my seat and look forward to hearing my colleague.

D. Coulter: I’d like to thank the member for bringing this forward. I really appreciate his passion for people with disabilities. Poverty is something that impacts the lives of too many British Columbians, and there’s no doubt that it’s more acutely felt by folks living with disabilities.

I’m grateful to be in a province where the government has supported people through this pandemic. Government, in April 2020, instituted a temporary $300-per-month COVID-19 crisis supplement to disability assistant rates. It was in place from April to June 2020, then extended for July and August 2020, then extended again for September through December 2020, then replaced by a $150-per-month supplement for January to March 2021. That also included a $500 recovery benefit.

The government wanted to provide predictability and stability for those who receive disability assistance, so the government instituted the largest permanent rate increase ever — $175 per month — and the third increase since we first formed government in July 2017. People receiving disability assistance will be receiving $325 per month more in assistance than they did in March 2017.

Prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, people receiving disability assistance had all federal employment insurance benefits treated as income. The Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction exempted EI payments as income beginning in April 2020. This temporary measure reflected the broad economic impacts of the pandemic and complemented federal emergency support programs being introduced, such as the Canadian emergency response benefit.

Exempting employment insurance and federal COVID supports from disability assistance rates was an emergency measure brought in at the beginning of the pandemic, and I’m so proud that the B.C. government was the only provincial government to exempt employment insurance.

More targeted supports are now in place from the federal government, and B.C. has exempted those new supports as well. Those are the Canada recovery sickness benefit and the Canada recovery caregiving benefit. B.C. continues to exempt income for people living with disabilities who get those targeted federal supports.

The government is also working on an inclusive recovery to COVID, in part with a program called the work experience opportunities grant. The work experience opportunities grant helps vulnerable British Columbians who receive income or disability assistance and have barriers to employment to gain new skills and participate in paid work experience opportunities. The grant supports a sustainable, resilient and inclusive labour market recovery by providing opportunities for people living with disabilities to participate in the labour market.

Grants are available to non-profit organizations and federally registered charities to provide a meaningful work experience opportunity to eligible participants throughout the province. The grants are $5,000 per participant, and each non-profit or charity can apply for up to ten folks, totalling $50,000.

Also, continuing the theme of making sure that our recovery is an inclusive one, government has provided a workplace accessibility grant through Small Business B.C. Small businesses can now apply for a grant to make their businesses more accessible. I spoke in my Throne Speech on Wednesday about a local business in my constituency called The Book Man, which has taken advantage of this grant.

[10:30 a.m.]

Government isn’t just focused on folks during the pandemic. We’ve been working on making life better for folks living with disabilities since we took government, and we will continue to do so well after the pandemic is over.

D. Davies: I want to thank the member for Chilliwack for his comments.

Interjection.

D. Davies: All right. Must be Monday morning.

I used my opening remarks to outline some of the latest controversies that have happened against our province’s most vulnerable people. Unfortunately, though, there are many. There are many.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen that British Columbians’ supports and financial assistance, which they really rely on, have been mismanaged. It was roughly a year ago now when the front lawn of this place was filled with social advocates, the Disability Alliance, everyday British Columbians rallying around how they felt they have been mistreated by living with disabilities.

In fact, I would like to say that, again, on March 9, from 12 o’clock to two o’clock, this year, there will be another rally on the front lawns of the Legislature, and I do encourage everybody to go out and have those conversations with the folks on the front lawn.

I think it’s also important to recognize that one of the very first things that this place did — and the then newly appointed minister — was to make a cut to persons with disabilities, a cut by 50 percent, which was somewhat reinstated, and people are happy. But we need to make sure that we do get back to the $300 that was initially on the table, to make lives better for people living with disabilities.

Advocacy groups have noted that this action, by reinstating this amount, will bring people closer to that pov­erty line so that they can make choices in their house between groceries or not, between medication or not — easier for them. We need to make sure that we reinstate the $300 that was cut.

If we are to truly put British Columbians first, we will be listening to our social support advocates. We will be helping them live their lives without having to plead on social media, without having to supplement, daily, their grocery bill at the food hamper. It is time for the province to step up to the plate to make good on what it has pledged to British Columbians, especially those that are living with disabilities.

WATERSHED SECURITY
IN A CHANGING CLIMATE

F. Donnelly: In B.C., we all live in a watershed, but few know what a watershed is or understand the important role watersheds play in sustaining healthy commun­ities. A watershed is an area of land, draining surface runoff, groundwater, rain and melting snow into a specific body of water, like a river, lake or ocean. Because water is drawn downhill by gravity, the high points of a watershed define its boundaries, from its mountaintops, high hills or ridges.

Beautiful British Columbia consists of nine major watersheds or river basins, many of which are iconic and known worldwide — the Fraser, the Skeena, the Columbia, the Mackenzie. Within these major watersheds are smaller watersheds and sub-watersheds.

Watersheds are the foundation of our health, security and prosperity. They support our emotional, physical, mental and spiritual health and our economic well-being. Watersheds are a source of drinking water, a home for salmon, a place for recreation, a place to find solace. They are integral to cultural practices, and they provide income security for people whose jobs are connected to them.

This is why prioritizing watershed security is important to our government. When we have healthy and secure watersheds, we benefit from clean drinking water, healthy fish populations, water to grow our food, habitat for aquatic species, thriving local economies with good jobs — all of which make our communities more secure and resilient to the impacts of climate change.

[10:35 a.m.]

In 2020, as part of our economic recovery plan, our government invested $27 million in watershed initiatives and wetland projects in B.C. through the healthy watersheds initiative. While it was a one-time injection of funds, it was an important first step towards watershed security in British Columbia.

Created in partnership with Watersheds B.C. and the Real Estate Foundation of B.C., the HWI funded more than 61 watershed projects, supporting more than 750 jobs for British Columbians in every corner of the province. There were projects to protect wild salmon and wildlife habitat, help communities adapt to climate change, gather critical data on water quality and quantity, and support sustainable management and conservation practices.

More than one-third of the projects were Indigenous-led and many more had Indigenous partners. HWI projects demonstrate that by working together, communities can better withstand impacts from extreme weather events.

The HWI proved more successful than we could have even imagined. As you know, B.C. spent much of the past year in states of emergencies due to wildfires, floods, droughts and a heat dome. Crises come with significant costs, but our investments in watersheds are helping build resilience. We are strengthening our natural defences and building resilient communities in the face of a fast-changing climate.

These projects are already showing results. Projects like the Wetlands Workforce Mackay Creek Restoration project in North Vancouver, where the B.C. Wildlife Federation is collaborating with First Nations and Wildcoast Ecological Society. They’re working to restore, stabilize and monitor the Mackay Creek wetland.

In the past, following any big rain event, the creek would fill up so rapidly, it would flood onto the roads. After a year of removing invasive grasses and creating natural inflows and outflows from the creek, birds and salmon returned, and water quality improved. When the atmospheric rivers poured down last fall, the restored wetlands served as a giant sponge, absorbing much of the water draining into the creek — water that historically would have spilled onto the roads.

The Rivershed Society of B.C.’s foodlands corridor restoration project is bringing together local Indigenous communities, agricultural land holders and other collaborators to create natural restored connected corridors on privately held lands within the Fraser watershed. Bringing a decolonized approach to habitat restoration, foodlands is codesigning corridor sites with Indigenous communities, integrating traditional knowledge and language.

In 2021, with funding from the healthy watersheds initiative, they began work on the Salmon River watershed in Langley, with multiple agricultural land owners, including Seyem’ Qwantlen, Kwantlen First Nations business arm, and local groups. They are creating overwintering habitat for juvenile salmon, replacing invasive plants with native species and restoring riparian buffers that support ecosystem resilience from climate change events.

In 2022, Rivershed plans to expand the Salmon River corridor and collaborate with nations and landholders on new foodland corridors in other regions of the Fraser, either the Nechako or the Fraser Canyon.

The district of Kent’s project to upgrade the Agassiz Slough flood box to a system that has demonstrable effects benefits to fish passage. The new fish-friendly floodgate is making valuable habitat accessible to overwintering juvenile salmon and other fish species. During the atmospheric rivers, it was reported to be one of only a few culverts in the district that didn’t overflow, and the Fraser Valley Watershed Coalition’s Peach Creek and Hooge watershed restoration project, which is connecting streams and wetlands between dikes on the Vedder River Floodplain.

During the catastrophic flooding, salmon escaped the high flow of the Vedder River and safely spawned in the off-channel habitats of Peach Creek. Also, the Hooge wetlands absorbed excess stormwater, mitigating the flooding that impacted much of the Fraser Valley.

These are just a few examples of the incredible work being done to build natural defences to combat climate change. This past year was challenging, but by continuing to invest in watershed security, we will produce positive results, creating healthy, sustainable communities.

[10:40 a.m.]

J. Sturdy: Thank you to the member opposite for highlighting the importance of watershed security in a changing climate. I’m pleased for the opportunity to speak on this matter.

The communities I represent in West Vancouver–Sea to Sky, and others from around the province, all recognize the challenges our environment is facing from a range of impacts. Stresses on our oceans and watersheds, habitat loss, pollution and population growth are cumulatively impacting the health of our watersheds.

As leaders in British Columbia, we need to reaffirm our commitment to investing in better management practices within our areas of jurisdiction, if for no other reason than supporting the viability of our wild salmon and our steelhead populations.

Of particular concern is the dire state of steelhead, which in this province has been in a constant state of decline. In British Columbia, half of the steelhead stock are classified as of extreme conservation concern. Last fall only 58 fish were expected to spawn in the Thompson and 27 in the Chilcotin, a staggeringly small number from what was once a thriving population. Remember, Spences Bridge on the Thompson once had the elite travelling from around the world for its famous and feisty steelhead. Not so today.

While there’s lots of advocacy for this fish, there seems little action at either the provincial or the federal government levels. Steelhead particularly seem to fall between the DFO and FLNR jurisdictional cracks as a provincial fish that spawns. Simply lamenting the dire state of affairs hardly seems enough as we see this critical species of wild trout fighting for its very survival, and we need to do something about it.

When we think of the many things that symbolize British Columbia, few are more iconic than our Pacific wild salmon, which was listed as an official symbol of British Columbia in 2013. Salmon has been a lifeblood of communities across British Columbia. Beyond the cultural, economic and nutritional significance to the human in­habitants of the province, salmon are vital parts of watershed ecosystems. They’re not just contributors to the ecosystems; they’re also dependent on them.

It follows that the health and security of our watersheds are essential to the health of wild fish populations and vice versa, for remember: fish are also important fertilizers for our ecosystems. Ecosystem health needs to be a priority, in some cases requiring protected status and in others, revitalization — and always with best management practices in mind.

It sounds as though last year we added 100,000 people to this province. That is one of the central challenges that we face. Everything we do as people has an impact, and the more of us, the more the impacts.

Stats Canada published the first tranche of census statistics last week. I’ll tell you, Madam Speaker, it was quite an eye-opener for the Sea to Sky. While West Vancouver–​Lions Bay grew by a sleepy 4 percent over five years, Bowen grew by 15 percent, Whistler by 19 percent, Squa­mish by 22 percent and my home of Pemberton, over 32 percent growth in five years. Phenomenal numbers.

More energy, fibre, minerals, food, transportation, accom­modation and recreation — and more of all that means more impacts, which we must be conscious of and work hard to mitigate. How we design our infrastructure impacts watersheds. The member opposite actually mentioned some of these issues. Streams and watercourses are vulnerable to runoff from roadways and agriculture. Storms onto hard surfacing can generate higher velocities and create erosion, and floodwaters can carry pollutants and debris and can harm the environment and wildlife.

Climate change is changing our watersheds. Warming has led to increased water temperatures in streams, contributing to higher mortality in fish populations. Receding glaciers and reduced snowpacks contribute to lower streamflows and can limit salmon ability to spawn and reproduce. Heatwaves make forests more susceptible to wildfires, and increasingly big fires sterilize soil, making erosion more likely, debris to flow more destructively and recovery painfully slow.

Beyond the value of the natural state of watersheds is the value to communities that natural assets and ecosystems provide. It’s important to appreciate and hard to overstate the value generated in services that would otherwise require costly equivalent of engineered infrastructure — access to clean air, soil that supports plant growth and sunlight to grow in. Especially important is the ability to be supplied with clean water.

[10:45 a.m.]

While water can be devastating, as we saw in the fall, water is life, and in B.C., we’re fortunate in our plenty. We need to steward it well. I’m sure all the members of this House agree our watersheds need more than just words to face the challenges ahead. I thank the member opposite for recognizing that.

F. Donnelly: I would like to thank the member for West Vancouver–Sea to Sky for his comments. I wholeheartedly agree with his remarks about the dire state of Interior Fraser steelhead.

Water is precious and finite. During the last decade, we have witnessed the impacts of climate change and watersheds in every region of the province. Whether extreme heat, floods, drought or wildfires, all have been putting watershed communities in crisis mode. That is why we urgently need to continue preparing for future extreme weather and climate change–related events. We need to work together to strengthen watershed security and build healthy, resilient communities.

Our government is committed to watershed security and ensuring the long-term health and well-being of communities in the face of a changing climate. Working to­gether, in partnership with Indigenous nations, we are developing B.C.’s first-ever watershed security strategy and fund. We are also engaging with the public and consulting with interest groups. We are making sure these efforts align with other priorities, like our wild salmon strategy, our coastal marine strategy and our climate preparedness and adaptation strategy.

Through the just-released discussion paper, we are ex­ploring key themes, including governance, climate change, ecosystems and sources of drinking water. We are considering community and economic stability and building on the important work many nations and communities are doing to protect and restore their local watersheds.

Water is essential not only just for drinking but also for washing, cooking, growing our food, recreation and for other animals and plants. Small businesses and industries rely on water to support their economic operations. Water is essential for aquatic life and sustaining our world-class fisheries, and importantly, water has cultural and spiritual significance for Indigenous peoples.

As Oliver Brandes, co-director of the University of Victoria’s Polis Project on Ecological Governance, said: “Without watershed security, the costs of climate and flood impacts grow, droughts endure, wildfires intensify, salmon die, forests fail, soil is lost, food cannot grow, local economies falter and conflicts mount.” I agree with Oliver. It is imperative we work together and strengthen the security of our watersheds. The deadline for public comment on the discussion paper is March 18, 2022, at 4 p.m.

I know British Columbians care deeply about the health of our watersheds. I encourage them to take this opportunity and help determine how watersheds are managed. I’m sure all members will agree that, together, we can build a legacy of healthy and resilient watersheds for all.

AUTISM SUPPORTS

K. Kirkpatrick: I’m so honoured today to be able to use my voice in this House, as I should do, to speak on behalf of others.

Autism spectrum disorder is a neurological developmental condition that has a wide variation in how it affects each person’s needs, skills and abilities. It’s estimated that one in 66 children and youth in Canada are diagnosed with autism. There are approximately 75,000 people af­fected in British Columbia, and 26,000 are young people receiving individualized funding.

Children and parents can benefit from effective therapy and intervention that will help individuals and their families address the characteristics of this disorder, help them develop skills and learn to communicate effectively, to succeed at school and to live independently.

For more than 20 years, British Columbia has been a leader in its model for autism care for youth in Canada. Families struggling with autism care have found much comfort in their ability to access the individualized direct funding currently in place to pay for eligible services or supports, such as certified behavioural analysis and occupational therapists, to help promote skill development for their children, to buy equipment or supplies, or for travel to access services.

[10:50 a.m.]

In most cases, it involves spending a long time to vet and to have the right service team for a child. There are well-established relationships and resources that are hard to replace.

B.C. has been very lucky that the current system has encouraged professionals to train for and pursue careers specific to working with autistic children and youth. Many of these professionals are individuals who have built their small business around providing these professional services.

British Columbia needs a system that will encourage even more professionals to live and work in this province, but the uncertainty about how a new hub system will support these professionals is causing some to consider whether B.C. is where they should be.

Of course, the current system is not without its flaws. It needs to be expanded to include young people with FASD, dyslexia and Down syndrome, to name a few. It needs to be streamlined to make it easier for parents to navi­gate. Although it needs more resources, and it needs to be expanded to more children, overall the current system works.

In comparison, Ontario moved to a similar centralized funding model three years ago, which has doubled the wait-list for kids since it was brought in and has caused additional hardship for families. In such a hub system, families are forced to compete against each other for re­sources and for services. When this happens, a two-tier system is created. Those parents who can afford private will go that way, and those who cannot will languish on increased wait-lists. We need a system that will provide fair and equal access to all children.

Parents have been expressing their concerns about switching to a hub system over and over again.

Rozann Pedersen, the parent of two children on the autism spectrum who are thriving under the current system, pointed out that the wait-lists in Ontario have doubled under a hub model.

Nicole Kaler, as a Black woman from Surrey, worries the hub model will exacerbate the bias and discrimination that many feel when interacting with a government. But by having the ability to put a child’s interests first, parents can create a system that works for the family in a culturally sensitive way.

Karissa Crawley said: “My family has spent years finding the right service providers for my son, and it will be catastrophic for my family to disrupt the people and therapies that we have put in place. My son, who is struggling, will have the rug pulled out from under him.”

Jessica Taylor said: “I advocated and fought for almost six years to get my child assessed, and he finally got diag­nosed autistic after years of struggling. Now we finally have a great team set up for him, and he’s making so much progress. The hubs won’t work for him, as he has extreme sensory issues and requires a low-stimulation environment. He also has extreme anxiety. We have tried centres in the past that have never worked due to the two reasons I mentioned.”

For autistic children, transitioning is one of the most difficult things. Changing to a different system will uproot many families’ already fragile and delicate day-to-day life.

It didn’t work in Ontario. Parents have many concerns, which include potential disruption of service, a lack of choice for therapies for children, evidence-based therapies that will be too expensive for families to support outside the hub system, a shortage of service providers, the fact that not all families with autistic children will receive the same quality and quantity of service, being matched with service providers that may not specialize in a child’s specific needs and the location of the hub and accessibility in rural areas.

The current system in B.C. allows parents to be in control of services and supports that their children need. Parents are able to handpick the support team and make sure that everything is designed for their child’s diverse abilities. As caregivers, parents play an essential role, and their voices should be heard when it comes to the care of their children.

[10:55 a.m.]

“Nothing about us without us” communicates the principle that no decision should be made without the full participation of people affected by that policy. These are the words we’ve been hearing from the autism community in British Columbia since October.

When it comes to the well-being and care of children, especially children with support needs, parents should be and must be directly involved. That’s why, when the government makes significant changes to such a system, families and service providers must be consulted.

I look forward to a response.

M. Dykeman: Thank you to the member opposite for bringing forward this very important topic to the House today and for your comments. It is a privilege to be able to rise in the House today and speak on such an important subject.

As a parent myself, supports and opportunities for every child and youth to be able to access the supports they need to live a full, happy and healthy life and receive their goals is something that I’m deeply passionate about, as I know that every member in this House is. Our children really are our future, and the investments we make in children today are what lead to the wonderful province and country that we live in. They’re important investments.

I think there are several things that the member op­posite and myself and others can agree on. British Columbia works very hard every day to meet the needs of learners and students and children, but there’s room for improvement. We have some fantastic supports, but as we’ve heard from the Representative for Children and Youth, we have some work to do. As they have said, the lack of services for families is a direct result of the children and youth with support needs eligibility criteria, which are based on diagnosis rather than functional need. That was in the Left Out report.

The independent children’s representative also agreed the current approach is leaving too many children and youth behind. We’ve heard the program described as a patchwork, where parents are trying to navigate a patchwork of programs. Many children and youth who are neurodiverse or who have disabilities or other support needs just simply are not able to access the level of support that they need.

I know myself, as a parent of a dyslexic child…. I re­member the shock of being told that she wouldn’t be able to read when she was five years old. She’d never be able to read was what I was told. That was really surprising at five years old, because there’s a lot of journey of school left. I remember, as a parent, navigating the system, trying to figure out how to get the help and the supports you need and being told you weren’t funded for this or there wasn’t that or you didn’t fit neatly in a box. We were fortunate as a family that we were able to do that.

I agree with the member opposite. We don’t want a two-tier system. Unfortunately, I think we already have a two-tier system. We have a system that provides funding for some things but not others and support systems for some but not others. My family and I were able to access resources for my daughter, who certainly is doing fine and reading, but it was a scary situation. It was a very frustrating situation too.

I think that we can all agree that what we want to do is make things better for our youth. We don’t want to make things not better. We want to create an opportunity for our children to be able to access the services that they need. For it to be contingent on a diagnosis — you have to have a piece of paper to go in and get the help for your child — is very frustrating. Many people who are not able to access a diagnosis are left just waiting until the school system picks that up.

I remember, as board chair, having parents write to me and say: “Well, why can’t I get a diagnosis or a psychoeducational report for my child till after grade 4? That leaves four or five years.”

[11:00 a.m.]

We know that those first years are the most impressionable years of a child’s life — sort of the first six years. Many parents are going into the school system and then waiting later on to get a diagnosis, and you’ve missed those years to provide services. The hub model aims to deal with that by providing services without a diagnosis right off the bat.

[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

Parents are the most important advocates for their children. I know that in December, our government spoke to approximately 2,000 families and service providers, and more consultations are planned for the spring. No de­cisions have been made, but what I do know is that our government has a track record and is committed to raising people up, and I’m excited to see what comes out of that conversation.

Thank you, hon. Speaker, for the opportunity to respond.

K. Kirkpatrick: I agree with most of what the member has just said. Our children are the most important re­source we have, and we need to do everything we can to give them all equal and fair access to supports.

Last week frustrated parents of children with autism gathered again on the front lawn of the B.C. Legislature. All members of the House were invited to join them. All members of this House had been contacted by concerned parents.

I’m very glad to hear that the member’s daughter was able to get the supports that she needed to be successful. I absolutely agree. All children with dyslexia should have access to the supports that they need, just like families with children with autism should have access to those supports. This should not be a them or us. This should be an ability to build on a current system which is working, and make it fair and give access to all.

These families who were here are already marginalized and vulnerable. They have been struggling in a system without adequate and equitable support.

Families have been looking forward to the announcement of enhanced services, as they knew changes were being considered by government, but never in those consultations did they imagine a new and completely different model, which had never, ever been discussed with them in those conversations. What these parents want from government is to build upon an existing system which is working — not for everyone yet. It’s working. It just needs to be enhanced, rather than taking the model away for this large majority of families.

We must understand the profound impact that sweeping changes will bring to the autism community and the broader disability community. Many children’s worlds will be turned upside down. Not only are parents scared and disheartened, but service providers are also worried.

Stella, a behavioural consultant, said: “Under the hub system, parents will no longer get to choose their own therapists, and there’s no guarantee that each child will receive an adequate amount of funding for therapy. This is not how I envisioned my career path going, and I’m horrified to see these changes have been made without consulting families or service providers.”

We need the government to listen and to develop a fair and transparent plan that meets the needs of all families with neurodiverse children. Keep the existing individualized autism funding in place. It provides families greater autonomy in selecting the types of services that are right and fit their own children.

Private Members’ Motions

MOTION 1 — HOUSING AFFORDABILITY

B. Bailey: It’s a privilege to rise in the House today to bring forward this motion:

[Be it resolved that this House support this Government’s actions to create affordable housing for all.]

The housing crisis in B.C. continues to be a huge source of difficulty for many British Columbians. In my riding, Vancouver–False Creek, we see 500-square-foot condos selling for $1 million. Finding rental housing remains difficult and competitive, and homelessness is a reality for far too many.

There are few files in government that highlight the differences in political philosophy between our parties more than housing. The B.C. Liberals are a free enterprise party that believe the market will solve all, and the role of government is to get out of the way.

[11:05 a.m.]

That view of unfettered growth and market expansion, that it will drive wealth and that, while it’s accumulated at the top, it will trickle down to those in the middle and at the bottom…. The problem is that trickle-down economics doesn’t work, so much so that many social harms we see in British Columbia today were exacerbated by the B.C. Liberal failed free enterprise policies and social program cuts for their 16 years in power.

They did not create the affordable housing anywhere close to what was needed, and we are so far behind. That’s why we keep pointing to those 16 years in power.

The B.C. NDP, on the other hand, believes that while free market, of course, is important, there must also be interventions. The free market leaves people behind, especially people who are subjected to biases — women, people of colour, new Canadians, folks living with disabilities, seniors, for example. We believe that government intervention in markets is needed to stop this from happening.

Case in point. Sam Sullivan, the B.C. Liberal who previously held my seat, was a prior Housing critic. He argued strongly against demand-side interventions. Speaking in this House, Sullivan railed against the NDP’s move to cap the 2019 rent increases at the rate of inflation. During this speech, Sullivan called rent increase caps unbelievable and chaos for the rental market. He argued for an unrestricted supply-and-demand system for determining rents, lamenting that rent controls interfere artificially.

Imagine how much worse the housing situation in B.C. would be today if we had not brought in rental limit increases.

Interjection.

Mr. Speaker: Member, wait for your turn, please.

B. Bailey: The new Leader of the Opposition stated that were he to form government, he’d get rid of the speculation and vacancy tax. This tax has resulted in more than 18,000 rental units being brought into the market, many of which are in my riding — 18,000 units. Many of them are in Yaletown, Olympic Village, Crosstown, and I’m so grateful for them. We’re a riding of 54 percent renters.

The years where speculators and big developers were put before people are behind us. We banned renovictions and cracked down on speculation. We froze rent increases during the pandemic and capped them to inflation. We moved people from entrenched homelessness encampments in cities across the province into safer housing.

We’re building 8,000 new on-campus student housing beds. How many did the B.C. Liberals build in 16 years? One hundred and sixty. If students are able to live on campus, it frees up rental stock for others needing low-cost housing. It’s a no-brainer.

Since 2017, 52,000 new rental homes have been regis­tered in British Columbia. That’s more than the previous 15 years combined.

The fact is that people are still struggling to buy or rent in B.C., and the biggest challenge is housing supply. With thousands of new people moving to our province every month, the challenge is only growing, and our government is determined to tackle it head-on. We’re making more low-cost financing available to encourage building homes that middle-class families can afford to live in. We’ve made the largest investment in affordable housing in British Columbia history, with 32,000 homes being built or on the way.

In the year ahead, we will work with local governments to speed up approvals and see new tools to curb speculation, moving more underutilized units into the market, where they belong. This spring we will introduce a cooling-off period on home purchases to protect peo­ple when they’re buying a home, especially in such a vol­atile market. We believe that housing is a place to park families and not money.

M. Bernier: It’s a privilege to stand up after the member for Vancouver–False Creek. I appreciate her bringing this motion forward today. I know it’s an important issue that impacts so many people.

I do have to say, though, that I find a certain bit of irony that the government has actually had the guts to bring this motion forward today when you look at the dismal failure under the last five years. Basically, housing prices have skyrocketed. Housing prices are the worst they have ever been.

[11:10 a.m.]

The member that brought it forward…. I don’t want to personalize this in any way, because I know she was probably just given speaking notes and asked to read them out. But you look at some of the comments that she made. Under the B.C. Liberals, when we were in government, we invested almost $5 billion on affordable housing to help the people of British Columbia. In fact, we completed, with people living in them, more than 24,000 units.

Right now when you look at the NDP, they promised 114,000 in their first ten years — they say. We are almost halfway through their tenure of the ten-year promise that they want to deliver on, and what do we have? Just over 5,000 that are open, just over….

Interjections.

M. Bernier: Well, it’s funny. The members want to heckle: “Not true.” Maybe they should read the actual stats from the B.C. real estate investment organizations, from all of the different groups that actually look at the stats.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members. One member at a time, please.

M. Bernier: Those are the stats. They can promise anything they want. They have failed to deliver on those promises.

They promised 114,000; 5,260 are actually what’s open, with people living in them. What’s really interesting about that is that almost half of those — almost half of those — were started under the B.C. Liberal government, which this government is trying to take credit for now. I’ll believe their promises when I see the $400 renters rebate they’ve been promising every single election as well.

Look, the NDP have spent so much of their time trying to blame the housing crisis on foreign buyers and speculators. In fact, they brought in taxes against them. You know, I really find it…. It’s really unfortunate, actually, when they scapegoat whole groups of people and feed dangerous narratives in our society by taxing and going after a specific segment of our population.

I also find it very rich that the NDP blame and criticize speculators as being the core problem for affordability, when they themselves are going through a speculation process right now. The NDP have just sold property in Ab­botsford to a developer at a profit, putting 200 families at risk, which right now are in affordable housing. This is the NDP, who say they’re all about affordability, going after speculators, while they’re doing the exact same thing themselves behind closed doors. It’s actually quite shameful.

Prices have skyrocketed under the NDP. We 100 percent agree that it’s everybody’s right to find a home to live in that they can afford. But Vancouver has become the least affordable metropolitan area in all of North America under the NDP watch. When you look at the average price of a house in British Columbia now, in the last year it has gone up 23 percent. On Vancouver Island, where we are right now, it has gone up 34 percent. Housing is going out of the reach of the average person.

It’s not just about affordable housing. This is about market housing. This is about looking at all of the different avenues to try to help people around affordability in British Columbia. This government likes to talk, but they don’t do the action required. At the rate they’re going….

Interjections.

M. Bernier: Well, they can chuckle all they want. They stand up and continue to go on about a narrative — “114,000, 114,000” — yet we’ve got 5,000, just over 5,000.

Interjections.

M. Bernier: Well, they can talk about what’s initiated. I guess the NDP have an interesting definition of “initiated.” What is “initiated”? Maybe someone can explain.

Interjections.

M. Bernier: Oh yeah, that’s right. They’ve initiated the Massey Tunnel for the last five years. They’ve initiated all these things…

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

M. Bernier: …that actually haven’t come to fruition.

We agree that…

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: The Member for Peace River South has the floor.

M. Bernier: …affordability is a huge issue, and it has only gotten worse under the NDP. That’s why we want to see solutions as well.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

[11:15 a.m.]

B. D’Eith: Wow. That was very interesting.

This is coming from the opposition, where homelessness tripled — tripled — during their government. Speculation was rampant. Money was being laundered in our housing market. That has been subject to the Cullen commission, which is having to take so much extra time so that they can find out how deep this goes down the rabbit hole. We’ll have a report in May 2022. That’ll be very telling, I’m sure.

Now, last term we instituted a 30-point housing affordability plan — 30 points. We committed to building 114,000 units for people over ten years. We’re on pace, with 32,000 homes in process or built.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

B. D’Eith: So 32,000, on pace. Those are the facts. Those are the numbers. Those are the real numbers, not the numbers that the opposition says.

Homes are for living in. They’re not for speculating, and they’re not for leaving vacant.

Interjection.

B. D’Eith: Yeah. That’s why we instituted the speculation tax, where we have actually added 18,000 units to the stock. Now, of course, the Leader of the Opposition, Kevin Falcon, would cancel the speculation tax and move us back to a time when we were sitting with empty homes in Vancouver and all over the Lower Mainland.

The same happened with student housing. They built 160 units in the entire time they were in. We’ve already built 5,000 units. Let’s talk about rental homes. It’s 52,000 that have been added to the register since we took office. That’s more than the last 15 years combined.

It’s really interesting hearing from the opposition — a lot of complaints, you know. Housing prices are going up. But what do they say? What are their solutions? Well, they don’t have any solutions. What they had done is…. They relied on the market to regulate the economy. How did that work out? That did not work out at all. We have a plan, a 30-point plan that is dealing with the housing affordability crisis.

Now, of course, we have the strongest economy in Can­ada, recovering from the pandemic. People are moving here — 35,000 people migrating to B.C. last year. That is putting pressure on our housing market. We’re actually seeing some offers going in with no subjects. Mortgage brokers and others have come to us and said: “Hey, look. You cannot allow this to happen. People are going in without ‘subject to finance,’ without ‘subject to inspection.’ They’re going to get taken advantage of.”

What are we doing? In the throne speech, we are going to be protecting people in a volatile market by instituting a cooling-off period. We’re listening, and we’re responding, which is what a government should do. This is key.

We also have $2 billion with the HousingHub to have incredible partnerships with non-profits and with private industry. Look, we’re not going to solve the housing crisis by doing it alone. We have to work with everyone, and that’s what we’re doing.

How has this affected…? Let’s just look at my riding. In my riding alone, in Maple Ridge, we resolved our tent city, and we’ve built over 100 supportive housing units. Now we’re putting the temporary housing — we’re moving it over to a more permanent place. We’re going to build 60 units of seniors housing. That is what the community is asking for.

We have a partnership, B.C. Housing, with the city — the province’s rental supply program. We’re adding Tur­nock Manor, which is going to add rental stock as well. Cornerstone Landing, in partnership with community services, is just about to have 94 units of housing for low-income families, and 20 of those units are for youth. Again, we’re listening. We’re working really hard with the city of Maple Ridge, and we have a whole bunch of other things that are happening.

In Mission, we had a partnership with the city and with MASH to build seniors housing that is up and running. We’re really excited about that. We just got a development permit for supportive housing in Mission for 50 units on Hurd Street, which is really important.

We’re moving. It does take time. We have to work with municipalities. That’s why we’re taking such important steps to try and ensure that we can get those development permits in time to get the housing that we need in this province and do the things we have to do to have affordability in this province.

T. Wat: I rise today to respond to the motion before us: “Be it resolved that this House support this Government’s actions to create affordable housing for all.”

[11:20 a.m.]

It seems very obvious that all members would be supportive of concrete, effective actions to improve affordable housing in this province. The problem is that we haven’t seen much action at all from this government.

The promise made by this government first in 2017 and then, again, in 2020 was 114,000 units over ten years. That’s a real number that they promised. We agree. That’s a real number. Yet after five years, how many? As my colleague said and I have to repeat, once again: only 5,269 units have been completed, and that’s a real number. You can check all the statistics. Don’t deny it. That is a dismal 4.6 percent of what was promised by this government.

As this government’s inaction continues, home prices continue to soar. B.C. Assessment reports that home values went up by 20 percent on the Lower Mainland in 2021. Oxford Economics says that Vancouver is the least affordable metro area in North America. Just listen to Oxford Economics.

My constituents in Richmond are struggling with the cost of housing. A single family home in Richmond is now how much? It’s $2.03 million — up 20 percent in the past year. The average cost of a condominium is $756,600. That is up 13.3 percent in the last year and a whopping 55 percent in the last five years.

Why has the government been so slow to respond? One might wonder whether they spend far too much time blaming others for the problem and not taking responsibility or action. The government has only recently begun to admit the importance of the housing supply challenge after spending years scapegoating foreigners, developers and everyone but themselves. We have heard disappointing rhetoric and narratives from members of this government who have tied the rise in housing prices to Asian immigrants to British Columbia.

A conversation about housing could rarely take place without the mention of foreign buyers. Many of those comments came from the now Attorney General. In 2015, he told the Globe and Mail: “Kids go to school, and dad is at home in China, working and supporting the family. The mom is only there with the kids for the school year, and the house will appear vacant for a big chunk of the year.”

In addition to blaming international money, he blames speculation, telling the CBC in 2016: “We have a problem where speculators are buying all the units in a development and scalping them like hockey tickets, and the foreign buyer tax won’t catch that.” The Attorney General is also trying to blame the problem on the wrong type of supply. In 2016, he told Metro News: “What we are building in Vancouver and what we have achieved, to a large degree, is a resort city.”

Years and years of finger pointing and scapegoating did absolutely nothing to improve our housing affordability. All it did was provide cover for this government to take the focus off their lack of action on this incredibly important file. What impact did that decision, that choice, have on British Columbians? It meant that the cost of buying a home continued to skyrocket, putting home ownership out of reach for many people. No wonder people have lost hope. This shameful behaviour ruined peoples’ reputation, created resentment and gave other licence.

[11:25 a.m.]

B. Anderson: I was up in Kaslo and walked into one of my favourite little stores. The owner introduced me to her employee. She shared with me that her and her partner had been struggling to find housing. They were locals and had moved 13 times in the past 12 months.

It is not uncommon in the Kootenays to hear of people stringing together house-sitting gigs, crashing at a friend’s for a few weeks, living in a camper, finding a rent-to-work situation and continuing on this cycle until they can hopefully find something affordable, suitable and stable. But then, if the house gets sold, you might be out looking again.

At the end of January, I read this Facebook post. Rosy wrote:

“Stage 4 cancer. Unexpectedly homeless as of February 28. None of these are words I ever wanted to hear about Scarlet — goddess, inspiration, creative tour de force, mother, friend, artist, warrior. That’s more like it. This incredible woman and Queen Pip the wonder dog urgently need a home. Her bucket list includes a tub, as baths help cancer pain. Two-bedroom minimum is ideal, as caregivers may need to stay. She is open to any location. Please spread this far and wide. Scarlet has given so much to the arts community. Let’s find her a home sweet home.”

This post was shared 120 times, and according to a friend’s post, five days ago, Scarlet found a rental. This is not a situation any of us should ever have to face, yet many do. Many rentals never hit the market. Tenants are found by word of mouth before any advertising ever needs to be made. If there is a rental space, it will be filled. We have been living in zero percent vacancy for nearly a decade. I am hearing about the need for housing across the Kootenays.

How did we get here? The previous Liberal government disregarded the housing crisis for years. Under the Liberals, the average house prices in B.C. skyrocketed 130 percent, and this is according to UBC’s Paul Kershaw. The Liberals simply ignored the crisis.

How is our government going to fix this? Our govern­ment has brought in the speculation and vacancy tax and started building housing across B.C., including right here in the Kootenays. The Creston Valley…. We have part­nered with the Columbia Basin Trust and the Kootenay Region Association for Community Living to build nine new affordable rental homes for people with disabilities.

Maya Moore, a tenant in the building, said:

“Moving to the new building on Spectrum Farms has been the highlight in my recent life. My outlook on life has improved greatly in the short time I have been here, and thus my mental health has improved as well. Not enough can be said for having a safe, self-contained, warm and healthy space to live in. The care and concern of all the volunteers and staff who have been working to create this space is and has been inspiring.”

In Nelson, we have seen three major B.C. housing projects. Heritage Place, spearheaded by Pastor Jim Reimer and the shared housing initiative, built 39 affordable housing units for renters who are employed but can’t find housing. Pastor Reimer said: “We’ve got people moving in here who are sleeping in cars because they have no place to live. When I see people on this balcony, moving in, it is going to be the greatest day of my life.”

I just want to thank Pastor Reimer and the team for bringing this incredible project to our community.

Nelson CARES has developed two projects with the support of B.C. Housing. Hall Street Place has 41 affordable rental homes in downtown Nelson for low- to moderate-income families, seniors, and purpose-built spaces for people with disabilities. Lakeside Place has 47 affordable rental apartments for seniors and people with disabilities.

Jenny Robinson, the executive director of Nelson CARES, postponed her retirement to see these projects through to the end. Jenny is six weeks out from retirement, and I would like to thank Jenny for her incredible service and perseverance.

In Kaslo, the Kaslo Housing Society will be building ten new units for families, seniors, singles and persons with disabilities.

[11:30 a.m.]

Our government is fixing the problem created by the Liberals. Affordable housing allows community members to live in and contribute to the vibrant society that makes the Kootenays so dynamic.

S. Cadieux: I’m pleased today to talk about the topic of affordable housing for families. It is an extremely important topic in everyone’s community.

I think, though, we have a problem. We have to define that. What are we talking about when we talk about affordable housing? When government speaks about affordable housing and makes promises to the public, who are they talking to? What is affordable? I asked the Finance Minister in 2017, and I still haven’t received an answer from government. No one has been able to define for me what affordable housing is.

What are the promises? Well, I’ve heard, today, members talk about supportive housing, subsidized housing, student housing and rental housing. I haven’t heard them talk about housing for buyers. For all of those working-class families in this province who are looking to buy a home — what is government doing for them? The government members talk a lot about what happened under our time in government and blame us for the record-high housing prices. That means we’re talking to people who want to buy, but we aren’t hearing them talk much about housing prices now.

For years, the NDP suggested, while they were in opposition, that they had all the answers to the housing challenges. The government of the day was to blame, and they promised over and over to British Columbians that if they elected them, they had the solution. They promised action was going to be taken to address the skyrocketing housing market, but if there was any evidence to support that, I haven’t seen it. Instead, today, after five years in office, I see nothing. Well, in fact, the opposite of nothing, in that regard — record housing price increases.

In my community, for example, the average cost of a single-family home is now $1.9 million. That’s a pretty big mortgage to qualify for if you’re trying to get into the market. In fact, in many Surrey neighbourhoods, the idea of affordability when it comes to housing is more out of reach than ever. In many ridings, prices have skyrocketed exponentially over the last year.

Take, for example, the member for Surrey-Fleetwood’s riding. He has been vocal in the House this morning, but I haven’t heard him talk about the 51 percent increase in the last year for a detached home in his riding. Or in Surrey-Panorama — a 46 percent increase.

All I’ve heard today from the members is that they want to be every British Columbian’s landlord. Well, I think that we may have the answer to what is affordable from the NDP. It means something that government owns and rents back to you, because, certainly, it isn’t a house that you’re going to buy.

We could look at the neighboring community of Delta. Maybe that’s where the affordability is. But no. In the minister of economic development and innovation’s riding, the average cost of a single-family home has risen 51 percent in the last year. We could listen to all the good intentions of this government, but the reality for families is that it’s getting harder and harder to get into the market.

It isn’t just housing. They broke their promise on affordability on other things as well. What about those gas prices? I filled my tank yesterday — $1.79 a litre. The Premier said a while ago: “We are monitoring gas prices and will take steps if necessary. We have talked about a range of options, and we will look at them should prices remain high over the next number of weeks.” That was four years ago. The government failed to take any meaningful steps.

A year later the Premier again pledged to take action, if needed: “We’ll see how it goes through the summer, and if there’s an opportunity to have the province step in and do that, and help, we’ll do that.” It’s clear, years later, the Premier has no intention of actually following through on any of his affordability actions. People’s pocketbooks are being hit everywhere, and in turn, they’re in desperate need of a plan that actually follows through.

[11:35 a.m.]

Instead of scapegoating the former government, devel­opers, foreigners and speculators, it’s time, after five years, for them to take some responsibility. And oh my gosh, Mr. Speaker. Have we seen that happen? The Minister of Housing has finally clued in to the fact that despite all of the rhetoric, the issue is actually a supply challenge.

Thank you for the time this morning. I’m glad to see they’re finally getting the message.

J. Brar: I’m pleased to support the motion introduced today by the hon. member for Vancouver–False Creek: “…that this House support this Government’s actions to create affordable housing for all.”

People who live and work in B.C. should be able to afford a safe and secure place to call home. The lack of affordable housing is hurting the people of B.C. and holding our province back. Housing affordability is a serious and deep-rooted problem.

The problem is, Mr. Speaker, the B.C. Liberals never, ever took it seriously, because of their unproven ideological love for a free economy and their relationship with big developers. I have been listening very carefully, and members from the other side have not mentioned even one solution moving forward from their side.

For 16 years…

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members. Order.

J. Brar: …B.C. Liberals refused to build affordable housing, allowed massive rent increases and let dirty mon­eys and speculation drive real estate costs. Those are the effects. B.C. Liberals would double down the bad choices that created this problem, if given the chance again.

The newly elected leader of the B.C. Liberals, Kevin Falcon, has frequently criticized our government’s policies designed to tackle speculation to cool the market. During the leadership debate on September 28, 2021, he opposed the speculation and vacancy tax that has brought 18,000 rental units into the market in Metro Vancouver. Clearly, they haven’t learned any lesson from their past mistakes.

Our government is working hard to tackle the housing crisis by addressing speculation, closing loopholes, cracking down on fraud, making renting more secure and building more affordable homes for people across British Columbia. We put our Homes for B.C. plan in place in 2018 to work with partners to build 114,000 affordable homes for British Columbians, with an investment of $7 billion over ten years. This is the largest investment in affordable housing in B.C.’s history, with 32,000 homes built. All on the way already.

Similarly, our government is supporting seniors, families and low- and middle-income earners by funding new affordable rental housing through the Building B.C.: community housing fund — the first phase of 14,000 homes over ten years. We’re funding supportive housing units for people at risk who are homeless and helping women and children leaving violence in their situation and a major investment in transition housing in more than two decades.

We are making an historic investment in housing for Indigenous people by funding homes both on and off re­serve. But the fact is this: people are still struggling to buy or rent. Here in British Columbia, the biggest challenge is housing supply, with thousands of new people moving to our province every month, and that challenge is only growing, Mr. Speaker. Your government is committed to tackle it head-on.

[11:40 a.m.]

In the year ahead, the province will work with local governments to speed up approvals and seek new tools to curb speculation, moving more underutilized units onto the market. This spring we will introduce a cooling-off period on home purchases to protect people when they are buying a home. I’m proud to say that we have more housing completed, all underway in three years, than the B.C. Liberals did in 16 years.

I fully support the motion, and I expect the members from the other side to also support this motion.

T. Shypitka: I’m honoured to respond to this motion: “Be it resolved that this House support this Government’s actions to create affordable housing for all.”

Like my colleague from Peace River South…. It’s amazing this government would actually bring this motion forward. I’m not sure what the strategy is here. I guess if you say something enough, people come to believe it. I’m not sure if that’s what they are trying to get at here.

Let’s be honest. Throughout the past five years, we’ve seen housing skyrocket. Nobody can argue that in the House. Housing is at an all-time high. It is the truth, and sometimes the truth hurts, and that’s why we are going to get some catcalls in the back. Vancouver, for example, is the least affordable metro area in North America. This is according to Oxford Economics, not this side of the House or that side of the House. This is what’s happening right now in B.C.

We’re talking about average house prices. According to B.C. Assessment figures of 2021, places like Chilliwack are up 40 percent; Langley, 39 percent; Abbotsford, 38 percent; Port Coquitlam, 35 percent; Squamish, 31 percent. Vancouver and Surrey are at 16 and 34 percent up, respectively. The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver shows that the average detached home in Metro Vancouver now costs — get this — $2.3 million. It’s an all-time high.

The figures are something nobody can debate in this House. Housing is definitely going up all in the last five years, going up tremendously.

However, it’s not just the Lower Mainland. I’ve recited a bunch from the Lower Mainland. In the Kootenays, where I come from, Cranbrook, the average home is $485,000, which is a 55 percent increase since 2019. South Okanagan homes are going for $1.4 million. That’s an increase of 54 percent. Revelstoke and Shuswap, $803,000 — that’s an increase of 37 percent. Apartments in the same area of the Shuswap, $581,000 — that’s an increase of almost 60 percent. That’s huge, and that’s in the last five years.

It’s not just housing rates. Rental rates have become ob­scene. The BCREA says that rental rates for a one-bedroom apartment in Vancouver became 22 percent more expensive during the pandemic. The B.C. Rental Project gives B.C. a C grade, because their strategy has been to pile on regulation and taxes. This has forced many rental providers out of business.

We’ve heard the member for Vancouver–False Creek talk about trickle-down economics — essentially cutting taxes — while this government has doubled down and has introduced 24 or 25 new taxes. This is hurting the average person in British Columbia. This is the working class of B.C. that’s getting impacted by this. There’s more on the way.

There are deflating housing proposals considered right now by this government and several more taxes — anti-flipping tax, investment sales tax, land value capture tax. Everything is on the demand side of housing but ignoring the real issue here, which is the supply side. Renters are paying $2,300 more, on average, under the NDP since 2017.

The member opposite mentioned something about solutions. Let’s get into a few, if I’ve only got a minute left here. We need more communication with our municipalities. I was a councillor for the city of Cranbrook, and we did some really good work. We identified the housing issue. We’ve just put forward, in the last couple of years, probably close to 500 affordable housing units in Cranbrook: one-, two- and three-bedroom units. We’ve done that by speeding up permitting and application times. We are also educating municipal staff on how we can get to yes instead of “No, we can’t” or “No, we won’t.”

[11:45 a.m.]

We made DCC charges attractive for developers that will, in turn, pass those on to purchasers, making the homes more affordable. You need an aggressive staff and a CAO in your municipality that will chase these projects down.

At the same time, we need to foster good relationships with municipalities so that everybody is on the same page. This will create ways to help municipalities reach their full potential when it comes to creating affordable housing.

Fernie, in my riding, for example, isn’t so lucky. They are a destination tourism spot in a low valley, not a lot of land there, so maybe high density would be the strategy. But government needs to come to the table and build and foster these relationships with municipalities. They need to work hand in hand and not dictate it as well. They need to work together.

Seeing that this is the end of my time here, I’d just like to say it’s appalling that this government would put this motion forward, and I don’t support it.

H. Sandhu: I speak in favour of this motion presented by my colleague, the member for Vancouver–False Creek, asking this House to support our government’s actions to create affordable housing for all.

Housing is a basic need and necessity for every human being. Everyone deserves to have safe housing. We need to continue to build on the efforts and progress being made by our B.C. NDP government. After years where speculators and big developers were put before people, we are seeing the signs of progress. Since 2017, 52,000 new rental homes have been registered in B.C. That is more than the previous 15 years combined.

We know people are still struggling to buy or rent here in B.C. The biggest challenge, as was mentioned previously, is housing supply, with thousands of new people moving to our province every month. As B.C. is the most desirable place to live, many Canadians and newcomers choose B.C. as their home. This challenge is growing as we welcome more people into our province, and our government is determined to address this.

Our government is implementing an ambitious 30-​point housing plan to tackle the housing crisis by making the largest investment in housing affordability in B.C. history by investing more than $7 billion over ten years to build 114,000 affordable homes, with 32,000 units being built or underway. As was mentioned by previous members as well, we are supporting seniors, families, low- and middle-income earners by funding new affordable rental housing through the Building B.C.: community housing fund, and we’re investing $1.9 billion to build more than 14,000 affordable rental homes.

This new fund is addressing the gaps in the market and creating homes for growing families, low- to moderate-income people and seniors. We are helping women and children leaving violence by making the first major investment in transition housing in more than two decades. We are making an historic investment in housing for Indigenous people by funding homes both on and off reserve.

In addition to these efforts, this spring our government will introduce a cooling-off period on homes purchased, to protect people when they are buying a home, especially in a volatile market. There is no doubt we have ten times more housing underway right now, within the four years, compared to the previous 16 years under the old government.

I am happy to share that in Vernon and area we have received 665 affordable rental homes, including building 20 affordable rental homes for seniors in Lumby and 40 units for low-income seniors in Vernon. Our government is also building more than 8,000 new on-campus student housing units. We received 100 student housing units at the Okanagan College Vernon campus, which is the first-ever student housing being built in Vernon. And 216 student housing units are being built at the Kelowna campus and 60 units at Salmon Arm campus. This is in addition to the hundreds of units of student housing that were built at the UBCO Kelowna campus.

We can imagine where we would be if we didn’t have these measures in place or build the houses we have been building since 2017. There is no doubt the housing situation would be worse than it is now. It is important for us to continue to build on the progress we’re making in the housing sector by adding more tools and by finding more ways to address this crisis. That is the purpose of this motion.

[11:50 a.m.]

We cannot afford to go backwards by cancelling the speculation tax and by putting forward the interests of a few with self-vested interests in the housing market. This approach will take everyday British Columbians farther away from their dream of finding affordable homes. Many people in B.C. are working hard, and many do more than one job, to save money in order to afford a place they can call home. Therefore, it is important for us, as elected members of this House, to support every initiative and effort to address the housing crisis. So I encourage all members of the House to support this motion.

B. Banman: I’m happy to return to the House and speak to this motion on actions to create affordable housing for all. I’d like to thank the government member opposite for bringing forward this motion and for recognizing how dire the affordability crisis has become in our housing market under their administration.

British Columbians are also expressing their worry over the state of our housing market under their administration. Skyrocketing housing and rental prices, a lack of housing supply, a slew of new housing taxes — not to mention the rising cost of living, including gas, groceries and the basic household necessities. The policies of this government are directly preventing more and more British Columbians from the goal of ever owning a home.

I heard a statement in this House, around this time last year, from a current homeowner reflecting on the state of our province’s housing market. I think it perfectly encompasses the challenges prospective homeowners in B.C. currently face. “This might grate the nerves of some of my younger colleagues. I am a Gen X-er. I was able to buy a house and have applied for homeowners’ grants in the past. I think I’m the last generation. That’s what they’ll refer to us as, shortly, when everyone’s renting.” Wow, there’s a message of hope. There’s a message of despair.

The shocking words, to say the least, are made even more shocking by the fact that these words were said by a member of this government: none other than the MLA for Chilliwack. So you can rightly understand why British Columbians cast their doubts when this government says they’re taking steps to address the housing crisis and to make life more affordable for British Columbians, when they are the honest observations, opinions of members of this very same government. Reflecting on the last five years, as a fellow resident of the Fraser Valley, I can fully understand that the member for Chilliwack feels this way.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members. Order, please.

B. Banman: The Fraser Valley has traditionally….

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: The Member for Abbotsford South has the floor.

B. Banman: The Fraser Valley has traditionally been a refuge for British Columbians wishing to escape the sky­rocketing housing prices and growing unaffordability of Vancouver and our urban centres and to begin their lives in a community with more opportunities and affordability. But the situation has become so dire under this government that even our Fraser Valley communities can no longer afford and offer families the affordable start they once could.

A March 2020 report from the B.C. Real Estate Association says that a lack of housing supply is the key provincial factor driving higher housing prices, due in no small part to the government’s delivering on a mere 4 percent of their promised 114,000 housing units, a commitment they made in 2017 and then repeated again in 2020 and now again today.

This government once again overpromises and drastically underdelivers. The B.C. Assessment values for 2022 saw major increases across the Fraser Valley in regions like Chilliwack, where housing prices, as was mentioned by the member himself, were up over 40 percent in one year. In Abbotsford, the prices jumped 38 percent. The Attorney General, on housing, rather than come up with solutions, prefers to gaslight and blame foreigners — blame the Asians, blame the Chinese — for the drastic increase in the prices.

[11:55 a.m.]

It’s not just homeowners that are seeing these unbearable jumps in prices. In 2020, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. cited that in communities like Langley, the an­nual rental rates have increased by more than $2,800 since the NDP took power.

This situation is nothing short of a crisis. The dream of home ownership is truly slipping away from more and more British Columbians, and every day urgent action is needed. We need to increase the supply. This government wants solutions. It wants answers. Increase the supply. Increase the supply. That will drive down the houses. Together, we must ensure that this generation is not, to borrow the words of the member from Chilliwack, the last generation to own their own homes. Our citizens deserve better than that kind of despairing message.

H. Yao: I want to take a moment to say I fully support the motion introduced by the member for Vancouver–​False Creek: “Be it resolved that this House support this Government’s actions to create affordable housing for all.”

Regarding the population density, Richmond South Centre has one of the highest in constituencies in B.C., due to proximity to public transportation, commercial centres and community services. Many immigrant, young and transitional families call Richmond South Centre home. Furthermore, Richmond, being one of the more desirable locations to live in Canada, is growing quickly.

According to recent data, Richmond’s population is approximately 21,000. Also, the population growth rate is below the provincial average, with 7.6 percent. Richmond is 5.9 percent, still higher than the national average of 5.2 percent. However, after years of neglect, global trends, inflation, market speculation, volatile rental markets, population growth and, unfortunately, the pandemic, Richmond real estate prices are now beyond affordable for average British Columbians and continue to rise.

Housing is a right. British Columbians deserve to be able to afford a place to raise our families and call it a home. Several young adults I spoke to shared their frustration with ever-inflated housing prices. Even with parental financial support, many young professionals still find it hard to come up with a down payment, let alone figuring out how to pay for a mortgage if they get one. Rental isn’t much of an option either.

A Richmond resident shared with me her frustration. She’s the mother of a child. Both husband and wife are working professionals. However, they cannot afford a market rental available unit, and moved into a subsidized unit for the time being. Their neighbours in the complex do smoke and vape, and she was frustrated that her young child was consistently exposed to secondhand smoke. A typical solution was to move. However, with limited financial options, her family had to stay.

According to her, she fought years against her neighbour and the landlord, while her child was unable to escape the toxic environment. She could no longer ignore the health of her child. She and her husband had to make dramatic compromises in their quality of life to move into a more expensive unit. It was tough. Her family had to make difficult sacrifices to make a challenging option possible.

The housing affordability crisis was not created over­night. It was market speculation, a volatile rental market and years of neglect that exponentially amplified the housing supply challenge. There’s no single solution. The housing affordability crisis is a complex issue that requires a multi-pronged approach to address the complexity and ever-evolving challenge of the housing affordability crisis.

I’m proud of our government. Since 2017, we took many aggressive measures to combat the housing affordability crisis. We introduced a speculation and vacancy tax to target domestic and foreign speculators, and turned over 18,000 empty homes into available housing for people, and raised revenue that will go to supporting affordable housing. We increased the foreign buyer tax up to 20 percent. We cracked down on tax fraud and closed real estate loopholes. We launched a public inquiry on money laundering in B.C. and discovered that each year, billions of dollars are laundered through our real estate market and other sectors of the economy.

For renters, our government banned renoviction and improved tenancy security when facing demovictions. We froze rent increases during the pandemic and capped future increases to inflation. We invested $1.1 billion over ten years to improve existing subsidized rentals and co-op housing throughout B.C.

[12:00 p.m.]

We are helping over 35,000 households by expanding eligibility and increasing the average benefit under the rental assistance program and Shelter Aid For Elderly Renters. We are building 15,700 new affordable rental homes over ten years through Building B.C. We are building more than 5,000 of new on-campus student housing.

We set up the HousingHub to facilitate affordable housing partnerships to increase the supply of affordable housing for middle-income earners. It is the largest investment in affordable housing in B.C. history, with 32,000 homes built or on the way already.

We are giving local governments a new rental zoning tool to give them the power to protect and encourage the building of rentals. Since 2017, 52,000 new rental homes have already been registered in B.C. That’s more than in the previous 15 years combined. We have 10,000 more of housing underway right now than the previous government when they left government.

Our government will work with local governments to speed up the approval process and explore new tools to curb speculation. We’re introducing a cooling-off period for home purchases to protect people on their biggest in­vestment in this volatile housing market.

H. Yao moved adjournment of debate.

Motion approved.

Hon. S. Malcolmson moved adjournment of the House.

Motion approved.

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

The House adjourned at 12:01 p.m.