Orders of the Day

Hon. S. Robinson: I move that this House, at its next sitting, resolve itself for this session into a committee to consider the supply to be granted to Her Majesty.

Motion approved.

Presentation of Estimates

ESTIMATES OF SUMS REQUIRED
FOR THE SERVICE OF THE PROVINCE

Hon. S. Robinson presented a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: Estimates of Sums Required for the Service of the Province for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023, and a supplement to the estimates for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023, recommending the same to the Legislative Assembly.

[1:35 p.m.]

Hon. S. Robinson moved that the said message and the estimates accompanying the same be referred to the Committee of Supply.

Motion approved.

Budget Debate

Hon. S. Robinson: I move, seconded by the hon. Premier of British Columbia:

[That the Speaker do now leave the Chair for the House to go into Committee of Supply.]

I would like to begin today by acknowledging the Lək̓ʷəŋin̓əŋ peoples, the Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations, upon whose territory we are gathered.

I also invite everyone to consider the 204 First Nations upon whose territories we call British Columbia. To all those joining us, I would like to extend a warm welcome.

Today I’m honoured to present Budget 2022, a budget that keeps us all moving forward by holding steady to what we know to be true: that we are stronger together. Budget 2022 meets today’s challenges while always investing in a stronger British Columbia. It delivers action today with a plan for tomorrow, a plan that responds to the difficult days we find ourselves in.

We feel the weight of two continuing health crises: the poisoned drug supply and the COVID-19 pandemic. We reckon with the grief that Indigenous communities have known for so long — that children were taken away from their families, sent to residential schools and never returned home. We witness the destructive consequences of climate change as communities scorched by heat and wildfires in the summer faced flooding and mudslides only months later. These overlapping crises claimed lives and affect us all.

To all those grieving: may your loved ones be for a blessing.

In these difficult days, I am reminded of a story. It’s the tale of an elderly father who asks his sons to break a bundle of sticks. Despite their best efforts, they are unable to do so. However, once the bundle is untied, each stick is easily broken. While this story has ancient roots, its message of strength and unity holds true today. Just like that bundle of sticks, we are stronger together, because it is when we are under pressure that we see who we truly are as people and as a province.

British Columbians are caring. When a safe and effective vaccine became available, millions of us rolled up our sleeves to protect ourselves and others. Health care workers, like my friend Sharon, came out of retirement to help with the largest vaccination program in our province’s history. B.C. now has one of the lowest per-capita fatality rates from COVID-19 and one of the highest vaccination rates on the continent.

British Columbians are compassionate. When our neighbours, whether across the street or across the province, need a hand, we are there. The tools vary from sandbags to firehoses and community kitchens, but we get the job done.

British Columbians are committed. Day after day those working on the front lines of mental health and addictions fight a rising tide of need. On the front lines of the pandemic, we see the commitment of health care workers and hospitals, teachers and early childhood educators in classrooms, and clerks in grocery stores.

My neighbour Carrie is a teacher. In the early days of the pandemic, I would sometimes bump into her, as each of us, working from our homes, would go out for a walk around the block. She told me about how she was not only reaching out to students to see how they were doing, but she was reaching out to their parents to make sure that they, too, were okay.

Time and time again British Columbians have stepped up for one another, and our government is right there with you. When there are challenges that threaten us as a province, we must respond as a province.

Now, some would choose differently. Some argue that cuts and a reduced role of government is the right way forward, but that’s not what most British Columbians expect. And that will not be our approach.

[1:40 p.m.]

Instead of leaving people without support when times are tough, our government steps up when and where we are needed. Hundreds of dollars went directly to millions of people through the B.C. recovery benefit to help them through difficult times and support economic recovery. Hundreds of millions in safe-start funding helped communities maintain the services that people count on, like public transit. More than half a billion dollars supported the hardest-hit small businesses and their staff.

B.C. has provided some of the highest supports for people and businesses, per capita, in Canada. Millions in funding provided a lifeline for more than 8,000 tourism businesses, and additional funding will provide support for non-profits impacted by the pandemic, as well as the arts, culture and music sector. This year’s budget will continue support for the tourism sector as it recovers, with $25 million earmarked for them.

Instead of accepting the status quo, we are always looking for ways to make life better for people today. In some cases, that means righting past wrongs. Last summer we reversed a 20-year-old decision that ripped up the contracts of thousands of health care workers, primarily affecting women and people of colour. Today we are reversing cuts made two decades ago when the previous government slashed funding for sexual assault services to help pay for tax cuts for the wealthy.

I remember those cuts. I remember when they happened, because I was working with the women and the children that were most affected. Now we are making it right. Budget 2022 delivers $22 million to support survivors and resource stable funding for 50 sexual assault service centres here in British Columbia.

While some would choose to watch as ordinary British Columbians are left behind, we are working hard to close gaps that were made worse by the pandemic. Workers in B.C. now have access to a minimum of five paid sick days every year, the most of any province in Canada. We also have the highest minimum wage of any province, with a plan to tie future increases to the rate of inflation.

These are choices that our government is proud to stand behind, and they reflect the choices that have shaped this year’s budget. Budget 2022 continues our work to build a stronger British Columbia economically, socially and environmentally. Despite a global pandemic, B.C. remains strong on all three fronts. Budget 2022 continues building on these strengths.

B.C.’s economic recovery is leading the nation. Among provinces, we are tied for the lowest unemployment rate, and we have the fastest job growth since the start of the pandemic. In fact, more than 160,000 new jobs were created here last year. That includes important public services being delivered by more people, like health care aides and teachers. It also includes thousands of new private-sector jobs in communities right around the province. To everyone who stepped up and kept our province strong: thank you.

Across the province, B.C. is recognized as a great place to live and raise a family. Last year we saw the largest net migration of people from other provinces in almost three decades.

B.C. is also recognized as a great place to work and to invest. For just one example, mining exploration in British Columbia exceeded $600 million in 2021. This is the highest level in a decade. As part of Budget 2022, we are supporting the continued growth of the mining sector with $18 million over three years.

Interjection.

Hon. S. Robinson: The minister is happy.

This new funding will keep B.C. mining at the forefront of sustainability, create jobs and advance reconciliation.

Our province is also home to a thriving life sciences sector. Consider the fact that B.C. scientists and companies were involved with almost every COVID-19 vaccine that reached the final stages of development. We are continuing to expand the sector, with almost $200 million for Genome B.C. and the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research. This investment will support continued growth, creating new scientific discoveries and economic opportunities along the way.

[1:45 p.m.]

Here in British Columbia, local talent is driving global innovation. We expect this to continue, especially as InBC, our strategic investment fund, starts backing B.C. businesses. Good things are happening in our province, and all signs point to a resilient post-pandemic economy.

This is where the StrongerBC economic plan comes in. We are investing in today’s talent to meet the demands of tomorrow’s high-care, low-carbon economy. Within the next ten years, labour market forecasts estimate that B.C. will have more than one million job openings. Almost 80 percent of these jobs will require post-secondary education or training.

Preparing B.C.’s workforce is a generation-defining challenge. It’s also an opportunity. Our StrongerBC economic plan commits to closing the skills gap. The skilled trades are a very good example. We are supporting better-paying, more stable jobs for apprentices and tradesworkers through a new certification system. Budget 2022 advances these efforts with new training seats and targeted programs for tradesworkers, along with more monitoring and compliance activities at worksites.

Other high-growth areas, like health care and technol­ogy, are the same ones our government has been focused on since 2017. We’ve already created 2,600 new tech spaces at post-secondary institutions around the province, from Simon Fraser University to Okanagan College and the British Columbia Institute of Technology. Since 2017, we’ve had the fastest-growing nursing workforce of any province. Our ongoing commitment to add 500 more nursing seats will continue this trend.

These graduates are making an immediate difference. I think of Parm, a nursing student at Douglas College that I recently met just a couple of weeks ago. She told me how eager she is to bring her energy and her skills to the job when she graduates this April. She’s really looking forward to being a nurse right here in our community.

As we create new opportunities, we are also breaking down barriers for underrepresented communities. This is part of our ongoing work to build a more inclusive economy, and we are starting to see these results. More women, youth and Indigenous people are working now than before the pandemic. Thousands of Indigenous learners are accessing new training opportunities for careers in early childhood education, health care and more. We are also meeting a growing need for mid-career transition supports.

New micro-credentials are helping thousands of people land secure jobs in established and emerging fields. BCIT’s course on mass timber is a great example. Graduates will find work on a wide range of projects, from new student housing to health care facilities. Programs like this one make sure that workers, including those from B.C.’s forest sector, are driving economic growth.

Forestry is and will remain foundational to our province’s economy. We are embarking on a new, sustainable approach to protecting and managing B.C.’s forests — one that prioritizes value over volume, and one that protects our oldest and most at-risk forests for future generations.

As we move forward with these overdue changes, our government will make sure that no one is left behind. Budget 2022 delivers $185 million over three years to support affected forest workers and contractors, industry, communities and First Nations. For workers, this includes a bridging to retirement program, creating new jobs through innovations like mass timber and connecting people with skills training. For communities, this supports partnerships with businesses, more diverse local economies and the creation of jobs through new local infrastructure projects.

Additional opportunities for communities and First Nations will come with redistributed forest tenures. We intend to double the amount of replaceable forest tenure held by First Nations. This is just one example of how reconciliation is moving forward here in British Columbia.

Now, this year’s budget creates a new Declaration Act secretariat, with $12 million over the next three years. Its job is to ensure that legislation is consistent with the United Nations declaration on the rights of Indigenous peoples, which everybody in this House supported. It’s developed in consultation and cooperation with Indigenous peoples.

Additionally, Budget 2022 continues our government’s Indigenous housing investments. We are, and continue to be, the only province building homes both on and off reserve for Indigenous people.

[1:50 p.m.]

New funding for the Aboriginal Head Start program will support more culturally based early learning opportunities. I think of a preschool in the Gitwangak First Nation, where children are learning the Gitxsan language. They’re playing in clan houses, and they’re taking part in healing circles. For Indigenous communities throughout the province, programs like this one are benefiting the next generation.

A strong economy creates meaningful opportunities for everyone, regardless of your age, your wage or your postal code. In today’s world, closing the digital divide helps level the playing field. That is why connectivity has been a major priority for our government since day one. Record funding is already bringing high-speed Internet to 500 rural, remote and Indigenous communities throughout British Columbia. It’s transformational work. It’s happening right around the province.

Today two ships are making their way down the coast. They’re laying fibre optic cable from Prince Rupert to Haida Gwaii and southern Vancouver Island. It’s difficult work. At the end of January, the crew laid the first 50 kilometres of cable just offshore from Lax Kw’alaams, Metlakatla and Dodge Cove.

At each of the stops, new opportunities will be unlocked for small coastal communities, and today we are taking another major step forward. With Budget 2022, our government’s total investments in connectivity will reach half a billion dollars. That means that another 280 communi­ties will have high-speed connection to today’s digital economy. By 2027, almost 800 communities will benefit from the province’s investments in connectivity.

Just as we build new digital infrastructure, we are also building new schools, new hospitals and child care spaces. New transit, roads and bridges will keep people moving, keep goods flowing and keep our economy running. Work is underway on the Broadway subway project, replacements for the Massey Tunnel and Pattullo Bridge and improvements along Highway 14 on Vancouver Island.

Today we are taking our infrastructure plan to new heights — a record-level $27.4 billion over the next three years. This includes funding to bring the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain all the way to Langley. It’s in planning now. It is the first rapid transit expansion south of the Fraser in three decades.

In addition to major transportation projects, our expanded capital plan will build new schools, continue investments in post-secondary expansions and bring health care closer to home.

The largest affordable housing investment in B.C.’s history is also part of our infrastructure plan. British Columbia is the place to be. In just the first nine months of last year, almost 85,000 people moved to our province. With this success, however, comes additional pressure on our housing market. Right now, too many people are still struggling to find an affordable place to buy or to rent. We can’t afford to wait, and we aren’t.

Our government has banned renovictions, and we’ve cracked down on speculation. During the pandemic, we froze rents and then capped them permanently. More than 32,000 new affordable homes are already built, or they’re on their way. Thousands of new student housing beds are under construction and soon will be easing pressure on local housing markets.

Just last year more than 53,000 new homes were registered here in British Columbia. In the last five years, we’ve registered more rental homes than the previous 15 years combined. But we all know, whether from the CMHC rental numbers that were released last week or the stories that we all hear from people around the province about the challenge of finding a home that they can afford, that there is still much work to be done.

Budget 2022 continues progress on our ten-year Building B.C. plan. Total investments in housing and homelessness will reach more than $1.2 billion a year for the next three years. That’s three times the level of funding in 2017. Last year we made $2 billion in low-cost financing available through the HousingHub program, and we are already seeing results.

[1:55 p.m.]

More than 4,400 HousingHub homes are open or underway for middle-income families, and now Budget 2022 will add more staff to help accelerate those HousingHub projects because there’s so much demand. Similarly, this year’s budget adds $100 million to accelerate the community housing fund. This will support the work of non-profit partners to build even more mixed-income rentals and to do it faster.

The new Sunrise Centre in Kamloops is a great example of a program in action. Three years ago I had the opportunity to celebrate with the community when we broke ground on these new homes. Today the first residents, mostly low-income seniors, take comfort in knowing that their rents will always be capped at 30 percent of their income. The building is right downtown, just a short walk away from the pharmacy, the grocery store, making it very, very easy for seniors to use. These new homes and thousands more like them provide an affordable future for British Columbians.

Now, building the homes that people need supports B.C.’s economic strength. It’s also part of our work to build a healthier society, in every sense of the word. Budget 2022 commits a total of $3.2 billion over three years to build an even stronger health and mental health care system for British Columbians.

We are adding $300 million over three years to help with continuing efforts to address wait-lists for surgeries and scans. We’re also committing $875 million in the next year to get more people immunized, more PPE purchased and more people tested for COVID-19. Almost $150 million will increase the number of paramedics, call-takers and dispatchers to speed up emergency response times.

Budget 2022 continues our government’s work to deliver better care in communities throughout B.C. The Cowichan, Dawson Creek, Richmond, Burnaby and new Surrey hospital projects are all moving ahead, including a new state-of-the-art cancer centre in Surrey. More cancer care centres are being planned for Kamloops and Nanaimo.

This year’s budget will continue to invest in urgent and primary care centres. Our goal is to nearly double the number of centres by 2025. To bring culturally safe care closer to home, Budget 2022 will add traditional Indigenous health providers to local primary care teams. We are continuing to work in partnership with the First Nations Health Authority to create new First Nations primary care centres throughout the province.

We recognize that the pandemic has threatened more than our physical health. It’s taken a significant toll on our mental well-being, and tragically, the poisoned drug crisis has only worsened. Our government is tackling this head on with the largest investment in mental health and addictions services in B.C.’s history. A new comprehensive system of treatment and care is being built. Five years ago one simply did not exist. Despite heroic efforts from those working on and working in this new system, the poisoned drug supply continues to claim lives.

While it’s hard to see past the tragedy, there are stories that do inspire hope — stories like Daniel’s. After years of homelessness and living with addictions, he checked himself into a new treatment bed in Nanaimo. “It definitely saved my life,” Daniel says. He’s now excited about the future and plans to take things one step at a time. His first step, I have to say, was a meaningful one. For the first time in four years, Daniel spent Christmas with his family.

It’s for Daniel and so many others that front-line workers remain committed to this fight. So, too, has our government remained committed to this fight. We are taking action by opening hundreds of treatment and recovery beds just like the one in Nanaimo, by becoming the first province in Canada to apply for decriminalization and offer prescribed safe supply, and by operating free and affordable counselling services in Foundry centres in dozens of communities.

For people living with a combination of addictions, severe mental health issues or brain injury, Budget 2022 provides another pathway to hope. New complex care housing already on the way for Surrey, Abbotsford and Vancouver will be expanded to another 20 sites throughout the province. This first-of-its-kind approach will help stop the cycle of evictions, shelters, emergency rooms and jails for hundreds of people with complex care needs.

It has often been said that while we are all in the same storm, we are not in the same boat. The pandemic has only served to deepen pre-existing gaps in services and supports, and we can see this playing out on streets right across the country.

[2:00 p.m.]

A new, comprehensive approach is needed to shift from reactive to proactive solutions for homelessness. This year’s budget delivers with $633 million to tackle homelessness over the next three years.

When COVID-19 first hit, we acted fast to bring more than 3,000 people in off the street and into temporary shelters. Now we are working to make this move permanent by funding hundreds of new homes with supports and connecting people with spaces in newly finished buildings. To give people stability while new permanent homes are being built, we are extending leases on some temporary spaces. Additionally, new rent supplements will help thousands of low-income people find secure housing in the rental market, and it comes with wraparound supports.

While an immediate response is vital, we must also shift our attention upstream toward prevention. The late Katherine McParland was a fierce advocate on youth homelessness. She also became a friend and adviser to this government and to me. As Katherine described it, foster care is a “superhighway to homelessness,” and she called on government to be part of the solution. Our government is listening to people like Katherine, and things are going to change.

Today we’re making good on our promise to support all youth who are aging out of care. Budget 2022 provides more income supports, new earning exemptions and a whole host of housing, health and life skills supports that will continue for youth aging out of care until the age of 27. The bottom line is this: as a mom, I know that the responsibility that I have to my children did not end on their 19th birthdays, and neither does government’s responsibility.

Government’s responsibility to youth doesn’t just apply to youth aging out of care. Giving every child the best possible start is key to strengthening the social fabric of our province. As K-to-12 enrolment continues to grow, we are continuing investments to match. Budget 2022 commits an additional $664 million over three years to respond to increased enrolment.

Work also continues on state-of-the-art classrooms around the province. This past year 20 new or improved schools opened in communities like Courtenay, Smithers and Surrey, and more schools are under construction now. Many will include child care spaces, which is good news for families. Parents know there will always be a space for their child in public school, and we are working hard to bring the same certainty to child care.

With this year’s budget, we are embedding child care within the Ministry of Education. This is all part of our government’s work to establish child care as a core service that’s available to any family that wants it when they need it, at a price they can afford.

Already, thousands of families are paying less for child care than when we first formed government. We funded over 26,000 new spaces, surpassing our original target. Taken together, this work has established B.C. as a national leader on child care. And it meant that when the federal government came to the table, we were ready. A historic agreement is now in place that brings B.C. closer than ever to $10-a-day child care.

Within seven years, another 40,000 spaces will be funded in partnership with the federal government. And by the end of the year, parent fees for children aged five and under will drop by an average of 50 percent. This is a huge win for families and one that our government has pushed for since day one.

Budget 2022 takes another big step forward on making child care more affordable for families. We are going to lower the average fees for preschool and before- and after-school care to less than $20 a day for the ’23-24 school year.

As child care becomes a core service for B.C. families, we must also train more skilled professionals. Already we have doubled the number of early childhood educator seats over the last three years, and now Budget 2022 will add hundreds of new seats to train even more ECEs.

[2:05 p.m.]

This year’s budget will also extend the wage enhancement to even more child care professionals. It will now include ECEs who split their time between working with children and supervising staff, answering calls from parents and helping with the other behind-the-scenes work.

The last year has been a powerful reminder of how closely connected people’s health and well-being are to that of our natural environment. In this year’s budget consultations, I heard a united message from British Columbians. Action is needed now both to fight climate change and to protect people and communities from the effects of climate-related disasters. Budget 2022 will help keep people safe today while building a better, more climate-resilient British Columbia for generations to come.

Three years ago our government introduced CleanBC, one of the strongest climate plans in North America. We then accelerated the fight against climate change with the CleanBC Roadmap to 2030. Today an additional $1 billion for CleanBC will help us reach a low-carbon future faster. This year’s budget strengthens the CleanBC program for industry to help decarbonize our economy. We are also creating a new clean buildings tax rebate to support deep energy retrofits of larger rental and commercial buildings.

While most people want to make the right choice by the environment, it isn’t always the most affordable option, and we are working hard to change that. Budget 2022 will remove the PST from all electric heat pumps while increasing the PST on fossil fuel heating equipment so that these revenues will offset the cost of new incentives to make heat pumps more affordable for homeowners in rural and northern British Columbia.

Electric vehicles are another example of how we are making climate-smart decisions more affordable. B.C. leads North America in the transition to electric vehicles. To build on this momentum, Budget 2022 will continue the popular Go Electric program. To make used EVs even more affordable, we are going to remove the PST.

This year’s budget also launches a clean transportation action plan and continues growing the province’s network of bike lanes and multi-use pathways. We’re also expanding exemptions to the motor fuel tax to include hydrogen-powered vehicles. This will benefit companies like B.C.-based Hydra Energy as it works to transition heavy-duty vehicles to hydrogen power.

While the fight against climate change continues, recent disasters show that we must strengthen our defences at home. While we’ve all experienced the realities of climate change this year, I can’t help but think of the Indigenous people in the Nicola Valley, farmers in Abbotsford, the residents of Merritt, Princeton and Lytton. No single community can rebuild on its own. We are going to get through this together.

This year’s budget delivers more than $2.1 billion to help us prepare for, respond to and recover from floods, heatwaves and wildfires. It begins with $1.5 billion to support people and communities with flood recovery. A total of $400 million will cover known costs, from removing debris to providing financial assistance for hard-hit people, businesses and communities. An additional $1.1 billion is earmarked in contingencies to support additional recovery costs in the months ahead.

The government of Canada has been a steadfast partner through these difficult times. An allocated $5 billion in federal assistance will help backstop B.C.’s flood recovery efforts. As a sign of what we can accomplish together, the largest financial recovery package ever for B.C. farmers is on the way.

There is a long road ahead, and rebuilding what we have lost is only part of the job. We must act now to protect people and communities against future climate disasters. A total of $120 million provided this year will support the community emergency preparedness fund and Indigenous-led emergency management. This will help power local emergency services and operations centres, map flood plains, support flood risk assessments and more.

Even with strong preventative action, British Columbia must be ready to protect people, property and communi­ties from climate disasters. In moments of crisis, the B.C. Wildfire Service and emergency management B.C. have been unwavering in their response. We owe them our thanks and so much more.

Budget 2022 commits $145 million over three years to increase staff at both agencies and move toward a more proactive approach. For EMBC, this means a stronger provincial response to emergencies and more coordination with communities and First Nations. For the B.C. Wildfire Service, this marks a transition toward year-round firefighting and risk mitigation.

[2:10 p.m.]

To support these efforts, Budget 2022 delivers nearly $200 million to support wildfire prevention activities. This includes $90 million in new funding to help more communities participate in programs like FireSmart. When the Tremont Creek wildfire threatened the community of Logan Lake, we saw what it meant to be a fire-smart community and the difference it can make in an emergency. Taken together, these measures will help British Columbia stand strong in the face of a disaster.

While extreme weather events get the most attention, we know that even the gradual effects of a changing climate can have significant implications. From the kind of food we grow to the design of our sewers and roads, we must be prepared for change on both fronts. This is where B.C.’s climate preparedness and adaptation strategy comes into play. Budget 2022 will begin implementing this strategy provincewide with $83 million.

What does that look like on the ground? It looks like more state-of-the-art climate-monitoring stations along B.C.’s rivers, lakes and shorelines. To better predict what is coming, we need to start collecting the best data possible.

It looks like a new extreme heat response framework that will better predict where and when heatwaves will hit and how we can help the most vulnerable.

It looks like an expanded river forecast centre and provincial floodplain mapping program. Finally, it means strengthening our partnership with local governments and Indigenous communities to work together to understand, monitor, manage and reduce climate risks. While the fight against climate change continues, we can and we will ensure that we are ready to protect people and communities.

We have all learned a great deal over the last two years. Through each challenge, we have seen, time and time again, that we are stronger together. There is a long road ahead. As we all rebuild and repair the damage left by these difficult times, if patience wanes or hope waivers, remember that you are not alone in this. You have another five million or so people ready to lend a hand. Just as the bundled sticks would not break, neither will we.

While we all know what we’re fighting against — be it COVID-19, climate change or a poisoned drug supply — we cannot lose sight of who and what we are fighting for. For first days of kindergarten and graduations. For people taking a brave step — their first step — on their path to hope. For small businesses to bank on growth. For communities built to withstand any storm. For the health care workers, the child care professionals, the teachers and the bus drivers who got us through these last two years. We will reach those better days ahead by continuing to build on today’s strengths, and together, we will discover the opportunities that tomorrow holds.

P. Milobar: Now for something completely different.

I would like to thank you for this time to make some initial comments on behalf of the official opposition. I will be our designated speaker. I will provide a few comments today, just to give a quick overview of what we have seen in the budget over the first couple of hours that we were able to review it ahead of the speech.

First off, thank you to the minister for providing her comments and the budget, and especially to the ministry staff. It’s no small feat to pull together a budget, and especially…. This is not an annual budget this year. This has been built in a ten-month time frame, because, if we all remember, last year’s budget was two months later than normal. So congratulations to the staff for being able to work under incredibly tight timelines to be able to bring forward a budget in only ten months’ time.

Budget 2022 really seems to be a picture into some priorities that this government has had over the last five years, and not necessarily in a good way. It really does and should be setting the tone for a post-pandemic British Columbia, but frankly, it falls short in many areas.

[2:15 p.m.]

It’s important, I think, for everyone watching to understand the role of opposition. We really do dive into the budget books. We don’t see them ahead of 10:30 this morning, and we’re left on our own to start digging through and trying to find where exactly these programs are coming from, how they’re being funded and whether or not it’s substantially new from previous years.

I have to say, frankly, given that this is the government with the dubious distinction of being the most secretive one in Canada, sometimes that job can take a lot of digging and starting to go through the very back pages of the various books we have to dig through.

When we look at things around key issues that people in their everyday lives are very concerned about right now — be it affordability, child care, health, mental health and addictions, job creation — there are a lot of promises. But frankly, we’ve heard those promises for five years now. This is the sixth budget under this Premier’s watch, and we’re hearing a lot of the same language, a lot of the same programs and, frankly, a lot of missed deadlines or questionable deadlines at best.

There’s a difference between talk, and there’s a difference between action and deliverables. If we look at the housing crisis as one example, that crisis is deepening. It’s deepening every year. It’s deepening every month, and there’s no relief in sight. In fact, last year, it was going to take an unacceptable 34 years, a record number of years, to be able to afford a down payment in Vancouver. This year that number is now up to 36 years. Again, that is under this Premier’s watch.

Prices are up 43 percent in Chilliwack. They’re up 34 percent on the Island and 49 percent in the Peace region. This is truly a provincewide issue and a provincewide problem, and there does not seem to be any hope on the horizon. That’s just on buying a house. Housing affordability is also key to renters.

Time and again we have seen report after report — in fact, the minister, thankfully, acknowledged those reports in her comments today, because they certainly don’t acknowledge them when we bring up those same reports in question period — about the skyrocketing rents around this province. Affordability in housing is impacting every single person in this province that’s trying to have a safe, affordable place to live. We do not see, in this budget, meaningful, tangible steps to address that.

I’ll give you some examples on that. It’s good to hear the Minister of Housing and the Attorney General finally acknowledge that no tax policy is going to put a roof over someone’s head — finally. Finally, an acknowledgment that supply is critical to try to make sure that people have access to safe, affordable housing, be it a renter or be it for ownership.

So imagine my surprise. At a time when the Housing Minister finally saw the light, after years of insisting it was everything but government policies that would have any impact on housing supply, one would think there’d be an acknowledgment in this budget that the government has a part to play in this.

Let’s look at what this budget lays out for the situation with housing for the coming year. Again, these are directly from the budget documents. This government’s budget is built on a projection to moderate housing prices, of interest rates going up, making borrowing more unaffordable for people. It’s also predicated on housing supply, housing starts, to drop over the next year.

Just when we finally have a minister willing to accept that supply is a fundamental part of this, their own budget is projecting a drop in supply, a drop in new builds, a drop in new starts for housing — be it rental housing, purpose-built rental housing or purpose-built market-ownership housing.

However, if you want to look at the revenue side of the equation on government policy that could, at least in some small measure, help with affordability, the budget is projecting to collect an all-time high of property transfer taxes. So the government budget is balanced, or is trying to get to balance, on the backs of property transfer taxes. They’ve projected an over-$600-million increase over last year’s projection for this year. And we all know that the current fiscal we’re in is going to skyrocket through any of their initial projections.

[2:20 p.m.]

We’re looking at record levels of property transfer tax at a time of declining new builds and interest rates rising, and that is what this budget is built on. That is how this government is addressing housing.

That is how this government, with a ten-year plan for housing that we are now halfway into, under their watch, that has 5,200 units that people are actually living in out of a 114,000 goal…. Forget about the “under construction,” if you even want to look at that. That’s nowhere near on pace for the 114,000 we need. In fact, if they’re projecting that housing starts are actually going to reduce, it seems like the government wants to be the only one in British Columbia building homes this next year.

They say that they are the champions of renters, but the facts simply don’t add up. In 2017, the Premier promised in the election a $400 renters rebate. In 2020, the Premier promised a $400 renters rebate. Last week the Attorney General promised that they were working on it. Some thought that meant it was in the budget that would be released today, but in fact, it’s not.

The sad part is, if you look at the mandate letter for the Minister of Finance, it actually says she’s supposed to deliver one. Now, it’s supposed to be means-tested, and it’s supposed to be for anyone that doesn’t actually already get some form of rent support from the provincial government, so it’ll probably qualify a few thousand people. But even that they can’t seem to figure out a program to get in place to at least say they met a commitment made not once but twice by this Premier. As I say, the minister has acknowledged that people in Surrey are paying $2,700 a year more.

It’s not just the cost of housing that’s weighing on people. We know the cost of living is up over 4 percent. Gas prices are higher than ever. No relief from the Premier, even though he has said multiple times that he had a plan to bring prices down.

When you actually look at the revenue line items, when you look at the carbon tax, the carbon tax is now projected to increase even more this year. I’m not talking about per tonne. I’m talking about what the government is planning on collecting overall, which means the government once again is budgeting for emissions to increase in this budget.

They’ve done it year over year over year while touting CleanBC as this great green document that is delivering for the people of British Columbia. Yet they keep budgeting their revenue projections based on emissions increasing. In fact, fuel taxes are going up under this budget as well. They’re increasing. The only way fuel taxes increase, because it’s a per-litre tax, is if this government is anticipating people spending more time on the road driving to and from work, with record gas prices, while they rake in record fuel taxes. Again, not much help for the average person’s affordability.

Groceries are up. Phone bills that were promised to be cut by this Premier still has not happened. Then we get to the long overdue economic plan.

Now, they say things come in threes. If I look back to the throne speech from two weeks ago, there wasn’t a whole lot of forward-looking vision in that document, a lot of backwards looking. Then we got to the economic plan, same thing. We have matrix charts in there that stop two years ago. Unless it’s housing — then they stop four years ago. Wouldn’t want to actually look at anything in real time going on in the housing file.

This is a plan…. When you think about five years ago when this government took office, everyone knew back then that there was going to be a skills shortage in British Columbia. It was mounting, it was mounting, it was mounting. Here we are, five years later, with a ten-year plan to address something everyone knew five years ago. Only the NDP could think delivering a ten-year plan in a 15-year window is fast-paced progress.

Why do I say that? Because when you look at the signature piece, it’s a trades building at BCIT. It is incredibly important, and we need it to build capacity. But that’s been the signature piece out of this plan. We have more details, based on this budget, now on that. That’s not slated to be open for five years. There won’t be a graduate out of that program for seven years, at the earliest.

[2:25 p.m.]

Now, I guess the bright side is for all those families that are still looking for the child care that’s never happened, at least their kid might be able to go straight into the program at BCIT when it opens up in six or seven years. But that’s the detail in this budget that is always missing when this government decides to move things forward.

In fact, there’s only $11 million that we can find for the economic plan in this year’s budget. So you have a plan, a ten-year plan, where the first graduate, the signature piece of it, won’t actually come out of that school for seven years. It doesn’t address what’s happening in real time.

We need child care to get people to work. Everyone in this House agrees with that. Again, we’ve had five years of the same words. In fact, the Premier made it very clear that in year 1 of his mandate, there would be $10 child care for infants and toddlers. Now they’re not even 100 percent sure, in this budget document, that they’re going to meet the mandated federal targets by the end of the year to make sure that the federal subsidy comes in to help offset the costs. We know, just like with COVID relief, that if the federal government doesn’t come in and fund things, this government struggles.

The promised savings for child care have not materialized at this point. We don’t know when they will materialize. There are about five different areas within the budget that you have to try to ascertain what exactly it is they’re doing.

That doesn’t help the parent at home who is simply wanting to know a very clear answer of when, in their town, they will be able to access affordable child care for their child. That’s actually what they want an answer to. That’s what we would like an answer to. But you can’t get one. There is just simply no direct commitment around that. There is no cohesive plan that’s easy to follow, easy to understand, that shows us exactly where these spaces are going to happen.

Then we look at Mental Health and Addictions. We look at that side of the equation and what it is that they’re doing. Every budget, every government — it’s about how they choose to set their priorities. When you look at the dollars involved, when you look at the tens of billions of dollars — $60 billion, $70 billion — going to be spent…. There’s a lot of room to set priorities in any budget. In this budget, there has been prioritization to spend $44 million to set up a new ministry.

There has been prioritization on all sorts of areas. In fact, there is a prioritization for a new piece of legislation to ensure that cabinet can receive a 10 percent raise by not being held accountable for their own budgets. No timelines on that. It’s just to get rid of that requirement.

With the amount of detail they’ve provided, because again, they don’t like to really provide that depth, any detail for the public to understand…. We could FOI, I guess, and maybe find the decision note behind that, but good luck on that.

It’s about priorities. We’ve heard a lot about the priorities and the worry around mental health and addictions from this government, but very little in tangible action. In fact, what we’ve seen is for the last few years, us repeatedly pointing out that the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions’ budget is lower than the Premier’s office budget. Well, that must have annoyed the Premier enough that they’ve corrected that this year.

At first glance, you’d be very happy to see that the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions now has a budget that’s increased by around $8 million, $9 million. It’s now higher than the Premier’s office.

That would seem like good news on the first cut. But here’s the thing. This is one of those nuggets that we had to find on the back of the estimates page, the third- or fourth-to-last page, somewhere in that range. The ministry is getting more money. But $8 million of that increase — now, this is quite remarkable — is for public communication and funding engagement. It’s to explain to the public, I guess, why they’re not moving faster as they watch, frankly, a death toll on an opioid pandemic go from six people a day to 6½ people a day, marching sadly, quickly to seven people a day.

[2:30 p.m.]

It’s about priorities: $44 million for a new ministry, $8 million for communications. Entrenching in an accountability tool for cabinet that can be wiped away, which would result in a 10 percent raise.

People need a coherent mental health and addiction strategy that will provide meaningful help, and they need the resources put to it. They need the prioritization put to it. But we don’t see that in this budget. We see yet more communications staff. More messaging staff. I take nothing against them for the work they do. They got hired to do a job, and I don’t fault them from the least. They weren’t the ones that posted it. They weren’t the ones that created the space for it. This government did, and this government is not prioritizing recovery and a treatment that people can afford.

They’re not prioritizing that those people should not have to be choosing between groceries and sending a child or a loved one to recovery. Only this government can answer for why they haven’t prioritized that within their spending that they have.

We also see more health care promises and a rehash of projects. But let’s take a closer look at some of those. The Richmond Hospital improvements in last year’s budget were scheduled for completion in 2029.

Now, we won’t even get into the fact that in the election, they have a member that promised that the ground would be breaking in 2021, but last year’s budget said it was scheduled to be open and completed in 2029. This year’s budget: 2031. No wonder they think fast-tracking the Massey Tunnel means renaming it. That’s really what the work is on this year’s budget. It’s renaming the title of the Massey Tunnel replacement.

Let’s look at Surrey. Surrey Hospital is still not due until 2027, so at least that timeline hasn’t changed. There’s only $2 million in this year’s budget to move that project forward in any substantial way. I can tell you the planning dollars for the tower at Royal Inland Hospital, that was $417 million that is nearing completion now…. I was the hospital board chair at the time. The planning dollars are more than $2 million for that project. Not quite sure how a $1.6 billion hospital gets substantially planned with $2 million in a budget.

The interesting thing is the St. Paul’s Hospital project, which is underway and being constructed, has the same finishing timeline as the Surrey Hospital. So we’re supposed to believe that two hospital projects that have, arguably, almost the same scale — $1.6 billion versus $2.1 billion…. At a certain point, the construction pace is the construction pace of specialized construction. They’re going to catch up to that construction schedule, with a $2 million piece in this year’s budget.

The reason we’re skeptical is we had passing mention of the Kamloops cancer centre in this year’s budget. That’s good to see, although it’s in the preliminary planning stage in this year’s budget. Last February, the Premier was on Radio NL and said it’s already at Treasury Board. Previous to that, in the election, he said it would be open and complete in 2024. You can see where people start to get skeptical about the same projects being mentioned budget after budget after budget.

There’s nothing in this budget about the promised second medical school. I believe it was supposed to be at the SFU campus in Surrey. It’s not mentioned in this budget. Where are all of those health care spaces that Surrey was expecting to be located within their SFU campus? Nothing for the Prince George Hospital is mentioned in this budget. That is why people have questions around this budget. I’ll have a whole lot more to say about health care funding tomorrow as well.

When you have the most secretive government in Canada, and you have budget documents that are like playing Whac-a-Mole, trying to figure out where the real dollars are — or not, because they’re tucked away, well away from the glossy pages of the release — it does make people very skeptical. We have COVID-19 data issues. We have FOI fees. We have non-disclosure agreements. We’ve got stakeholders excluded from the lock-up today.

[2:35 p.m.]

We have a wide range of issues leading up to today’s budget, and this was the three. I referenced the throne speech. I referenced the economic plan, which was a dud by all accounts. Now we have a budget that simply is just rehashing previous budgets. About the only good news we’ve heard over the last few weeks out of this government was when we saw restrictions get eased.

The Premier doesn’t get to have it both ways. He’s either hands-off with Dr. Henry and her decision-making around restrictions or he’s not. So that actually wasn’t a government decision. That was Dr. Henry’s decision. The Premier just did what he usually does. He shows up for the good-news COVID announcements and stays away for the bad news.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Quiet, please. Shhh.

Continue.

P. Milobar: Again, budgets are about priorities. They’re about…. If you’re going to cut back a project on scale, those savings should go to other priorities, not cutting back a project on scale to then still pay more for that project, as we’ve seen with the benefit agreements to the chosen inside friends and supporters of the government. It should go to actually spread the money out and get maximum dollar value for the taxpayer to provide the maximum amount of services for government under any taxation regime.

In short, B.C., British Columbians deserve better. Just last week we heard the Premier say: “Ambitions and the aspirations become a reality over time.” Well, it’s been five years.

Interjection.

P. Milobar: It’s been five years. I’ve obviously struck a nerve with many on the back bench, but that’s okay. We’re still waiting. It’s been five years — five years of hearing the same promises. Five years. Sixth budget of seeing the same, year after year after year, with no deliverable that anyone can actually reasonably measure as an improvement moving forward. Five years of affordability getting worse. Five years of it being harder to rent. Five years of it being harder to own. Five years of mounting household costs.

I thank you for the time to this point today. I will reserve my time and move adjournment of the debate.

P. Milobar moved adjournment of debate.

Motion approved.

Introduction and
First Reading of Bills

BILL 6 — BUDGET MEASURES
IMPLEMENTATION ACT, 2022

Hon. S. Robinson presented a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: a bill intituled Budget Measures Implementation Act, 2022.

Hon. S. Robinson: I move first reading of Bill 6, Budget Measures Implementation Act, 2022.

The bill consists of two parts. Part 1 amends a number of statutes in order to implement non-tax measures in Budget 2022.

The amendments are proposed to the Balanced Budget and Ministerial Accountability Act to include the 2024-​2025 fiscal year and the period of fiscal years for which budget deficits are allowed to be forecast in the main estimates, consistent with similar amendments made a year ago. Amendments are proposed to eliminate the holdback provision on presenting a surplus at the end of the fiscal year while maintaining the holdback provision related to ministerial accountability over their budgets.

Housekeeping amendments are proposed to the Budget Transparency and Accountability Act to remove an exemp­tion for education and health sector organizations to report capital projects over $50 million and to provide for a temporary delay in reporting capital projects over $50 million where a late commitment has been made within a 30-day cutoff before the main estimates are presented.

Amendments are proposed to the Financial Administration Act to authorize Treasury Board to delegate powers, duties and functions to the chair or vice-chair of Treasury Board so that they can act on urgent matters.

Part 2 of the bill amends a number of statutes in order to implement the tax measures in Budget 2022.

The Income Tax Act is amended to enable a new temporary credit to encourage energy efficiency retrofits for multi-unit residential and certain commercial buildings. The Income Tax Act is also amended to extend or make adjustments to various tax credits. The scientific research and experimental development tax credit is extended for five years. The training tax credits are extended for two years, and the shipbuilding and ship repair industry tax credit is extended for two years.

The Motor Fuel Tax Act is amended to authorize regulations expanding an existing exemption for hydrogen to include hydrogen fuel used in internal combustion engine vehicles.

[2:40 p.m.]

This bill amends the Provincial Sales Tax Act to increase the passenger vehicle surtax threshold for zero-emission vehicles. This bill also authorizes regulations to be made in order to provide two pieces of PST relief, a provincial sales tax exemption for used zero-emission vehicles and for heat pumps.

As well, the act would remove the PST from all electric heat pumps, while increasing the PST on fossil-fuel-heating equipment. These revenues would offset the cost of new incentives to make heat pumps more affordable for homeowners in rural and northern British Columbia.

The Provincial Sales Tax Act is also amended to adjust how tax is calculated on privately purchased vehicles. The bill also introduces new provincial sales tax collection remittance and reporting obligations for marketplace facilitators.

The School Act is amended to remove the industrial property tax credit on major industry costs for 2023.

This bill also amends the Tobacco Tax Act to remove the PST exemption for tobacco.

The speculation and vacancy tax is amended to temporarily expand the exemption for hazardous or damaged residential property to apply to properties that were damaged by the floods in late 2021, and to make the exemption for strata accommodation properties permanent.

Finally, a number of tax-related statues are amended for clarity and certainty, including extending filing deadlines related to certain tax credits, simplifying appeal processes, clarifying various tax rules and practises, ensuring ministerial powers can be delegated and ensuring adequate appropriations for tax-related expenses.

Mr. Speaker: Members, you have heard the motion.

Motion approved.

Hon. S. Robinson: I move that Bill 6 be placed on the orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Bill 6, Budget Measures Implementation Act, 2022, introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Tabling Documents

Hon. S. Robinson: I have the pleasure to rise to table government’s overall strategic plan and the Budget and Fiscal Plan 2022-23–2024-25, which together fulfil the requirements of sections 7, 8, 10 and 12 of the Budget Transparency and Accountability Act.

I also table, on behalf of the ministers responsible, the service plans, as required under section 13 of the Budget Transparency and Accountability Act.

The service plan documents are presented in two binders. The first binder contains service plans for the Office of the Premier and 20 ministries. The second binder contains service plans for 30 service delivery agencies and Crown corporations. The second binder includes a listing of organizations that are exempt from the reporting requirements of section 13 of the Budget Transparency and Accountability Act and identifies one exemption.

Mr. Speaker: I understand the member for Richmond North Centre is seeking leave to make some introductions.

Leave granted.

Introductions by Members

T. Wat: Thank you for granting me the leave.

I am so happy that my two CAs, Tony Lu and William Tu, can make it to the Legislature. Even though I cannot be physically in the Legislature to welcome them, this is the first time that they see the budget presented by the minister and also the response from the official Liberal Party. I hope that they enjoyed the experience, and I wish you all to welcome them to the Legislature.

A. Singh: Asking permission for leave to introduce.

Leave granted.

A. Singh: It is my honour to introduce my very good friend, a former member of this assembly and currently a councillor from New Westminster. Chuck Puchmayr is here with us today.

Hon. M. Farnworth moved adjournment of the House.

Motion approved.

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

The House adjourned at 2:44 p.m.