The Speaker: Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to the chamber.

I would like to invite Elder Butch Dick of the Songhees Nation to begin our proceedings today.

Blessings and Acknowledgments

B. Dick: [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken.] Thank you, my friends and family. Thank you for the invitation to be here again. I haven’t been here for a while.

Premier Eby, thank you for the invitation.

Mr. Speaker, thank you, and Members of this House, thank you for all the work you do. Your jobs are very difficult, when you think about it, when you think about all the things that are going on in the world. Some things we don’t have control over, but I think we’re reassured now that we have good people in this House to decide what our future is going to be like for our great-grandchildren and our children and our communities.

We spent a little bit of time, not too long ago, putting our language on the street outside. I remember that occasion quite well, and the Speaker’s good words that he brought to our community. They are very much appreciated.

Before they come on, I’d like to thank the lək̓ʷəŋən drummers, singers and dancers for being here to honour this day, and Mary Anne Thomas for bringing us her good words.

She did mention that our houses in each of our communities are very busy right now with winter ceremonies. In those longhouses, there are 300 to 600 people in the evenings, and families are celebrating. It’s not only celebrating of culture and ceremony but also a celebration of languages and of bringing our languages and our practices back into our communities.

[2:05 p.m.]

So thank you for this opportunity, for this honour for me to sing a song for you. It’s been a while since I’ve been here.

I see a little mun’u over there. You can’t help but see the children when you’re somewhere, and see the Elders also.

This is the Paddle welcome song. It’s from the Cowichan area and taught to me by my late uncle, Ray Peters. He said to bring this song to different communities in a good way, so I bring this to you on behalf of my uncle and with a good mind, heart and spirit attached to it.

[Paddle welcome song was sung.]

B. Dick: [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken.]

The Speaker: Thank you very much, Elder Butch, for opening our proceedings today and grounding us to these lands.

This is the first sitting of the new session of the 42nd parliament.

On behalf of the Legislative Assembly, I acknowledge that we are privileged to gather on the traditional terri­tories of the lək̓ʷəŋən-speaking people, the Songhees and Esquimalt Nations. We honour and respect their enduring stewardship of these lands and the wisdom, culture and traditions which you and others so generously share with our community and with our province.

Thank you so much. Huy ch q'u.

Now I invite Elder Mary Anne Thomas of the Esquimalt Nation to offer a blessing.

M. Thomas: Good afternoon, everyone.

[Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken.]

I’m so grateful and honoured to meet you and see you all today, to honour our [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken] — you know, our majesty and all of you, like our council. Everybody works together, and the foundation becomes light.

I just really wanted to thank each and every one of you for bringing us here and showing the old people. When I came in here, I prayed to the old people that were in his position and your guys’ position, asking them if I can come in this territory, to come in this House, to pray and honour all their hard work, just like I’m lifting my hands up to each and every one of you in your position of working together for the people. You know, I really take it to my heart.

[2:10 p.m.]

I’m going to pray and ask the higher power and ask our ancestors for that [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken] to bless our hearts for all the work. Sometimes we get tired, but we pray, and it uplifts the heaviness because we believe in what we put out.

I never do things as just a walk. I mean it from my heart. Each individual….

You guys are all beautiful flowers from your parents, grandparents. The things that I do in this world, I don’t take for granted. I always say: “Thank you, Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken].” “Thank you, Dad, for all the [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken],” the teaching that he gave me and I could share with you today.

I really thank Brother Butch for the welcoming, welcoming each and every one of you.

And I thank Sister Dell and her daughter for…. It really completes with the [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken], the songs, the medicine in our heart, and lifts up our hearts. It’s a really big medicine. [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken.]

To shine that light on that road that everywhere you go, it’s going to be lit, and your life is going to be clear. Nothing, no pebbles or anything, on the way, because each and every one of you got the teaching from your parents, and that’s what you’re going to walk. Their footprints are never going to be lost.

We’re the flowers that are carrying on with what we were taught. That’s why it can take you this far in life, to work with [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken]. He’s the high power that we turn to. It’s just like the Chiefs, the councils, the people. [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken.]

A really big breath that you guys are all taking, and I lift my hands up to you today to thank you for today, for bringing us all together. You’re showing the old people that used to work here that you’re doing the same thing that they used to do. Walk as one. Nobody is walking ahead or somebody is behind. We really hold hands, and we walk. That’s what makes our heart light, because we’re working with each other.

In this life, there’s no room for any judgmental or hard feelings. There’s no room. We all have to talk from our heart to make…. Whatever your decision, it’s going to be completed.

I really thank you for inviting me to your home, and that we all can work together. Thank you for asking Butch and Dell. We treasure all our elders because we’re getting low on elders. Everywhere it’s a lot of deaths. So in that prayer I ask [Hul’q’umi’num was spoken]…. They left us, but their memory is so much here with us.

But we’re nothing if we don’t have the prayer, because prayer is facing the day, [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken] — facing the day because the day is the one that brings the whole day, not the sunset down.

I can go on, but I just really want to thank you for inviting me to share a prayer. I love all of you because, you know, we’re all brothers and sisters. We need each other. It takes a team to get further in whatever we need to do in life, because nobody is better than anybody. We’re all equal, because in this home, we’ve got to show we’re taking care of the home with [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken], nothing but the good words and encouragements. [Hul’q’umi’num’ was spoken.]

[2:15 p.m.]

The Speaker: Thank you, Elder Thomas. On behalf of the Legislative Assembly and all the guests who have come here today, I want to say thank you for your kind words and your prayer. Thank you for opening our proceedings. We are honoured and grateful to have you here today. Thank you.

Now I invite Rabbi Harry Brechner from Congre­gation Emanu-El synagogue in Victoria to lead the House in prayer or reflection.

H. Brechner: You all can sit, please.

Shalom aleichem. Peace be upon you, peace for all of us.

We’re living through a really hard time. We’re living through moments of human history that are fraught and anxiety-producing. There’s growing fear that seems to manifest as rage, and I think that rage is blinding us to see our shared essences and our shared destinies.

I want to thank you for inviting me here to invoke a blessing in this House, because it holds great integrity for our whole province, and we have the possibility of making this House a sacred house.

I’m going to invoke Divine Presence. I know that not everybody here, I can imagine, is a theist. And that’s okay. But I think that all of you are people of faith. You’re people of faith because you wouldn’t be here if you didn’t know that together, we can all be agents of positive change.

I’m going to ask Mekor Chaim, the source of life…. In your image, all people are created. Bless this Legislative Assembly and the work that comes before them. Grant our government’s leaders clarity of vision, compassion, strength and tenderness.

May your leadership nurture a society where all communities feel safe and seen and heard, where all peoples can proudly teach the wisdom and ways of their ancestors, finding relevancy and meaning in order to move us towards harmony and flourishing.

May we honour with humility those who first dwelled on this land and really learn from them the sacredness of earth and sky and water.

Divine One, save us from dissension and jealousy. Shield us from pettiness and rivalry. May selfish pride not divide us, but may pride in one another truly unite us. Banish hatred and fear and despair, that peace and collaborative goodness may blossom. Grant us prosperity, generosity of heart and righteousness, that we can all do our best to care for the vulnerable in our province and to ensure that equity and opportunity exist for all in British Columbia.

Compassionate One, guide us in your way of compassion. Bless and preserve the caring spirit of our province and the institutions that translate spirit into action.

May our great province be an influence for good in Canada and the world. May we be a voice of conscience, and may we truly be pursuers of peace.

And let us say Amen.

The Speaker: Thank you, Rabbi Brechner.

Now, on behalf of the Legislative Assembly, I would also like to welcome the many guests, friends, family members who have joined us today in the chamber. Thank you for being with us this afternoon. Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor will be arriving in the chamber momentarily.

For the first time, we are also honoured to have the lək̓ʷəŋən traditional singers and dancers accompany Her Honour into the chamber. We are grateful for their ceremonial contribution to today’s events.

We will now await the arrival of Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor, accompanied by the lək̓ʷəŋən traditional singers and dancers.

[2:20 p.m. - 2:25 p.m.]

[lək̓ʷəŋən was sung.]

Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor requested to attend the House, was admitted to the chamber and was pleased to deliver the following gracious Speech from the Throne.

Speech from the Throne

Hon. J. Austin (Lieutenant-Governor): Please be seated.

ÍY SC̸ÁĆEL, ÍY, ȻNES QENOṈE ṮÁ.

Good afternoon, friends, Mr. Speaker, Premier, hon. Members. I am pleased to deliver the Speech from the Throne, laying out your government’s plan to build a stronger B.C. that works better for people now and into the future.

I would like to start by acknowledging the lək̓ʷəŋən peoples, the Songhees and Esquimalt, upon whose terri­tories we are gathered today, and a special thanks to Elder Butch Dick of the Songhees Nation and Elder Mary Anne Thomas of the Esquimalt Nation for starting us off in a good way, and to the lək̓ʷəŋən dancers and drummers for a welcoming paddle song.

HÍSW̱ḴE SIÁM.

I also want to thank Rabbi Harry Brechner of Congre­gation Emanu-El for offering prayers and reflection.

This building, long a symbol of colonialism, now has messages written in the lək̓ʷəŋən language permanently inscribed on its stone perimeter. These words about ances­tors, warriors and children symbolize a new era, one of meaningful reconciliation, where we work together to preserve Indigenous languages and acknowledge the true history of these lands. As Hereditary Chief Edward Thomas Sr. of the Esquimalt Nation said during the unveiling: “It’s a long time coming.”

Words and symbols like this are undoubtedly important, but actions must follow. That’s why your government remains committed to implementing the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, which was endorsed unanimously by this Legislature. This work is about partnership and cooperation, which underpins everything we do here. Most importantly, it’s about a better future for everyone who calls this land home.

As has become recent tradition, we begin by remembering some of those we have lost in the past year.

We mourn the remarkable Gloria Cranmer Webster, who dedicated her life to the preservation and celebration of Indigenous culture.

We also mourn her younger brother, T̓łaḵwagila, Bill Cranmer; as we do other Indigenous leaders, including Sm’ooyget Satsan, Mel Bevan; Charles Williams; Liza Wolf; Stephanie Patterson; Rick Gilbert; Byron Joseph; Natasha Grace Wilson; and former Cowichan Tribes Chief Squtxulenuhw, William “Chip” Seymour.

We mourn Gordon Gibson Jr. and Patty Sahota, who once served in this Legislature; as we do former members of Parliament Stephen Owen and Pat Carney.

In the arts, we mourn carver TEMOSENTET, Charles Elliott; and photographer Diane Evans; as we do entertainers Bill Hosie, Chad Allan, Jason Hoover; and actor Carl Weathers, who frequently filmed in Vancouver and played linebacker for the B.C. Lions.

From the world of sports, we mourn rower Dean Crawford and sports writer Jack Keating.

From media, we mourn broadcasters Red Robinson, Deborra Hope, Kuljeet Kaila, Ted Farr, as we do Bob Stall.

We mourn labour leader Ray Haynes, environmen­talist Kevin Bell, conservationist John Nightingale, communications executive Phil Lind, inventor Phil Newton, Judge Selwyn Romilly, disability advocate George Law­son, and CEO of Sher-e-Punjab and longtime philan­thropist Ajit Singh Badh.

From medicine, we mourn registered nurse Evanna Brennan, Dr. Jiri Frolich and Dr. Gurdev Singh Gill.

We mourn Ben Mizrachi, a medic from Vancouver who was tending to the wounded at a music festival in Israel when murdered by Hamas terrorists. May his memory be a blessing.

[2:30 p.m.]

We mourn those who answered the nation’s call, including Reuben Sinclair who, on his passing, was Canada’s oldest military veteran.

We mourn Sgt. Michael Leo and RCMP constable Rick O’Brien.

We mourn the firefighters who lost their lives during this summer’s record wildfires — Devyn Gale, Zak Muise, Kenneth Patrick, Blain Sonnenberg, Jaxon Billyboy-Bowe and Damian Dyson; as we do Langford assistant fire chief Lance Caven.

We also mourn and reflect on the loss of so many British Columbians from toxic, unregulated drugs. To all who have lost a loved one in the past year, we extend our sympathies and our condolences. We acknowledge and share your grief.

It is fitting that, as we open this final session of B.C.’s 42nd parliament, communities around the province are celebrating the beginning of the Year of the Dragon. According to legends, 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac were selected through a race. The dragon, the only mythological animal, claimed fifth place. When the Jade Emperor asked why he didn’t win the race when he could fly, the dragon responded: “First I encountered a village suffering from drought, so I stopped to make rain. Then I saw a rabbit stranded on a log in the water and blew a puff of wind so the log would float to the riverbank.”

In many ways, the story of the dragon is like the story of B.C. over the last few years. Just look at how far we have come in a short period of time by looking out for each other.

When we first gathered here almost four years ago, only a handful of members were able to attend safely in person. Outside these walls, many people’s lives and livelihoods hung in the balance. In the times since, we have faced the impacts of devastating climate emergencies and global upheaval.

While your government focused on keeping people healthy and the economy moving, British Columbians were busy working together to rebuild our province stronger than ever. You got effective vaccines into grateful arms. You rebuilt highways after flooding in record time. You kept kids learning in classrooms and businesses operating during difficult circumstances, proving once again that here in B.C., our greatest natural resource is the people of this province.

By putting people first, we have built a strong foundation through tough times. Today our unemployment rate is one of the lowest in Canada. In 2023, we added 74,000 new jobs, some of the strongest job growth in the country. We were the first among provinces in year-over-year growth in average hourly wages last year.

In December, women’s employment increased more than in any other province, further proof that increasing wages and reducing child care bills is good for families and good for business. Take Reut, a young mom in Richmond with three kids. Thanks to your government’s latest fee reduction, she’s saving $1,000 a month and has been able to return to work as an engineer.

Since 2017, we have helped over 250,000 people get out of poverty through supports like job training. Your government understands that people want to work and feel better off when they have a job and community connection.

[Interruption.]

Hon. J. Austin (Lieutenant-Governor): No, don’t worry. It’s a pleasure to have a child in the chamber. I think we all feel that, so don’t you worry.

That’s why action will be taken this session to further break down barriers for those who can work, while your government continues to support those who cannot.

We are seeing other reasons to be optimistic. Since the pandemic, tourists are coming back to B.C. in droves, and we can expect that to continue as B.C. hosts the 2024 Grey Cup, followed by the Invictus Games and seven of the FIFA Men’s World Cup games in Vancouver.

The film industry is booming again too. After three years of disruption and labour disputes south of the border, Hollywood North is back.

Vancouver’s tech sector is growing at one of the highest rates in North America, and B.C. is home to the fastest growing life sciences sector in Canada, with 2,000 companies employing almost 20,000 British Columbians.

[2:35 p.m.]

While B.C.’s economy is strong and growing, your government is nowhere near satisfied. Too many people are not feeling it yet. Too many are still struggling to get ahead. After decades where our housing market was allowed to serve the interests of investors and speculators, even those who earn a decent middle-class income are finding it hard to afford a home.

People have a lot on their minds right now. They are facing some big, new challenges today. High interest rates are causing considerable anxiety for anyone whose mortgage is coming up for renewal. Inflation has made the cost of groceries and daily essentials increasingly expensive. This has meant more people taking extra shifts or worrying about paying bills each month.

The world is changing fast. New technology has made our lives easier and more connected in many ways, but it has also made them harder in others. Parents are struggling to protect their kids from dangers that are now in the palms of their hands. Working people are struggling to make a good living and to be treated with fairness in the gig economy. And people all over are struggling to find an affordable home because thousands have been diverted into short-term rentals like Airbnbs.

While governments can’t solve every problem or fix things overnight, your government makes a simple commitment to you. It will have your back so that you are not facing these new challenges alone.

Leaving people to fend for themselves does not work. It did not work before, and it will not work now. It would mean deep cuts that weaken the services we rely on. It would drive up costs with added fees and fares, like the return of health care premiums or tolls on roads and bridges. And it would leave people at risk to those who take unfair advantage and put profits ahead of people.

Everyone here in B.C. wants to be able to build a good life. People just starting out in their adult lives want to be able to afford their rent and find good jobs and opportunities in the communities where they grew up. Young families want to know that living in a decent home is within reach and that child care is available and affordable. Seniors want to know, after a lifetime of hard work, that they will be cared for and will be able to help their kids and grandkids.

That’s why your government will continue to work tirelessly with you to take action on all the things that matter most to you.

For generations, there was an unspoken promise. If you worked hard, got an education and played by the rules, you could make a good middle-class living and be able to afford a decent home.

About three decades ago that started to change. In the name of austerity, governments at all levels stopped investing in affordable housing. Wealthy speculators, foreign investors and big developers rushed to fill the void. For far too long, we also saw the proceeds of illegal activity parked in B.C.’s real estate market. Housing costs went up, and in recent years, the combination of inflation, interest rate hikes and a lack of supply has only made the situation harder for people looking to buy or rent a home.

This is a generational challenge, and we must meet the moment. Doing nothing is not an option, and tinkering around the edges will not fix the problem. That’s why your government has taken strong action on all fronts to tackle the crisis head-on.

Landmark changes made over the last year are helping to lay the foundation for a housing market that will work better for people, turning short-term rentals like Airbnbs into longer-term homes, speeding up housing permit approvals, fixing zoning rules that block construction of middle-class homes in existing neighbourhoods, setting municipal targets for new housing construction, getting more homes built near public transit, building student housing at an unprecedented pace and protecting affordable rentals from being turned into luxury condos by big real estate corporations.

This month the first purchase was made by the rental protection fund, saving nearly 300 affordable co-op units in Coquitlam. Thanks to tough legislation passed by this Legislature, B.C. is now able to seize properties from organized criminals. Homes are for people, not for money laundering. While it will take time for people to feel the full benefit of these changes, we are starting to see early positive signs.

These changes are already helping people like Andrew, a 41-year-old small business owner in Vancouver. Andrew is now renting a one–bedroom apartment he can afford, thanks to an influx of new inventory that hit the market after this Legislature passed a law restricting short-term rentals. In 2023, B.C. saw a record-setting 19,000 new rental homes registered, a 30 percent increase from the year before.

[2:40 p.m.]

Taken together, experts predict these changes will deliver hundreds of thousands of new homes in the next ten years. This builds on the work your government has already done to support 78,000 homes that are either complete or on the way.

Your government understands that for every Andrew, there are still thousands of other middle-income British Columbians who need help finding a home. Breaking down barriers for homebuilders is part of the solution, but governments getting out of the way completely is how we got into this crisis in the first place.

The market alone has not been able to deliver the homes that working and middle-class people need. As a result, the people who are providing the services we all count on like teachers, construction workers and nurses are being priced out of communities. This is holding back our economy, weakening public services and hurting us all.

It was not always this way. During the Second World War, the federal government built houses for workers so they could build warships in Esquimalt and bombers in Richmond. At the end of the war, the demand for housing was even greater, as returning veterans looked to rebuild lives interrupted by military service. Once again, the government stepped in.

The mass production used in the war effort was transferred to building homes for the growing middle class. Prefabricated homes with a choice of standard plans appeared in communities all across the country. They were offered to veterans at reasonable rents and later for sale. Known as Victory homes, they offered secure, affordable housing for many families. Many of them are still standing.

The same spirit that animated our country then is what is needed in our province today. That’s why your government has launched B.C. Builds, the next step in the Homes for People plan.

B.C. Builds will leverage government-owned, public and underutilized land, grant money and low-cost financing to bring down construction costs and make more middle-class housing projects viable. This is a model that has been used in cities around the world. These homes will also be built faster, with more efficient provincial and local government approvals. And they will be income-tested, designed for the middle-class people who keep our communities working so they can live close to where they work.

Think of homes connected to schools or on top of community centres and libraries. Think of homes on underused land next to hospitals or empty parking lots transformed into homes for working and middle-class families.

Your government will not stop there. In this session, action will be taken to protect renters from bad-faith evictions and to help more first-time homebuyers get on the ownership ladder.

As we dramatically increase housing supply, so, too, must we build up the infrastructure and services to support this growth. Through the billion-dollar growing communities fund and partnerships with other levels of government, that is exactly what we are doing here in British Columbia.

In Langley, construction has started on an expanded events centre that will add three new ice rinks and better support the needs of a booming population.

Just over a year ago, Prince Rupert had to issue a state of emergency. Crews worked through the holidays after a major line break that threatened the community’s water supply. Today your government is helping the city replace crucial sections of its aging water distribution system to ensure people there have safe drinking water.

In the year ahead, significant work will continue to cut commute times for families and to keep our economy moving. Construction is set to begin on the Surrey Langley SkyTrain, the first rapid transit project south of the Fraser River in 30 years, and to continue on the Broadway subway project.

Taken together, these projects will increase our Sky­Train network by 27 percent. This will help thousands of families get to work and back home to their families sooner. So too will continued improvements to Highway 1 through the Fraser Valley.

Top of mind for many British Columbians right now is public health care. Specifically, they want to know they can count on care to be there when they need it.

[2:45 p.m.]

B.C. rose to the challenge in 2020 to make sure people were cared for and health care workers in our hospitals were supported. But we face new challenges today. Communities are growing, our population is getting older, and a large number of doctors and nurses are retiring.

We are not alone in this. Our neighbours and countries around the world are also feeling the strain, all competing for the same small pool of health care professionals.

That’s why your government has been taking action to improve access to care, and it is starting to make a difference. B.C. has eliminated the pandemic surgery backlog. Recent changes have helped hundreds of thousands of people to see a pharmacist to treat minor illnesses so doctors and nurse practitioners can focus on sicker patients.

B.C. is building more hospitals, primary care clinics, cancer centres and care homes, closer to where you live through the largest health care capital strategy in the province’s history. Our province will be home to the first new medical school in western Canada in more than 50 years at Simon Fraser University’s Surrey campus, which will have a focus on training the next generation of family doctors. B.C. added more than 700 doctors and almost 6,300 new nurses over the last year.

We are leading the country with better and faster ways to prevent and detect cervical cancer. Last month’s launch of the first at-home, self-screening program for HPV means that ending deadly cervical cancer in British Columbia is now a very real possibility.

At 36 sites across B.C., our lung cancer screening program is helping to find cancer earlier so people can get treatment sooner. More than 5,000 lung-screening tests were done in the first year of the program alone. This early detection is saving the lives of people like Shannon from North Vancouver, whose cancer screening came back positive, even though she displayed no symptoms.

While progress is being made on many fronts, there is still a lot more to do. This session your government will continue the work it has started to attract, train and retain the doctors and nurses we need. It will make new investments to strengthen home and community long-term-care services for seniors, and it will take new action to build on our ten-year cancer plan.

Just as important as improving people’s physical health is providing better support for mental health and addictions treatment. The latest coroner’s update on the toxic drug crisis is a heartbreaking reminder that we need to keep using every tool in our toolbox. We must continue our work to reduce harm and stigma to keep people who are struggling alive. When someone makes the brave decision to break free from addiction, we must ensure they have access to treatment and recovery closer to where they live.

That’s why your government is working to build a more connected system of mental health and addictions care. Almost 3,600 publicly funded treatment and recovery beds are open throughout the province, with more on the way. This work is helping people like Richard, who is two years sober and has his life back on track after receiving treatment at Discovery House in Penticton.

Here in B.C., we know that supporting people is the key to building a strong economy. When we lower child care bills, we help parents enter or re-enter the workforce. When we deliver more affordable homes, we make our communities more attractive for businesses. When we increase the minimum wage, we raise the purchasing power of people who are more likely to spend that money locally. When we connect every rural, remote and First Nations community to high-speed Internet, as your government has pledged to do by 2027, we are helping connect people to jobs and opportunities. When we build up our highways, bridges and ports, we strengthen our supply chains and help to get our products to market.

Good for people is good for business. At a time when inflation has caused the price of daily essentials to rise sharply, helping people and families get costs down is key to building an economy that works for everyone. In just the past year, your government has taken many steps to do just that.

[2:50 p.m.]

New cost-of-living credits have been sent out, including a $100 credit on B.C. Hydro bills. An increase to the B.C. family benefit means families now qualify for hundreds of dollars more per year. An enhanced climate action tax credit is putting as much as $900 back in the pockets of more than two million British Columbians.

Free contraception is helping people save hundreds of dollars a year and thousands over their lifetimes. ICBC car insurance rates have been frozen after being cut, on average, by $500 a year for drivers. New investments in food security are helping people better access an increased supply of low-cost local food, and rates have been kept affordable for everyone who relies on B.C. Ferries to get to work, run errands and visit loved ones.

These measures build on the work done over the last seven years to make life a little easier: eliminating MSP premiums, the largest middle-class tax cut in a generation; ending tolls on the Port Mann and Golden Ears bridges; making public transit free for kids 12 and under; and stopping interest payments on student loans.

This session your government will take new actions to help people with costs while tackling the root causes that are making life so expensive, like housing affordability. It will do more to help small and growing businesses, many of whom are still finding their feet after the pandemic and are facing new challenges today.

Foundational to our province and the backbone of many local economies are our natural resources. From First Nations, whose deep connection to the land and water goes back millennia, to communities of all kinds who depend on forestry, mining and energy for jobs today, we all share a stake in making sure a strong, sustainable natural resource sector is a core part of B.C.’s future.

While climate change poses real challenges, B.C.’s natural resources put us in a unique position to excel in shifting economic times and maximize the benefits to people here. Your government has a plan to leverage our natural strengths as a province to create good jobs and opportunities for everyone, in partnership with Indigenous people, industry and local communities.

To borrow a line from our country’s favourite sport, B.C. must skate to where the puck will be, not to where it has already been by leveraging our strength in mining to meet global demand for clean technology like battery cells, by leveraging the strength of B.C.’s forests with a more reliable fibre supply and by enabling more made-in-B.C. wood manufacturing and by leveraging our strength as a clean energy superpower to help industries electrify and ensure B.C. is a global leader in the clean economy.

Specifically, B.C. will embark on an unprecedented level of construction over the next ten years, building our electricity system to power a growing clean economy and deliver affordable, reliable power for people. Already this plan is in action all around the province. In the northwest, Prince George is home to Canada’s first stand-alone renewable diesel refinery and is a growing hub for clean hydrogen. Soon the Canfor pulp mill will be using clean hydrogen to help power its operations.

Further to the west is the future site of Cedar LNG in Kitimat, which your government has approved. It will be the largest First Nations majority–owned energy project in the country and one of the cleanest liquefied natural gas facilities in the world.

In Maple Ridge, the new E-One Moli facility will create hundreds of good local jobs for people, and it will establish B.C. as a leading producer of the battery components we need to power a clean energy future.

At the same time, we can’t continue the old way of doing things.

The future is in partnership with First Nations and in sustainable development, whether it’s forestry, mining or energy. B.C. companies are leading the way, embracing reconciliation and the opportunities that come with it, like the recent deal between four members of the Na̲nwak̲olas Council and Western Forest Products, an agreement that represents an important step forward for First Nations participation in the forest economy.

A sustainable energy future will ensure cleaner air for future generations and industries they can rely on for good jobs.

Your government’s plan to grow a strong economy while protecting the environment is working. With the goal of protecting 30 per cent of our land and water by 2030, historic action is being taken in partnership with First Nations, the federal government and local communities. This will help us conserve the natural beauty around us, which is also a critical source of fresh food, clean drinking water and our best line of defence against the impacts of climate change.

[2:55 p.m.]

Our net greenhouse gas emissions are down 5 percent from six years ago when our continent-leading CleanBC plan was first launched. In that same period, British Columbia has achieved the highest average GDP growth among large provinces. This shows that supporting people, advancing reconciliation, protecting the environment and growing the economy go hand in hand.

The cost of inaction on climate change is simply too high. It is our homes and our communities in the path of wildfires. It is our crops and our farms at risk of flooding or drought. It is our kids and grandkids who stand to lose the nature that surrounds them. The climate crisis is here. We have seen it all around us these last few years, and we are expecting another tough drought and wildfire season this summer.

Last year your government launched an expert task force on emergencies. The goal was to determine how we can better support those on the front lines and help apply the lessons we have learned in preparation for the next emergency.

This year your government is turning recommendations into action and working side by side with communities and partners to help ensure that people are better protected from wildfires with more full-time, year-round staff and resources. It will continue to work to prevent the devastating effects of flooding we saw after the catastrophic atmospheric river in 2021. Just last week new funding was announced to upgrade the Barrowtown pump station in Abbotsford and protect farmers in the Sumas prairies and communities in the Fraser Valley.

Your government will also take new actions this session to reduce carbon pollution from big industrial emitters, which are driving climate change in the first place.

A key challenge in the years ahead is to make sure everyone in B.C. can seize the tremendous opportunities ahead of us. Over the next ten years, B.C. will need to fill almost one million job openings, many in the emerging clean economy, and 75 percent of these jobs will require workers to have some kind of post-secondary education and training. That’s why your government launched the future-ready action plan to equip people for success in our changing economy and to close the skills gap employers are facing.

As your government works to make training and education more accessible and affordable in B.C., it is also bringing in new safeguards to make sure our international education programs are training people for the skills we need. These new measures will help protect international students against bad actors while making sure B.C. continues to attract talented students. This session your government will also take new steps to recognize and better support First Nations–mandated post-secondary institutes as a key pillar of B.C.’s advanced education system.

Every person in every community wants and deserves to feel safe, but the incidents of crime, violence and hate seen here and across North America are worrying. That is why your government has been tackling these challenges, and we are seeing some real results. With stricter bail rules and prosecutors working with police and probation officers, repeat offenders are being kept off the streets. And 256 new RCMP police officers are being hired to help bolster specialized units and rural police forces.

In Vancouver, car thefts are down by 18 per cent, and the number of unprovoked stranger assaults has decreased by 75 per cent between the first half of 2021 and 2023.

Your government is also addressing the core issues that bring people into conflict with the law and their neighbours. It is working with partners on the ground to move people from unsafe encampments into homes. It is helping people in crisis get compassionate care from others who know what they are going through, and it is helping more Indigenous people access culturally safe legal supports and services, with five new Indigenous justice centres now in operation.

Action is also being taken to support the survivors of crime. Services to support survivors of sexual assault that were cut in 2002 have been restored, and new policing standards are now in place.

[3:00 p.m.]

While reports of many crimes are decreasing, we know that there has been a rise in antisemitism, Islamophobia, anti-Asian hate and other incidents of racism. That’s why in this session your government will build on the work being done to make B.C. a more welcoming and inclusive place by introducing new anti-racism legislation.

And that’s why your government is working with the Jewish community to make Holocaust education mandatory for high school students. Combatting this kind of hate begins with learning from the darkest parts of our history so that the same horrors are never repeated.

Keeping our kids safe and healthy is another top priority for your government. While a small minority of people in our province claim that teachers and school librarians are a danger to our kids, your government understands the real threats.

Many of you are now aware of Carson, a 12-year-old boy from Prince George. Carson died by suicide last year after having been extorted with private images he shared with somebody who was pretending to be somebody else. His parents, Ryan and Nicola, have been bravely sharing Carson’s story to raise awareness and prevent this tragedy from happening to other families. This builds on the advocacy of Carol Todd, who has continued to shed light on the issue of bullying, cyberbullying and online safety since losing her own daughter, Amanda Todd.

Your government is committed to making sure that Carson’s and Amanda’s legacies will protect kids in the future. That’s why a new suite of concrete actions was launched last month to protect young people from online threats, restrict cell phones in schools and hold big social media corporations to account.

This is a part of a larger effort to keep kids safe and healthy, an effort which includes adding more support for mental health centres, launching an anti-vaping strategy, improving literacy screening, building new schools and expanding nutrition programs. In Surrey and White Rock schools alone, more than 8,000 kids in need are getting daily nutritious meals thanks to feeding futures, the largest investment in school food programs in the province’s history.

This spring your government will take additional steps to keep kids safe and improve learning conditions for students. New legislation will be tabled to protect schools and kids from disruptive protests. While everyone has a right to freedom of expression, including peaceful protest, we will not tolerate attempts to disrupt children learning in the classroom.

During the pandemic, when hospitals and health care workers became the target of aggressive protests, your government took action so that doctors and nurses could get to work and patients could access care. As schools increasingly become the target for protests, your government will take similar action to ensure that classrooms are not disrupted and that kids can feel safe at school.

We are in a time where significant turmoil surrounds us. Wars in Europe and the Middle East are creating tensions around the world and here at home. Democratic norms and principles are being tested everywhere. Global economic uncertainty has families and businesses alike worried.

As we begin this final session, we all face some big questions. Will we be a province where the people whose stories I have shared today like Reut, Andrew, Shannon and Richard are left to face tough challenges alone, or will we continue to be a place where people take care of each other and build a better future? Your government is committed to rejecting division and working to bring people together to solve problems, because here in B.C., our best days are still ahead of us.

If we work together, this will be a place where everyone can build a good life, whether you live in a city, a town, a rural or First Nations community; where the wages of working people go up but the cost of a decent home does not; where we have more family doctors and shorter wait times in emergency rooms; where our economy grows not in spite of climate action but because of it; where our kids are safe in their communities, schools and online; and where everyone belongs, everyone can get ahead and no one gets left behind.

That is the vision your government is working hard every day to deliver: a stronger B.C., one that works better for people. Thank you.

[3:05 p.m.]

Finally, I add my personal thanks to all of you who serve together in B.C.’s Legislative Assembly — indeed, to all who assume the noble task of serving in public office. I am so deeply grateful for your commitment to upholding our democracy in this increasingly fractious world, for your leadership, your collaboration and your tireless work over the past year and always. I wish you all every possible success in meeting the opportunities and the challenges that lie ahead.

HÍSW̱ḴE SIÁM. Thank you, friends. I look forward to seeing you this evening.

Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor retired from the chamber.

[The Speaker in the chair.]

The Speaker: Hon. Members, in order to prevent mistakes, I have obtained a copy of Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor’s speech.

Introduction and
First Reading of Bills

BILL 1 — AN ACT TO ENSURE
THE SUPREMACY OF PARLIAMENT

Hon. N. Sharma presented a bill intituled An Act to Ensure the Supremacy of Parliament.

Hon. N. Sharma: I move that Bill 1, intituled An Act to Ensure the Supremacy of Parliament, be introduced and read a first time now.

The introduction of this bill, prior to the consideration of the throne speech, expresses the established right of Parliament, through its elected members, to deliberate independently of the Sovereign. As such, it is an important part of our parliamentary democratic process. It’s my honour as Attorney General to introduce this bill of historic and symbolic importance at the opening of each new session.

Motion approved.

Hon. N. Sharma: I move that the bill be placed on the orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Bill 1, An Act to Ensure the Supremacy of Parliament, introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Motions Without Notice

SPECIAL PROCEDURES FOR PROCEEDINGS
OF LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY
DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Hon. R. Kahlon: By leave, I move the adoption of the sessional order establishing special procedures respecting the regulations of the conduct of hybrid proceedings of the Legislative Assembly.

Leave granted.

Hon. R. Kahlon: I move:

[That, for the remainder of the current Session:

GENERAL

1. As an exercise of the Legislative Assembly’s exclusive right to regulate its own internal affairs as they relate to its legislative and deliberative functions, including control over the conduct of its proceedings, the use of videoconferencing technology be authorized to enable all Members to be present in the proceedings of the Legislative Assembly through remote participation, counting toward quorum, while other Members continue to be present physically in the Legislative Chamber, thereby enabling hybrid proceedings of the House.

2. Zoom be approved as the videoconferencing technology platform for the purposes of supporting hybrid proceedings of the House.

QUORUM AND ATTENDANCE

3. Members who are participating in the House’s proceedings by the approved videoconferencing technology be counted as present for the purposes of the quorum of ten Members, as set out in section 42 of the Constitution Act [R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 66] and Standing Order 6, and for the purposes of determining a majority of votes as set out in section 43 of the Constitution Act.

4. Members who are participating in the House’s proceedings by the approved videoconferencing technology must have the audio and video functions enabled with their face clearly visible in order to be counted towards quorum, to participate in debate, and to vote.

DIVISIONS

5. Standing Order 16 (2) be amended by substituting the following: When a division has been called, the division bells shall be rung forthwith. Not sooner than 5, nor longer than 10 minutes thereafter, the Speaker shall again state the question. No Member shall enter or leave the House or Committee of the Whole after the final statement of the question until the division has been fully taken, and every Member present shall vote. No Member partici­pating remotely shall connect to or disconnect from the approved videoconferencing technology after the final statement of the question until the division has been fully taken.

DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT

6. Any Standing Order requiring that a document be “handed in” or “laid upon the Table” or transmitted by other similar physical means be interpreted to include the transmission of a document by approved electronic means.

7. The transmission of a document by the Office of the Clerk to all Members by electronic means constitute for all purposes the distribution and delivery of that document, regardless of whether a Member has received the document.

8. Notwithstanding the usual practices of the House, petitions presented to the House may include signatures collected through electronic means, and that the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly or her designate be authorized to exercise reasonable discretion in the interpretation of admissibility of an electronic petition and its compliance with Standing Order 73 and Appendix A of the Standing Orders.

SPEAKER’S DISCRETION

9. For greater certainty, the Speaker be empowered to exercise discretion on the applicability of Standing Order 17A as it may relate to the facilitation of participation of Members in proceedings of the House.

10. For greater certainty and further to Standing Order 19 and Standing Order 20, the Speaker be empowered to intervene on any matter of decorum on the Speaker’s own initiative or on a point of order raised by a Member, including by muting a Member’s microphone and excluding Members from the sitting in cases of serious misconduct.

11. The Speaker be empowered to exercise discretion in the interpretation of the provisions of any Standing Order requiring Members to stand or speak in their assigned place as this requirement may relate to Members participating via the approved videoconferencing technology and to Members participating in person in the Legislative Chamber.

12. The Speaker be empowered to exercise discretion, in consultation with the House Leaders or the Whips, in the interpretation of any provision of the Standing Orders or this order that may require leniency or alteration in order to allow all Members to be able to fully exercise their duties and rights in the proceedings of this House conducted in a hybrid manner.

OTHER

13. Should any provision contained in this order be inconsistent with the Standing Orders, the provision in this order prevails to the extent of the inconsistency.]

Motion approved.

The Speaker: Hon. Members, as the sessional order authorizing hybrid sitting has now been adopted by the House, any members joining us remotely are now able to participate in today’s proceedings.

Motions

APPOINTMENT OF DEPUTY SPEAKER

Hon. R. Kahlon: I move, seconded by the member for Kamloops–South Thompson electoral district:

[That Spencer Chandra Herbert, Member for Vancouver-West End Electoral District, be appointed Deputy Speaker for this Session of the Legislative Assembly.]

Motion approved.

APPOINTMENT OF
ASSISTANT DEPUTY SPEAKER

T. Stone: I move, seconded by the member for Delta North electoral district:

[That Jackie Tegart, Member for Fraser-Nicola Electoral District, be appointed Assistant Deputy Speaker for this Session of the Legislative Assembly.]

Motion approved.

[3:10 p.m.]

APPOINTMENT OF DEPUTY CHAIR,
COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

Hon. R. Kahlon: I move, seconded by the member for Kamloops–South Thompson electoral district:

[That Ronna-Rae Leonard, Member for Courtenay-Comox Elec­toral District, be appointed Deputy Chair of the Committee of the Whole for this Session of the Legislative Assembly.]

Motion approved.

PRINTING OF Votes and Proceedings

Hon. N. Sharma: I move:

[That the Votes and Proceedings of this House be printed, being first perused by the Speaker, and that he do appoint the printing thereof, and that no person but such as he shall appoint do presume to print the same.]

Motion approved.

APPOINTMENT OF
SELECT STANDING COMMITTEES

Hon. D. Eby: Hon. Speaker, I move:

[That the Select Standing Committees of this House for the present Session, be appointed for the following purposes:

1. Aboriginal Affairs;

2. Education;

3. Finance and Government Services;

4. Health;

5. Public Accounts;

6. Parliamentary Reform, Ethical Conduct, Standing Orders and Private Bills;

7. Crown Corporations;

8. Children and Youth;

9. Agriculture, Fish and Food;

which said Committees shall severally be empowered to examine and inquire into all such matters and things as shall be referred to them by this House, and to report from time to time their observations and opinions thereon, with power to send for persons, papers, and records, and that a Special Committee be appointed to prepare and report with all convenient speed lists of members to compose the above Select Standing Committees of this House under Standing Order 68 (1), the Committee to be composed of the Hon. Ravi Kahlon (Convener), Hon. Lisa Beare, Nicholas Simons, Garry Begg, Michele Babchuk, Roly Russell, Todd Stone, Lorne Doerkson, Renee Merrifield and Adam Olsen.]

Motion approved.

Hon. R. Kahlon moved adjournment of the House.

The Speaker: Members, before we take a vote on that, I want to remind our guests and invite them to our reception on the second, the next floor downstairs.

You are all most, most welcome. Please join us there.

Motion approved.

The Speaker: This House stands adjourned until 1:30 p.m. tomorrow afternoon.

The House adjourned at 3:12 p.m.