Orders of the Day

Private Members’ Statements

AGENCY NURSING

L. Doerkson: Crisis is a word that we seem to be hearing more and more frequently in our province right now. We’re dealing with multiple housing issues, costs of living and, critically, health care.

[S. Chandra Herbert in the chair.]

The health care crisis in B.C. is deadly. We have tragically seen people lose their lives as a result of ambulance delays, overwhelmed emergency rooms and understaffed hospitals. Our health care workers, who have been through so much in the past few years, are struggling with record levels of burnout and exhaustion. They are looking for relief.

Recently B.C. nurses have been raising the alarm about the growing number of privately contracted agency nurses that now often outnumber them in many hospitals. These private nurses could be from B.C., even working in the same hospitals where they once were publicly employed, or they can sometimes be as far away as Newfoundland. They work along B.C. nurses, in the same roles, but are paid two to three times, in some cases, the public rate for the same work.

Can you imagine that? Can you imagine being a nurse stretched to your limits and barely holding on in an understaffed hospital ward, only to learn that the person working next to you, who maybe even once was employed by the same hospital, is now making more than double your pay for doing the exact same job?

This practice is becoming more and more common to fill the significant gaps in our system. In recent years, spending on private agency nurses has increased by more than 600 percent. We know that the situation is having a damaging impact on the working environment in already overwhelmed hospitals.

[10:05 a.m.]

Nurses tell us: “Morale is terrible. Staffing is awful. We feel unsupported and unappreciated. We feel abandoned. Never in my life have I felt as worthless and expendable as I do right now.”

Local leaders are also raising their concerns about the growing number of agency nurses in B.C. hospitals. A Vancouver Island mayor recently commented on an increasing burden on nurses, saying: “Burnout is real. Our nurses are feeling it. With so much funding and focus going to agency nurses, our long-term living and community nurses are feeling used and undervalued. We have made the job of an agency nurse extremely lucrative. We have, and still are, driven away health care professionals with years of experience.”

It should be extremely concerning for everyone in this House to hear the kind of strain that our health care workers are under, the kind of stress that they have to deal with every day as they work to keep our health care system functioning. They are not immune to this stress.

Despite the best efforts of nurses, an unhealthy and understaffed work environment will inevitably lead to worse outcomes for patients. We know that the quality of care British Columbians are getting is suffering, and the current vicious cycle of public nurses leaving the profession and being replaced by temporary privatized nurses is only making matters worse.

Right now we are witnessing the gradual collapse of our health care system. Results and outcomes, the most important measurements for the success in health care, are worsening. In recent years, we have begun dealing with hallway medicine, the longest walk-in clinic wait times in the country, people dying in overcrowded waiting rooms and, as evidenced through the rise in agency nurses, yes, increasing privatization.

We’re hearing from both health care workers and patients that there is a lack of accountability, and it’s having disastrous impacts on every part of our system. Accountability must also come hand in hand with transparency, both around why and how decisions are being made and also budgeting practices.

In addition to the obvious and problematic impact of agency nursing on morale and staffing…. It is also a problem from a budgetary perspective, as I’ve already mentioned. Spending on agency nurses has increased by more than 600 percent. That is an outstanding amount of taxpayer money for something that is not delivering the best results for our health care system as a whole. How can it make the most monetary sense to be paying some nurses 2½ times the public rate for a temporary contract? Could that money not be invested in other, more effective solutions?

We’ve also seen spending increase on more than just private nursing. Spending on corporate administrative expenses has increased by $1.3 billion across the health authorities. It’s an astounding amount of money that could likely be put to better use at a time when every part of our system seems to be in crisis.

It’s clear that we need to learn how to better prioritize our resources. We need to ensure that investments are being made in the places that make the most sense and that will deliver the best possible returns for our patients. We cannot simply continue to blindly grow the bureaucracy when there is strong evidence that suggests it’s not leading to better outcomes for British Columbians.

At the end of the day, this is, of course, about British Columbians. This is about everyday people who just want to have confidence that quality medical care will be available to them when they need it.

J. Routledge: Thank you to the member opposite for reminding us and never letting us forget our health care crisis that exists today. The member and I served together on the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services, and I know he is passionate about saving our public health care system, as am I.

The Finance Committee heard such moving stories, from all over the province, from people who feel let down by that system. We also heard moving stories that gave us hope. We heard from front-line health care practitioners and their organizations who made recommendations based on their expertise. So many of their recommendations address the importance of preventative measures.

[10:10 a.m.]

Nurses have been on the front lines of the pandemic response since day one and have been absolutely vital in ensuring that we can continue to care for patients in hospitals and in the community. They have been instrumental in keeping emergency rooms and urgent care open and helping us catch up on surgeries, complete more and more every day and successfully deliver several major provincial immunization campaigns over the last 2½ years.

We know our nurses are tired. They’re burnt out, and we are dealing with a health care worker shortage, just like every jurisdiction in the world. Our government is committed to recruiting and retaining health care workers and redesigning our health care system. It’s important to recognize the steps we’ve made, given the situation we took on, while acknowledging the strains that have been placed on the health care system by COVID-19 and the overdose crisis.

In terms of investments into recruiting and retaining nurses, we recently announced a health human re­sources strategy that addresses many of the issues that affect nurses. From 2017 to 2021, our government added 2,839 care aides and community health workers, over 10 percent growth; 1,662 licensed practical nurses, over 17 percent growth; 166 nurse practitioners, over 40 percent growth; and 4,062 registered nurses were added, 11 percent growth.

In 2017, B.C. had the lowest number of nurses per capita of the ten provinces. We are now leading the country in adding registered nurses. In February 2022, we added 602 nursing seats in post-secondary institutions to the approximately 2,000 seats currently. This is an increase of more than 30 percent.

In April 2022, the ministry announced an investment of $12 million to support internationally educated nurses to practise here in B.C. by simplifying the application and assessment processes for IEN candidates, offering approximately $9 million in bursaries to help with assessment fees and creating new nurse navigator positions to help IENs navigate the assessment and licensing process. This includes funding to support the B.C. College of Nurses and Midwives to streamline the regulatory assessment pathways so IENs can be assessed for multiple professions simultaneously, reducing red tape, cost and time.

We know that nurses and other front-line health care professionals are bearing the brunt of an intense societal trauma, and that’s why we are hiring protective services officers to support the safety of our health care workers in the health care system.

Now, I see that I am into my last minute, so I’ll stop there in terms of listing the things that we have done so far to support the health care system. Let me conclude by reminding us that public services around the world have been put on a fad diet for the last 40 years. It’s called austerity, and this austerity diet has starved social services, including health care. Decades of austerity have left public bodies too weakened to withstand the shocks to the system such as the pandemic and opioid crisis.

We are working hard to help our health care system regain its strength. I urge us all to remember that it will take time, patience and significant resources before it’s back on its feet again. In the meantime, agency nurses are part of the recovery.

L. Doerkson: Thank you to the member opposite. I appreciate the comments and enjoyed the time that we did share on the Finance Committee. I agree that our health care workers are absolutely essential and that we must ensure that we’re providing them with the support they need to, in turn, support our British Columbians who need their support in times of need, of course.

[10:15 a.m.]

However, I want to express that I wanted to hear more about possible solutions to the many problems before us. It’s one thing to acknowledge need, and it’s another to ensure that the need is being met. We cannot forget that we are all still in the middle of crisis. We’re dealing with hospital closures in every corner of this province, difficulties with specialist access and nearly a million British Columbians on waiting lists, long wait times for access to medical imaging, paramedics under significant stress, and ambulance delays.

One in five people in this province still don’t have a family doctor. We know that our nurses and other health care workers are exhausted. They’re feeling unsupported and unappreciated — those are their words — especially when they have to work alongside private care nurses who are paid more than double their salary.

What can we do to make sure that our dedicated nurses, doctors, administrators and everyone who works in health care has what they need to adequately deliver care for the people of B.C.? We need to transition to a full-time focus on solutions. We need to make sure that we prioritize the right things and invest in the right places. Delivering relief for workers and raising the next generation of health care workers is absolutely critical.

As we have suggested in this House before, that should include reducing barriers for internationally trained physicians and nurses, expanding the capacity of the practice-ready assessment for internationally trained doctors, creating a second medical school and adding training spaces in universities across the province. B.C. needs tangible steps that will bring this crisis to an end. It’s time for action, not words.

We’re talking about people’s health, their lives, their well-being. We simply cannot afford to get this wrong.

SUPPORTING HEALTH SERVICE WORKERS
AND PATIENT CARE

S. Chant: This morning I’m speaking from the terri­tories of the Lək̓ʷəŋin̓əŋ-speaking people, the Esquimalt and the Songhees, and I work, live and learn in my beautiful riding of North Vancouver–Seymour, situated in the unceded territory of the Coast Salish, specifically on the Tsleil-Waututh and Squamish Nations.

Today I rise to speak about a travesty that occurred about 20 years ago, starting with Bill 29, the Health and Social Services Delivery Improvement Act, and that continued through Bill 94, the Health Sector Partnerships Agreement Act. Those of you who know your history will also know which party was in government at that time.

Deputy Speaker: Of course, this is non-partisan time, Member.

S. Chant: My apologies, Mr. Speaker.

Bill 29 gave health sector employers the latitude to contract out, to private companies, non-clinical services. It also voided important components of many health sector collective agreements. Bill 94 supported the establishment of public-private partnerships in the health sector, allowing contracting out and restructuring for private operators. Somehow, with all of the implications that these bills had for a group of about 10,000 people in B.C., they made it through first, second and third readings and were passed into legislation.

Almost immediately there was a cataclysmic disruption of the non-clinical workforces in hospitals, long-term-care facilities and other health environments. Seemingly overnight, nearly 10,000 workers lost their employment, their benefits and their pensions. Most of them were women, with names like Pangilinan, Villanueva, Reyes and others — names that originated in many other countries, names of people that had brought care, strength and commitment to our health care teams. And yes, I mean our health care teams.

Patients cannot recover effectively without good nutrition that is palatable enough for them to eat even when they’re not feeling well. Patients also need a clean environment that promotes recovery and healing. The people who provide these elements are critical and integral to the care of patients. Nutritional services, housekeeping services, care aides and many other non-clinical services were carved away from the health authorities and contracted out to private companies.

These workers lost their regular employment, livable income and a pension that allowed them to look towards a brighter future. Instead, they were expected to reapply for the same work with a new company — the same work — for a significantly lower wage, significantly reduced benefits and a lower, if any, pension.

[10:20 a.m.]

To add insult to injury, the private companies engaged in contract flipping, resulting in repetitive layoffs and ever-dwindling wages. The affected workers had no rights that were recognized to protect their employment.

Inglewood Care Centre, a facility on the North Shore, suffered through excessive flipping six to eight times. Each time, care aides or food services or housekeeping were let go and then offered a job at a lower wage with less benefits. In 2003, before they were privatized, these folks were making $18 to $20 an hour with a benefit and pension package. By 2015, they were lucky if they were back to $15 an hour. Some had gone down to as little as $8 an hour in their early stages.

Let’s think about the impact on these workers, a group that was mostly women, mostly of colour and often marginalized already in a variety of ways. Sometimes they were the only wage earners in the family, supporting elders or children, trying to pay rent or hold a mortgage, perhaps paying tuition for kids at school, making payments on a car — like all of us, trying to make the best they could for their families, their communities and the people they saw every day in their workplace.

Now the wages are cut by a large wage margin. Many took on second jobs — sometimes two full-time positions.

One woman described how she would leave the house early in the morning before her kids were up and get home late at night after they were in bed. Those kids rarely got to see their mom, and when they did, she was exhausted.

Another spoke about how she ended up declaring bankruptcy, leaving her kids with her parents and moving up to a far northern community to get a job in construction to pull herself out of the financial morass. These stories and many more are stories of the folks who were directly affected.

Patients in hospital noted the effects of the fragmentation and of rotating staff and decreased continuity of service in all these critical areas. Residents in care facilities dealing with cognitive decline or dementia, physical deterioration and mobility loss had a variety of people providing the most intimate of care: feeding, bathing and toileting.

The workers themselves were badly demoralized and felt grossly undervalued, with many going into other areas of employment. Results: ongoing shortages of non-clinical staff throughout the health care system.

The Hospital Employees Union took their case through B.C. Supreme Court to the Supreme Court of Canada, where it was determined that these workers’ rights had indeed been violated. If this sounds familiar to anybody, it should, as this was the situation that British Columbia faced going into COVID. Understaffing was rampant. Many non-clinical staff had more than one job on more than one site and were coming to work sick, as they did not have adequate sick time to allow them to stay away.

It all culminated in Lynn Valley Care Centre, in my riding, in February of 2020, when the first outbreak of COVID was declared. Long-term care and acute care came under a microscope while everyone tried to determine how to contain and control the spread of the virus and its deadly effects.

The impact of Bills 29 and 94 became very clear. Fortunately, Bill 47, the Health Sector Statutes Repeal Act, had been legislated July 1, 2019. The work had already started to repatriate the role of these critical workers back to the health authorities.

What is coming from this legislation now? I will address that after the member from my right has had the opportunity to speak.

T. Halford: I thank my colleague for her remarks. I will recognize that she was a front-line worker for a number of years.

I am pleased to rise today to speak to the statement on supporting health service workers and patient care. I know that we are talking about health service workers, and I can’t take this opportunity….

The member reflects on the past, and I will reflect on the future. When we’re talking about health service workers and patient care, I had the opportunity on Thursday, with my colleague, to actually meet with parents who are absolutely crippled with fear by the Minister of Children and Family Development’s decision to claw back autism funding. Now, if we’re going to talk about effects that….

Deputy Speaker: Member, we’re not going to target individual ministers, as we’ve discussed before.

[10:25 a.m.]

T. Halford: Oh, just because it was the individual minister’s decision, but I will go on.

As the critic for Mental Health and Addictions, I’ve heard from a lot of health care workers who are struggling, and parents as well. Many of them are facing mental health challenges they’ve never experienced before as we find ourselves in a deepening health care crisis that continues to take a toll not only on patients but on workers in this vital field.

Staff shortages have been impacting hospitals, labs and other health care facilities for far too long. Workers are being stretched to their absolute limit. Our caucus has heard directly from nurses who have been speaking about the extreme stress and burnout they are experiencing. I imagine my colleague has heard the same stories — numerous stories about going home in tears after a shift, feeling like they couldn’t provide their usual level of care because they would be pulled in so many directions.

Many workers are being forced to take stress leave or choosing to leave the profession entirely because they simply cannot do it anymore. That’s deeply unfortunate, because their love for their jobs…. As my colleague will know, they care about their patients. They don’t want to go, but they see they have no other choice.

Those workers who stay, meanwhile, are also being subjected to physical and verbal abuse, harassment, threats and other forms of workplace violence that are simply unacceptable. The shortage of health care workers is causing a fair bit of this, as patients and visitors become increasingly frustrated by long wait times and procedures that have been cancelled on short notice or from incoming patients with mental health issues.

This week we heard an announcement of 320 security guards to be stationed in 26 hospitals across this province to protect workers. That’s a good first step. I will say, though, that there are some of my colleagues who are quite concerned that their hospitals are not yet included. But I certainly hope to see that number expanded, because frankly, I don’t see our crises in health care and public safety being resolved or incidents being significantly reduced anytime soon. What’s more, these 26 sites don’t include long-term-care facilities, which is unfortunate because the workers there are experiencing similar challenges.

The CEO of SafeCare B.C., Saleema Dhalla, recently noted that there were more than 270 reported incidents of violence in long-term care just last year. All health care workers deserve to feel safe and protected on the job. Workplace safety matters in all aspects of the health care system, and that includes patients in our health care facilities as well.

Patient care is a key part of the member’s statement. I want to focus on this group for a moment.

When we think about supporting patient care, we can think of this in a number of ways, whether it’s ensuring the patients’ own safety and protection while receiving treatment in our hospitals and our other health care facilities; reducing wait times to access emergency care, cancer care, medical imaging and mental health and addiction support; reducing the likelihood of patients having to travel to other communities for these services, which is not only stressful and inconvenient but also takes a financial toll as well; ensuring that when those in medical distress call an ambulance, one will show up; and ensuring that every British Columbian has a family doctor who can provide them with longitudinal care, who can monitor their health over time and catch medical concerns before the conditions worsen.

The fact is our health care system has deteriorated to a point where many of those needs are not being met. If we truly want to support health service workers and patient care, we need to take significant steps to improve our health care system, and that’s going to require a meaningful plan.

S. Chant: Thank you to the member for Surrey–White Rock for his comments. Just to be aware, I’m still working as casual, so I’m still a nurse.

As indicated when I left off, B.C. is fortunate that Bill 47, the Health Sector Statutes Repeal Act, has been legislated as of July 1, 2019, and the work had already started to repatriate the role of these critical workers back to the health authorities.

Starting in December of 2021, here on Vancouver Island, a group of workers in housekeeping and food services had their contracts brought back in-house, 190 people. In early ’22, Fraser Health, then Provincial Health, then Vancouver Coastal and Providence started to bring housekeeping and food service workers back into the employment of the health authority.

They have collective agreements as part of the Facilities Bargaining Association, and they will again have their rightful place on the health care team, with appropriate remuneration, benefits, a pension plan and a living wage to support families, meet expenses and plan a life beyond the next paycheque.

Last Friday I was at Lions Gate Hospital in North Vancouver, which is part of Vancouver Coastal Health and provides services to the North Shore, up to Whistler, Bella Bella, Bella Coola and the Sunshine Coast.

[10:30 a.m.]

They were welcoming back over 900 staff to different facilities across the region, including the hospice unit. I saw a lot of the staff that I’ve known from working in and around the hospital who have been employed by Aramark or Sodexo, who are now proudly wearing the emblem of Vancouver Coastal Health. Some of them have been here throughout, the whole time, just holding on hoping it would get better.

Now it is getting better. Workers are steadily getting transferred back to the health authorities, joining as valued team members, providing vital services that support our patients, their families and our health care system on a journey towards a higher standard of care and improved outcomes. We’re all working on the health care system getting better and being able to provide the services that people in British Columbia have had in the past and will have in the future.

This is all about people — people who care and people who provide care.

WOMEN IN POLITICS

R. Merrifield: Recently I was approached at an event by a woman who had just been elected to a political role during this last municipal election. She wanted to know what it was like to be a woman in politics and how I found it. Well, as many political conversations do, our conversation went to Twitter, and her demeanour absolutely sank as she spoke. “They’re so vicious on there,” she said. I didn’t have the heart to tell her that it gets worse and that it is almost always worse for women in politics.

Our conversation went to the recent leadership race and the disqualification of Anjali Appadurai. I told her that, while I don’t know the details, I was sad about the outcome of disqualification. It was a step backwards for women in politics, a step backwards for all young women of colour, who finally saw someone like themselves on the stage of a significant provincial leadership election.

She noted how many people were smearing Anjali’s reputation on social media. I told her, while shaking my head: “It’s tough for women in politics.” I went on to mention other women’s stories — Premier Clark, Jody Wilson-Raybould, Chrystia Freeland, and so on — because it’s tough for women in politics.

My own story belies some of those difficulties. Now, don’t get me wrong. I got off to a great start. When I was eight years old, I was learning all of the Presidents of the United States. I came home and, with all the indignation I could muster, demanded to know from my parents why there were no female presidents. Well, my dad looked at me and, with all sincerity, told me that I could be the first female president of the United States.

Now, I couldn’t have been, being a Canadian citizen, I later learned, but I believed, growing up, that I could be anything because of that interaction. Women need to believe that being in politics is possible.

Well, fast-forward to a bright-eyed female founder and business owner, when I received a phone call from then-Premier Christy Clark. After first thinking that someone was playing a horrible prank on me, she asked me to sit on her economic council. It was there that I found two mentors and role models in politics. Premier Clark was exceptional, always forward-thinking, brave, fast on her feet, open, vulnerable and a lot of fun. She wanted to do big things for British Columbians, and nothing was too big for that vision.

Then there was the MLA for Prince George–Valemount, the Minister of Labour at the time, who is intelligent, hard-working, methodical, kind and inspirational. She kept the committee all working on the deliverables and helped focus us on what the why was, why we were there. She moved us all forward together.

Well, they both believed that I could be in politics and continued to encourage and mentor that possibility. Female mentors are important. They are vital for women to be able to see themselves on the political stage, but they’re just not enough. We also need males to champion, because their critiques are fast and furious and, for whatever reason, the smear campaigns seem to stick to women more than men. We see female leaders increasingly scrutinized at a level exceeding those of their male counterparts. You cannot help but ask why.

[10:35 a.m.]

Well, there’s this acceptance by the public that negativity and vitriol are okay and should be accepted. I’ve experienced the smear campaigns, media making judgments about me without ever speaking to me, comments about my appearance or my hair or about my gender, invalidating my aspirations. Those are only the ones that I can actually mention aloud in this House.

Sure, you can tell a woman to toughen up, not take things personally, be less emotional and not be affected by the critics, but then you would lose the value that they bring, the way we negotiate for mutual benefit. We listen to understand. We work collaboratively and come to better decisions — at least, I think so. It could be argued that democratically elected women leaders haven’t started wars in recent years, although they’ve been strong enough to participate. Ultimately, becoming dissociated from the criticism will only make me less sensitive to the other voices — the ones that need help, have issues and need my voice in Victoria.

Right now Canada has a lower percentage of female politicians in the OECD average of all countries. Women’s leadership and political participation are restricted from the local to the global level. Women are underrepresented in leading positions, whether in elected office, civil service, private sector or academia. This occurs despite their proven abilities as leaders and agents of change and their right to participate equally in democratic governance. Systemic inequalities disproportionately impact women and their ability to exercise these rights.

Regardless of who you are, we all have a role to play in creating an environment that empowers women and doesn’t drag them down. Being a woman is hard enough, but we know that Indigenous women or women who are racialized or living with disabilities face even greater adversity. Women face obstacles to participating in political life. Capacity gaps mean that women are less likely than men to have the education, the contacts or the resources needed to become elected leaders. The old saying, “It’s a man’s world,” rings true to this day.

Only 4 percent of Canada’s largest companies have a woman CEO. Women make up just 29 percent of Canada’s House of Commons and roughly 15 percent of our provincial premierships in the last few years — clearly not the best representation of our population.

A more inclusive and women-friendly political environment will only bring better and more informed governance. I’m sure all of us in this House want to do nothing more. Let’s commit to enabling more women to lead our political sphere to show the little girls at home that the answer to, “Can I become Premier one day,” is a yes.

Let’s build a society where leading British Columbians as a woman is just as challenging as it would be for a man — no more, no less. Yet for women as a whole, the playing field needs to be levelled, opening up opportunities for all. All of us can do better.

G. Lore: As someone who has taught gender and Canadian politics at the University of Victoria, it’s a little bit of a dream to speak to this issue in the House, but I want to start close to home. I was putting my son to bed recently, and we were talking about our days, and I must have said something about my colleagues here in the House. Asher looked up at me and said, with absolute shock: “Boys can be MLAs?” This was adorable, and there was no end of giggles for my daughter and I. But contained in it is a cautionary tale.

You cannot be what you can’t see. I certainly never told him this was work for moms, but his little brain soaked up what he saw in his world and came to a conclusion. Now, Asher will be just fine. He will be reminded by the world that these are spaces for him. But for decades and decades and longer, this has not been true for so many.

Women and girls, gender-diverse people, especially those who are Indigenous, racialized, face poverty or live with disabilities, for example, did not see themselves in positions of power, did not see anyone who looked like them, who spoke like them, who lived like them at the decision-making table. This has had consequences.

University of Calgary professor Melanee Thomas has found that despite increases in education and wages and despite changes in gender roles both in and outside the home, the gap between the number of men and the number of women who think that politics is something for someone like them has not changed since the 1960s.

[10:40 a.m.]

That’s why it matters to have women leaders and to have diverse women visible at our decision-making tables, why it matters if, say, a caucus is 50 percent women instead of just 25, why it matters to have young women, racialized women, queer women, women who immigrated to this country, women who are union leaders, engineers, teachers, pilots, nurses, women who speak different languages and practice different faiths. It’s one of the reasons I’m incredibly proud to be part of this caucus.

As important as it is for every person in our province to view our democracy as a place where they belong, representation is not just about symbolism. It’s not just about visibility. Who is at the table impacts the decisions that get made. That really is what we’re all here for, isn’t it — to change lives with the decisions we make here?

Canadian political scientists Susan Franceschet, Manon Tremblay, Sylvia Bashevkin and others have researched the politics of presence, and it’s clear it matters. Women in politics expand the political agenda and are more likely to raise issues that disproportionately affect women. While much has changed, this still includes access to child care, access to abortion, parental leave and gender-based violence.

From the research in the classroom and on my PhD to the caucus room, I know this to be true. It matters, for example, that we have a single mom in charge of our child care policies. And it is simply not a coincidence that a government who has provided new and sustained funding for sexual assault services and created domestic violence leave is fighting period poverty.

A government who has repatriated, as my colleague has said, health care workers to good jobs and pensions and dignity, the majority of whom are racialized women. A government who has made unparalleled investments in our child care system and has set aside $734 million for transition housing, has four times as many women as the opposition caucus and, in fact, more women in its caucus than the opposition has members.

Let’s be clear. This does not mean that women in politics are limited to this work. We have a marine biologist responsible for the health of our waters. The former owner of the first women-owned video game company in North America is responsible for tech and innovation. There is an engineer responsible for infrastructure and a farmer responsible for agriculture.

But whatever the issues they are passionate about, we know women continue to face barriers to office. Research published this year echoes past findings and shows that gender stereotypes continue to hurt women. Research also shows that coverage of non-incumbent candidates tends to frame racialized candidates as on the outside.

That’s why we need to continue to stand up, to speak out — not to stand idly by, for example, when jokes are made that minimize the capacity of women in politics, especially young racialized women. We must intervene instead of laughing along when people focus on appearance rather than the impact of women in politics and the lives of British Columbians, because it matters. It matters who thinks this place, this work, is for them, and it matters to the decisions we make.

R. Merrifield: Thank you so much to the member for her comments.

I’m going to go a little one step further and ask the question: what else needs to change? Well, first, society needs to change. Women still do a disproportionate amount of unpaid work in the house and for the family’s children. This needs to shift in order to facilitate political careers for women. Things like universal, accessible and affordable child care as well as free contraception help to provide further gender equality and launch women into politics. I would also have to mention that autism funding that is unique and individualized to each child helps the family and helps the women of that family.

Society also needs to recognize female leaders and elevate them. Our language needs to change from an “us and them” to a “we.” Rather than segregate, we need to support. Rather than disqualify, how about we train, educate and help?

Secondly, our roles as women within the family need to change. It’s not enough to be an equal in the home. Men didn’t rise to leadership roles and political roles in egalitarian relationships, for the most part. Most of them had great supports at home. Spouses need to support their female partners in getting elected and being great politicians.

Thirdly, women need to be able to see themselves in politics with great role models. They need to have those around them that believe that they can be fantastic elected politicians and will help them to get there.

[10:45 a.m.]

Lastly, political parties that are still controlled by males and usually have a male-dominated donor base need to shift. These men need to choose to champion females.

I am here today because I believed that my voice could help others in politics. I am here today because I had extraordinary women politicians as role models. I am here today but will only remain here today, as well, if male-dominated political power centres champion us as equals and help to equalize the playing field.

I know that it took having a father who believed in me and female political mentors who inspired me to get me into politics. It takes these male champions to change societal norms, laud strong females for their acumen and talents and normalize women in politics. There is still so much work for us to do, because it’s tough for women in politics.

MAKING PRESCRIPTIONS
EASIER FOR PEOPLE

B. Anderson: Today I am absolutely delighted to be speaking about the expansion of pharmacy services and that we’re broadening the scope for pharmacists.

When I first saw what we were doing, I immediately called up my friend Ward Taylor, who is a pharmacist and owns a pharmacy in Kaslo, which is in my riding, an absolutely beautiful community. I asked Ward how these changes would impact his practice.

We had a good long conversation about this. He said that this was a huge step in the right direction. Already he has…. Quite frequently people will come to him seeking help and seeking support that he wasn’t able to provide them. As a professional and as someone who really cares about people and his community, that really troubled Ward.

The changes that we’re making today are going to impact people not just in Kaslo, not just in Nelson-Creston, not just in the Kootenays but literally across the province.

As a rural MLA…. We’ve struggled, as they have in many other places across the province, with accessing doctors. When doctors are the gatekeepers of certain prescriptions, that means that people are going without their medicine.

When I was speaking with Ward, what he was really letting me know was…. It really bothered him when…. He would see a tremendous amount of stress and anxiety from people when they weren’t able to access things like medication that they desperately needed for their mental health or something to manage other health needs like diabetes. By being able to help them renew prescriptions, by extending that period, we’re really going to be helping people, which, of course, is what our government is and has always been focused on.

I want to read into the record here some of the changes that we have made just so that everyone is aware. I’m sure everyone across the province is watching on Hansard right now. I will let everyone know what is available.

On September 29, we updated the scope of practice for pharmacists in B.C. to make it easier and faster for people to get the prescribed medication that they need renewed. This new initiative is expected to significantly improve patient access to care, reduce wait times and alleviate stress in the health care system, which, as we know, is paramount.

Beginning on October 14, pharmacists can now adapt and renew prescriptions for a wider range of drugs and conditions. They will be able to administer, further to a prescription, a wider range of drugs by injection or intranasally. The province is also working towards extending the valid period of prescriptions to two years, which is anticipated to be in effect on the same date. These changes will, for example, help those without a regular primary care prescriber to access the medication that they need.

The Ministry of Health is working with the College of Physicians of B.C. on regulations that will enable pharmacists to prescribe for minor ailments and contraception by the spring of 2023.

I think it’s really important that we’re working in collaboration with the College of Pharmacists. I mean, the pharmacists are experts in pharmacology, and they know their scope of work best. When I was talking to Ward — again, a pharmacist — he said: “I don’t want to be a doctor, but I am a really good pharmacist. I can be there. I can step up, and I can help the people of my community.”

[10:50 a.m.]

Starting now, to ensure a continuity of pharmaceutical care, patients with chronic conditions can now renew a wider range of prescriptions through a pharmacist if they do not have access to a family doctor. Beginning in the spring of 2023, it is expected that patients will be able to get prescriptions from their local pharmacists for treatment for minor ailments such as allergies, indigestion, acne and contraception.

This is a big step forward in women’s health, as well, until we have a drug that men are able to take for contraception, which I greatly look forward to. There was a study done, and when they looked at some of the barriers for male contraception, it was very strange that they seem to be the same things that impact women. But we know that there are millions of women, if not billions of women, that are on contraception. It’s a piece of equality to ensure that men are able to make those decisions for themselves also and be a part of that solution. I really look forward to that.

When I was asking Ward about what would be minor ailments, one of the things he brought up was, say, for example, someone has a cold sore. He’s able to see the cold sore. He’s seen 1,000 cold sores. Right now, that person would have to go to their doctor to get a prescription to return back to the pharmacist, who is then able to dispense and provide that medication.

By skipping the entire step of going to your doctor to get your prescription, to then be able to head directly to the pharmacy…. That is what many people do right now. They have a minor ailment. They know it’s going to be a wait to see their doctor, or they can’t see their doctor, or they don’t have a doctor. Right now, to be able to go to the pharmacy and get something so simple as treatment for something as common as a cold sore, I think will be really beneficial to people, and it will alleviate our health care system, which is, of course, what we all want.

Why are we doing this? Currently in British Columbia, physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, certified practice nurses, naturopathic physicians, midwives and dentists, under the Health Professions Act, are authorized to prescribe and adapt prescriptions, and pharmacists are able to refill prescriptions as ordered in. In some cases, pharmacists can also renew or adapt existing prescriptions.

Pharmacists in our province have the authority to renew and adapt prescriptions under specific conditions. But with over 6,700 pharmacists across the province, they are often the first point of contact for many patients, due to their accessibility. So we’re streamlining that process for patients to access medications by injection or intranasally, making it easier and faster for patients. Really, this is focused on team-based care and building capacity within our health system.

N. Letnick: I’d like to thank the member for bringing this topic forward.

Prescription medications do save lives and improve the quality of life for millions of people every day. They help patients with lifelong diagnoses live healthier and longer lives and help stop and even eliminate medical issues and chronic conditions. Therefore, ensuring access to the most appropriate prescriptions for people’s health and medical conditions is critical, not only in British Columbia but around the world.

When access is limited, patients suffer emotional and financial consequences on top of their primary health concerns. It may be a cause that the patient is choosing a less-effective drug. Their conditions might not be treated as well, and a physical toll may also be taken. Problems with getting prescriptions or refills are, indeed, one of the most stressful things that patients face in B.C.

I had a constituent two or three months ago that came to my office and wasn’t able to get a prescription filled because they had lost their family doctor. They were having trouble advocating for themselves. His wife, actually, ended up coming in again and advocating for him, and it took their MLA to have a discussion with the Minister of Health to see what we can do to encourage the Interior Health Authority to see how they can help this one person. That story is repeated over and over and over again, across the aisle, on both sides. We need to do better. We shouldn’t have to contact the Minister of Health to fill a prescription in this province.

[10:55 a.m.]

We also have other examples. This August an 82-year-old Vancouver Island resident, Michael Mort, whose longtime family doctor retired last year, could not get their medications from a pharmacy without a new prescription from a doctor. Michael has a serious cardiac and neurological issue. Out of desperation, Michael’s wife — again, it’s a very similar example — took out an ad in the local newspaper, offering to pay for a B.C.-licensed medical doctor to renew the prescription.

They found one eventually. But this story and my story bring to light a situation that many British Columbians face, particularly seniors. In fact, nearly one million British Columbians, as we all know, don’t have a family doctor, and our health care system is under tremendous pressure.

B.C. has the worst walk-in clinic wait times in the country. Urgent and primary care centres are chronically understaffed, while emergency rooms are closed time and time again, especially in rural areas. One million patients are waiting to see a specialist in B.C., and radiologists are warning us about a tsunami of cancer cases that may be coming to our province because of delayed access to medical imaging.

With the overall system in crisis, we must have a health human resources plan and concrete actions to solve these underlying issues. When it comes to making prescriptions easier, one of the solutions is to consult with physicians and, yes, pharmacists and stakeholders on expanding the scope of practice for pharmacists, as we’ve heard has been done, and allowing them to assess and prescribe medications for minor ailments with a team-based care model.

Now, I’m not a doctor or a pharmacist, but I do get cold sores now and again, and Lysine, which is not a prescribed drug, takes care of it rather easily. So the good member might want to share that story as well.

A recent change allowing pharmacists to issue prescriptions for minor ailments in B.C. is welcome. But don’t forget that as these changes roll out, the smoothness of the transition will depend on the reimbursement model, staffing supports and whether there is an added administrative burden.

Bear in mind that making prescriptions easier for people alone is far from enough, because medications should also include access to the necessary procedures, specialists and care. Just like many health professionals, pharmacists are facing burnout and other impacts of the labour shortage. They have been pushed to a tipping point, with increased demands, added administrative burdens and staffing challenges, and many professionals, including them, have left their practices, further escalating the crisis.

There’s a lot more government can do — for example, providing family physicians and specialists greater financial compensation for overhead and operating costs. There has been an announcement today on a new agreement. Obviously, I haven’t had a chance to read it, but I’m hopeful that that’s been taken care of.

Updating and simplifying a fee schedule — again, hopefully this morning that announcement has taken care of it. Reducing the onerous administrative burden on family physicians through the elimination of redundant paperwork. Addressing rising business costs from taxation and payroll policies and expanding doctor training spaces. Reducing barriers for internationally trained physicians and supporting more collaborative team-based care.

I hope we have addressed most of these issues this morning and look forward to hearing the response from the member opposite.

B. Anderson: I just want to thank the member opposite for their delightful statement and for their hot tip. I’ve never had a cold sore before, but I do have a lot of friends and family members that have experienced cold sores. I’m getting some chuckles, but I think it’s important, if there are solutions out there, that we talk about them and that we’re able to collaborate across the aisle. I did appreciate what the member said, so thank you very much.

Really, what we’re talking about here is meeting the needs of our patients by providing safe and timely access to medications and quality health services.

[J. Tegart in the chair.]

Also, as I was preparing today, I reached out to someone that I’ve known since childhood who is a medical professional, has worked at Kootenay Lake Hospital for a very long time and is a union leader. Really, she has seen it all, and now she is also our mayor of the city of Nelson, Janice Morrison.

I was able to connect with Janice this morning, and she really instilled in me that now pharmacists are really able to work at full scope. She said that when she was speaking with one of her friends that’s a pharmacist, they were mentioning that pharmacists often see patients from 1.5 up to ten times more frequently than they see their own doctors.

[11:00 a.m.]

Really, pharmacists are that community touchpoint, and by making sure that they’re able to be at full scope, that’s an incredibly important step forward for our entire medical system.

She also mentioned that one of the pharmacists had let her know that in New Brunswick they did a study, and by allowing pharmacists to prescribe for urinary tract infections, they’d actually had an 88.9 percent cure rate. You know, a lot of people have had these before. They know what it is, and they know what it feels like when it hits their body.

Instead of having to wait, potentially, to go to see a doctor or having to go to emergency — we of course don’t want people having to clog up emergency; we want them to be able to get this access as quickly as possible — by simply being able to go to a neighbourhood pharmacy and speak with your pharmacist that knows you, knows what other prescriptions you might be on and is able to properly prescribe you something that’s very common, we’re able to increase that accessibility and have an almost 90 percent cure rate.

I see that we’re really moving forward. So I’m very grateful to the ministry for their lead on all of this — dealing with two simultaneous public health emergencies and crises. We know that there’s a lot of work to do, but I’m just so appreciative of the leadership that we’ve had by both the minister and Dr. Bonnie Henry.

G. Lore: I seek leave to make an introduction.

Leave granted.

Introductions by Members

G. Lore: Joining us for the first time in the House since I’ve been elected is my mom. Janet Lore is visiting me from Calgary this weekend to spend some time with her grandbabies, my kids.

My mom was a news producer for Global Calgary as I was growing up, and I had a chance to tag along with her to election night coverage, to party convention coverage. It was that routine exposure for my whole life to statements, like the member for Kelowna-Mission made previously, that showed me that this was a space for me. So I attribute my spot here, a lot, to that from my mom.

Joining my mom is her dear friend, Liz Hobar, who was my neighbour growing up and has been dear to me my whole life. I’m really glad to have them here with us today. Will the House help me make them welcome.

Hon. K. Chen: I ask that the House consider proceeding with Motion 23, standing in the name of the member for Kamloops–North Thompson.

Deputy Speaker: Members, unanimous consent of the House is required to proceed to Motion 23 without disturbing the priorities of the motions preceding it on the order paper. If any member is opposed to the request for leave, please indicate now.

Leave granted.

Private Members’ Motions

MOTION 23 — INFLATION AND
COST OF LIVING

P. Milobar: I move:

[Be it resolved that this House acknowledge that British Columbians are struggling to make ends meet with record-high inflation and take meaningful steps to address the current cost-of-living crisis.]

It’s no secret to everyone in this province just how out of reach prices are going, and the lack of governmental response is very concerning. It’s important because people expect cost-saving measures by government to come forward, and when we look at what’s happening in British Columbia right now, we are seeing the worst affordability that many of us have ever seen in our lifetimes.

Let’s have it sink in, just for a moment, that on housing alone, we have the worst decline in a generation. This actually happened — this unaffordability, this skyrocketing housing cost — under the watch of our incoming Premier while he was Housing Minister. That is the track record that we have coming in to the Premier’s chair. People are understandably very nervous about what the future might hold for them in British Columbia.

[11:05 a.m.]

In fact, we’ve seen usage at food banks skyrocket over the last year. In Vancouver alone, it’s 29 percent. That’s over 1,000 people a month — month after month, new — going to the food banks. It’s simply not sustainable, when we see the costs that are being added, across the board, by this government. You simply cannot keep adding and adding to the overall tax burden of British Columbians, like this government has, and think that you’re not impacting inflationary pressures on people’s households.

This government, by the Auditor General’s own numbers, is now collecting $12 billion — that’s with a “b” — more in taxation annually than when they took office in 2017. That is simply not sustainable, and that is tying directly to people’s ability or lack of ability to be able to provide for themselves and their families in a way that they would like to, in a way that does not involve hard-working women and men in our province being forced to go to food banks — not to donate like they used to do, but to actually access the provision of services from that same food bank.

Our inflation in British Columbia is rising faster than the bulk of the rest of the country. We are out of step in British Columbia with what is happening. So yes, there are cost pressures across this country. But it’s shameful that we are leading the country when it comes to that. That is not a stat that we should want to be leading in. But unfortunately, that is the track record of this government — this government that says they’re trying to make life more affordable.

This government has no problem pointing the fingers at everyone else when issues get pointed out that they are not taking care of. This government will turn around and try to say, well, they’ve had cost savings in child care for us. Except that’s all federal money. They have no problem taking credit for federal spending when it suits their needs, yet on something as simple as public safety, they have a very quick ability to point the finger back at Ottawa and blame them instead of taking actions.

The bottom line is this, and the facts bear it out: B.C. has the worst affordability crisis we have seen. It has the worst performance in the housing sector on affordability that we have ever seen. That was oversaw by this incoming Premier when he was the Housing Minister. Rents are up almost $1,200 a month in Metro Vancouver area under this incoming Premier’s watch. Food bank usage is up under this incoming Premier’s watch.

When we have made suggestions on how to give some relief to people in a meaningful way in their homes, it has been met with silence. It took the Minister of Finance over six months, after being directed by the Premier to work on inflationary measures, to actually enact a couple of the things that we said they should have been doing six months previous. It’s simply not good enough. We need faster and more decisive action from this government.

Unfortunately, I fear with the incoming Premier we have, we are in for ever-increasing housing prices, ever-increasing grocery prices and lack of supports across the board.

Thank you for this time.

B. D’Eith: I absolutely appreciate the member bringing this motion today. People are dealing with a tough time. We’ve got a war in Ukraine. We’re dealing with two health care crises, the supply chain issues globally. Gas prices have gone up. Food has gone up. It’s tough. It’s an inflationary period. The feds, of course, have increased interest rates to try to curb that inflation.

But we can’t take any lessons from the opposition on this. When they were in government, they cut taxes to the top 2 percent. During an out-of-control speculation market in real estate, they let money laundering run wild, and they cut services to balance their budgets. Now this was not making life more affordable. When we took office in 2017, we put people first. We reduced costs, we increased services, and we’ve been working to make the economy work for everyone.

Now, in terms of this particular issue, what can we do? I mean, they called for us to cut taxes to gas. Well, look what happened in Alberta. You cut taxes to gas, and they just increase the price. That’s what happens. Their friends in Alberta learned that lesson. It doesn’t work. What we’ve done is a number of things that the government can do. We reduced the costs of services. We have policies that make sure that people’s hard-earned cash goes as far as it can, and we get money into people’s pockets.

[11:10 a.m.]

Of course, child care is right at the front of this. The $550 a month that just recently got announced. That’s over $1,000 a month that people are saving in child care. That’s transformative.

Now, let’s talk about ICBC. That was raided by the B.C. Liberals to balance their books. As Finance Minister in 2012, the Leader of the Opposition increased basic rates by 11 percent and raided ICBC…

Interjection.

Deputy Speaker: Member.

Excuse me, Member.

B. D’Eith: …of half a billion dollars.

Interjection.

Deputy Speaker: Member, I will ask that you withdraw that comment.

An Hon. Member: I withdraw my comment.

Deputy Speaker: I would remind members who has the floor.

Please continue, Member.

B. D’Eith: The dumpster fire that the opposition created was fixed by our former Attorney General, who is now going to be our Premier. This enhanced-care system is lowering car insurance rates by $500 a year. That’s putting money into people’s pockets.

Secondly, we’re protecting your hard-earned money. Now, when the Leader of the Opposition was Transportation Minister, he put tolls on the Port Mann and Golden Ears Bridges. This cost people in my community up to $1,500 a month. He keeps on going on to say that this was the right thing to do. Are they going to bring this back if they ever get back into power? Well, let’s hope we never see that.

As both the Minister of Finance…. The Leader of the Opposition doubled MSP premiums over 16 years. We eliminated this regressive tax. That’s saving families $1,800 a year.

Now, while in opposition, the government ignored the housing crisis.

Interjections.

Deputy Speaker: Members.

B. D’Eith: We brought in a 30-point housing plan, and we’re on track to building 114,000 units. The Leader of the Opposition continues to go against the speculation and vacancy tax, which has added 18,000 units into the Lower Mainland market.

Now, let’s talk about putting money into your pocket. Because our government has fixed ICBC, we’ve been able to put $450 back into people’s pockets with the “stupid little cheques,” as the Leader of the Opposition referred to them. We’ve removed interest on student loans. We’re supporting EV with rebates. We’re expanding coverage to drugs, and there are some new measures.

We accept that there’s a crisis right now. In 2022, the climate action tax credit will bring $410 for a family with two children. In January, February and March of 2023, the B.C. family benefit will rise, and that’ll top it up with another $350 for families. Of course, talking about housing, we’ve actually capped rents at 2 percent. Now, that can save families up to $816 a year. We are doing the work to help people live more affordably in this province, something that the opposition never did.

E. Sturko: I’m grateful for the opportunity to rise in the House today in support of the motion that we “…acknowledge that British Columbians are struggling to make ends meet with record-high inflation and take meaningful steps to address the current cost-of-living crisis.” From gas to groceries — well, to pretty much anything — we can all agree that life today is more expensive. I know, from speaking with constituents, that Surrey residents are feeling the pinch, and they’re struggling to pay the bills amidst a growing affordability crisis.

I, myself, have a young family, and I know firsthand the impact that rising costs are having on the decisions that my family and I are making. I’m not the only one. In talking with other parents, it’s clear that, more than ever, decisions are being made about what they can afford to do. Those decisions are even more difficult for families who need child care. Under this government, the growth rate in child care spaces has not only declined, but the number of announced spaces versus the number of spaces actually in operation is mind-boggling.

Only 10,000 of the announced 30,000 spaces are operating today. Not only is the cost of child care a barrier for many families; they’re lucky if they can even find a space. In Surrey, despite the national average of 27.2 licensed child care spaces per 100, my community has only 14.9 licensed spaces per 100 children, meaning that another 20,000 spaces in Surrey are needed just to meet the national average — disappointing statistics, to say the least, from a government that claims that child care is a priority.

[11:15 a.m.]

From before- and after-school programs, back-to-school shopping, child care fees, diapers and other essentials — and now, with the holiday season coming up — the costs to families are piling up. As the Education critic, I’ve spoken to many teachers and representatives from school districts since taking on the position. They’re all saying the same thing: inflation costs are having a huge impact on the bottom line of our education system. School districts are challenged in addressing inflationary pressures. Many inflationary costs are going unfunded from the government, as they have yet to change their funding model to meet inflation.

What does that mean for school districts? Well, it means tough decisions ahead for school board trustees and, in many cases, potentially less support staff and fewer resources for children with high needs. In districts where stable or declining enrolment exists, they simply cannot absorb these inflationary price pressures, year after year. The bottom line is these pressures on our school districts are going to significantly impact the quality of education for our children around the province.

I’m not the only one waiting for the government to follow through on promised action to help relieve inflationary pressures. People in my community have been waiting for months for initiatives to help. Unfortunately, after all the NDP’s promises to make life more affordable, the affordability crisis is now worse than ever before. Our caucus has repeatedly called on the government to take action. Simple steps such as temporarily suspending the gas tax, using carbon credits to reduce the cost of living for B.C. families, or eliminating the sales tax on used cars under $20,000 — these are easy ways that we could put money back into the pockets of people in British Columbia.

Instead, government members have dragged their feet on relief, and they voted for themselves a retroactive $20,000 pay raise in Budget 2022. Instead of dealing with the crippling costs for British Columbians, they took action to pad their own pockets. People deserve so much better.

K. Paddon: I am happy to rise to speak to the motion. There is no doubt that affordability and cost of living is impacting people and families across B.C. Global inflation is a huge challenge, and people are feeling the pressure and the squeeze from every direction.

When I speak with people in Chilliwack-Kent, I know that the struggles they are describing are not unique to our area, our province or even our country. When I sit down with folks to talk about their worries and their individual situations, I’m able to share a lot of information about what is happening, available and ongoing to help support the folks in Chilliwack-Kent.

Our government has taken significant and impactful action to put money into the pockets of folks across B.C. This month, the climate action tax credit for low and moderate-income British Columbians is enhanced by up to an additional $164 per adult and $41 per child, meaning that a family of four can receive an additional $410. Now, 85 percent of British Columbians will benefit from this, including low-income seniors.

In January, February and March, the B.C. family benefit will rise by as much as $58.33 a month per child. A family with two children, for example, can see up to $350 from that top-up. Through our commitment to put money into the pockets of British Columbians, we have taken action and raised minimum wage, doubled the seniors supplement, issued ICBC rebates that saw an average of $420 going back to drivers, increased income and disability assistance rates by more than 50 percent, and implemented the student and family affordability fund, to name a few.

In addition to putting money in people’s pockets, we’ve also focused on keeping money in their pockets. An action that has many folks very excited in my community is reduced child care costs, which cut fees by 50 percent by the end of the year for children zero to five. The work being done in child care will save families up to $6,600 per year per child. I hear from people, every day, the impacts this will have.

Instead of allowing rent increases equivalent to inflation, we are placing a 2 percent cap on rent increases for 2023. For renters paying $2,000 a month in rent, this will mean a savings of up to $816 next year. We have eliminated MSP, lowered ICBC rates, implemented free transit for children and increased earning exemptions for folks receiving income and disability assistance.

We have implemented the speculation tax, put in protections on contract flipping and instituted paid sick leave. More work is being done. Government is also working with B.C. Hydro on an additional cost-of-living measure to help British Columbians reduce expenses during this period of high global inflation.

[11:20 a.m.]

There are too many actions supporting British Columbians with the cost of living to list in the five minutes that I have today and more to come as we continue to find ways to reduce costs. There is a great resource, updated regularly, that I share with many folks in Chilliwack-Kent; gov.bc.ca/savemoney has information for individuals, seniors, families, people with disabilities, renters, home­owners. I would encourage people to take a look.

It’s important to acknowledge that the introduction of this motion by the opposition represents a huge change in step, and I am encouraged that, perhaps, this means sharing this focus on affordability with their leader. I’m hopeful that they will hold him accountable for previous bad decisions. I hope they stand up to him when he makes comments like the ones he made last year, when he called hundreds of dollars going into the pockets of British Columbians “stupid little cheques.”

I will watch for them to stand up against the actions that have contributed to where we are: delayed progress, like canceling affordable child care in 2002; actions like increasing ICBC rates; actions like tolls that cost families up to $1,500 per year; like increasing MSP premiums; like opposing the speculation tax that brought thousands of homes onto the market; and the lack of action, like the ten-year freeze on income assistance amounts. All of these actions that hurt British Columbians made people more vulnerable and would right now be making this even harder.

Actions that this government has taken, and our commitment to reversing those mistakes and the harm done, are making a real difference. We will continue to find even more ways to reduce costs for people at a provincial level, and I look forward to having the full support of everyone in this chamber when we do it.

M. Bernier: I appreciate the opportunity to stand up and speak to this motion. We all know, and even it seems members of government are acknowledging, the crisis that we have here in the province of British Columbia. Life has never been less affordable than it is right now. It’s really, I think, important to acknowledge that this government actually got in saying they would make life more affordable. They have utterly failed on that. Actually, it is a slogan. I guess what we’ve learned with this government, especially today, is it’s all tricks and no treats for the people in the province of British, Columbia.

When we look at what’s happening right now with inflationary pressures….

Interjections.

M. Bernier: I appreciate that they acknowledge that comment.

When we when we talk about no treats, I’ll get to some of those, because this government wants to make all these promises of making it more affordable but has utterly failed on delivering on almost every promise that they’ve made in order to get elected.

I mean, when we look at the inflationary pressures that people are under right now, we look at buyers struggling to get into the housing market, a housing market that has just exploded to being the worst in, basically, all of North America. People can’t afford to get into homes. People can’t afford to buy that first-time home. If they’re lucky…. I mean, really, the people that are in the housing market right now are the ones that have been in for a while. New homeowners are very, very rare, unfortunately, right now.

With the interest rates going up, we’re just going to see that pressure even being compounded for new first-time homeowners being able to get into the market. What’s that going to do? That’s actually going to put even more pressure on people who are in the rental market. With fewer and fewer people being able to buy a home, that’s going to put more pressure.

Now, you want to talk about treats. Well, this government has been promising now — for what? five, almost six years — a $400 renters rebate to help people. They had no problem giving themselves that $20,000 retroactive pay raise for government and cabinet ministers. If we’re going to go with what they themselves think is okay for themselves, I guess that means that they actually now owe renters in British Columbia over $2,000.

Most people that were renting five years ago, when this government made that $400 renters rebate, unfortunately, a majority of those people, statistically, are still renting. So now they’re waiting for their $2,000 cheque that’s been promised by this government, if we’re going to go treat the renters the way they treat themselves. That number is climbing.

It’s not just the government that does it, sloganeering during election time. The incoming Premier has said numerous times, “Don’t worry; we’re working on it.” “Don’t worry; i’s coming,” while they kick it down the road, hoping people won’t notice. Well, now he’s going to be the Premier. Now people are going to ask him where that $2,000 cheque is that he’s been promising for the last five years.

[11:25 a.m.]

Look, it’s gotten to the point where people are not only just struggling but having a hard time affording so many parts of British Columbia. We’ve talked about, obviously, the housing. You look in Vancouver alone, and the average house is over $2 million now. In Surrey alone, the price of a house has increased by $600,000 under this government’s watch.

The incoming Premier, who was the former Housing Minister, has completely, utterly missed the mark on almost every goal that he was asked to achieve. He, in this House, admitted that their 114,000 units of affordable housing that they were going to build, their flagship promise if they were elected utterly failed under the incoming Premier’s watch. In fact, he admitted in this House that they’ve only been able to open just over 7,000 units in almost six years after promising 114,000 units.

In fact, CMHC has said that we are going to need over 570,000 housing units in order to meet the demand in British Columbia. So although I applaud the government for making a promise of 114,000 — because obviously, those units are needed — it’s an utter failure, again, that this government has been able to deliver on almost every affordability promise that they’ve announced.

That’s why I think it’s important, when we’re in this House…. We need to acknowledge the pressures that the people of British Columbia are under, under this government. It’s getting worse, not better. And if they fulfilled almost any of their promises, people would be better off in British Columbia.

Deputy Speaker: Recognizing the member for Na­naimo–​North Cowichan.

Interjections.

D. Routley: To the opposition members, too soon. People remember, okay? So let’s take a little stroll down memory lane.

When we talk about costs and who we can trust, let’s remember that in 2001, that former government and their leadership promised not to give tax breaks to the wealthiest British Columbians. On the first day in office, they gave a 25 percent tax break that favoured average earners by about $600 and million-dollar earners by about $60,000. So that’s the legacy of that group over there. They gave those breaks to their friends in the top 1 percent.

They say now that they’re opposed to a speculation and vacancy tax after overseeing an economy that became a gangster’s paradise of money laundering and multi-million-dollar properties left empty, as well as condos in the thousands left empty by speculators. That tax has been credited with providing 18,000 more rental units per year. That’s what they would turn around.

Their tax to the wealthiest — we’ve seen that movie before. That’s what they’d do again. They gave the benefits to the wealthiest in this province and the rest of us paid for it. We’ve seen that movie. It doesn’t end well for average earners in this province.

For 18 months, the Leader of the Opposition was Finance Minister. Average wages went up by just eight cents an hour. As Finance Minister, he increased basic car insurance by 11 percent in 2012. ICBC was forecast, he said, to remit $497 million of excess operational capital to balance their budgets so that they could take raises as cabinet ministers. This helped light the dumpster fire of ICBC that led to increased costs for every family in this province.

What did we do? Well, the new leader of the government, the new Premier, turned all of that around, from losing $1.3 billion the first year in office to, 2½ years later, issuing rebates. That’s what this government does for people. We give back to the people. They take from the people.

They doubled MSP premiums. We cut them completely, the largest middle-class tax break in the history of this province.

[11:30 a.m.]

What did their tax breaks to the wealthy result in? They resulted in a $4.4 billion deficit that, in today’s dollars, would be a $7.4 billion hole in the budget. Children, families, schools and hospitals paid for that for over a decade under that former government. So yes, Member, it is too soon. People remember.

Yes, and what did they do? The new Leader of the Opposition said that he’s taking a pay break. It’s going to be a financial sacrifice for him to make $173,000 annually. That’s how connected he is to the average lives of British Columbians.

What did they do next? They wanted us not to cap rents at 2 percent. They wanted 2 percent on top of inflation. So in this moment of Putin’s inflation and the opposition’s inflation, they would have baked in rent increases of 10 percent. That would be a permanent inflation in our economy.

This government capped those rents, ensuring that when interest rates go down and those landlords stop having to pay extra on their interest rates, well, rents won’t be still at that inflated level. That was the plan of the opposition — to inflate your rents and stick them there permanently.

To the member who moved the motion, in the first year and a half of the child care plan, long before the federal government ever stepped up with one dollar, residents, voters in my constituency, saved over $9 million — in the first year and a half. That’s what we did for them, Member. That’s what we did.

And the climate action tax credit is going up by $410. The B.C. family benefit — $350 for a family of two children. So with the opposition plans for rent, the average renter would be paying $816 more per year.

Now, this is results. This is lowering costs for British Columbians rather than adding costs, which is what the opposition will do if they’re given the chance.

T. Shypitka: The people of British Columbia aren’t interested in these over-two-decade-long walks down memory lane. How about some accountability for a government that’s in right now? If you want to walk down memory lane, we can go a lot farther than 25 years ago. We need some accountability now in this province. This government chooses to ignore and chooses to deflect to other past from 25 years ago…. We can go back to the ’90s if you want.

So no accountability. And if you listen to the members on the other side, they make it seem like everything is fine and dandy with affordability in this province. They make it seem like they’ve done so much, that people are able to afford whatever they want. We know that’s not the case.

Many people in this province continue to experience a deepening cost-of-living crisis that will only likely worsen. Between the cost of gas and rising prices for groceries, housing and more, everyone is feeling the pressure to make ends meet. Today British Columbians are faced with the truth: there are no signs that prices will be coming down anytime soon, and they have yet to be provided with much help from this government to combat these rising costs.

While people across our province are struggling to pay their bills, the provincial cabinet recently voted themselves a retroactive $20,000 pay raise. This is shocking, considering how many more than 40 percent of British Columbians are less than $200 away from insolvency at the end of each month. When families are so close to losing everything, it is confusing to know why the government continues to accept inflated salaries when their constituents can’t even afford rent.

Due to such ridiculous housing prices, there is increased pressure on the rental market, where monthly rents have skyrocketed. Under five years of an NDP government, the increase in the average cost of rent is astonishing, rising an average of $1,200 a month. This is simply unacceptable, with Vancouver now becoming the most expensive city in the entire country to rent living accommodations.

For years, British Columbians have been promised relief in the form of a $400 renters rebate, with many looking forward to some assistance, but there is nowhere to be found. For two elections in a row across this province, they have put their faith in the government to provide them with this rebate only to be told the government is working on it but never see it delivered.

The failures do not end there, with rising costs of food having a major effect on people’s lives. According to the HungerCount survey, over 20 percent of British Columbians are eating less than they should because they can’t afford to feed themselves completely. The survey also found that individuals are even going hungry, some not eating at all during the day, because of such inflated prices.

[11:35 a.m.]

This government was selected on the promise to make life more affordable, but two terms later life is more unaffordable than it has ever been before.

Our incoming Premier, a former Housing Minister, presided over the worst decline in housing affordability in a generation. British Columbians faced the steepest decline in housing affordability since 1981 during his tenure. It blows me away that a province with such vast resources, which can satisfy our energy needs and provide food security and the space for housing…. Our government can’t adopt solutions and be proactive to prevent this cost of living from even getting worse.

Now, our caucus has proposed multiple inflation-fighting measures, all of which the government has refused to adopt, including eliminating the sales tax on used cars under $20,000, a temporary suspension on the gas tax, a lifting of import restrictions on cheaper fuel coming in from Alberta.

Madam Speaker, I’ve got a little bit of time left. I’ll give you just a quick case in point.

I’ve got a single mother, just became single, just separated. She is the mother of four autistic children in her house. She just bought a family van. She paid $7,000 for the vehicle. The government has now come back and said: “No. It’s worth $14,700.”

Now this constituent has to fork out $888 on a deal she thought she got but she apparently didn’t. The vehicle has over 200,000…. It’s got rust on it. It needs some fixing. Now the government says: “We know better what that vehicle is worth. Here’s an $888 fee.” That is just simply unacceptable. This parent of four children is now in a situation where she pays rent or she pays a tax that this government has put on her. This is just simply unacceptable.

I speak to her right now because she’s probably listening to this. She told me this just the other day, and I cannot believe it.

These are the tax measures that this government says are going to make life more affordable for this province. It’s unacceptable. It’s something that voters should be thinking next time around, when they elect a government that makes promises that they never keep.

With that, I conclude my speech.

M. Dykeman: It’s been a fascinating hour or so in here today, listening to some really fascinating revisionist history.

Absolutely, right now there is a challenge with affordability for families. Our government has been working to address that.

When you listen to some of the comments that were made earlier today…. It brought my mind to that old statistics example that they would use in classrooms to demonstrate correlation versus causation, when they would talk about a decrease in pirates over 130 years having a relationship to an increase in global warming.

It is absolutely — I agree with my colleague — too soon to make the claims that are being made today. Nobody believes the comments from the opposition — that there’s suddenly this affordability crisis. If you want to understand where the affordability crisis comes from…. It comes from the nearly two decades of complete and utter lack of investment in or management of the economy. Over a period of time, you have a….

Interjections.

Deputy Speaker: Members. Excuse me, Members.

M. Dykeman: Maybe they’d like to say something. I thought I still had three minutes.

Deputy Speaker: The member for Langley East has the floor.

M. Dykeman: Thank you, hon. Speaker.

If you want to really illustrate that, the best thing to do is to talk to the teachers. And I’m thrilled. I’m absolutely thrilled that there’s a new-found empathy for children, schools and education. I wish I had, when I was a board chair, seen those investments.

What I saw was 15 years in court with the teachers instead of investing in the classrooms. What I saw was parents coming to school with reams of paper, toilet paper, this continuous list of things that the parents were supposed to provide for their students because there wasn’t the budget within the school district budget. That took place when the B.C. Liberals were in leadership, when they were the government.

[11:40 a.m.]

What this government has done is recognize that there’s a serious issue that has been built over those 16 years. We are investing back into everyday people. We are investing into making life more affordable, simple but understandably important measures like removing the tolls, something that costs money every day, providing a B.C. child opportunity benefit.

Also, going back to the situation with the teachers…. We recognize the importance of making those investments and not trying to manage the economy on the backs of everyday people who are going to work and parents and students but creating a $60 million student and family affordability fund to expand meal programs, cover fees and help with other costs like school supplies.

Those are real measures. Those are things that make a difference, things that were never done in the time that I had my children in school and I was involved as a school trustee. What we saw was a fire sale of land, causing a situation where you’re buying land for schools back at today’s prices.

You have a growing economy. You have people coming here, which is such a fantastically important thing because we have so many job vacancies. There is no room in schools because there was no investment during those years. It was a sale, not looking at the future, not understanding how the economy works.

We provided ICBC rebates, many people seeing about $500 in savings on their insurance under proper management, replacing leadership that was literally a dumpster fire, using it as some sort of slot machine to pay the bills.

We reduced ferry costs, eliminated the MSP premium. Something that cost everyday folks so much money, which was completely unnecessary.

We provided a bursary for allied health professionals, a bursary for internationally educated nurses, understanding that if you invest in people….

Interjection.

M. Dykeman: Madam Speaker, I’m not sure if the hon. member from the opposition there would like to have the floor for a moment. I still have eight seconds.

We also have a bursary. We have free, low-cost assessment processes for internationally tested nurses.

Thank you, hon. Speaker.

J. Sturdy: I’m pleased to rise to support this motion on the cost-of-living crisis. I’m also disappointed that we are having to talk about this six years and two terms into this government’s power.

The reality is that there is a cost-of-living crisis. Families are needing to find hundreds of dollars a month extra, stretching to pay incredibly high fuel prices. People are needing to keep shelling out with some of the highest rental prices in the history of this province, some of the highest in the world. Food bank usage is going up, and food prices are skyrocketing.

Contrasted, of course, with the incoming Premier, who, after something of a tainted leadership race, has decided to ditch a week of debate in this House, dropping a quarter of the remainder of the fall session. And for what? Presumably, for his own poli­tical purposes and his own political interests. It certainly isn’t in the public interest for this Legislature not to be operating.

For a guy who professes to want to “hit the ground running,” it seems like more of a slow boat. The member for Point Grey should be paying a little more attention to what everyday British Columbians are concerned about — affordability, inflation, recession — and, perhaps, articulating a plan for weathering what many are expecting to be particularly tough times ahead.

It could be that he is planning to continue to tax, borrow and spend, the agenda of his predecessor, doubling the provincial debt in a mere couple of years. It’s a pretty phenomenal record, frankly. I don’t think any previous government has doubled the debt in such a short period of time. It’s pretty astounding.

To give some context to that, public sector job growth is increasing at three times the rate of private sector job growth.

Interjection.

J. Sturdy: Excellent, says the member.

FYI, it’s the private sector that pays the bill of any government. They might want to pay a little bit of attention to that.

[11:45 a.m.]

This leadership race had been plodding along — no announcements, no policy, no signs of leadership, especially for a leadership race in increasingly uneasy times — until it became interesting, with a challenger that made us pay special attention and understand…. The party that is supposedly running this province didn’t have a handle on how to run a leadership race, a leadership race that was going to designate a new Premier for this province.

It’s worth noting that this party is running the province, and they can’t figure out how to run a political party without having the author of the infamous fudge-it budget construct a dismissal of a candidate that they didn’t like. Frankly, a bit alarming.

Deputy Speaker: Member, we are debating the motion.

J. Sturdy: Well, this speaks, Madam Speaker, to affordability.

At the end of the day, we don’t have a plan. We don’t know where we’re going. We’re not going to hit the ground running. We’re going to go back to sleepwalking, and we’re going to send this Legislature home early. Well, I guess we must have been bad. B.C.’ers are increasingly worried about our personal finances, housing costs, crime and health care. We don’t seem to have any leadership on these important issues. Perhaps there is no plan.

The transition took less than a week in the U.K. It’s taken a month here in British Columbia.

It should be concerning that there is no plan. It certainly concerns the constituents of my riding, with incredibly crazy gas prices, which, despite the fuel transparency act and the work of the B.C. Utilities Commission demonstrating 22 cents of excess profit on every litre of gasoline sold in the Sea to Sky…. If pre-COVID numbers hold true, which I think they do, that means $13 million out of my constituents’ pockets each and every year.

What is government doing about it? Absolutely nothing. What could they do about it? Well, they could gather the data they already have. They could put it in a folder and put it in an envelope and send it off to the Canadian Competition Bureau. What an idea.

I’ve been corresponding with the minister on this for months now. No commitments. No sense they’re going to actually do anything about it. It does beg the question as to the point of the whole fuel transparency act. Was it a piece of legislation? Just more smoke and mirrors. Sound and fury, signifying nothing. That’s from Macbeth. You’ll notice I didn’t use the first line of that little quote, which you might want to look up.

Lots of talk. A lot less action. Fewer press releases and fewer broken promises.

H. Yao: Thank you for the opportunity to respond to the Member for Kamloops–North Thompson’s motion: “Be it resolved that this House acknowledge that British Columbians are struggling to make ends meet with record-high inflation and take meaningful steps to address the current cost-of-living crisis.”

Global inflation is driving up costs around the world. The United States, the European Union and many other nations are still struggling under the weight of global inflation pressure. British Columbians are experiencing the overwhelming global inflation pressure as well.

My wife and I often discuss how our grocery bills are suddenly increasing. Despite our regular efforts to progressively reduce items in our shopping cart, we are still seeing our grocery bills getting bigger and bigger. We’re also reducing unnecessary and luxury items in a hope to rein in the expense category of our budget sheet. In reality, my wife and I are in a position of privilege.

Like all British Columbians, my family and I are also struck by the global inflation pressures. Like many British Columbians, I, too, am grateful for the measures our government has so far introduced to help British Columbians alleviate the weight of the global inflation pressure.

For starters, as a family of four with two under two, my family also benefits from the child care savings. British Columbians can count on child care savings that provide up to $550 a month or $6,600 a year per child. Our government further boosted the B.C. family benefit up to $3,500 for a family with two children for the first three months of 2023. This increase will give B.C. families with two children up to approximately $2,600 per year in the child B.C. family benefit.

Our government also supports families in need with back-to-school expenses like school supplies and meals. For families with children under 12, our government also introduced free transit, which can translate to $650 per year per child.

Also, there’s much more work to do. Our government is committed to supporting British Columbian families in meaningful, concrete and comprehensive ways.

[11:50 a.m.]

Global inflation pressure amplifies these punishment effects on the most vulnerable British Columbians as well. Low-income seniors will benefit from the maximum climate action tax credit boost of $164 per adult. Our government also doubled the seniors supplement, the first increase in the history of the benefit.

For individuals who rely on income assistance, our government has now increased income assistance by more than 50 percent, after ten years where it was frozen by the old government. We also raised the disability and income assistance rates, as well, to help the most vulnerable British Columbians.

Our government has continued to find ways to reduce the cost of living for British Columbians. We lowered ICBC insurance by approximately $500 per year and an average $420 through our three rebates. We eliminated the MSP premium, which cost British Columbians approximately $900 per year. Our government eliminated interest on student loans and created a B.C. access grant to help all students. We eliminated road tolls, and we also worked with B.C. Hydro for a rebate coming this fall. We also capped rent increase by inflation, regardless of income.

Our government has already provided $1 billion in additional relief for British Columbians. Despite unprecedented spending to support people and businesses, B.C. ended 2021 and the 2020 fiscal year with a welcoming surplus, as the province’s economy outperformed both public and private sector forecasts.

Even though British Columbia, like all other jurisdictions around the world, experienced economic challenges due to the pandemic, British Columbia is economically recovering faster than anticipated. Although there is much more work to do, our government will continue to work hard to find ways to help alleviate the global inflationary pressure on British Columbians as we build a stronger B.C. for all.

While the global community is combatting inflation pressure with interest rate adjustment, we must also acknowledge how food and water availability plays a vital role in combatting inflation and protecting British Columbians’ livelihood. While the global community is continuously experiencing irregular and unprecedented drought, flood, fire, heat rising and cooling events, British Columbians are recently, again, reminded how the devastating floods, wildfires, droughts, heat and agricultural pest proliferation are severely impacting our food and water security. The scale of the climate emergency we’re living through demands that our action be urgent and determined.

Through CleanBC, our government is setting ambitious climate action targets. Our government is collaborating with partners, industry and local governments to take action. If we have any realistic hope to truly and concretely address the global inflation crisis, we must protect our nature and build a cleaner economy, finding innovation solutions to prepare British Columbia for the climate change today and tomorrow.

B. Banman: I’m pleased to rise today to speak in favour of the motion. At the same time, I’m frustrated as I try to think where exactly to begin. There is too much going wrong in this province, and the cost-of-living crisis is just one of many issues at the forefront of people’s minds — from exorbitant gas prices to unkept promises of relief, record-high inflation and unfair taxation — all fuelled by this out-of-touch government’s lack of action.

Let’s start with gas prices. In my riding of Abbotsford South, residents and visitors pay fuel prices that are the same or, at times, higher than neighbouring cities such as Vancouver, Surrey and Langley. This makes no sense, and here’s why.

Unlike Abbotsford gas consumers, the cities I mentioned, and others in the Metro Vancouver region, are levelled at a higher fuel tax to fund their TransLink-operated public transit system. Yet Abbotsford residents, whom TransLink does not serve, are assessed a much smaller tax but still pay the same amount for fuel prices. Despite multiple requests from myself, the mayor, residents, my colleagues in this House, we have not seen any action or even an acknowledgment of this absurd reality from this government.

Abbotsford is a major city in this province, playing a critical role in our food supply, aviation, commerce, entertainment and many, many other industries. Abbotsford is known as the city in the country and is the largest city, by land, in British Columbia. Unlike those living in more densely populated areas of our province, families and businesses and students and so many others in Abbotsford rely on their vehicles to travel to get to work and school. But paying these gas prices that make no mathematical sense on top of other rising costs is increasingly unbearable for people.

[11:55 a.m.]

Even more painful is the audacity of the provincial government to keep promising hard-working British Columbians relief, dangling carrots in front of voters only to keep them waiting and waiting — and for not one term but two, not four years but six. People are still waiting for the renters rebate that this government promised to British Columbians six years ago. Since then, we all know that renting a home, putting food on the table and driving your children to school have only gotten more expensive.

In my opinion, it is hypocritical that the members opposite are fine with a retroactive pay increase of some ten grand for themselves while people back in my riding of Abbotsford — and, frankly, everywhere else in the prov­ince — are barely scraping by. The unaffordability crisis is not a crisis in this government’s eyes, because they say one thing yet do another. This is not what British Columbians deserve.

If this government even slightly cared to acknowledge and act on the affordability crisis, the first thing they should be doing is cutting their own salary hike and supporting my colleague’s proposal to forgo it. My colleagues and I on this side of the House have been giving this government ideas and concrete plans to make life more effective for our constituents.

The government could have allowed low-income families to pay no sales tax on used car sales under $20,000. Instead, they quickly shut our idea down, and now those who buy a used car pay a tax on a value that this government deems appropriate.

The government could have followed through with their commitment to widen highways and upgrade infrastructure in my riding. Instead, we have gridlock traffic burning through the expensive gas that families are working so hard to pay for.

The government could have sent renters the rebates they were promised or built more than the mere 10 percent of homes they promised in six years and two terms ago. Instead, what do British Columbians get? Nothing.

While results and actions are things this government seems to stray away from, we have 31 percent more people visiting their local food banks in the meantime. I rose in this chamber last week. I highlighted how there’s no food without farmers and how crucial it is that farmers in B.C. are better supported and safeguarded from disasters like last year’s floods. Yet many farmers are still waiting for their promised disaster relief, and others are fighting lengthy reassessment of coverage.

[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]

We can’t afford these risks knowing that many more disruptions to our food supply system will only take already skyrocketing prices to the next higher level. The HungerCount survey found that almost 10 percent of British Columbians wouldn’t eat for a whole day because they couldn’t afford it.

We are in a crisis. Rent is now more expensive than ever under the same person who led the Housing Ministry and is currently receiving a promotion to lead this entire province. I know I speak for British Columbians and my constituents in Abbotsford South when I say that we’re worried. We’re concerned that this government is only getting increasingly out of touch and unwilling to accept the complex realities on the ground. Instead of galivanting around our province making vague announcements….

Mr. Speaker: Member.

B. Banman: British Columbians expect actions, not photo ops.

Mr. Speaker: Member, move the adjournment of the debate, please.

B. Banman moved adjournment of debate.

Motion approved.

Hon. K. Chen moved adjournment of the House.

Motion approved.

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

The House adjourned at 11:58 a.m.