Fourth Session, 42nd Parliament (2023)
OFFICIAL REPORT
OF DEBATES
(HANSARD)
Thursday, February 16, 2023
Morning Sitting
Issue No. 268
ISSN 1499-2175
The HTML transcript is provided for informational purposes only.
The PDF transcript remains the official digital version.
CONTENTS
| Routine Business | |
Office of the Auditor General, B.C.’s COVID-19 Response: Monitoring Vaccination Coverage, February 2023 | |
| Orders of the Day | |
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2023
The House met at 10:04 a.m.
[Mr. Speaker in the chair.]
Routine Business
Prayers and reflections: L. Doerkson.
Introductions by Members
I. Paton: It’s my pleasure today to welcome my brother-in-law, Vic Noble, who is my wife Pam’s brother. Vic resides in North Vancouver with his family, and his family goes way back in the forest industry with the mill they used to have on the shores of Burrard Inlet in North Vancouver.
Please make Vic Noble, my brother-in-law, welcome today.
A. Olsen: Today I have the privilege of welcoming two constituents of mine, Andrei Marti and his mother, Annelies, to the House. Recently Andrei was awarded the Medal of Good Citizenship. At a young age, Andrei has already established himself as an exceptional fundraiser, philanthropist and change-maker. He has raised over $50,000 to date for local charities.
Determined and creative, Andrei has raised money busking on the streets of Victoria and turning handstands into dollars, as well as collecting bottles and selling goods and crafts. He annually challenges other kids to match his $500 donation to a specific charity, and he is working to mobilize his community.
In recognition of his amazing achievements, Andrei has been awarded the National Philanthropy Day for Youth in Philanthropy award twice and, again, was recently awarded the Medal of Good Citizenship. Andrei has made it part of his goal to raise awareness about type 1 diabetes, specifically in children and youth.
Could the House please welcome Andrei and Annalise to the House and raise our hands in gratitude for being an exceptional leader in our community.
HÍSW̱ḴE SIÁM.
K. Paddon: My guest…. I’m going to have to introduce them remotely due to illness, but tomorrow is a very special day for them. They’re my sweet baby boy, which I have to say on TV, because they are turning into a voter tomorrow — sorry, an 18-year-old tomorrow. It’s their birthday.
So for my son Nic Paddon, who many people here have met…. He may have introduced himself with a fun fact. I just would ask the House to join me in saying a very happy birthday and a quick recovery — he’s not feeling well — to Chilliwack-Kent’s newest voter and my adult child, Nic Paddon.
R. Russell: I have the privilege to introduce in the House — my apologies; I’ve forgotten your last names — Mimi and Erin from the UBC AMS students group. I appreciate their tireless advocacy on behalf of their university students.
Statements
(Standing Order 25B)
CYCLING ACTIVITIES AND ROAD SAFETY
J. Sturdy: I’m pleased to rise today to speak on the importance of cycling safety. ICBC data shows that just over five bicycle-vehicle crashes occur every day, and who knows how many single-operator accidents. However, within those nearly 2,000 bicycle-vehicle collisions every year, roughly 30 percent result in an injury, generally not to the motorist.
Now, don’t let me scare you off with those stats. Riding a bicycle remains one of the most enjoyable, cleanest, economic and healthiest transportation alternatives that can be enjoyed by British Columbians from right across this province, including in my riding of West Vancouver–Sea to Sky, where we welcome residents and visitors to participate in it.
At this point, I think I’d like to take the opportunity to put a plug in. If you do already enjoy cycling, think about trying out the Sea to Sky GranFondo, where you can enjoy a supported and controlled ride from Stanley Park all the way to Whistler. It truly is an epic ride, and I can testify that it will be a life memory.
If your riding is of a more utilitarian nature, while many laws govern the use of bikes in British Columbia, including most standard traffic laws, we don’t yet have legislation which dictates how vehicle drivers are obligated in their interactions with cyclists on the road.
This is why the B.C. Cycling Coalition is asking this Legislature to update the Motor Vehicle Act and implement road safety laws establishing a minimum safe passing distance to protect cyclists. With the increasing use of bicycles, it makes sense to join Ontario, Nova Scotia, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador who already have minimum safe passing distance laws.
An amendment would help keep cyclists safe and support the building of more active, mobile and sustainable communities. By setting a minimum distance between passing vehicles and bicycles, we’re certainly decreasing the potential for injuries and deaths, and it just seems like the right thing to do.
BURNABY URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE TEAM
IN TÜRKIYE
EARTHQUAKE RESPONSE
J. Routledge: We’ve all been following the news about the Burnaby firefighters who flew to Türkiye the day after a devastating earthquake to help rescue those trapped in the collapsed buildings. They were deployed to the city of Adiyaman.
We cheered them from afar when we heard they had successfully pulled a woman from the rubble of a collapsed six-story building. It took them six hours to dig her out, and then they were immediately assigned to the next location.
They are members of the Burnaby urban search and rescue team, a self-funded, non-profit volunteer unit. They worked with Turkish government agencies to provide urban search, technical search, scene stabilization and humanitarian assistance.
They arrived prepared to be self-sufficient in austere conditions for up to nine days, living in a disaster zone in winter conditions. They brought with them a Delsar seismic acoustic listening device. It converts an entire collapsed structure into a large, sensitive microphone that transmits noises and vibrations from entombed victims. They brought search cameras, light-breaching and cutting equipment, hand tools and a water filtration unit.
On February 10, they were reporting that over 140 people had been rescued alive. It was assumed that there were people in every building, and priority was being given to buildings with signs of life. By February 12, they were working with international teams to locate and remove deceased victims. They came home Tuesday.
Please join me in thanking firefighters Ryan Berry, Shawn Mohammed, Rob Lee, David Parker, Brody Mackenzie, Rory Graham, Kevin Douglas, Ryan Moon, Luke Kavanagh, White Rock firefighter Norm MacLeod and the many others behind the scenes who supported this group.
LEGION VETERANS VILLAGE
CENTRE OF
EXCELLENCE
E. Sturko: Last week on Wednesday, February 8, along with the Minister of Forests, the member for Surrey-Whalley, I had the privilege of attending the opening of the Legion Veterans Village Centre of Excellence, which is in the city centre of my home community in Surrey.
The Legion Veterans Village project is Canada’s first-of-its-kind integrated centre of excellence for veterans and first responders, focusing on post-traumatic stress disorder and mental health as well as mixed medical and rehabilitative services. Led by the B.C. and Yukon Command of the Royal Canadian Legion, together with the Whalley Legion Branch 229 and the Lark Group in Surrey, B.C., this unique $312 million two-phase multipurpose project has been ten years in the making and is envisioned to be the first of many such projects across Canada.
As a former member of the Canadian Forces and the RCMP, I’ve worked side by side with soldiers and first responders who’ve been heavily impacted by the duty they carried out for our country. I know many who continue to battle mental and physical challenges resulting from their service, and I’ve known and loved some who’ve lost their battle.
The Legion Veterans Village will save lives and change the current continuum of care for veterans, first responders and citizens in the community that it serves.
In addition to providing housing in community, the Legion Veterans Village will generate active research, science collaborations as well as utilize multiple innovative technologies and rehabilitation spaces, all specifically focused on transforming care for veterans while building an integrated continuum of programs and services for suffering veterans, first responders and their families.
This brand-new centre of excellence will contribute to training and research towards new practices, interventions, technologies, mental health counselling, engineering robotics and advancements in neuroscience.
Congratulations to all those involved in this important project, and thank you for caring for our veterans and first responders and for making Surrey a better place.
COLDEST NIGHT OF THE YEAR
FUNDRAISING WALK IN
NANAIMO AND OCEANSIDE
A. Walker: I rise today to speak to an issue that we all see and are all impacted by. That’s of homelessness and precarious housing. To do this, I want to focus on a positive and practical way that we can make a difference.
It’s understandable that for many of us the problem can feel overwhelming. We may not know how, as an individual, we can impact the structural poverty, mental health and substance use challenges that are often correlated with homelessness or the issues of family stability and trauma that can lead to a life of vulnerability.
There is something we can all do. The Coldest Night of the Year walk is a fun and easy way that individuals can step forward and contribute to making real change in our community. Proceeds raised in Nanaimo and Oceanside help fund the shelter and support programs of Island Crisis Care Society that focus on this vulnerable population. ICCS clients often face significant barriers to connection stemming from adversity in their past and stigma in their present.
Funds raised go towards innovative, client-centred programming that can address the needs, including specialized life skills and employability programming through Project Rise and client-centred outreach supports for people experiencing homelessness and precarious housing at Oceanside through Oceanside outreach. The record number of individuals, community groups and businesses stepping forward this year to support is incredible, not only raising funds but, more importantly, raising awareness.
At the centre of the Coldest Night of the Year is the idea of community. Let’s work together to address the challenges faced by our vulnerable population and help them move forward to wellbeing. Join us Saturday, February 25, and let’s make a difference.
CHARLES ELLIOT (TEMOSEṈŦET)
A. Olsen: Today I stand to recognize and honour my uncle, TEMOSEṈŦET, Dr. Charles Elliott. Charles was the pre-eminent Coast Salish artist.
When Charles started to walk his path of artistry 50 years ago, Coast Salish art was overlooked. At that time, the museum curators had hidden our culture into boxes and drawers. Charles helped bring it from those dark rooms and into the light. He studied in private collections, and he spent hours searching through the boxes and shelves. The imagery that Charles breathed life into through his craft was inspired by the incredible industrious innovation of his, of our, ancestors.
His ambassadors are everywhere: the Victoria Airport, the University of Victoria and the Mary Winspear Centre. Some of his best-known works include the design on the gold medal and his contribution to the Queen’s Baton for the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria and a talking stick commissioned by the Duwamish Tribe and presented to Nelson Mandela during his visit to Seattle in 1999. He was proud of that talking stick because Nelson Mandela was a freedom fighter as was Charles.
His work rose out of the radical activism of the American Indian Movement. Much of the political progress that Indigenous people have achieved is rooted in a powerful generation of civil rights warriors. Well, Rebel Chuck was one of those warriors.
Last year Charles’ life’s work was recognized with an honourary degree of fine arts from the University of Victoria. He had a wonderful relationship with the faculty and students at the university. I raise my hands to UVic and to the hundreds of people who paid tribute to Charles and brought good feelings to my family.
TEMOSEṈŦET passed away on January 29, and we will miss the powerful contribution he made to his family, his community and to W̱SÁNEĆ storytelling.
HÍSW̱ḴE SIÁM.
WOMEN’S MEMORIAL MARCH
K. Paddon: On Tuesday the streets of the Downtown Eastside were filled with family, friends and community advocates dressed in red and holding signs commemorating their loved ones. One woman was there to honour 64 friends and loved ones that are missing or who have been murdered. No one should have to mourn that many loved ones in such tragic way.
First held in 1992 to respond to the murder of a woman on Vancouver’s Powell Street, the annual Women’s Memorial March takes place in the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood on the unceded territory of the Coast Salish people. This past Tuesday, February 14, hundreds of people.
This past Tuesday, February 14, hundreds of people marched to honour missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, trans and two-spirit people from the Downtown Eastside and across British Columbia. The march included speeches and ended with a community meal.
Red has been the representative colour of missing and murdered Indigenous women since 2010, when Métis artist Jaime Black began the REDress Project as an art installation, which was first shown at the University of Winnipeg in 2011. This installation is now a permanent exhibit at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and is marked annually with Red Dress Day on May 5 to remind us of the people in our communities who have been taken.
As Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity, I recognize that there is much, much more to do. The urgency of this issue and the need for progress on reconciliation and meaningful action is woven throughout everything we do. We know that Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQ+ people are disproportionately vulnerable to gender-based violence due to colonialism, discrimination, racism and other forms of systemic oppression.
I want to take this opportunity to honour the people whose lives have been stolen, their families and the survivors. Thank you to the advocates, community members, families and friends, survivors and loved ones.
We stand with you, remembering those we have lost.
Oral Questions
STATUS OF ROYAL B.C. MUSEUM
AND COLLECTIONS FACILITY
PROJECT
K. Falcon: Another day, another example of glaring NDP incompetence.
It’s been almost a year since the NDP cabinet approved an inept plan to shut down and demolish the Royal B.C. Museum, wanting to leave a gaping hole for almost a decade. And let’s not forget this Premier’s personal support for that billion-dollar vanity project. In fact, when asked about it, he doubled down and had his office tell the media: “He agrees with the project as well as the proposal and business case.”
Now, fortunately, the combination of the opposition and the public uproar forced the government to pull the plug on a project that nobody asked for and nobody wanted, but bizarrely, the museum remains largely boarded up, with the iconic Old Town exhibit on the third floor remaining completely closed off. Tourists and children now get to see a largely empty museum, depriving the province of one of its most popular destinations.
A simple question for the Premier: will the Premier stop the endless consultations, be a leader and reopen the museum, especially the entire third floor, so people can finally enjoy the museum’s exhibits, especially the Old Town, and do it now?
Hon. L. Beare: I want to thank the Leader of the Opposition for the question, because it’s a really great chance to talk about the Royal B.C. Museum, which is truly special to all of us here in the House and to all British Columbians.
We know how important…
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh, Members.
The minister will continue.
Hon. L. Beare: …this museum is to people and the ties that they have to it over the years. We know how popular the third-floor exhibits have been to people and also how problematic it has been to others, which is why the museum is undertaking extensive consultation as we speak.
We also know that there’s an opportunity to use what’s there, modernize it and highlight the real history of British Columbia, to tell all the stories. I know the minister has spoken with the chair of the museum, the CEO of the museum, and made it very clear her interest in having the third floor open to the public with an updated story of British Columbia.
Mr. Speaker: Leader of the Official Opposition, supplemental.
K. Falcon: Well, government has taken the expression “Nothing to see here, folks” to a whole new level.
The NDP incompetence doesn’t just end with the museum itself. Let’s talk about the disaster of the separate collections facility project in Colwood, where the NDP wanted to temporarily relocate the artifacts from the billion-dollar museum they were going to build over to a new site in Colwood.
It was supposed to cost $177 million and be completed in 2024. Surprise, surprise. Costs have already gone up by 30 percent and are still climbing. The site remains an empty field today, even though construction was supposed to have started last year.
You know, you’d almost think the NDP don’t know what the heck they’re doing. There’s absolutely no chance that the delays and budget runs are over. In fact, I’m going to make a prediction. I’ll predict that those costs will be well over $350 million, and it will be years behind schedule by the time it finally gets completed.
Again, my question to the Premier: what is the current cost of the separate collections facility project today, and will he come clean with the public of British Columbia and admit that this is a complete and total waste of taxpayer dollars?
Hon. L. Beare: We have over seven million artifacts at the Royal B.C. Museum. This is our shared collective history of all of British Columbia, and there’s global history as well.
We have the largest collection of Emily Carrs. We have dinosaurs. We have antiquities from all across the world, seven million pieces that…. Currently, many of them are sitting below sea level and at risk, which is why our government made the commitment to build the collections and research building to have a safe, modern, accessible space for researchers, for people to view these collections and engage with these treasures that we have.
We’re going to continue that work, and we’re very proud of that.
Mr. Speaker: Leader of the Official Opposition, second supplemental.
K. Falcon: We’ll note that there was absolutely no answer to the question of how much it’s going to cost. No surprise.
Frankly, the public of British Columbia deserves a lot more than an empty field in Colwood and a half-empty Royal B.C. Museum. It has been 15 months since the government abruptly closed down the Old Town on the third floor without any public consultation, and the rationale keeps changing constantly.
First, the former minister said: “Well it was a result of decolonization.” Then she switched her story and said: “Exhibits like the Old Town are full of asbestos.” Next it was seismic issues, claiming the entire building was in imminent risk of collapsing, apparently. Now I’m hearing the minister talk about the flood issues that they’re so apparently concerned about. Just this week the current minister said: “I’m not in charge of Old Town.”
It’s time for the Premier to stop with the excuses and just show some leadership for once. When will the Premier scrap the collections facility and commit today to immediately open up the third floor and get Old Town open so the public can enjoy it again?
Hon. L. Beare: It’s only the B.C. Liberals who would think scrapping a protected collection and research building and leaving the Douglas treaty at risk is a good idea. Only the B.C. Liberals would think the largest collection in the world of Emily Carrs being at risk of flooding due to seismic instability…
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh. Members.
Hon. L. Beare: …is a bad idea.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members. Members, wait for the next question, please.
The minister will continue.
Hon. L. Beare: Our government has made some very important commitments to the public and to the people of British Columbia. We are out there. The museum is out consulting right now with the public, with Indigenous communities, to see what it is they want for a modern museum. We made that commitment, and we’re doing that work. We made the commitment to protect our treasures that we have in B.C.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh. Members.
The minister will continue.
Hon. L. Beare: We have made that commitment to the people of British Columbia to protect these shared treasures, which we all hold dear. We’ve made the commitment to the people of British Columbia to have a new, modern museum…
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh, Members.
Members, please.
Finish off, Minister.
Hon. L. Beare: …which shares the collective history that we all have together, and that’s what we’re going to do.
E. Ross: The Royal B.C. Museum does hold some treasured artifacts on behalf of all British Columbians. So it only stands to reason that it deserves more than 15 months of incompetence. It deserves more.
None of this makes any sense. I mean, pick an excuse that you disclosed over the last 15 months, and run with it. Pick just one, not five or six. Your story keeps changing.
The excuse about decolonization was nothing but political posturing by the NDP. I did question the then Tourism Minister about this, and the story changed. They claimed it was being closed for decolonization, and then the story became about asbestos. “Let’s blame it on asbestos.”
Now we have the Minister of Tourism claiming that it was never “torn down” in the first place. Now it’s about flooding.
All this started with a billion-dollar museum that nobody wanted, nobody asked for, and then the B.C. government had to pull it back. The truth is that the third floor of the Royal B.C. Museum remains shut down, and nobody knows if or when it’s going to open.
A simple question to the Premier. Will he give us a straight answer? Is the third floor of the museum going to reopen or not, and if so, when?
Hon. L. Beare: I appreciate the question.
The members opposite should know very well the reports of asbestos and the concerns that were had with the museum. They weren’t new. The members of their cabinet had them as well. So I’m surprised that the members are asking that.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh, Members.
Hold it, Minister.
When the question was asked, courtesy was given to listen to the question. Now let’s do the same thing to hear the answer.
Minister will continue.
Hon. L. Beare: We made a commitment to British Columbians to modernize the museum. This was a commitment, which our Premier talked about and which we shared with British Columbians, so that we could protect the artifacts that we have in our collective history.
The minister has spoken with the CEO and the chair of the museum and expressed her interest in having the third floor open. She has made that very clear.
We are not in charge of operations of the museum. Obviously, the chair and the CEO will make these decisions. We have made our position clear, and we will continue to work with them so that we can find a way to open the third floor and share our collective history in a way that shares all of our stories.
Mr. Speaker: Member for Skeena, supplemental.
E. Ross: It seems that we’re going to continue with the mixed messages. I only want to see what the messages could be next week. We’ve already covered flooding, asbestos, decolonization. I don’t know what else there is. The story keeps changing.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members, you’re heckling your own member.
Member will continue.
E. Ross: I spoke out of turn here when I said that the museum was shut down. It’s not totally shut down. The minister is offering private tours of the third floor and claiming that Old Town remains intact. It’s closed to the public, but it’s not closed to everybody.
This is ridiculous. This is absolutely ridiculous. After 15 months, after the public said they don’t want a billion-dollar refit…. They just want the museum to be open to the public. That’s what the public wants. So either the third floor is unsafe or the asbestos risks were overblown, because people are actually viewing it with private tours, or there’s going to be a flood happening. What is it?
Again to the Premier, is the third floor still intact or not, and most importantly, when will it reopen?
Hon. L. Beare: I thank the member for the question.
This is the fifth question, and the answer hasn’t changed. I’m not sure why the member is confused.
The minister has made it very clear that she intends to see the third floor open.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh, Members. Members.
Please continue.
Hon. L. Beare: She’s had this conversation with the CEO and the chair. The work was already underway for that. The RBCM was working on reopening the third floor, when I had the portfolio a few months ago, to include an exhibition called SUE: The T. rex Experience.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members. Members.
Hon. L. Beare: This work is ongoing, and we’re going to continue doing that work. We’re going to continue to protect our incredible collections that we have in the museum. We’re going to continue to bring modern exhibits like the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibit that opened in December.
This work is ongoing with the museum. We’re going to continue to provide world-class exhibitions for people that they want to see. We’re going to continue the work on the third floor, because we intend to see it open.
EMPLOYMENT PLAN FOR
INFRASTRUCTURE WORKERS
AND
ROLE OF LNG DEVELOPMENT
A. Olsen: I apologize for the outburst earlier, Mr. Speaker. This is quite activating, this conversation, this whatever it is that’s going on in here.
The recognition needs to be made by this government that our stuff, the stuff that my uncle, which I talked about, had to go visit…. Our cultural so-called artifacts, in that place, were locked behind closed doors. Those are not being transported out to the safe place for storage. Those are staying in the building that’s going to fall down. That’s what we’ve been told. So yeah, this is an activating conversation for those of us who have sacred items locked away in the glass cases of those museums.
The British Columbia economy experiences boom-and-bust cycles. There are many factors, including commodity prices and access to natural resources. The completion of four major megaprojects over the next two years will end thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic activity. LNG Canada, Coastal GasLink, Site C, Trans Mountain are worth a combined $88 billion and employ 18,000 people, on average, in northern B.C. and the Lower Mainland.
To the Premier, what’s his plan for these workers?
Hon. B. Bailey: Thank you to the member opposite for the question. We know how important it is to keep people working. We’ve seen significant impacts as mills curtail, for example, and the member’s example as well. That’s why we’ve created the $90 million manufacturing jobs fund. It’s one example of the work that we’re doing to ensure economic diversity in our province.
It’s so important that people can find well-paying jobs wherever they live in the province. It’s important to us. We’re doing that work, and we’ll continue.
Mr. Speaker: Member, supplemental.
A. Olsen: It’s $88 billion worth of economic activity that’s being generated by 18,000 jobs, and the minister provided a roughly $20 million response to that. The context is way out of whack.
It’s remarkable that this B.C. NDP government is allowing the hope of the LNG industry, an industry that they know makes no sense in a climate emergency, to continue to burn. I imagine this is because under their plan, these workers will be working in the handful of new LNG and pipeline projects that are currently being speculated on in our province.
It appears that this B.C. NDP government is poised to make fracked gas the next forest fibre. Neither the Premier nor his ministers will close the door on future fossil fuel expansion. We’ve given them several opportunities just this week and before.
To the Premier, is he planning on keeping these workers busy on the handful of new gas liquefaction and pipeline projects, such as the Enbridge project, which is currently being proposed in this province?
Hon. R. Fleming: I appreciate the member’s question. It’s a bit perplexing, because the projects he listed — and the job creation and the economic activity associated with them — are all projects that, to my knowledge, he opposed. I can tell him that the workforce, the heavy construction workforce in this province, will be utilized, and is being utilized, on major infrastructure projects right across British Columbia today.
There are even workers who had been working on pipeline projects constructing the Kicking Horse Canyon phase 4 right now. We have workers who are working on the Broadway subway tunnel project right through Vancouver. We have the largest capital infrastructure investment plan in the province’s history.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh.
Hon. R. Fleming: By investing in the skills of workers in this province, we are creating the capacity to do even more infrastructure projects that will develop a modern economy in the province of British Columbia.
HEALTH WORKER VACCINATION
AND REHIRING OF
STAFF
J. Rustad: I also find it interesting that the House Leader of the Green Party was talking about all these projects that are hiring thousands and thousands of people. One can only hope that there are additional projects that those people will be working on.
We do have a labour problem in this province. The challenge we have, quite frankly, is that our health care system is in a crisis, and there are literally hundreds of workers that are needed right across this province, professionals that are needed in our emergency rooms and providing services in our hospitals.
A simple question to the Health Minister: when will this government do the right thing and hire back B.C.’s health care heroes, providers who were fired or who quit because of mandates and disrespect?
Hon. A. Dix: As the member will know, there are 38,000 more people working in our health care system today than there were when I became Minister of Health. He’ll know that we have a health human resources plan with 70 actions that are dealing with recruitment. They’re dealing with pathways for internationally educated doctors and nurses. They’re increasing the number of spaces. They’re creating new medical schools. These are the actions required as we need to continue to build out our health care system to meet existing demand.
We are working with those who work in health care such as doctors, who approved our most recent master agreement by 94 percent; resident doctors, who approved by 98 percent; ambulance paramedics, who endorsed this plan by 96 percent, working together.
With respect to COVID-19 requirements, the people who are treated, for example, in our acute care hospitals in B.C. are, by definition, the most vulnerable people in the province. There are 10,000 of them in acute care hospitals as we speak today, 10,004. They are, as everybody knows, after three years of this pandemic in a couple of weeks, the most vulnerable to COVID-19 and its negative effects. It’s why British Columbia and the provincial health officer acted to ensure that those who work in our public health care system are vaccinated. We will continue to do that.
The issue is not mandates; it’s COVID-19. The issue is the safety of patients and staff. We will continue to act on that and continue to see these decisions made by the provincial health officer, not by politicians.
Mr. Speaker: Member for Nechako Lakes, supplemental.
J. Rustad: What I find interesting is that every other province in this country has done the right thing and removed the mandates. They’ve removed the mandates because they know they need the health care professionals in the system.
It’s great that the Health Minister is talking about all these improvements to the system, but the priority should be patients, not a system. The priority needs to be to make sure that we get the professionals we need to be able to provide those services for patients.
Once again, when will this government come to the realization that patients should be at the centre of health care, not the system, and hire back B.C.’s health care heroes?
Hon. A. Dix: That decision was made with patients in mind. One of the reasons why I think…. Everybody in B.C. deserves credit for this — not the Minister of Health, not someone else but everybody in B.C. B.C.’s COVID-19 response was amongst the best in the world was because we acted with unprecedented speed to support patients and health care workers. It is patients in our hospitals.
I can tell you from personal experience, with our family, how vulnerable patients are in long-term care, residents are in long-term care, how vulnerable patients are in acute care hospitals.
To take action when people are at their most vulnerable, when they’re being treated for cancer and heart disease and other questions. To take actions to protect them from the effects of a pandemic that has affected the entire world and killed people in the thousands in B.C., in the millions across the world.
To take action — yes, B.C. was the only province in Canada to take this action. Yes, B.C. led the way, and we’re going to continue to do so.
GOVERNMENT SUPPORT FOR RURAL
ECONOMY AND NATURAL
RESOURCE SECTOR
L. Doerkson: Let’s talk for a moment about the Premier’s caucus of chaos and their latest insults to British Columbians.
During throne speech debate this week, the Premier’s appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Rural Development had some very disparaging things to say. He said that supporting our natural resource sector was “uninspiring,” and worse, he said “a vision for what rural communities were 100 years ago.” Frankly, it’s unbelievable to me that a person the Premier has personally picked to fight for rural B.C. has just given up and says he thinks it’s uninspiring.
Our natural resources and industries have supported the livelihoods of generations of hard-working British Columbians, including many people who used to vote for the NDP. Whether it’s forestry, natural gas, mining, hydro, ranching, you name it, you just don’t seem to care.
Will the Premier stand up today, publicly reject these ridiculous and insulting comments from his point person for rural B.C. and tell him to do his job and start fighting for our natural resource sector, instead of insulting resource workers from across this province?
Hon. R. Kahlon: You will not find many people that are as strong an advocate for rural communities as you will as the Parliamentary Secretary for Rural Development in British Columbia.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh.
Members, Members. Members.
Okay, Members.
The minister will continue.
Hon. R. Kahlon: We hear from mayors, from chambers, from local government officials all across B.C. who want to see more economic development in rural communities. Yes, resource development is important. No one is denying that resource development is important. It is critically important.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh. Members.
The minister will continue.
Hon. R. Kahlon: Hon. Speaker, we could do more. We can have advanced manufacturing in rural communities. We have tech companies in rural communities. Rural communities are not just resource development. Rural communities are a whole host of economic development.
Perhaps the narrow definition of what “economic development” in rural communities is, from this member, is the problem. We’re going to continue to make investments to diversify our economy, to diversify economic development opportunities in rural communities. We believe rural economies can be more than just resource development. They can be a whole host of other initiatives. We’ve announced many things. We’re going to announce many more.
T. Shypitka: It’s a great day today in the Legislature when we hear members of the Green Party celebrate and recognize economic activities that our natural resource brings and the minister to double down with his own lip service of the same. But sadly enough, our Premier is ashamed. He’s ashamed of our resource sector, and there’s no question about it.
Last month, during his keynote address at the Natural Resource Forum in Prince George, he couldn’t even bring himself to mention the initials LNG. In his first 90 days, he managed to lose 12,000 manufacturing and natural resource jobs.
What does the Premier’s parliamentary secretary have to say to those workers that lost their jobs? “Oh well. You’re too uninspiring and too last century for us.” News flash to the Premier: these are not sunset industries.
Why on earth should any worker in forestry, mining or natural gas trust a Premier who is ashamed of the work they do to pay the bills in this province?
Hon. B. Bailey: Thank you for the question, but nothing could be further from the truth.
Our natural resources sector…
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Shhh. Members.
Members, let’s hear the answer.
Hon. B. Bailey: …is so important to our economy, and it’s so important to us.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members.
Hon. B. Bailey: I had the opportunity to attend the Natural Resources Forum in Prince George and met firsthand with many workers in the sector. We met with folks who were impacted by mill curtailment, and we’re talking to them about what their needs are.
It’s so important that we provide supports, and we’re doing that: $185 million in last year’s budget specifically to support workers, things like bridging to retirement and skills training. Skills training — so important, so important.
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members, Members, wait.
Hon. B. Bailey: We know that we need….
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members. Members.
The minister will conclude.
Hon. B. Bailey: We know that we need to ensure that there are well-paying jobs in these communities, and we’re doing that work in a number of different ways. The jobs manufacturing plan is one example, the $90 million.
But I want to tell you what is inspiring, Mr. Speaker. What is inspiring is the work of my colleague the parliamentary secretary who created the REDIP program. The REDIP program was a result of….
Interjections.
Mr. Speaker: Members. Members, enough.
Minister, please conclude.
Hon. B. Bailey: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
My colleague the parliamentary secretary on this file worked very closely with rural communities to create the REDIP program. It’s an excellent program, funded at $35 million. He met with people throughout the regions to design this program. It’s been well overprescribed, and I’m hearing from staff that the applications are excellent. He does great work. I’m very proud to call him a colleague.
[End of question period.]
Tabling Documents
Mr. Speaker: Members, I have the honour of tabling the Auditor General report B.C.’s COVID-19 Response: Monitoring Vaccination Coverage.
Hon. R. Kahlon: I’ve had an opportunity to hear from members across this House about how we need to reform private members’ time and private member bills.
Mr. Speaker, I seek leave to move a motion with respect to an appointment of a special committee to review private members’ business.
Leave not granted.
Orders of the Day
Hon. R. Kahlon: We call Committee of the Whole on Bill 2.
Mr. Speaker: The House will be in recess for five minutes.
The House recessed at 10:55 a.m.
Committee of the Whole House
BILL 2 — NATIONAL DAY FOR
TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION
ACT
The House in Committee of the Whole on Bill 2; S. Chandra Herbert in the chair.
The committee met at 11 a.m.
On clause 1.
The Chair: All right, hon. Members, I’d like to call this committee into session.
Of course, we’re on clause 1, but I want to recognize the minister in case you want to make any opening remarks or introduce your staff.
Hon. H. Bains: It is with great honour that I stand here today. We are doing Committee of the Whole on a bill that is probably going to be the highlight of this House for a long time to come. I think there’s a lot of work that went behind it. It was asked by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s recommendation No. 80.
I think it is a great time for us to talk about the details of this bill, so I’m looking forward to seeing what the questions might be. But I can tell you it is a great honour to be here to talk about the details of this bill and how we are going to use this day as a lasting reconciliation, at the same time honouring the resilience of our First Nations, their strength, and remembering the children who never came home.
G. Kyllo: It certainly gives me a great amount of pride to be able to rise in the House today to speak in committee stage on Bill 2, the recognition of National Truth and Reconciliation Day. As the minister has indicated, a very important day, a monumental day across Canada. I think it is incredibly important that B.C. follow other provinces and territories in recognizing September 30 as a public stat holiday.
The bill is probably the smallest bill, the shortest piece of legislation, that I have actually seen in this House. Although previously I’ve gone at great lengths to inquire with the minister on other pieces of legislation, this piece of legislation is truly one, I think, that all members of this House will be in support of. It is very simplistic.
With that, hon. Chair, I have no questions with respect to this piece of legislation and certainly want to acknowledge my support for this very important day.
M. Dykeman: This is such an important bill, and I believe that we need to have a really fulsome discussion about it, because it’s something that matters to people in my constituency. I believe that this is a great opportunity to have a long conversation about the development of the bill and give it the deference that deserves.
My question is related to the consultation. I was wondering if the minister could provide some details about the consultation. Who was consulted? What was discussed? What were the points that people wanted to really dig in on? Sort of start with that process, because I think that’s something that’s really important for the people of British Columbia to understand.
Hon. H. Bains: I want to thank the member. It is important for us to talk about this: what brought us here today, how we came up with this bill.
My recollection, having discussions on the government side, was that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s recommendation No. 80 talks about having a day as a statutory holiday. As you know, the federal government went ahead with it, but that applied to only federally regulated workers, and there are not that many in British Columbia when you compare to all those that come under B.C. jurisdiction.
We went with two streams of consultations. One was through the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation. The consultation with the First Nations — that ministry took that responsibility. I will go over, for your next question, how we went about it and who was consulted. But then we, as the Ministry of Labour, took on the area of employers and employees, the workers, their representatives.
I could give you more information about what the results of those consultations were and who we consulted. It was driven by then Premier John Horgan. I guess I can name him here now. Or maybe I could still say…
Deputy Speaker: Not yet, Member. Not yet.
Hon. H. Bains: …ex-Premier, the member from Juan de Fuca.
He said: “Look, we want to make sure that we do it right. Who would know the right answer to that? That would be our First Nations and Indigenous people in British Columbia.” So we wanted to go out and talk to them and ask them what it is that they would like us to do to make this a day that would be commemorative, that would be a day where we recognize and honour the strength and resilience of our First Nations who went through a lot, through history, as we all know, and also remember the children who never came home.
I think those are the themes: how we will make this day really meaningful, and that will lead us to add to the lasting reconciliation that we really wanted to do.
Member, I could go on, on that, but I think that is the theme. That’s what brought us here and how the consultation took place. But if the member has a question about who we consulted, how we consulted and who consulted them…. Perhaps, if members have that question, then I could answer that question.
M. Dykeman: I appreciate the minister’s answer. When this bill was coming forward, I heard from members of the First Nations community, constituents who had lots of questions about the consultation. They wanted to know, as the minister has mentioned, who was consulted, how long the consultation was, what it looked like, what topics were covered.
I just want to say that it’s important to have this on the record. I’m actually surprised. Although this is my first term as MLA, I’ve never seen a committee where there have been no questions about something so important. I think that it’s important to have that on the record, because I think the people of British Columbia would like to know this. Minimizing something as straightforward when it’s so important and affects so many people and is so instrumental in reconciliation is concerning and quite saddening.
But yes, Minister. I was wondering if you could please explain a little bit more of exactly who was consulted, how long the consultation took place and what the themes of those consultations were.
Hon. H. Bains: As I said, the calls to action are based on statements provided by over 6,000 residential school survivors between 2006 and 2015.
In April and May of 2022, the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation completed a targeted, time-limited consultation with Indigenous partners and communities to understand, as I have said earlier, if there’s support for designating September 30 as a provincial statutory holiday. That was the main, I think, driver behind where the government wants to be, because we knew early on that to do it right, it must be Indigenous-driven. For people of Indigenous…. Those are the people who would be guiding us, if there’s support for September 30, to designate it as a provincial statutory holiday.
The second, about the way in which the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation could be observed. You could agree, but then how do you observe it? That’s more important to me because the day is designated. It’s not just another day for us to go to the beach or to enjoy our family at a park. It has to be real and meaningful behind what this day is all about. That’s why it was important to consult as widely as you could and talk to as many people, especially Indigenous communities. “How do we observe that day? What happens on those days?” My expectation is that different communities will have different ways to commemorate.
The theme behind all of that would be remembering those children who never came home, remembering what happened, how they were taken away, remembering what those parents must have gone through. We all have children — at least, most of us. Imagine a five- or six-year-old. A government agent comes in and just takes your child away from you. Imagine. It happened — not one family, not two families but so many families. That’s why it is important what the intent is behind this particular day.
We have stat holidays in B.C. This will make it 11. We had ten before. Remembrance Day is one that comes to mind. It is different than all other days. This is where communities come together — young, old, school children, those who are not working and workers. They go to their neighbouring cenotaph, and then they talk about the history — wars, our veterans, how many of them never came back. Many came back with physical and mental scars that never went away. We talk about it. That’s what we do there. We pay respect to them, who risked their lives and gave their lives, sacrifices on our behalf so we could live a free life, the quality of life we have today.
It’s similar. Not exactly, but those would be the themes behind September 30. I’m hoping that there will be storytelling by our Elders, that there will be the young, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous, coming and listening to those stories and talking about what kind of future — learning from the past — this British Columbia and this world should have. That’s my hope. That’s what our government’s hope is.
I’m sure everyone on both sides of the House understands that, the importance of that day. So remember, that’s what was behind the need for consultation. I can tell you those were the months, April and May. I can give you a list, but there’s a lot more. I could probably give you more information, if you have the next question.
For example, what Indigenous organization representatives were consulted? You asked that question, so here. The Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation consulted key Indigenous partners at the provincial level, including Reconciliation Canada, the Orange Shirt Society, the First Nations Leadership Council, Métis Nation B.C., UBC’s Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre.
Government also engaged with many First Nations investigating the sites of former Indian residential schools and Indian hospitals, recognizing their unique role in documenting the history of residential schools in B.C. These formal consultations were supplemented by targeted discussions with individuals who have known interest to have an active and visible role in public education on this issue.
We wanted to talk to everyone who has any knowledge and those who experienced, those who have members of their families who experienced, the survivors. That’s what we did with this part of the consultation, but I have more. If the member would like to delve into more and who and what, I think I could give you that answer as well.
M. Dykeman: I have one more question in this area, and then I have another area I’d like to move on to.
Thank you for that really thorough answer. One of the questions that I get a lot from constituents in my community and others that I have the opportunity to speak to when I’m out at events is about the comment you made about targeted consultation.
I’m grateful for the opportunity to ask these questions in committee. I think committee stage is so important for people to ask questions, because it does give us an opportunity to get information to the public. I mean, these are important conversations. It’s important for people to understand how this legislation comes forward, how we pass bills. I think that it’s unfortunate there aren’t more questions coming forward on such an important subject.
I believe that one of the things that comes up the most often in my community is how the people who are consulted, the targeted consultations…. How does that happen? What’s the process that goes into identifying who you’ll consult with? As you know, our province is large, and there are lots of different people that play important roles.
One of the questions I hear from people, and I used to hear this at school board too, is: how do you decide who you’re going to consult with, and how do you put together those lists, then what’s the process in developing that list? I was wondering if you could expand on that a little bit. It’s a question I’ve been asked quite a bit.
The Chair: Of course, questions or answers are through the Chair.
Hon. H. Bains: My apologies that I neglected to introduce my staff, who are here to help me out with many of these tough questions.
Interjection.
Hon. H. Bains: With that kind of reaction from the House Leader, maybe I should ignore that still.
I have my deputy minister Trevor Hughes with me, Michael Tanner and Lydia Zucconi. She’s from the labour policy and legislation branch. I just want to say thank you.
Also, before I answer the question, there are some children in the gallery. First of all, I want to say welcome. This is where we debate very important issues that impact you, your parents, your neighbors, your school. Here is another one of those examples, what we’re doing here today.
So that you know what we are talking about here today, our neighbours, our Indigenous people, people that were here forever before any one of us came…. We’re talking about the history, what they went through when the settlers first came and how their children — your age, a younger age — were taken away from them and put in residential schools, and many of them never came back.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was formed by the federal government, after consultation, with the recommendation that we should set aside September 30 as a statutory holiday in Canada. The federal government did that, but that applies only to workers who are federally regulated, like banks and airlines.
But British Columbian workers, or the majority of them, did not enjoy the statutory holiday. So this is what we are doing here, declaring September 30 as a statutory holiday so that we can gather on that day and talk about the history and what went on and the history behind residential schools, the impact on our Indigenous communities and those children who, some of them, never came home. It’s so that we never repeat that history ever again, never let that happen again.
That’s the debate going on, on the third stage of that bill. If it passes, it will become law in British Columbia that September 30, which was Pink Shirt Day, which we all celebrated in the past anyway….
Interjection.
Hon. H. Bains: I’m sorry. Orange Shirt Day. That’s what we celebrated in the past, in commemoration of the past injustices, and that’s the day we are picking. It was a date that was recommended by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
The debate is going on. Questions are being asked, why and how we got here, so that you understand what we are doing here. Thank you, and I hope you will…. This could be boring, but bear with us. It’s a necessary part to do.
Now, coming back to the question that was being asked. Member, the consultation with Indigenous communities was the responsibility of the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation. They made that recommendation, and that’s what we’re doing.
Hon. M. Farnworth: I seek leave to make an introduction.
Leave granted.
Introductions by Members
Hon. M. Farnworth: I appreciate the comments that the minister was making to those students in the gallery, but I also think it’s important, for the record, that the school they represent and their teachers are actually mentioned in the official record.
Visiting us today in the gallery and listening to the debate were a group of students from Eagle View Elementary School and their teacher, Ryan Nast. They are 24 grade 4 and 5 students, along with five adults. I’d ask the House to make them most welcome.
Debate Continued
M. Dykeman: Thank you for that very thorough answer. I have another question, which is changing direction a little bit. One of the things that has come up over and over again through the conversation about recognizing this important day….
I truly am so thrilled that we are at this stage and moving forward to responding to call to action 80 to honour survivors and their families and communities, and that we are ensuring that there is this public commemoration of the history of residential schools and a recognition of the trauma to Indigenous peoples. It is a vital, vital part of the reconciliation process.
One of the concerns that I’ve heard from constituents, from members of First Nations communities and from many youths, actually, about this is that by creating a stat holiday — the concern is around that — there may not be the recognition; that it will become another day off; that there won’t be opportunities for people to learn about the history, recognize and reflect on the trauma in the history of residential schools; that it would just be treated as another day off.
I’ve heard from teachers, also, that feel that it would be better if this was going on in schools, that this was something in schools. Listening to the information provided by the minister, that’s something that I believe has been thought about. I know that there are several opportunities through social media for amplification of voices for residential school survivors and conversations and events.
I’m wondering. In the development of this bill and through the consultation, could you, so it’s on the record, explain what that conversation looked like? What sort of information was brought forward by First Nations communities on how this day can be protected from becoming simply a day off and one where our society has the opportunity to reflect? What were the First Nations leaders in this area’s ideas on how to enshrine this as a very important day and an opportunity, especially for youth, to learn about the history of this?
It’s something that has come up many times in my constituency and something that I think is very important. I’m wondering if the minister could provide us with that information.
At the conclusion of this question, I know that my colleague from North Coast has some questions, although I probably could drone on for another hour. I have at least ten other questions I’d love to ask. I know that my colleague from North Coast has some questions they would like to ask also.
Hon. H. Bains: Member, the Indigenous communities and partners have been very clear that this day should be approached with a sense of reverence, humility and respect. I mean, that’s just the beginning. The strong support that we see amongst Indigenous leaders for creating a statutory holiday is based on the belief that this day can create a better understanding and that it can contribute to a culture of remembrance and commemoration.
Orange Shirt Day is a grassroots movement that grew out of work to commemorate the history and harmful legacy of St. Joseph Mission near Williams Lake. We know that these events are most meaningful and impactful when they are survivor-driven and community-led. It is important that we create opportunity to amplify the voices of survivors and their families so that they have opportunities to share their experience in their own words.
Here is what we received from the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Chiefs council, a letter saying exactly that. I will read you….
I think it’s important that it goes on record what our Indigenous partners have been saying when we were talking about whether to have September 30 as a statutory holiday. This is in regards to provincial statutory holidays, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
“Whereas the Truth and Reconciliation Commission call to action No. 80 called on the federal government to establish, as a statutory holiday, a national day for truth and reconciliation to honour survivors and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential school remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.
“Whereas in June 2021 the federal government passed Bill C-5, An Act to amend the Bills of Exchange Act, the Interpretation Act and the Canada Labour Code to designate September 30 as the National Day for ruth and Reconciliation and make it a federal statutory holiday.
“Whereas the creation of a new provincial statutory holiday in B.C. requires changes to provincial employment standards through legislation or regulation, the province of B.C. made a commitment to engage residential school survivors and Indigenous partners and communities on whether to make this a statutory holiday in B.C. and how September 30 should be observed each year in B.C.
“Whereas the United Nations declaration on the rights of Indigenous peoples, which the government of Canada has adopted without qualifications and has, alongside the government of B.C., committed to implement, affirms
“Article 7(2): Indigenous peoples have the collective right to live in freedom, peace and security as distinct peoples and shall not be subjected to any act of genocide or any other act of violence, including forcibly removing children of the group to another group.
“Article 8(2): States shall provide effective mechanisms for prevention of and redress for (a) any action which has the aim or effect of depriving them of their integrity as distinct peoples or of their cultural values or ethnic identities; (b) any action which has the aim or effect of dispossessing them of their lands, territories or resources; (c) any form of forced population transfer which has the aim or effect of violating or undermining any of their rights; (d) any form of forced assimilation or integration.
“Article 15(1): Indigenous peoples have the right to the dignity and diversity of their cultures, traditions, histories and aspirations, which shall be appropriately reflected in education and public information.
“15(2): States shall take effective measures, in consultation and cooperation with the Indigenous peoples concerned, to combat prejudice and eliminate discrimination and to promote tolerance, understanding and good relations among Indigenous peoples and all other segments of society; and
“Whereas First Nations have advised the province of B.C. that the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation should be marked by reflection, truth-telling and remembrance for all British Columbians, including the Crown, while honouring and upholding the resilience and strength of residential school survivors, veterans and intergenerational survivors.
“Therefore, be it resolved that UBCIC Chiefs council fully support making September 30 a provincial statutory holiday through changes to legislation and/or regulation made in consultation and cooperation with Indigenous people.
“Therefore, be it further resolved that UBCIC Chiefs council call upon all British Columbians and Canadians to support this call to action and to stand with survivors and Indigenous people on September 30 in the spirit of truth and reconciliation.
“Therefore, be it further resolved that UBCIC Chiefs council call upon the province of B.C. to make meaningful investment in public education, commemoration and remembrance, events, sites, memorials and other initiatives that are planned by Indigenous people.
“Therefore, we have finally resolved that UBCIC Chiefs council call on the entire B.C. public and private sector to create plans to acknowledge truth and reconciliation on September 30 and educate their staff in advance of the holiday.
“Moved by Kukpi7 Rosanne Casimir, Tk’emlups te Secwepemc.
“Seconded by Chief John Powell, Mamalilikulla First Nation.
“Disposition: carried.
“Date: June 2, 2022.”
I apologize for mispronunciation.
That’s the theme behind what the First Nations have told us, after the consultation took place.
My hope is, and the government’s hope is, that we comply with the intent and the direction that we are receiving from our First Nations and Indigenous partners because we want to make this day truly memorable, truly to honour the survivors, the communities and remember those children.
A. Olsen: The minister has referred in the responses today and also the Minister of Indigenous Relations referred to some negotiation that was ongoing with the Minister of Heritage, the federal government, with respect to some potential funding that could be available for communities to engage in this day in the right way, in a good way.
The minister referred to ensuring that the spirit of this day be clear. I just want to ask the minister if there’s any intention, from the provincial government, in ensuring that there are resources available to communities across the province that could have a terms of reference that would then allow for the provincial government to ensure that the day of reflection that this should be is going to be assured? Or is this just going to be sort of a free-for-all for everybody to kind of determine whatever it is that they feel about this day from the outset, starting on September 30, 2023?
Hon. H. Bains: Thank you, Member, for the question. I’m advised that the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation has been working very closely with their federal counterparts and has learned that the federal government has agreed that there is a $10,000 grant available to different community groups. That could be municipalities, Indigenous groups, up to $10,000.
Again, we need to work together with the federal government and these community groups to make sure that we do it right, to make sure we respect the intention and the direction that comes from the Indigenous partners. How do we commemorate this day? How do we remember the past wrongdoings? I think it will take time. I mean, I’m a realist; it’ll take time. To create a culture for that particular day will take time, but I think we want to start on the right footing if we can.
The federal government has already committed a certain amount. They are also committed to September 30, as you know, and they are also committed to lasting truth and reconciliation. What model is it going to be? What kind of day will it be? I think if you keep in mind what is being told by our Indigenous partners, as to how they would like to see this day’s commemoration go and how these events will take place, and if we could start on the right footing, we will have a lot more to build on, then, as we go forward.
A. Olsen: It appears that members of this House are supportive of this bill. I guess I just want to urge some caution here that we are getting dangerously close to what this institution has done for decades: to take advantage of Indigenous people and their experiences with the colonial and Crown governments for the purposes of the colonial and Crown governments.
We are in this unique situation today where members of the government are asking their own ministers questions — not because of a legitimate reason that we want to get to these answers. This never happens in this House. We are here because the Government House Leader attempted to table a bill in the spirit of debating private members’ bills, to put together a special committee to do that. Leave was not granted, and the statement was: “We’re doing this because there’s a genuine interest from the government to debate private members’ bills.”
The project has been ongoing for the last year and a half, but all of a sudden, due to events that happened last night, it’s now a priority. The intention of getting private members’ bills debated was a genuine intention, to ensure that this House operates properly for all members. That didn’t happen. So now we are going to be, potentially, debating this bill that the members of this House agree on.
As I said in my second reading speech to this bill, every time this conversation happens, every time we get to September 30, Orange Shirt Day, National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, that is not a day of celebration; that is a day of pain, of suffering, of reopening wounds. That’s not a day of the past; that’s a day of the current generation, who has experienced intergenerational trauma.
If the government was genuine about private members’ bills, there are private members’ bills on the order paper today that could replace this debate. I recognize we’re getting very close to lunchtime. My sincere hope is that we do not return after lunch to debate this bill on and on, when the members of this House agree that it should move forward and should be passed.
The Minister of Indigenous Relations in his second reading speech…. I think that we had several second reading speeches identifying the importance of this bill. I just urge caution that we do not use this bill because of House management, whatever the members of this place might consider it to be — good, bad, indifferent — to just debate this ad nauseam when there is already agreement.
Let’s ensure that we are respectful to the issue, and I’m not suggesting that the minister has been disrespectful to the issue. The minister has not been disrespectful to the issue. The minister is simply doing what the minister has been asked to do. The Minister of Indigenous Relations has been very respectful. The members who have been asked to stand up and ask questions, my colleagues from the government side, have been respectful.
What I’m urging caution and what I’m making warning about is that if we spend 4½ hours debating this bill because the Crown institution can’t manage the legislative calendar, their own legislative agenda, that is bordering on disrespectful, and I just urge caution in that regard.
Hon. H. Bains: First of all, let me say this: everyone is genuinely serious and respectful about this bill in this House. That’s why the discussion should take place. I believe in that. If there was no discussion, then we would be seen as if we’re just rushing through and somehow diminishing the importance of this bill and the day that we are talking about. I’m saying that there were good questions.
Interjections.
The Chair: Members. Members, can we have some order here, please? Thank you.
Hon. H. Bains: That’s not showing respect, when you’re heckling on a bill that is so important to all of us. You’re heckling me, just saying how respectful we should be.
Interjections.
Hon. H. Bains: The government’s action is to declare September 30 as the Truth and Reconciliation Day, and that’s what everyone is talking about here. So without getting too much into it, it is an important bill. Important discussions are taking place.
Looking at the time, I move the committee rise, report progress and seek leave to sit again.
Motion approved.
The committee rose at 11:52 a.m.
The House resumed; Mr. Speaker in the chair.
The Committee of the Whole, having reported progress, was granted leave to sit again.
Hon. M. Farnworth moved adjournment of the House.
Motion approved.
Mr. Speaker: This House stands adjourned until 1 p.m. today.
The House adjourned at 11:53 a.m.