Routine Business

Prayers and reflections: S. Malcolmson.

[10:05 a.m.]

Introductions by Members

N. Letnick: Thank you, hon. Speaker, for that honour of going first. I wasn’t expecting it, but I’ll take it.

Speaking of going first, I’d like to introduce a friend of mine, someone who’s seen 2,000 babies, firsthand, come into this world. Marjorie Docherty is a family physician. She has been with the College of Physicians and Surgeons for, I think, over ten years and is here for meetings with the official opposition, I hope, as well as with the Minister of Health.

Would the House please welcome my good friend, and physician, Dr. Marjorie Docherty.

Hon. A. Dix: It’s B.C. Family Doctor Day, and we have many doctors here. Members on all sides of the House had an opportunity to meet this morning, over breakfast, with family doctors from across B.C.

We’re so appreciative that they’re here, so appreciative of their work, which is the foundation of primary care in our province. They are specialists in the delivery of primary care, and we are honoured to have them here.

Dr. David May is here from Powell River. He’s the president of the B.C. College of Family Physicians. My colleague from Kelowna–Lake Country referred to Dr. Marjorie Docherty. Also, Dr. Preveena Dharmaraj, Dr. Ana Boskovic. I think I’m going to be seeing Dr. Nick Petrop­olis later — I like the bow-tie, and it’s pretty good; Dr. Tahmeena Ali; and really, doctors, from all over B.C.

We’re so honoured to have them with us. The work they do is so important. This is an important moment for them and for primary care in B.C. I look forward to continuing our work together to bring solutions that make sense for patients and make sense for family practice doctors in B.C.

Welcome.

S. Bond: I want to join with the Minister of Health in thanking the doctors for the informative breakfast this morning.

Joining us in the gallery here today are also concerned citizens that will be taking part in the B.C. Health Care Matters rally outside the Legislature today. They are here to voice their concerns about the shortage of family doctors in British Columbia. I look forward to joining them later, after question period.

I’d like to also welcome Dr. Jennifer Lush, Dr. Carlin Mann, Dr. Jennifer Vassel, Dr. Dianna Peters, Camille Currie, Shawn Currie, Aidan Currie, Mila Currie, Alexis Reid, Suzanne Bugeaud and Paul Parsons.

We welcome you today and thank you for sharing your stories with us.

Hon. M. Rankin: Today Mr. John Hillman is in the gallery. He is 103 years old and a truly remarkable constituent of mine from Oak Bay–Gordon Head.

A veteran of World War II, John served with the Royal Air Force from 1937 to ’49, earning medals for his bravery in four wartime campaigns. As Allies frantically escaped the shores of Dunkirk, John Hillman, along with 59 other members of his squadron, were left to witness an advancing Wehrmacht attack. In the face of enormous danger, John pushed on and arrived in England on a Royal Navy destroyer and went on to serve in campaigns in North Africa, Italy and Burma.

Later, in England, he met the love of life, Irene, and they settled in Canada with their family. In 1988, he retired from his work as an electrical engineer, and they eventually settled in Oak Bay.

In 2020, at the age of 100, John began the next chapter of a truly inspiring life. In the 100th year of his life, John began walking laps in the courtyard of Carlton House, where he lives, in order to raise money for the Save the Children foundation. He was overwhelmed by the support from our community and raised over $400,000 in 2020 and 2021.

[10:10 a.m.]

That’s not all, Mr. Speaker. John became a champion for youth around the world. This year, after witnessing the aggression of the Russians in Ukraine, John learned that the Save the Children foundation had quickly reacted, not only supporting displaced refugees but also providing protective services to unaccompanied children fleeing that war.

With his 103rd birthday in March, John again committed to walking to support their heroic efforts. He began on May 2. He walked ten laps a day to reach a minimum of 103 laps, one for each year, with a bonus three laps on the final day, May 13.

I had the honour of briefly walking with him on that day. With a sip of scotch to commemorate the historic occasion, I’m happy to share with the House that John’s selfless leadership has beat his target of $103,000, and he has raised $105,403 to date.

In conclusion, if Canadians are looking for role models or inspiration in their lives, we should look no further than John Hillman. He deserves the gratitude of our entire province. He has used the latter phase of his life to help the young and the most vulnerable people on the planet.

John Hillman is a true hero. I am delighted that he has joined us in the gallery today, and I would ask all members to make him truly welcome. [Applause.]

E. Ross: Hon. Speaker, my wife, Tracey, is in the gallery today somewhere, hopefully. She sat there for…. Maybe she left.

Anyway, we haven’t had a great year in our family, but on May 25, it’s her birthday. She hasn’t had a birthday celebrated in nine years, because my granddaughter was born on May 23. A lot of grandparents know what that means. You give up your birthday to celebrate your grandchildren.

That’s my grandchild over there. Her name is Elise Moore.

Happy birthday.

My wife is somewhere in here. I just noticed on this family tie, I’m not on it.

Anyway, happy birthday to my wife on May 25, and to my granddaughter Elise Moore, happy birthday on May 23.

Hon. B. Ralston: I rise today to recognize the contributions of an exceptional public servant. Paul Wieringa has retired after 32 years of service. Paul and his spouse, Ann Antonides, are with us today here in the gallery.

Paul has provided wise counsel to ministers and governments on both sides of the House over this long period. As ministers, we are empowered to make decisions. Paul’s role has been to ensure that these are informed decisions. Paul has the skill of being able to look at a problem from multiple perspectives and come up with solutions.

He’s been a driving force between the government’s energy and climate plans, whether it is the development of the low-carbon fuel standard, regulation of the province’s electricity and gas utilities, the development of new utility programs and rates, the facilitation of a federal-provincial zero emission transportation working group or collaboration with utilities and telecommunication providers to make the extension of broadband services more efficient.

Paul has been a much-sought-after source of expertise and ideas. Paul’s can-do attitude and his calm demeanor are thoroughly missed, not to mention his extensive historic knowledge of the electricity and energy decisions taken in the province over the last few decades.

Paul’s legacy is the incoming group of leaders he has mentored so that the ministry can continue to implement sound public policy.

I wish Paul all the best in his retirement.

On behalf of the government and the entire Ministry of Energy, Mines, and Low Carbon Innovation, congratulations, and thank you, Paul, for your tremendous contributions to the province and its people over your long career with the B.C. public service.

[10:15 a.m.]

N. Sharma: I am really pleased to introduce an amazing group of folks who are part of Vancouver Foundation’s youth policy program called LEVEL, which is a six-month leadership program that brings together Indigenous and racialized immigrant and refugee youth from across B.C. to provide training to shape and advocate for public policy that addresses issues impacting their lives.

In the House today are a cohort of 16 students from across B.C. They’re here from Fort Nelson, Powell River, Duncan, Victoria, Metro Vancouver, and they’re visiting us before they begin their in-person training module on Canadian government and Indigenous governance.

I want to acknowledge Amora Takawira, the manager of the program, and welcome you all. Thank you for your hard work.

Would the House please join me in welcoming them.

J. Tegart: I ask the House to welcome Rebecca, Jess and Sam Chesham, visiting the Legislature today from Nanoose Bay.

Hon. J. Whiteside: It’s kind of a big day for me here. It’s the first time that a family member has been able to be on the legislative precinct in person and in the House in person. My partner, François Giguère, is here today, and joining us this week in Victoria is his youngest daughter, ma belle-fille, Maxime Choquette Giguère.

Maxime is visiting from Quebec. She’s been here for several months, touring British Columbia. She spent the last few weeks enjoying Vancouver Island. We’re so proud of her courageous, adventuring spirit. She’s such a loving, wonderful young woman.

Would the House please help me welcome my family here today.

T. Halford: I am delighted to see that we are joined in the gallery by members of the B.C. Psychological Association. Myself, the member for Prince George–Valemount and the Leader of the Opposition had the opportunity and privilege to meet with these wonderful individuals yesterday, and I was very, very delighted to have that.

We’re joined by Dr. Simon Elterman, Dr. Lesley Lutes and Alexina Picard. I ask that the House please make them welcome.

A. Olsen: Today I had the honour of joining many of our colleagues here in the Legislature for breakfast with family physicians. I had breakfast this morning with two doctors in my riding. I know that there are at least three family physicians from my riding here, watching question period.

Dr. Kate Evans is now working as a family practice doctor in my home communities of the W̱SÁNEĆ. Kate has been a family physician for 19 years, working in a variety of settings, including private practice for the South Island Division of Family Practice board and helping the Saanich Peninsula Youth Clinic.

Also joining Dr. Evans is Dr. Mark Sherman. Dr. Sherman lives in Saanichton and is a very important doctor as part of the Shoreline Medical Clinic on the Saanich peninsula. It has been serving our communities very well. And also Dr. Erin Carlson from Galiano Island, a rural family physician passionate about primary care in B.C. and a grassroots advocate for patient care in B.C.

Could the House please make these three very important members of our community welcome to this place today.

I have one more very important introduction.

Before we return to this place, after we adjourn for a week, we will have celebrated the tenth birthday of my little girl, Ella Olsen. She has been counting down for at least 365 days. She celebrates her birthday like none other. This year Emily and I will be proud to say that we have a ten-year-old as our youngest child. That says something about us too, doesn’t it.

Could the House please join me in wishing my beautiful little girl, Ella, a happy birthday.

A. Walker: I’m happy to welcome a couple of consti­tuents from Nanoose Bay but also a couple of constituents that I’m looking forward to having lunch with, Jackie and Neil Worboys. Would the House please make them very welcome.

[10:20 a.m.]

J. Sturdy: Today Dr. Karin Kausky is in the gallery, I believe, right up here, with a delegation of doctors visiting the Legislature. Dr. Kausky has practised family and emergency medicine in Whistler since 1993, and she’s the co-chair of the Sea to Sky Division of Family Practice.

She has been recognized as Whistler Citizen of the Year last year and the B.C. Family Physician of the Year for 2022. She has a long list of credentials, including Olympic team work, TED Talks and academic certifications, but in the interest of brevity, I’ll skip over some of that.

What is important today is to highlight her commitment to rethinking and rebuilding the model of family practice in Whistler, in the Sea to Sky and beyond.

In 2019, Dr. Kausky formed the Whistler Primary Care Task Force to find a way to attract and retain more family physicians in Whistler.

This endeavour has evolved in collaboration with key community groups and recently resulted in the Whistler 360 Health Collaborative Society, which is working towards formalizing and building out a team-based patient-centric community care centre in Whistler which may well be a model that can be replicated in communities big and small across this province.

I’ve known and worked with Karin for many years, and it’s truly my pleasure to introduce this amazing and inspiring woman to this Legislature today. I hope you all join me in helping me make her feel welcome.

Hon. N. Cullen: As we all know, this is Local Government Awareness Week. Everyone was probably out celebrating yesterday’s Asset Management Awareness Day, and I hope everyone has recovered fully from that celebration.

With us is today in the precinct is the executive of the Union of B.C. Municipalities — president Laurey-Anne Roodenburg, and others. Many of our colleagues met with them earlier this week for a little bit of togetherness after a long time. They’re incredible partners in building a better British Columbia, allies in the effort to make all of our communities more liveable, from large to small.

President Roodenburg, coming from the mighty metropolis of Quesnel, has done a fantastic job as president in advocating for large and, particularly, small communities. Would the House join me in making them feel welcome.

H. Sandhu: As previously mentioned, today is B.C. Family Doctor Day, and I want to take a moment to thank all the incredible doctors who go above and beyond and provide such exceptional care to their patients and make a difference every day.

One of those amazing doctors is Dr. Dianna Peters, who was supposed to be with the delegation of doctors today, but at the last minute, for some reason, we also had a meeting scheduled between her and me. She couldn’t be here, but I’m sure she’s watching.

Would the House please join me to show appreciation and thank all the incredible doctors around the province, in the gallery and Dr. Dianna Peters, who’s an amazing advocate for primary health care.

S. Chant: I have a couple of introductions today. First off, again recognizing B.C. Family Doctor Day, I have Dr. Isabelle, or Bella, Hughan here today, and she’s a doctor out of Parkgate Medical Clinic in my constituency of North Vancouver–Seymour.

She’s a past president of the medical association of the Lions Gate Hospital and now provides grassroots longitudinal care as a family doctor at Parkgate Medical.

She’s an international medical graduate, originally from the U.K. She has two children. I would love it if everybody would help me welcome her and all the other wonderful family doctors that we have with us here today.

Also, one of the people, the bright shiny faces that greet us every morning in the east annex, is Kelly Favreau, who works as reception. She’s in the gallery today with her partner, Russell, and would have been with her parents today. However, they got delayed by this wind problem that we seem to be experiencing in Victoria.

I’m hoping that everybody will please help me make Kelly Favro; Russell; Kelly’s parents, Paul and Susan; and Kelly’s little girl, Isabelle, welcome.

[10:25 a.m.]

P. Alexis: There are days I wish I were taller or bigger. This is one of them.

It is a pleasure for the member for Maple Ridge–Mission and me to welcome two city councillors from the city of Mission, Couns. Carol Hamilton and Danny Plecas. Coun. Carol Hamilton and I got our start in 2005 as school trus­tees, and then we ran again together for council in 2014. She’s a dear, dear friend — a strong supporter — and I miss her very, very much.

Councillor Plecas and I go way back. He’s serving his third term. We’ve done a number of projects together, but we began our plotting, I think, way back when in ’96, when we were both working for the school district. We would sit at night and talk about how we could bring Mission into the future — and I think, sir, we’ve succeeded.

Would the House please welcome Couns. Carol Hamilton and Danny Plecas.

D. Coulter: Mr. Speaker, I just realized that tomorrow is my tenth anniversary of my wedding.

I’m joking. Of course, I knew this whole time; of course I knew. Yes, I’ve been married to my lovely wife, Rebecca Leslie Coulter, for ten years tomorrow. It doesn’t feel like ten years, as the time clicks by. Anyway, I’d love to wish my wife a happy anniversary.

S. Furstenau: I’m joining my colleagues to express appreciation for the family doctors breakfast this morning. I had the pleasure of meeting with Dr. Lana Wicentovich, Dr. Suzanne Montemuro and Dr. Shana Johnston. I am pleased to report that not only did I learn a lot about their experiences as family physicians, but I made three new friends, and I’m just delighted to know them.

Hon. S. Malcolmson: To reinforce the welcome from my critic on the other side, I’m very glad to have the B.C. Psychological Association with us in the House. A particular welcome to Dr. Lutes and Dr. Elterman, whom I look forward to meeting again this morning.

Tributes

TOURAN SANII

B. Bailey: I rise to highlight the life and passing of a wonderful woman, my partner Bijan’s mother, Touran Sanii, who died July 1, 2020, at 94, at the height of the pandemic. Like many families, we were unable to come together to honour her life, and we will in fact do that this evening with family from around the world.

Touran was born in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, in 1925 and lived most of her life in Iran prior to the revolution and resettling in Vancouver. A mother of four, Mrs. Sanii was a bright, creative person with very sharp wit. She loved a good party, and it seems only fitting that on the anniversary of her passing each year, July 1, there will always be fireworks and a party to be had.

Introductions by Members

B. Banman: I would just like to state from the onset that there is common ground in here because I share the sentiments of my fellow colleague from Abbotsford-Mission: I, too, wish I were taller at certain times.

There are a number of 30-plus-one grade 5 students from Alexandra Elementary School that will be wandering through the halls today. They’re about to arrive shortly. They will be here, I hope, for question period. If you happen to see them, they are our future leaders. Please take a moment to say hello. Will the House please help give them a warm welcome.

Mr. Speaker: I think we are done.

Introduction and
First Reading of Bills

BILL M209 — INDIGENOUS NAMES
STATUTES AMENDMENT ACT, 2022

D. Clovechok presented a bill intituled Indigenous Names Statutes Amendment Act, 2022.

D. Clovechok: I move the bill entitled Indigenous Names Statutes Amendment Act, of which notice has been given in my name on the order paper, be introduced and read for the first time now.

Mr. Speaker: Proceed.

D. Clovechok: Let me begin by saying that this bill was inspired by a young woman in grade 12 from Golden, British Columbia, who wrote this letter about truth and reconciliation and the reclamation of Indigenous names for residential school survivors and their families and the use of these traditional names on government documents. It was eloquent and inspiring, and it’s her passion that brought this bill here today. I believe she’s watching with her class today.

Thank you for that, Emme. I want Emme to know that I heard your voice, and your words are now here in this chamber. This is your bill.

[10:30 a.m.]

Indigenous people were stripped of their Indigenous names by residential schools, and this bill responds to one of the 94 calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

The traditional names given to Indigenous children carry deep cultural meaning, yet for many First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples, colonialism and residential schools robbed them of these sacred names — names that are not only a symbolic issue but a matter of profound identity. They have meaning.

As an adopted member of the Weasel Traveller family of the Piikani First Nation and the Blackfoot Confederacy, my Blackfoot name is Eskichikam. It means “seven stars,” and it refers directly to the Big Dipper constellation. That comes with a cultural story that talks about seven brothers who were taken into the sky and became that constellation. Today whenever we see the Big Dipper, it reminds us that we must always take care of our children.

This is who I am, not only in ceremony, but it is who I am. It has meaning.

So many Indigenous names use characters, numbers and symbols which are not easy to replicate and, as such, have not been able to be used on official provincial documents. This bill introduced today will address this issue. Indigenous applicants being denied their names have been told by government that current software won’t tolerate special characters. That’s unacceptable. This bill will enable government to take action.

To Emme, I say thank you. Of all the trails in life, there is one trail that matters the most, and that is the trail of a true human being. I believe you’re on that trail. I pray that this House today follow in suit on that travel with you. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker: Members, the question is the first reading of the bill.

Motion approved.

D. Clovechok: I move that the bill be placed on the orders of the day for second reading in the next sitting.

Bill M209, Indigenous Names Statutes Amendment 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.

Statements
(Standing Order 25B)

FAMILY DOCTOR DAY

L. Doerkson: Today, as you know, is B.C. Family Doctor Day, an opportunity to honour and recognize the work of family doctors and the care that they provide for British Columbians.

These specialists in family care are the first line of defence for our health, and they partner with patients over the course of their lives. This doctor-patient relationship is central to the work of family physicians, and it allows them to provide quality and comprehensive care. Family doctors specialize in the health of their patients, working in concert with other health care professionals and specialists to ensure that each patient’s individual needs are met.

Crucially, family doctors also serve an important role in proactive care and preventative medicine, helping to prevent more serious injuries or conditions and minimizing the need for expensive, invasive treatment at a later date.

Our family doctors have continued to practice through­out the pandemic, adapting to new ways of meeting with their patients and working hard to continue the continuity of care that makes family physicians so vital. We know that for many reasons, including growing administrative burdens, it is increasingly challenging to be a family doctor in British Columbia. Today we recognize the need for continued investments in primary care and thoughtful, honest discussion going forward.

With more people moving to B.C. every day, there is a growing need for family doctors. To meet this demand, we must ensure we are working to train, recruit and retain more primary care providers and that a family practice is a career that people want to choose.

This morning we want to say thank you to the thousands of British Columbia doctors. To all of the doctors in the chamber with us today, we’re grateful for the quality care you provide and for the incredible work that you do each and every day in the service of British Columbians. Thank you.

J. Routledge: Today, on World Family Doctor Day, I rise to celebrate the vital role they play in maintaining the wellness of our families and our communities.

Today I’m thinking about some of the family doctors who have made a difference in my life. Like Dr. Stevens, who, in the 1950s, diagnosed my stay-at-home mom with cabin fever and prescribed she get a job.

[10:35 a.m.]

Like Dr. Jensen, who wasn’t satisfied with the results of my mammogram and kept sending me for more tests. Turns out, I did have breast cancer, and thanks to her advocacy, it was treated early. Like Dr. Jaffer, who knew I have a high pain threshold and shouldn’t be out dancing yet on my broken ankle — critical information a walk-in clinic or an ER wouldn’t have had access to, but he knows me and my medical history.

My neighbour, Dr. Petropolis, told me about his patient, who had made it clear for years that she wanted to live out her life in her own home. So when she suffered a stroke, he was able to put in place a plan that keeps her safe and respects her wishes.

There are so many more stories like these, but let me conclude by saying this. Family doctors are often one’s first point of contact with the health care system. They diagnose and treat illnesses and injury. They promote disease prevention. They advocate on behalf of their patients. They understand the social determinants of health that are often unique to one’s personal circumstances. They treat the whole person.

But our health care system that I grew up with, and so many of us take for granted, is broken. Too many British Columbians don’t have a family doctor. They don’t receive the longitudinal care that saves lives and improves the quality of lives.

To all family doctors: we hear your pain and your struggles. Together we can improve the system, so that you can continue to provide the longitudinal care you signed on for.

Komagata Maru AND ACTION ON RACISM

T. Stone: The SS Komagata Maru was a chartered ship that challenged Canada’s past practices of excluding immigrants from India.

Anchoring in Vancouver harbour on May 23, 1914, the 376 passengers from India, who had grand hopes for a new life in Canada, were faced with what ended up being a very tragic experience. After the month-long journey from Hong Kong, upon arrival, the passengers were turned away by Canadian authorities and not allowed to enter the country. What made this event more wretched was after a two-month standoff and forced repatriation to India, 20 individuals were killed upon disembarking.

The events that unfolded during the Komagata Maru incident are a stain on the history of Canada and highlight the racist government policies at that time. Through policies specifically designed to curb the flow of Indian immigrants, they were not allowed to set foot on Canadian soil. Instead, they faced racism and hatred.

We all believe that a rich, multicultural society helps nurture acceptance, understanding and mutual respect. Cultural diversity, increased participation and engagement by all cultures are vitally important to create a strong and vibrant social and economic future for British Columbia.

It’s important to remember the Komagata Maru incident, as it will help ensure that tragedies like this never happen again. In our province today, members of the South Asian community are leaders in all facets of life. The people of B.C. recognize that a diverse and inclusive society benefits everyone.

Thank you to the South Asian community for working to redress this historic injustice and commemorate those who died and who were denied safe harbour in Vancouver 108 years ago.

CHILD CARE PROVIDERS
AND EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS

N. Sharma: Today is Child Care Provider Appreciation Day in B.C. I want to say a huge thank-you to all of B.C.’s child care professionals. I know first-hand the difference that they make.

I have young children, and like others in this chamber, as we sit here, our children — and maybe grandchildren — are in the nurturing hands of child care professionals. Because of them, parents like me go to work every day with the peace of mind and the confidence to know that our children are safe and being inspired to learn.

They are key to not only families and communities, but they’re also essential for our economy. They are the workforce behind the workforce and the heart of child care.

Throughout this challenging time, child care has remained a vital service for families in every part of the province. That’s because of EC workers like Heather Briese, who at the height of the pandemic lockdown, began recording daily activities and messages for her children, because as she said: “These children and their families have become part of my family, so it was important to me that they knew I was still thinking about them.”

Early childhood educators help children develop the critical thinking, communication and social skills needed to succeed. Their work transforms and shapes minds of the next generation, and they deserve support and recognition.

[10:40 a.m.]

That’s why we’re investing in ECEs through our ChildCareBC recruitment and retention plan, through en­hanced wages, bursaries and professional development opportunities. We’re developing a wage grid to ensure that ECEs are valued for the work they do.

It’s delivering on our commitment to build child care as a core service, a service available to every family that wants it when they need it and at a price they can afford.

I agree with Christine Jackson, an ECE instructor at the College of New Caledonia, who said: “It’s probably the brightest time ever to come into early childhood education.”

To all child care providers out there: we need you, and we thank you for giving our children such a great start and helping us build a stronger B.C.

TRICIA DATENE

S. Furstenau: Emily St. John Mandel wrote, in her novel Station Eleven: “If you are the light, if your enemies are darkness, then there’s nothing that you cannot justify. There’s nothing you can’t survive, because there’s nothing that you will not do.”

Tricia Datene has been a shining light in my constituency office, and tomorrow is a very special day for her. She’s turning 75, and she is retiring. Tricia started as a volunteer and was soon hired in my office, from the time we opened five years ago, in 2017. Ever since, she has managed an overwhelming caseload of work, where she supported individuals and families who had fallen through the social safety net and were sometimes in desperate need of help.

Tricia approaches every constituent with unconditional love, patience and generosity. She constantly goes above and beyond to help anyone in need. Tricia processed 812 cases in our office, through which she has demonstrated her greatest attribute: the ability to take on and, more importantly, stick with the extremely layered and complicated cases when government has failed to support someone who required complex support. Tricia gave hope to people when they came to us for help, often when they were ready to give up.

Tricia is an ardent feminist, a fierce warrior for justice and has the most generous heart. Tricia says that her goal is to keep shining her little light until the end of her days on this planet.

But her light is not little at all. It is bright, and it is beautiful, just like Tricia.

My office, our community members, our planet — we are all better off, thanks to Tricia Datene’s long life of service to others. I love her deeply for who she is.

FRATERNAL ORDER OF EAGLES

D. Routley: Today I would like to recognize the Fraternal Order of Eagles organization and the amazing work they do in communities throughout our province. Founded February 6, 1898, in Seattle by six theatre owners, the Eagles developed or originated Mother’s Day and provided the impetus for social security in the U.S. They unite in the spirit of liberty, truth, justice and equality to make human life more desirable by lessening its ills and by promoting peace, prosperity, gladness and hope.

Next month is their provincial convention, which will be held in my constituency for the first time ever, hosted by Ladysmith branch 2101. Although considered a small town, Ladysmith is home to one of the largest Eagles branches in the province, with roughly 700 members who collectively raise over $100,000 every year, which is donated right back into our community.

I want to recognize two members of their organization, the first of whom is Joey Lasaga, who has dedicated ten years to the organization and served as Provincial Worthy President over the past year. During his time, he travelled to 19 aeries in the province with his wife, Courtney, and one-year-old son, Brewster, where they raised close to $15,000 for his chosen charity, Alzheimer’s.

I also want to recognize Bobbi Williamson, who will be installed as provincial madam president at the upcoming convention — a woman — and will begin her term of travelling across the province to raise money for her chosen charity, mental health child and youth services. Like Joey, Bobbi has spent many years volunteering, fundraising and supporting various causes and organizations in our community. Bobbi and her husband, Ken, have two grown children, three grandchildren and one great-grandson.

[10:45 a.m.]

Our communities are stronger because of people like Joey and Bobbi, and I would like to ask the House to please join me in thanking them for their many years of service.

Ministerial Statements

LE Estcwicwéy̓ MEMORIAL EVENT
FOR MISSING CHILDREN
AT KAMLOOPS RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL

Hon. M. Rankin: Next Friday, May 27, will mark one year since the preliminary findings of unmarked graves on the grounds of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.

For the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc, they are known as Le Estcwicwéy̓, or the missing. Finding Le Estcwicwéy̓ began a national awakening, as the rest of the country came to terms with what the survivors of residential schools had always known about the atrocities that happened there. Since then, many other Indigenous communities in B.C. and across the country have announced similar findings. There will be more in the months and years to come as Indigenous communities take on this work.

On Monday, May 23, Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc will host a community event to commemorate Le Estcwicwéy̓, the missing, and to honour them and to give strength to survivors, intergenerational survivors and to their families. We know that many will be travelling from all over Canada and the United States to this event to honour, to reflect and to take part in community healing.

I commend the unwavering leadership and the courage of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc people to bring healing to families and to intergenerational survivors. I also commend the many communities and their leaders who have undertaken this painful and this difficult work to find answers for the generation of survivors and families.

Kúkpi7 Casimir has said that it was the Le Estcwicwéy̓, the children, who had brought us together, Indigenous and non-Indigenous alike, as we grapple with the full truth of the immeasurable loss and the shocking violence that the Canadian residential school system inflicted on Indigenous peoples, and how the consequences of these atrocities continue to this day.

The missing remind us that we have a responsibility to uncover the truth about Canada’s colonial history, to face the continued harms of residential schools to this day and to take meaningful action towards reconciliation for future generations. In certain cases, this means confronting Indigenous-specific racism and confronting those narratives that seek to deny or to diminish the harms of the residential school system.

I will close by echoing the words of Kúkpi7 Rosanne Casimir. “There are many more steps to journey forward for those who did not make it home.” I invite members of this House, and everyone across British Columbia, to honour Le Estcwicwéy̓. There’s a role and responsibility for each of us to stand as leaders and to help bring respect to where there has been indignity, comfort where there has been pain, and closure where there has been generations of harm.

P. Milobar: Thank you to the minister for those words. As the minister said, it’s been nearly a year since the confirmation of the 215 children in unmarked graves in at the Kamloops residential school on the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc traditional territories.

That has led to quite the process over this last year, of awakening, of leadership, of Indigenous communities across this country informing the rest of us about their true history and the true trauma that has been inflicted by the residential school system, a residential school system that is not that old, for when it closed.

I think that is one learning that a great many people finally started to come to understand after the discovery of the 215 — that this is not something that ended 100 years ago. The last school closed not that long ago.

As the father of three Indigenous children — the oldest was born in ’93 — I missed that window of the knock on the door, but not by much.

[10:50 a.m.]

We have to, as a society, make sure that we actually meaningfully engage with the leadership shown by Kúkpi7 Casimir and all the other Indigenous leaders out there. Kamloops may have been the first, but as the minister pointed out rightly, it’s not the last. We know there will be more. The leadership from communities where their children were sent if they did not have a school in their terri­tories, the leadership of communities where these schools were located.

It’s a first step. The remembrance on Monday is an important, solemn day to remember but to make sure that it’s not just a yearly reminder and then we move on about our lives for the next 364 days. We have to continue to take daily steps to work with Indigenous communities, to listen to communities and walk in step with them on what they need to heal and move forward in a meaningful way.

There is no disputing the intergenerational trauma that these institutions inflicted on people and on families and on communities. Until we as a nation fully accept that and fully move forward properly, there will always be that underlying conflict.

I salute Kúkwpi7 Casimir and all of the leadership for continuing to make their voices heard in their community, for sharing their very painful family histories and personal histories and traumas they’ve experienced so that true and meaningful reconciliation can actually happen, and we can all get to a better place, hopefully in the not-too-distant future.

A. Olsen: I stand here to mark the one-year anniversary of when we were awoken with the reality of the fate of hundreds, thousands of Indigenous children who disappeared and never came home from residential school.

To all our relatives, all our Elders, all our residential and day-school survivors, to the following generations of survivors of these genocidal acts perpetrated by this and other Crown governments, I raise my hands to you for your strength, for your resilience, for your patience, for your long suffering, for your willingness to share your traumatic, tragic and heartbreaking stories.

To the children whose names have been lost, misplaced or hidden in the archives of governments and churches, whose shame motivates them to hide you, you may have been conveniently forgotten by the state and by the church. You have not been forgotten by your descendants. We remember you. We love you. I can feel you here with us today, I felt you here earlier this week, and I felt you here last year.

HÍSW̱ḴE SIÁM..

Last summer a temporary and impromptu memorial to the 215-plus children whose graves were identified at the Kamloops Indian Residential School and announced by Tk’emlúps te Secwepemc Kúkwpi7 Rosanne Casimir grew on the steps of this Legislative Assembly. For months, people stopped to pay tribute to our lost and stolen children who didn’t come home from school.

It’s not easy sitting in this chamber and listening to the intentions of reconciling this reprehensible history, yet when we account for the reconciliatory actions, my heart is broken again and again.

This year, like last year, I was told it was too difficult to recognize Indigenous names on official government documentation. I was told it’s very complex, and government is working on it. There’s more to do.

Last week we heard $800 million is rewarding a museum that has been identified as an unsafe place for Indigenous people, a place that has proven unable to mend its broken relationship with Indigenous people. This new and massive temple will store our innovations, our technologies, our items of cultural significance, our sacred items, while a few Indigenous nations will be tempted with $30,000 to facilitate the repatriation of items that we want to bring home, a process that costs way more than that paltry sum.

In the comments I’ve heard this week, this government has a warped view of what these items mean when they sit in these museum collections. They implore us to join them in front of the glass case, to peer through with wonder at the so-called collective history, awestruck at the curated snapshot in time.

On this floor of this chamber, an institutional ignorance has been exposed, an unwillingness to acknowledge the truth that many or most of those items locked away in the museum basements were collected through grave robberies.

[10:55 a.m.]

Many more of those items were collected by further exploiting destitute Indigenous peoples ravaged by a fatal virus. This was all happening in our province at the same time as the residential schools such as Kamloops were being designed to assimilate the Indian children.

Just as this Crown institution was stealing our cultural items, our innovations and technologies, stealing bones and caskets of our ancestors, they were creating the institutions charged with stealing our children, our languages and attempting to strip us of our identity and culture.

Then in 2022, we are told that it is different, difficult and confusing to create a font and keyboard for Indigenous people to be called by our names. We are notified that our food and our medicines are pests, sprayed with poison or destroyed by a brush cut to ensure the value of timber is not diminished.

The public is told government is doubling forestry revenues for Indigenous nations. It sounds big, doesn’t it? Yet this government has increased the share from 4 to 8 percent. Maybe I’m just ungrateful.

But Indigenous people are resilient. We’re proud. We are powerful. No matter what this Crown institution does or has done to us, we stand in here today, gathering strength from deep within our life force, given to us by our Creator and brought to life through our relationship with our relatives. This morning for me it was the islands, the mountains, the trees, the crow, the raven, the rabbit, the deer — all the beauty that feeds our spirit.

We have begun discussions about how this facility and this precinct can better reflect the more than 30 distinct Indigenous languages in this province. As we mark the one-year anniversary of that announcement by Kúkpi7 Casimir, the awakening for many British Columbians has begun. This assembly is surrounded by monuments of our colonial past, and we need a permanent reminder of that memorial that grew on those front steps.

I hope that we can find a way to ensure that every person walking through that ceremonial gate will have to stop and acknowledge those children and what they have come to symbolize with respect to the work of true reconciliation. It’s too easy to walk through these doors without the burden that our predecessors gave us and far too easy to manipulate reconciliation for the benefit of something other than Indigenous people.

Mr. Speaker, that is what needs to change.

HÍSW̱ḴE SIÁM.

Oral Questions

ACCESS TO FAMILY PHYSICIANS
AND GOVERNMENT FUNDING PRIORITIES

S. Bond: Well, another large crowd will gather on the front lawn of the Legislature today, and they are certainly not coming to celebrate the Premier’s billion-dollar vanity museum project. No, in fact, they are going to be parents. They will be families, and there will be children, and they will be here to remind government that they are unable to get a family doctor in our province.

Some of them are in gallery today, including Camille Currie, whose petition has garnered over 42,000 signatures. Amanda Owens, who signed the petition, said: “It is absolutely disgusting that the government is willing to approve funding for a museum while we are in dire need of health care workers. Nurses and family doctors must be prioritized.”

A simple question. Why on earth is a billion-dollar vanity project more important to this NDP government than British Columbians who are anxious, upset and concerned that they cannot access a family doctor in this province?

Hon. A. Dix: Well, for five years and for the last two years and three months during this pandemic, no government and nobody has given more priority to health care and to health care workers than this government.

There are 30,000 more people working in health care today than there were two years ago. This is an objective fact and demonstrates not the fact that we want necessarily more people working in health care because of itself but because of the need to provide care.

[11:00 a.m.]

With respect to family practice doctors, in March 2020, we faced a fundamental question, which was how to deliver care when the system was changing, when we had a pandemic on, when people were not able to visit their family practice doctors.

Working with family practice doctors, we developed solutions, including new fee codes that allow us to increase the number of visits from 18 million to 19.5 million in two years. We did that in a virtual system that showed innovation and care. I’m very proud of the work of family practice doctors in this period, and we’re going to continue to do that work with them to address the issues they have in providing care in the community.

The member will know, because the facts are simply the facts from Statistics Canada, that the number of people without a family practice doctor in B.C. doubled from 2003 to 2017. That work and the challenges facing family practice specialty and family practice medicine are significant. That’s why we’re doing the work we’re doing to work with family practice doctors, to develop lasting solutions for the issues they face but, more particularly, for the issues of those who need family practice medicine in B.C. and need better primary care in our province.

That’s why we’re doing the work, as we have done throughout the pandemic, to address these issues step by step, working together with all health care workers and professionals across all disciplines.

Mr. Speaker: Member for Prince George–Valemount, supplemental.

S. Bond: Thank you to the minister.

Day after day after day in this Legislature, the minister gets up and fails to acknowledge the reality of family practice physicians and families in British Columbia. If the minister wants to talk about objective facts, he should look in his own briefing book when it comes to the number of unattached patients.

I will quote from his briefing note: “In 2017-2018, the number of unattached patients was 776,000.” The minister can shake his head. His staff wrote this briefing note.

Let’s talk about some other objective facts. The priorities of this government are painfully clear: massive raises for the Premier and cabinet and a billion-dollar vanity museum project.

Interjections.

S. Bond: Well it may cause discomfort to members, but that is exactly what this government did.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

S. Bond: The Minister of Health recently confirmed to us in a letter that urgent and primary care centres have attached less than 2 percent — less than 2 percent — of the people who don’t have a doctor in this province. Let’s talk about objective facts, shared directly with us by this minister.

In the Premier’s backyard, the Westshore UPCC has just one doctor of the 7.2 it is supposed to have. The Westshore Community Health Centre has no health providers, and only 1.2 administrative staff FTEs.

Richmond’s primary care network has been running for three years. It is supposed to have 32 full-time-equivalent physicians. For the minister’s information, it has one doctor.

How on earth can this Premier and government continue to double down and move forward with a billion-dollar vanity museum project when urgent and primary care centres don’t even have the doctors that they are supposed to have?

Hon. A. Dix: Health care is and remains the priority of this government. That’s been demonstrated, in substance, from the beginning. It goes across health care, and family practice doctors know this better than anyone else.

In long-term care, 85 percent of care homes didn’t meet the government’s own standard. We changed that by investing and giving urgency to it. In terms of surgical renewal, when we made the very difficult decision to delay surgeries in March of 2020, we promised people we would get those surgeries done and we have, reducing surgical wait-lists in those periods.

When the whole primary care system was facing an enormous challenge, we worked together with family practice doctors to make changes that allowed us to maintain services during this period. Yes, we’ve added, in cooperation with divisions of family practice, 59 primary care networks. We’ve added urgent and primary care centres that have delivered 1.084 million visits, largely in a time of pandemic when in-person visits were needed.

[11:05 a.m.]

These are all steps, and more steps are required. We’ve faced, every single year since 2001, an increase in the number of people unattached to a family practice doctor. Plans were put in place in the past, including in 2010, where one was promised for everybody, and those plans were abandoned.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

Hon. A. Dix: Those plans were abandoned in the past. We need an approach that works with family practice doctors to address the problems they have, that works with resident doctors to make family practice more attractive to them.

We are going to continue to work together with them in the same way we did on single-site, in the same we did on surgery, in the same way we did on long-term care, in the same way we did during the pandemic.

R. Merrifield: One in five British Columbians don’t have a doctor, and the minister continues to try and deflect away from that fact. We have 250,000 additional unattached patients under this minister’s watch. It’s no wonder that we have less than 2 percent of this million people without a family doctor that have found any attachment in the UPCCs that this minister brags about, because there are no doctors working at them.

In the Abbotsford UPCC, there is half a doctor — half. There are supposed to be six. In South Okanagan Similkameen primary care network, there are seven nurse practitioners but absolutely zero doctors out of the 6.4 approved physician FTEs.

How can the Premier spend a billion dollars on a vanity museum project while there are UPCCs with no doctors in them?

Hon. A. Dix: As the member will know, in 2020, we had a pandemic declared in B.C. The need and the change and the transformation in primary care that was urgently required was significant.

Urgent and primary care centres were one part of that. We have had 1.084 million visits. If the members are suggesting it would be better if we hadn’t had those 1.084 million visits, they’re incorrect.

We have established 59 primary care networks….

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members, order.

Hon. A. Dix: We have 59 primary care networks that have attached 142,000 people. That is a fact, and that’s the work of family practice doctors and the community. We’ve increased the family practice residency program to make it the biggest in Canada. We’ve made it the biggest in Canada.

What we need to do, it seems to me, is continue our work with family practice doctors. That’s what we do. That’s how we’ve taken on these extraordinary health care challenges in this time of pandemic, in this time of the overdose public health emergencies — how we’ve taken on these challenges together. And we’re going to continue to do that work.

That means investing in primary care, not abandoning it. That means investing in surgical care, not abandoning it. That means building hospital projects in the member’s constituency who is heckling and the other member who’s heckling and the other member who’s heckling — new hospital projects that demonstrate the priority of health of this government.

We’re just going to continue to do that work, working with our health care professionals and our health care teams who have served us with courage and integrity and professionalism in this pandemic. We’re going to continue to work with them to keep working and resolving problems.

Mr. Speaker: Member for Kelowna-Mission, supplemental.

R. Merrifield: While the minister wants to brag about residency positions opened, he might want to actually confirm that those residency positions were filled, because in speaking with some physicians this morning at breakfast, I learned that for the first time in the history of British Columbia, those residency positions were not filled.

The UPCCs are ineffective, and it’s time for this minister to recognize it. British Columbians are desperate and not buying the UPCC way.

[11:10 a.m.]

The NDP think a billion-dollar vanity museum project is more important than the fact that one in five British Columbians don’t have a family doctor. In the primary care network for White Rock and South Surrey, there are only 33 percent of the doctors that there are supposed to be. Somia Medler says: “We need to do better. Closing down emergency rooms, and no walk-in clinics, is ridiculous. We need doctors and nurses.”

Why on earth is the Premier spending a billion dollars on a vanity museum project when one in five British Columbians don’t have a family doctor?

Hon. A. Dix: I think people in B.C. know this — that the effort of the B.C. health system over the last 2½ years has been exceptional. We are focusing on continuing that work, on continuing to make improvements.

The member talks about primary care networks, some urgent and primary care centres. The one that serves her constituency, at least the one in Kelowna — 25 positions, 25 filled, 78,815 visits. I note that that wasn’t raised by the hon. member, but it is for people who live in her constituency.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members. Members.

Member for Kamloops.

Hon. A. Dix: Hon. Speaker, I think what we’re seeing…. I understand the opposition is tied to its message boxes. I’m tied to getting answers for people.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members. Members, order.

Members. Members will come to order.

Hon. A. Dix: We have a system of primary care in B.C. that has been in need of reform for a long time. We need to deliver on team-based care, and we’re doing that in partnership with family practice doctors.

We need to work to resolve the issues that they have in communities — fundamental issues of cost, of increasing complexity of patients that they are seeing in their communities, a fee-for-service system that inadequately reflects the work that is done by our family practice doctors every day.

We need to do that work together — not me declaring what we’re going to do but working with family practice doctors. And that’s what we’re going to continue to do.

ACCESS TO FAMILY PHYSICIANS AND
MANAGEMENT OF PRIMARY CARE SYSTEM

S. Furstenau: Many of us were at the same breakfast this morning with family doctors. I think what we heard was that doctors don’t feel that they’re being worked with or listened to particularly right now.

One in five British Columbians do not have a family doctor, and many more are at risk of losing the doctor they have. This government has done astonishingly little in this moment of crisis for longitudinal care.

The reality is that in this province, if you’re a family doctor providing lifelong medical care, your relationship with your patient is not valued. Family doctors are burning out trying to meet the needs of their patients, but it’s becoming harder and harder.

Their solutions are not impossible. They’re right there on the table, if the Premier or the Minister of Health was willing to look at them. Family doctors have been consistent about what they need right now. They need overhead support to pay for rent, staff and administration. They need to work as a team and to be supported in that. They need billing rates that reflect their 12 years of education, their value to the health of British Columbians.

The minister talks about how new fee codes were brought in for virtual visits at the beginning of the pandemic. We don’t have the ability for doctors to address the difference between a five-minute visit and a 25-minute visit for complex care. We don’t even have a fee code yet for long COVID.

The other thing that doctors need is…. They need to work independently of this government’s attempts of control.

My question is to the Premier. What is he doing to support the family doctors who serve their patients outside of urgent and primary care centres?

[11:15 a.m.]

Hon. A. Dix: I think the member knows this. She has participated in the legislative debate. In primary care networks across B.C., we’ve added 965 FTEs. One can always argue that that’s insufficient, but that was directed.

The decisions to hire the people that were hired were directed and supported by local divisions of family practice in all of those cases, such that in the Fraser northwest primary care network, very significant hiring was done of mental health supports and counsellors, 176 new mental health and addiction workers to support the work that’s led by primary care doctors in the community.

The reason those decisions were made was that those were the priorities put forward by family practice doctors themselves. We have to continue to do that work, to build team-based care and to work to address the challenges of the primary care system.

The member is quite right. We have the most fee-for-service system in Canada. It’s about 80 percent of our billings, and about 65 percent of our doctors get more than 80 percent of their billings from fee-for-service. That presents very serious challenges in a time of increasing complexity. That’s why we have to work with doctors on these issues, and we are.

Mr. Speaker: Leader of the Third Party, supplemental.

S. Furstenau: What I find fascinating about these exchanges is that the minister will talk a lot about inputs. But what we’re talking about is the outcomes and the reality that people are facing right now and the fact that it is family doctors who are telling us over and over again that the conditions right now are causing burnout, are causing them to leave their practices.

Who suffers the outcomes from that? Those are the patients who no longer have access to the longitudinal care that we know provides better health outcomes for people. Family doctors are the backbone of medical care in this province, and British Columbians are better off by having that relationship with a family doctor. We know that good family medicine prevents illness. It promotes well-being, and it saves lives.

This government has done very little to support that relationship between doctors and their patients. In fact, those relationships are being severed when doctors are given the option of going to UPCCs. British Columbians are no better off when their relationship to their doctor is severed by the policies of this government.

Yes, the minister talks about building this system, this primary care system, but in the meantime, what we need is the protection of the doctors right now who are providing that family care that is so valuable and so essential.

The Premier has spoken publicly about the value of his relationship with his family doctor. He should expect that for the citizens of this province that he serves. Millions of British Columbians are at risk of losing their family doctors.

What is this Premier going to do to protect that relationship and put solutions in right now?

Hon. A. Dix: The Premier is committed to a system of team-based primary care in community, is committed to ensuring that people have access to a family practice doctor. It’s why so much priority is given to this area now, has been throughout the pandemic and will be over the coming days and weeks as we work with family practice doctors on the real challenges that they face.

That’s what we’ve done. We have taken, day after day, week after week, serious challenges facing our health care system, in a time of two public health emergencies that continue to endure and to face family practice doctors and everyone in health care every day….

It’s why we have added 30,000 workers to our public health care system over two years, why we are going to continue at every level — doctors and nurses, nurse practitioners and health science professionals and health care workers — to do that work.

We’re going to continue to do that work, to build out team-based care and to support family practice doctors. We understand…. I understand, not only as someone who lives with a chronic disease but as Minister of Health and someone who talks to patients every day, the value of family practice medicine. That’s why we’re going to continue to take steps to support.

SEISMIC UPGRADES FOR SCHOOLS
AND GOVERNMENT FUNDING PRIORITIES

T. Halford: Instead of protecting our children from earthquakes, the NDP are prioritizing the seismic upgrade of a $1 billion vanity museum project.

[11:20 a.m.]

Not a single NDP minister has prioritized seismically upgrading the 250 unsafe schools across this province over this vanity museum project. The Minister of Land won’t speak about the Wickaninnish Community School in Tofino. The Minister of Mental Health and Addictions won’t speak up for the more than 30 schools in her riding that are seismically unsafe. The Minister of Tourism — five unsafe schools in her riding, including Grandview and Admiral Seymour Elementary.

Will even one of these ministers stand up and do the right thing and call for the cancellation of this billion-dollar vanity museum?

Hon. J. Whiteside: I’ll thank the member for the question, because I’m happy to have an opportunity to talk about the unprecedented capital investments our government has made since 2017 in providing safe and more learning spaces for British Columbia’s children.

We did not close 250 schools over the last four years. No. What we did was invest $3 billion over the last four years and another $2.6 billion in the next three years to build new schools, to build additions at schools, to provide upgraded HVAC and ventilation, to take care of maintenance and to seismically mitigate schools.

Since 2017, we’ve funded 58 projects. There’s another number of projects in the hopper. We are committed to accelerating. We’ve done more seismic upgrade projects….

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

Hon. J. Whiteside: …since the other side of the House ever did when they were on this side.

Thirty-one thousand students are now in safe seats because of the work that we’ve done. We have an accelerated plan to spend close to $800 million in the next three years, working in partnership with our school districts to ensure that we are delivering more seismically safe seats to students.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

K. Kirkpatrick: The minister can say what she wants. I’m not quite sure….

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members. Let’s hear the question please.

K. Kirkpatrick: I’m not quite sure why that would get applause. The minister can say what she wants, but the bottom line for parents is that this NDP government’s priority is a billion-dollar vanity museum project instead of student safety, and $1 billion would upgrade half the remaining schools that need seismic upgrading.

Even Hume Park Elementary in the Minister of Education’s own riding is unsafe and in need of seismic upgrades, but she won’t speak out on this project. Willows Elementary in Oak Bay is unsafe, but the Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation is silent.

Will any minister on the other side of the House stand up for schools in their communities that need seismic upgrading and cancel this vanity museum project?

Hon. J. Whiteside: I think the record is really clear when we look at the massive investments that we have made against a record that, I would say, closed schools, slow-walked seismic upgrading, cut…. Let’s not even get into….

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

[11:25 a.m.]

Hon. J. Whiteside: We can talk about what actually happened over the period of time that you were here in regard to education. We can talk about going to war with teachers and losing in the Supreme Court of Canada. We can talk about lost positions. We can talk about students deprived of spaces to learn and staff to support them.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members. Members.

Hon. J. Whiteside: But over the last four years, we’ve invested billions of dollars in building out our education system, and we’re going to continue to do that work over the next three years with a close to $800 million investment for safe schools.

I would note that I think our expectation is that when British Columbia’s children visit our provincial museum, which is a place of learning, they do so in a seismically safe building.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

GOVERNMENT PRIORITIES
AND MUSEUM REPLACEMENT PROJECT

T. Stone: Well, the fact of the matter is that this is what parents are talking about. Parents of children that are in elementary and secondary schools across this province that are in need of seismic upgrades are begging for this government to provide them with a rational explanation for why this government would prioritize $1 billion for a vanity museum project in the Premier’s backyard over seismically upgrading half of the remaining schools that need those upgrades. That’s a choice that this government is making.

We just heard a school, Willows Elementary School in Oak Bay…. If the Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation isn’t going to stand up for children in his riding with respect to the seismic upgrades at that elementary school, maybe he’ll respond to this scathing statement from the Tŝilhqot’in Nation which was released yesterday. They’re calling on the NDP…

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

T. Stone: …to scrap the Premier’s billion-dollar vanity museum project.

Here’s what Chief Joe Alphonse has to say: “The timing for this nearly $1 billion spending proposal could not be more tone deaf. It is irresponsible of this government to move ahead with this when so many issues remain unaddressed in the province.”

The Premier’s vanity museum project is actually quickly becoming one of the most expensive museum projects, potentially, to ever be built in the world. It’s fast becoming a fast ferries 2.0 project.

The question to the Minister of Indigenous Relations is this. Is the Minister of Indigenous Relations going to listen to the Tŝilhqot’in, Is he going to listen to the parents of Willows Elementary in Oak Bay, and is he going to listen to the overwhelming population in British Columbia that wants this government to scrap the $1 billion vanity museum project?

Hon. M. Farnworth: I thank the member for his question, because it’s an opportunity to remind the opposition that we have been listening to parents of schoolkids. We have been listening to parents of families right across this province since day one.

When they sat on this side of the House, they “had a seismic upgrading program” that had a goal. They didn’t meet it, so they had to extend it because they failed to meet their own targets. This side of the House has been investing in…

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

Hon. M. Farnworth: …seismic upgrading of schools since the day we took office. We have made sure that public infrastructure, whether it is schools, whether it is hospitals — that all of those things are seismically upgraded.

I’ll remind the members on the other side. It doesn’t matter whether it’s Burnaby Hospital, Dawson Creek Hospital in one of your ridings, Fort St. James hospital in one of your ridings, Kamloops Royal Inland Hospital in one of your ridings, Terrace hospital in one of your ridings….

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

Hon. M. Farnworth: They’re all being built to be seismically upgraded.

I find it unbelievable…

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members from Kamloops.

Hon. M. Farnworth: …that a public facility where kids go to learn…. They don’t think it should be seismically upgraded.

[End of question period.]

Petitions

S. Bond: I rise to table two petitions. The first is a petition organized by Camille Currie and others from B.C. Health Care Matters.

[11:30 a.m.]

With 41,544 signatures, the petition expresses “deep frustration about the ongoing exodus and shortage of family doctors in our province and this government’s failure to address these. We are petitioning you for an immediate response that will include an action plan to rectify this crisis.”

I have another petition, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker: Continue.

S. Bond: The second petition is also from Camille Currie, with 480 signatures gathered from right here in Victoria, calling on the government to immediately act on the doctor shortage crisis.

Tabling Documents

Hon. M. Farnworth: I have the honour to table the first annual report of the ICBC fairness officer for the year 2021-22.