Routine Business

Prayers and reflections: J. Tegart.

Introductions by Members

Hon. B. Ralston: It gives me great pleasure today to rise in the House to recognize Corinne Stavness and Jonathan Armstrong, senior officials from Western Forest Products. I want to particularly congratulate them on their company’s announcement yesterday of an investment of $35 million to upgrade their operations at Ladysmith, Chemainus and Nanaimo.

Western is the largest private employer on Vancouver Island, with six sawmills and two remanufacturing plants sustaining 3,500 jobs that support nearly 20 healthy and vibrant communities across the province. Over the last ten years, Western has invested over half a billion dollars in its B.C. operations.

[10:05 a.m.]

I ask the House to please make them feel welcome and ask for a round of applause for Western’s continuing support of the B.C. forest industry, its workers and the communities they serve.

Hon. N. Sharma: Today has been a long time coming, and it’s my great privilege to be able to welcome Sons of Freedom survivors and their families, and those that are tuning in online today, in the Legislature.

I was honoured to meet over 300 members of the Doukhobor community during my visit to Castlegar and Grand Forks this month, and I just feel so grateful that they’ve joined us here today.

K. Kirkpatrick: I’m so happy to have someone here to introduce today — it has been a while since I’ve been able to do that: John Anderson, a North Vancouver resident and partner with my good friend Tiffany Trownson, who is off doing things with B.C. Care this morning. John is an owners rep, an advocate leading capital infrastructure projects for public institutions. He has lots of great ideas for government and how they can be more efficient in those capital projects.

Please welcome John to the House today.

Hon. B. Bailey: I am so excited this morning to welcome a few people that are joining us from Amgen Canada, a leader in global biotech. They’re investing right here in British Columbia. I recently had a chance to see their $27 million investment in an expansion in Burnaby, which they recently completed.

The guests this morning are Ugur Gunaydin, who is the general manager; Angela Behboodi, who is the director of government affairs and advocacy; and Lisa Maslanka, who is the senior manager of value, access and policy.

We are so proud that some of the greatest advances in science and biotech are occurring right here in British Columbia. I look forward to our meeting this afternoon.

Would the House please make them most welcome.

J. Tegart: I’m pleased to introduce the team from Edison Motors, who are visiting the Legislature today. We have CEO Chace Barber, chief production officer Ray Matkin, chief operations officer Theron Groff and chief technology officer Eric Little.

After passing all their tests and inspections, Edison Motors now has the first electric commercial semi truck designed and made in B.C. in 30 years, by a bunch of guys in a Merritt backyard who figured that electric vehicles could be better produced and for less cost. Originally from Merritt, they have recently decided to relocate in Terrace instead of the United States.

Please make them all very welcome.

S. Chandra Herbert: It gives me great pleasure to welcome my best friend from grade 4, only a few years ago, Dana Smith, and her mother, Nancy Posnikoff, who are here today for today’s events. Nancy was an incredible encourager of me, so you can partially blame her and her daughter for why I’m here today.

Thank you, everybody, and welcome to the House.

T. Shypitka: Today I introduce a couple of acquaintances through a mutual friend, Ginny and Nina, two sisters that were born in the great community of Creston and raised in Cranbrook.

I don’t know where they are or who they are. There they are, up there. If you could stand and be recognized, that’d be great.

Nina is currently living in Toronto, and Ginny resides in Whitehorse. They are both here to hear the ministerial statements and apologies regarding the Doukhobor communities, as their maternal grandparents, the Resansoff family, were sent to Piers Island and their cousins were sent to the New Denver School.

Would the House please welcome Nina McPhail and Ginny Macdonald.

Introduction and
First Reading of Bills

BILL 4 — MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS STATUTES
AMENDMENT ACT, 2024

Hon. A. Kang presented a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant-Governor: a bill intituled Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act, 2024.

Hon. A. Kang: I move that the bill be introduced and read a first time now.

[10:10 a.m.]

I am pleased to introduce Bill 4. This bill amends three pieces of legislation: the Municipal Finance Authority Act, the Union of B.C. Municipalities Act and the Vancouver Charter.

Bill 4 does four things. It will improve the quality and timeliness of the reporting at the first annual meeting of the Municipal Finance Authority trustees. It will modernize the Union of British Columbia Municipalities Act, the UBCM Act, to improve inclusivity and align the act with current practices of the UBCM.

Finally, with respect to proposed amendments to the Vancouver Charter, it will provide the city of Vancouver with the opportunity to expedite administrative process with respect to dog licensing and landscaping requirements.

Specifically, this bill will respond to a request from the Municipal Finance Authority for an amendment to the Municipal Finance Authority Act to extend the deadline for the first annual meeting of the MFA trustees.

It will also respond to a request from the UBCM to modernize the UBCM Act in three ways: by replacing references to members as municipalities with more inclusive language that reflects the current membership, which includes regional districts, member First Nations and the Islands Trust; by updating cross-references to repeal legislation to improve readability and modernize outdated provisions; and by repealing a requirement for the UBCM membership to approve cooperation with other organizations, which will better align the act with UBCM’s current practice.

With respect to proposed amendments to the Vancouver Charter, they will enable Vancouver council to delegate decisions about the suspension or revocation of dog licences to staff. They will also expand Vancouver’s existing authority to provide council with the ability to require landscaping provisions as a condition of a development permit.

As the Minister of Municipal Affairs, I am pleased to table these amendments.

The Speaker: The question is first reading of the bill.

Motion approved.

Hon. A. Kang: 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 4, Municipal Statutes Amendment Act, 2024, introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

Statements
(Standing Order 25B)

GRIZZLY BEAR POPULATION
AND RISK MANAGEMENT

J. Sturdy: It will come no surprise to British Columbians that most of B.C. is bear country. Of the 150,000 bears that live in British Columbia, about 10 percent of them are grizzly bears.

Some of us are fortunate to live among these majestic creatures without needing to pay for a guide because these bears are in the backyard. Certainly in the Sea to Sky, we regularly see trail and campground closures.

Last fall a grizzly was hanging around the ball field of Myrtle Philip Community School in Whistler and farms up and down the Pemberton Valley. My mom, in fact, heard a howling outside her house in the middle of the night last fall, wisely choosing not to investigate. But she later discovered that a grizzly had killed a black bear, partially eaten it, and then stashed it in the ditch beside the house for snacking on later.

While awe-inspiring, it is nerve-wracking. A family in the upper Pemberton Meadows no longer lets their kids walk to the driveway to catch the school bus because a sow in the neighbourhood, over the last three years, has had several very successful litters and bears are in and around the farm almost every day.

Families and communities are increasingly being confronted with the challenges of living with these apex predators. In the Blackfoot River valley of Montana, as grizzly bears have repopulated the valley and conflicts with people and livestock have increased, the Blackfoot Challenge was created with an emphasis on education and deterrence.

One of the most effective deterrents is the use of fencing. In the past, while lethal techniques may have been common, today electric fencing is a humane, non-lethal and effective method of bear management. But it does cost significant money. When fencing bears out of attractants — like corn or carrots, livestock or children — these projects are driven by a social imperative, yet those financial burdens rest on the shoulders of farmers and ranchers.

The Blackfoot Challenge has been involved in well over 600 fence installations and works with ranchers to educate, inform, monitor and maintain electric fences so that they are effective and, importantly, of little cost to ranchers.

Replicating this type of program in British Columbia is essential to fairness and equity because while we all value grizzlies, society has more broadly a responsibility to contribute to management solutions on the ground.

[10:15 a.m.]

DOUKHOBOR COMMUNITY AND CULTURE

R. Russell: Welcome to our friends in the gallery.

Over 300 years ago, the Doukhobor community, or spirit-wrestlers as some called them, had their start in Russia. Given their rejection of the hierarchy, the icons, the intermediary priesthood and the opulence of the Orthodox Church, they were persecuted by the church and czarist authorities. They left Russia with the help of Tolstoy, the Quakers and others, and immigrated to Canada about a year after this building was completed.

They viewed the Bible as a historical text inspired by God rather than a singular and infallible holy book, which allowed them to look to other great works of faith, religion and thought leaders for inspiration.

Their faith is elevated and communicated in part by song, some moving and glorious songs. I wanted to share a reading of one of those with you today. This is a hymn titled Sleep On, Beloved Ancestors, translated by Natasha Jamav, who is in the gallery with us today.

Sleep on beloved ancestors, sleep.
May your hearts be at ease.
We who live on will remember
your journey toward wisdom and peace.
Living through hardship and sorrow,
you struggle to do what is right.
The path that you walked is before us.
Now our way forward is light.
Imprisoned and sent into exile,
your source of strength was your faith.
You marched through the tundra of Siberia,
refusing to give in to hate.
Today we remember your courage.
We honour your strength and your pain.
And with our hearts linked together,
prepare to move forward again.
Sleep on, beloved ancestors, sleep.
May your hearts be at ease.
We who live on will continue
your journey towards wisdom and peace.

Perhaps, for me, the most beautiful notion of the Doukhobor culture is the blurring of lines between what is God and what is love and the fact that that spirit, that energy, lives within us in all living things.

I thank the Doukhobor community and the Sons of Freedom in the gallery today for bearing with us. I am honoured and a better person for growing up with you as neighbours and friends.

[Song was sung.]

EDISON MOTORS

E. Ross: Wow. That was incredible.

B.C. is home to several innovative businesses that help bring prosperity to our province. Established in Merritt, B.C., Edison Motors is a prime example of regular B.C. citizens creating an extraordinary product.

Look at them. They’re wearing sweaters and hoodies and plaid shirts and work boots.

Edison raised $2.5 million by crowdfunding. Crowdfunding is raising small amounts of money from large amounts of people via the Internet. They went on to develop, build and test two prototype hybrid vehicles which acquired their first sales. They now have ten employees, three semi-truck contracts and secured pre-orders from thousands of customers to help purchase a production facility in 2024.

Edison Motors also developed a retrofit kit for one-tonne trucks. This helps make sustainable technology accessible at a fraction of the cost of a new vehicle or electric alternative.

Recently I met with Edison Motors to discuss their plans for future growth. The demand for Edison Motors products and technology is growing, which means the need for industrial land expansion. Their vision for expansion and interest in acquiring industrial land tariffs is good news, as it promotes significant economic development in Skeena.

If we don’t support local businesses, we risk losing our homegrown innovators to the United States. Edison Motors has already been offered attractive incentives to relocate to the U.S.A. This past month Edison Motors was rejected under the opportunity to build a hydrogen truck under the clean vehicle innovation challenge program. But Edison Motors is not giving up.

I think all of us in this House understand the importance of supporting our local businesses, especially when it comes to electrifying our B.C. economy.

[10:20 a.m.]

We must do all we can to keep a competitive business climate and ensure that homegrown businesses like Edison Motors can afford to stay in B.C. Follow them on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

It’s an incredible story, Mr. Speaker.

THEODORE WILFRED WESTLIN

K. Paddon: It is with great sadness that I rise to share the passing of Theodore Wilfred Westlin — we know him as Ted — on January 23, 2024, at the age of 91.

His obituary shared in loving memory in the Agassiz-Harrison Observer reads:

“Ted passed away in Agassiz within a stone’s throw of where he was born, leaving behind an unparalleled legacy of dedicated community service, generosity and good works. Ted’s devotion to the well-being of the community of Agassiz was both heartfelt and lifelong. He played many roles within the community. Farmer, gardener, teacher, basketball coach, political activist, municipal councillor, deputy mayor, avid storyteller, corn connoisseur and drainage enthusiast are some of the roles that we know best.

“As the decades passed, the roles may have changed, but his unwavering dedication to help and serve the community grew with each passing year. He will be truly missed but never forgotten.

“The family wishes to extend a sincere thanks to the staff at Agassiz Seniors Community who created a warm and welcoming final home for teacher Ted.”

I count myself as extremely fortunate to have been able to spend time with Ted, sitting at his kitchen table and learning. He taught me about the waterways in Agassiz. He shared about what it was like to teach generations of students about moving cows uphill during flooding.

He showed me memorabilia of his political involvement and talked about receiving the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal in 2013. He shared with me about his long, rich history with the B.C. NDP. He shared what he thought was most important about the work ahead of me, first as candidate and then as MLA for the community we both love.

He checked in. He offered history and perspective, encouragement and constructive criticism, and I will miss him. I will never forget the advice he gave me as we sat at his kitchen table.

He is survived by his wife, Beverly; daughters Rhonda and Pauline; niece Michele; and grandchildren Tiffany, Krystal, Dominic and Jason.

He will be remembered by his community who loved him, who learned from him, and by everyone who is lucky enough to have known him.

MISSING PERSONS IN DAWSON CREEK

M. Bernier: Fifty-eight days. That’s how long Cole Hosack has been missing after stopping in Dawson Creek for a quick visit on New Year’s Eve. Imagine being his mom, Julie, or his friends and family, having no answers, no clues and no substantive communication from authorities on what’s going on to find him.

Two local First Nations women, Renee Didier and Darylyn Supernant, have also disappeared from Dawson Creek without a trace, over the last year or so. Denny Poole, a young boy, has been missing for almost eight years.

These are all someone’s family members. Cole’s family, friends and supporters have been holding numerous search efforts, looking for any information to find Cole and the others that are missing. But the frustration is obviously mounting, and we need help. These families need hope. These families deserve answers.

The levels of serious crime in my region have hit unprecedented levels over the last few years. We’ve never seen anything like this. It’s actually crazy, and people are getting afraid. They need to know that we are doing something about it. This should never happen anywhere. But for a small community like Dawson Creek, frankly, this is getting scary.

I do, though, want to thank the Attorney General and the Minister of Public Safety for meeting with myself and the mayor of Dawson Creek last week, and I hope that that materializes into the much-needed supports.

My final plea. Someone out there knows something. We need to give these families and their loved ones some hope. Please, if you have any information, call the RCMP or Crime Stoppers so we can give these families hope and give them the answers that they are begging for.

AFFORDABLE AND CO-OP HOUSING
IN COQUITLAM–BURKE MOUNTAIN

F. Donnelly: People in Coquitlam–Burke Mountain are already experiencing benefits from our government’s work to protect homes and invest in affordable housing.

Here are some examples. Earlier this month, our government made an exciting housing announcement in Coquitlam–Burke Mountain. the Tri-Branch Co-op, with 169 homes, and Garden Court Co-op, with 121 homes, were both protected when they became the first acquisition of B.C.’s $500 million rental protection fund.

At that happy announcement, the Premier said: “Far too many renters live in fear that their homes will be sold out from under them.”

[10:25 a.m.]

This landmark acquisition protects 290 affordable homes in the heart of Coquitlam, ensuring that people can continue living in the community they helped to build.

I worked for two years with co-op members, the Community Land Trust, the Operating Engineers, the city of Coquitlam, B.C. Housing and, of course, the Housing Minister. On February 8, the Premier announced $71 million from the rental protection fund would be used to secure 290 affordable rental units in Coquitlam–Burke Mountain.

During the last election, I learned of another co-op housing project in Coquitlam–Burke Mountain whose future was uncertain. The Hoy Creek Housing Co-op, a 40-year-old housing project, was in financial trouble. But rather than allow the site to be sold to the private market, the province stepped up with $14 million from the community housing fund to create 132 new non-market units.

And this Friday I’ll be attending an open house at Robert Nicklin Place in Coquitlam. Operated by Affordable Housing Societies, this housing project provides affordable rental units for a broad range of income levels.

These co-ops and affordable housing projects are just a few examples of how our government is taking action for British Columbians.

I think the people of Coquitlam–Burke Mountain and indeed British Columbia know we’ve got their backs.

The Speaker: Hon. Premier to make a ministerial statement.

Ministerial Statements

GOVERNMENT APOLOGY FOR
HISTORICAL WRONGS AGAINST
DOUKHOBOR COMMUNITY

Hon. D. Eby: I rise today to address an historic wrong. Too many people have waited too long for this moment in our Legislature.

Members of the Doukhobor community arrived in Canada 125 years ago. They sought refuge after enduring persecution in czarist Russia. Some families eventually settled in British Columbia, many establishing commun­ities in the Kootenay-Boundary region of our province. The newcomers had beliefs and customs that were different than those of their neighbours. Yet despite those differences, they and their neighbours built flourishing communities.

Let me begin these remarks by recognizing with thanks the many contributions Doukhobors have made in building this beautiful province that we live in.

In the first half of the previous century, the provincial government levied fines, seized communal property for infractions like school absenteeism. Between 1931 and 1959, hundreds of Sons of Freedom members were convicted and handed sentences of up to three years.

After many years of unrest and troubled relations, the province forcibly removed children from their homes and communities. These children were placed in forced education facilities, including a former sanitarium in New Denver. They were mistreated physically and psychologically. Parents and other adult relatives could only visit their kids through the barrier of a chain-link fence. As a father, I ache imagining that pain, where children paid the price for the conflicts of adults.

Constitutional protections would not let that happen today, and it should not have happened then. These actions caused immense and immeasurable harm. They also created anxiety for the broader Doukhobor community, even to families whose children were not seized.

There is no more sacred a relationship than that of parent and child. That relationship was broken for an entire community. The resulting harms have echoed for generations.

The province of British Columbia recognizes the hurt and the trauma experienced by the Sons of Freedom and by the broader Doukhobor community. Today, on behalf of the province of British Columbia, we acknowledge and apologize for these past injustices.

To build on this apology, the province will be contributing $10 million to support the Doukhobor community. This initiative will help people hurt by these historical wrongs and will help prevent similar occurrences in the future. Funding will be allocated to survivors, to provide counselling and other wellness initiatives to make their lives better and healthier.

There are survivors here today and family members. You’ve travelled a very long way to be here, many of you. Thank you for being here today. My commitment to you and to all those who couldn’t be here today is that we will work with you to make this right.

[10:30 a.m.]

The steps we take today will help those impacted by these injustices so that they’re able to access the support they need, however it looks, in order to heal.

Many people in the Doukhobor community worked a long time to get us to this point. I want to thank all of those advocates who spoke up and spoke out against this injustice for so many years. On government’s behalf, the Attorney General announced supports for community wellness earlier this month as part of a formal apology to the community. Events were held in Castlegar and in Grand Forks.

I would also like to acknowledge the many years of work by the Minister of Finance, as well as the more recent efforts by the MLAs for Boundary-Similkameen and Nelson-Creston, for their work with the community and listening to the community. Our work isn’t over. Our work is just beginning.

Today marks a milestone in the history of our province. While we cannot undo the harms of the past, we can recognize and hold up survivors while we continue our work together to ensure that such a violation of human rights, of human dignity, of families, never happens again.

T. Stone: I rise today to add the voice of the official opposition to this apology.

Today, as elected representatives of the province of British Columbia, we reflect upon a dark chapter in our province’s history when more than 200 Doukhobor children were removed from their families and confined in a former tuberculosis sanatorium, the New Denver institution, for years. Many parents tried to hide their children from the authorities, hoping to protect them from seizure.

As a father, I can only imagine what was going through these parents’ minds as the state came to take their children away, to tear them away from their families, the Sons of Freedom Doukhobors, amidst turmoil in the Boundary and Kootenay regions of British Columbia.

These heartbreaking acts took place throughout much of the 1950s, and today this chamber stands in solidarity to offer a heartfelt and long-overdue apology. This was yet another shameful black mark in our history, where governments pried children away from their parents’ loving arms. In many cases, these Doukhobor children were kept from their parents for years at a time.

Our hearts go out to all of those taken, including the many joining us here today for this historic apology, recognizing those horrid and unjust acts which occurred in a climate of fear, after decades of arson and violence and rising tensions and anger amongst both Doukhobor and non-Doukhobor communities in the region.

We hope that today, seven decades later, we are able to look back at how government can act when people are afraid, when violence is occurring, and say that we will never, ever go down that path again, that innocent children are innocent children, that human rights are human rights and that we will all always stand for those and that love and unity must triumph over fear and division.

We recognize the importance of acknowledging historical wrongs, as well as working together to build a more inclusive and compassionate society. No apology can make up for what one has experienced and the intergenerational trauma that these families have carried since, but I hope that these families can see hope in the future for efforts to right this historical wrong and find a way forward, to stand with elected officials of every single party in this House as we condemn the actions of the past, highlight these historical injustices that are so rarely spoken of today and, very importantly, work to make amends.

May this government apology today mark the beginning of a new chapter, one of understanding, reconciliation and unity.

[10:35 a.m.]

S. Furstenau: I thank the Premier and the House Leader for the official opposition for their statements. We stand in solidarity and support with them.

The forceful removal and confinement of Doukhobor children by the province was reprehensible in the 1950s and remains reprehensible today. A formal apology is long overdue, but it does not right the wrongs of the past. These children, their parents, their grandparents, whole families and whole communities suffered irreparable harm and experienced long-term trauma as a result of these removals. We support the human rights of survivors and their families, and we encourage and support the province to right this historic wrong.

The government at the time alienated Sons of Freedom Doukhobor children from their parents, their religion, their culture, their language. They separated them from their families and subjected them to neglect, abuse and institutional mistreatment. The government is responsible for addressing these failures, and they failed those children and their families, and the survivors deserve accountability.

An apology is welcome. That it took 70 years for the province to apologize is dismaying. This government failed to provide fair compensation even after 24 years of knowing how awful the treatment was. Many of the survivors of the abuse and unjust treatment at the hands of government did not live to hear this apology.

We stand with the survivors of this mistreatment and their families. Our hearts go out to those who were impacted by this tragedy. May the province learn from the mistakes of the past and ensure that these harms will never be repeated.

B. Banman: I want to thank those that spoke ahead of me for their words.

In 1953, the Doukhobor community endured a grave injustice when the so-called Protection of Children Act came to fruition. The act was a weapon for big government, who thought it knew best. It was a way to punish the Doukhobor community for stepping out of line. With this new legislation, British Columbia’s government could and did separate Doukhobor children from their families and forced the children to attend school in an old tuberculosis sanatorium in New Denver.

The harm inflicted upon the Doukhobor community serves as a stark reminder of the consequences when governments overstep their bounds and infringe upon the fundamental rights of parents to raise their own children. Family, particularly nuclear family, is the bedrock of our community and our broader society, and we in this House must safeguard it.

Even today government imposition has, regrettably, alienated parents of diverse faiths from our public school system, frustrating their essential role in shaping their children’s values. Government cannot, should not and must not try to over-parent families. The lessons learned from history should guide us towards fostering a system that respects and strengthens the sacred bond between parents and children, instead of one that aims to cement the dominance of government and the imposition of government’s own social values or whims of the day.

We must recognize that children are almost always safer in the care of their parents, and our commitment to justice and equity in British Columbia must mean a hard line on supporting the inalienable rights of parents. Let us strive to build a future where respect for parental rights and family integrity prevails over misguided interventions and the whims of government.

What happened to the Doukhobor community must never be allowed to happen again to anyone.

[10:40 a.m.]

Today we apologize. Today we mourn for the parents alienated from children, and today we mourn for the children who experienced and endured a childhood without love or affection. We must learn from this and vow to never, ever allow it to happen again to anyone.

The Speaker: On behalf of all members, I want to say thanks to all the guests for being here today to be part of this historical event that has taken place in this Legislative Assembly.

After question period, I would like to invite all guests and members to a reception downstairs in the Hall of Honour.

Thank you very much for coming here today.

Oral Questions

CHILD CARE PLAN
AND ACCESS TO SERVICE

K. Kirkpatrick: Despite the largest inflationary deficit in B.C.’s history, this NDP government has utterly failed to deliver on their signature election promise of universal $10-a-day child care. Access is getting worse, not better. Over 10,000 fewer children are in child care, with parents often facing a three-year nightmare wait-list.

Under this unfair, mismanaged and unaffordable system, while one family wins the child care lottery, nine others have to pay costs akin to a mortgage. Never has government spent more to achieve less.

As debts skyrocket and the cost-of-living crisis gets worse, how does the Premier explain his utter failure to deliver the $10-a-day child care that families were promised seven years ago?

Hon. K. Conroy: I stand with great pride to speak about the $10-a-day program. I stand with great pride to speak about child care and what we have done in this province.

The members on that side of the House cancelled the child care program in the early 2000s. They refused to act on child care costs, unlike this government on this side of the House.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh, Members.

Hon. K. Conroy: My goodness. The families….

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members. Members, one at a time, please.

Hon. K. Conroy: Over 120,000 families are seeing savings of up to $900 per month, and that’s a game-changer for families. Thousands of parents are paying $10 a day for child care. We’ve funded more than 34,000 new licensed care spaces, with more to come. I mean, it is unbelievable that they don’t acknowledge the incredible work that is done. It’s a ten-year program, and we started it in 2018.

They laugh. They laugh at the thousands….

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members. Members.

Members will come to order.

Hon. K. Conroy: I think they doth protest too much.

It’s making a real difference for families in this province, and we are going to continue to support them. We’re going to continue to support by not only building child care facilities but by training early childhood educators, because we need those professionals to do the work. And there has been no support before, when they were in government, for early childhood educators. I lived it. I know what it was like.

We are supporting with wages. We are supporting with training. We are going to make sure that we continue to provide affordable, quality child care for people in this province.

The Speaker: Member for West Vancouver–Capilano, supplemental.

K. Kirkpatrick: Well, that answer was just embarrassing. That was just embarrassing and insulting to British Columbians. The numbers here don’t lie. Well, thank God we have federal funding for this program. But it was this NDP’s signature election promise, not once but twice.

[10:45 a.m.]

Despite the largest inflationary budget in British Columbians’ history — here’s a number for you — less than 10 percent of child care spaces promised are $10 a day, less than 10 percent. MLAs here — everyone in this House — are inundated with horror stories from families shuffled between wait-lists, paying crushing fees and soaring costs.

Even the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says it’s a broken promise. A shocking 64 percent of children live in child care deserts in British Columbia.

As child care deserts spread across B.C., how much longer must families wait for this NDP government to keep its seven-year-old promise of universal $10-a-day child care?

Hon. K. Conroy: B.C. is actually a leader on child care. We brought the federal government to the table.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members. Members, it’s not a good idea to interrupt others. Please let’s listen to the other side.

The minister will continue.

Hon. K. Conroy: Since 2018, more than double the amount of money invested in child care in this province is from B.C. Let’s give some figures to the members opposite. They seem to forget this.

B.C. has invested $5.8 billion. The federal government has invested $2.7 billion, which we welcome. We welcome that money because we need it. We have also put over $2 billion back into the pockets of parents in this province.

We know….

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members, please.

Please continue.

Hon. K. Conroy: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

We know that there is more work to do, and we are doing it. We know that we need to create more spaces. We know we need to make sure that we have more early childhood educators in this province. We are continuing to do that work, because we know how important it is for people to get that affordable child care.

We only have to look at the single mom who is telling me she has finally gotten child care. She is saving $2,100 a month on child care. They brush her off like she doesn’t matter. “Who cares about that individual?” But she has got a good job. Her kids are in good-quality child care, affordable child care. She is finally being able to make sure that she can put money aside so her kids are going to get a post-secondary education.

I hear hundreds and hundreds, thousands, of those stories, as do most people throughout this House, on how beneficial affordable child care is for moms and dads in this province.

T. Stone: This government, in not one but two elections, promised universal $10-a-day child care for British Columbians. We’re seven years in, and no amount of spin from the minister opposite will overshadow the fact that they’re miserably implementing that $10-a-day child care for all parents who need it. It’s a total failure.

The reality is that the NDP continue to pick winners and losers. If you’re lucky to get one of the 10 percent of child care spaces at the promised $10-per-day rate, you’ve literally won the lottery. And we’re all happy for those parents. But sadly, if you end up on the other end of that equation, one of the 90 percent of spaces that’s not subsidized at the $10 rate, those parents are often paying $1,200 a month, $1,300 a month, some as high as $2,000 per month.

While the NDP are racking up the largest inflationary deficits this province has ever seen, they can’t seem to figure how to push child care funding out the door. Citing “diverse implementation challenges,” just seven days ago, on February 20, the NDP amended their child care agreement with Ottawa for the third time. This is to allow them to push unspent dollars from one fiscal year into another year. I have the order-in-council right here — again, from one week ago. This is all while thousands of British Columbia families continue to struggle with accessing affordable child care.

[10:50 a.m.]

My question to the Premier is this. Can the Premier just give British Columbia families a clear answer about when his government will actually fulfil their seven-year-old promise to deliver on $10-a-day child care universal in every community across this province?

Hon. K. Conroy: It actually does my heart good to hear that member say those words “universal, accessible child care.” Coming from someone who…. When their party was in government, they slashed child care budgets. Imagine where parents would be today if they had carried on with the child care, because we know what their attitude is towards child care. We know where they cut.

I mean, we have made a commitment to affordable child care in this province, and we are going to follow through on that commitment because we already are. Thousands of families, thousands of parents are getting…

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh.

Hon. K. Conroy: …affordable, accessible child care in this province. And we know that not everybody’s getting $10 a day. We know thousands of parents are getting less than $10 a day, less than $10 a day — thousands.

I’m not going to take any advice from people who never cared about child care. Child care was not mentioned in this House until we formed government.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members. Members.

Members, let’s be polite and nice to each other. When the question is asked, let’s hear the answer. When the answer is provided, let’s listen to the answer. Okay? Thank you very much.

Member, supplemental.

T. Stone: Clearly, we have struck a nerve here. Nine out of ten British Columbians do not have access to affordable $10-a-day child care that was promised by the NDP in two successive elections. That is a fact.

Again, under the NDP, this is how it works. If you happen to live on one side of the street, you might be fortunate to actually access $10-a-day child care. If you’re a neighbour of that person, if you live on the other side of the street, you are out of luck — as nine out of ten other parents are, because they can’t access affordable $10-a-day of child care.

The federal government’s latest child care report on progress reveals more than just implementation challenges. It also highlights a series of other critical failures in the NDP’s implementation of child care here in British Columbia. On page 15, it shows that of the $105 million earmarked for $10-a-day child care — this is money from the federal government — a shocking three-quarters of the funding, or $78 million, was unspent in 2022-2023.

If I turn to page 16, it reads: “The number of spaces offered by family providers for children five and under has decreased. The NDP’s failure to deliver on $10-a-day child care has also led to a reduction in home-based care that communities and families rely upon.”

Again, with families struggling, how much longer must British Columbians wait for the NDP to deliver the universal $10-a-day child care that they promised parents across this province in the last two elections for the last seven years?

Hon. D. Eby: Every parent…. And members will remember how child care became a hot issue in the election, right? There was a child in British Columbia in an unlicensed care space, named Baby Mac, who died in that care. It was a substandard space. The caregiver was negligent.

How did we end up in a place where the province had inadequate, unsafe, unregulated child care? Well, it’s pretty straightforward. When the BCUP leader was in cabinet, they cancelled the B.C. NDP’s plan for universal, $14-a-day child care in 2002. So 10,500 families saw their child care subsidies cut or outright eliminated.

In 2005, the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of B.C. said: “The provincial government has done more damage to child care in B.C. than ever thought possible.”

[10:55 a.m.]

And if they get back on this side of the House, they’re going to do it to families again.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members.

Hon. D. Eby: So 120,000 families, with savings of $900 or more….

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh, Members.

Hon. D. Eby: In seven years, we’ve tripled the number of spaces that they ever created in 16 years. We’re going to keep doing that work for families, and we will not let them come back on this House and drag families back to the dark ages of child care ever again.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROGRAMS

A. Olsen: The B.C. NDP will “bring local governments, Indigenous partners, the non-profit sector and developers together for innovative partnerships that create homes people throughout British Columbia can afford.” They will build “affordable homes for middle-income people, key to tackling the housing crisis, and we have to work together to get it done.”

These are the talking points for the BC Builds program. Right? Wrong. They’re from the 2018 HousingHub announcement. The Premier’s highly anticipated flagship housing program is a rebranded version of a program that was brought in by a former minister and that has delivered 3,823 units, with 2,331 more units under construction in six years. It’s a far cry from the hundreds of thousands of units that the reports say that we need. At least the HousingHub targeted average incomes as low as $50,000.

To the Minister of Housing, how can British Columbians have any confidence that BC Builds will be more successful than the abandoned program that they recycled it from, called the Housing Hub?

Hon. R. Kahlon: Thanks to the member for the question.

I am so proud of the BC Builds program, not only because this will build affordable housing for middle-income earners in British Columbia, where governments, for decades, decided that that’s not what they wanted to do. Not only am I proud that this will partner with local governments — we’re already seeing partnerships with First Nations — to use public lands, public financing to build more affordable housing.

Not only that, we’re also going to keep it in not-for-profit hands. We’re going to keep it in government hands. That is the type of innovative solution that we need to address the housing crisis.

Now, I appreciate my friends from the Greens. I looked at a Greens platform, and it said: “We need small-scale, multi-unit housing. We need transit-oriented development. We need more supply on the market.” I was pleased to see that. What I wasn’t pleased to see was that it was actually the Ontario Greens that had that plan. It wasn’t the B.C. Greens.

If we want to address this housing crisis, I think it’s important that the B.C. Greens step up and address the challenges, partner with us to find solutions and not side with the BCU party and the B.C. Conservatives.

The Speaker: House Leader, Third Party, supplemental.

A. Olsen: Actually, what I’m talking about is the minister’s own program, this new program that’s masquerading…. Basically, it’s just the old program, the old program that was unsuccessful in delivering the tens of thousands of units that they promised — basically, taking the exact same language from a news release that was put out in 2018, rewriting it, moving words around a little bit and then pretending to British Columbians that it’s some kind of brand-new program.

Up to 20 percent of the BC Builds units are below-market rents. The remaining 80 percent are geared to incomes of middle-class households, those earning between $85,000 to $191,000 a year. That works out to rents between $2,550 to $5,730 a month. I invite British Columbians to let me know if they believe that that’s affordable housing.

I agree we need to support middle-income households, yet hundreds of thousands of British Columbians are insecurely housed. They pay more than 50 percent of their income on rent. They’re terrified about being evicted. And guess what. British Columbia has the highest rates of evictions in this country.

[11:00 a.m.]

To top it off, now those $50,000-a-year households have to subsidize household incomes of $191,000 a year.

My question again is to the Minister of Housing. Does he think it’s okay for households making $50,000 a year to subsidize housing for those households making $191,000 a year?

Hon. R. Kahlon: I think it’s important to note that the BC Builds program, and the concept of the province and the federal government getting into building housing for middle-income families, is so popular now that not only has the federal government decided to invest $2 billion in finances for the program, but other provinces across the country are calling us, asking us how they can adopt similar programs across the country.

The member can maybe disagree with that initiative and maybe can disagree with every initiative that we bring forward, but this is a housing crisis, and we need real solutions. Not only is this program helping address middle-income families. We are also investing historic levels of dollars in building affordable housing for people under $85,000. We are making historic investments, billions of dollars in investment.

In fact, the member will know that just here in the capital region, we have 7,000 units that we are funding for people earning less than $85,000 a year. It’s important to make the investments in affordable housing for all income earners, because we need to address this housing crisis.

We’re proud of the work we’re doing. We’re leading the country in this work, and we’re going to continue to do that work going forward.

GOVERNMENT ACTION ON CHILD POVERTY

J. Rustad: The amount of money being spent by this NDP government has increased by 70 percent since 2017. That also includes a debt load now that has increased in this current budget of $11,000 per person or $44,000 per household of four.

Under this NDP government, we are all paying more. Yet somehow, child poverty still goes up. According to First Call Child and Youth Advocacy Society, one in seven children now lives in poverty. The child poverty rate in 67 First Nation reserves examined in the study is 31 percent. For British Columbian kids living in a single-parent household, the poverty rate is 40.4 percent.

The question to the Premier is this. If the NDP can’t successfully fight child poverty with its massive tax increases and massive spending, where is the people’s money going?

Hon. K. Conroy: I thank the member for the question. I want to acknowledge First Call and the work they have done over the years with child poverty, and I appreciate that the stats are from 2021. We’ve worked really hard to bring up affordability issues since 2021.

Child poverty is just something that no government wants to deal with, and that’s why we’ve brought in numerous affordability measures. One of the biggest things that people talk about is housing, and we’ve brought in significant housing programs to help people with that for affordability issues. We brought the meals program into schools to help kids get a good meal and get a good start. Affordability issues — the schools can reach out to parents to help them if they need some help.

Things like the B.C. family benefit. This year we have increased it with a bonus. Families are telling us that that money that they get has been incredibly helpful for them. One mom says: “I can start to buy fresh fruits and vegetables for my kids, because that’s what’s really needed.”

We recognize that we need to do more. We need to do more for affordability. We need to do more to deal with child poverty. That’s exactly what we’re doing.

The Speaker: Leader of the Fourth Party, supplemental.

J. Rustad: Well, the numbers, of course, would disagree with what the minister has just said. It’s interesting that under the NDP in the 1990s, child poverty rates went up an astonishing 43 percent. This is despite the fact that the NDP claim to be the party of the working people.

Today, just like in the 1990s, the NDP government’s priorities seem to be elsewhere. The people’s money goes to consultants, lawyers and creating more government jobs. This government has almost doubled the size of the public sector since 2017.

A question once again to the Premier. How many more of British Columbia’s children are facing poverty, how many more people will be taxed into poverty, and when will this government actually take child poverty seriously and address this issue?

[11:05 a.m.]

Hon. K. Conroy: We take it incredibly seriously. The report refers to it. It recommends supporting youth-in-care transition to adulthood, and we are doing that. We are doing that to help those kids, to ensure that they have a transition to adulthood, that they get the supports they need.

Those kids in care are government’s children. We are responsible for them, and we have to make sure that they get the proper supports they need. We are doing that by ensuring that they can get a free, affordable, post-secondary education.

We’re talking to the young people that are doing that, that are going to school, that they have that opportunity, because most parents try to save money for their kids’ post-secondary education. As government, that’s our responsibility. So that’s one thing that we are doing to ensure that we can transition people out of poverty and into a good job and getting an education.

The member should know. Today someone earning $30,000 used to pay $177 in taxes. Today they now get $2,420 back in their pockets. Somebody that earns $60,000 with two…. These are families with two kids, so we’re talking about kids in poverty — $60,000, they used to pay $4,238 in taxes. They now pay $98. That’s a 98 percent net reduction.

We know we can do more, and we will continue to do that.

RETINAL DISEASES TREATMENT PROGRAM

S. Bond: Yesterday the Finance Minister had the audacity to stand up and try to defend her record inflationary deficits by talking about cuts. Well, let’s talk about a cut that’s happening right now that literally means that people in our province are at risk of losing their vision.

Christina Watts, facing the very real threat of losing her sight, expresses the deep despair that people are feeling: “It was extra disheartening to watch the budget announcement where ‘everyone will get the health care they need’ and sitting here, with this notice in my lap, about the treatment program that I need being cancelled.”

As we speak, there are thousands of British Columbians that are terrified that they will lose an essential health care service that could jeopardize their vision.

Will the Premier get up today and ensure that the program that is underway today will continue uninterrupted and that the decision that is causing such anxiety will be reversed?

Hon. A. Dix: The hon. member knows, because she’s a former Minister of Health, that our health care system is organized, and co-managed in many respects, with doctors. The changes, in the discussion that she’s talking about, were initiated by the Doctors of B.C. Her criticism is for the Doctors of B.C., if she has criticism, and the ophthalmological division of the Doctors of B.C.

We will continue to support people getting needed retinal services in B.C. — full stop.

The Speaker: Member, supplemental.

S. Bond: Well, what I can assure this minister of is that when people are thinking they are at risk of losing their vision, it is time for the government to stand up, step up and say: “That will not happen on our watch.”

Again to the Premier, the Provincial Health Services Authority budget has ballooned by $1.1 billion, an increase of 540 percent, yet people who have a particular treatment have been told that those services will end.

Will the Premier get up today and ensure that the services and treatment continue as they are today?

Hon. A. Dix: Those services will not end. I said it clearly in the answer to the first question. I say it now.

We have unprecedented investments in our health care system, and they are showing success. They are showing success. The members have had nothing to say about this: the comments of the president of the Doctors of B.C., Dr. Ahmer Karimuddin, who says that hundreds of thousands of people now have access to a family doctor that didn’t. Do they support that? Do they support the LFP model?

That’s change. That’s action. That’s progress. Do they support free contraception? Do they support the extension of the scope of practice of pharmacists? Do they support primary care networks? The former Minister of Health promised 159 of them; he delivered zero. I’m referring to the Leader of the Opposition. We have 77.

I answered specifically the question of the hon. member. She knows. She knows….

Interjections.

The Speaker: Member.

[11:10 a.m.]

Hon. A. Dix: The member asked the question. We’ve answered the question — well, as clearly and emphatically as we can. But they need to answer if they support what we’re doing in primary care, if they support the expansion of care to people in our society, if they support the reduction in surgical wait-lists. Do they support them, or do they not?

BUDGET PRIORITIES
AND FUNDING FOR SURREY

E. Sturko: Despite multiple promises to the community, the NDP’s latest budget has left our school district in shambles and our health care in crisis. Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke says the NDP budget has no good news for Surrey: “It sure isn’t going to alleviate any of the problems we have right now with health care.”

With no new schools, hospitals or transit for Surrey in this budget, it’s clear that the Premier nor his Surrey MLAs are delivering for Surrey.

I ask the Premier: how can he table the largest deficit in B.C. history, $8 billion, and have nothing new for Surrey?

Hon. R. Kahlon: Well, the member knows we’re making record investments in health care in Surrey: a brand-new hospital, transit expansion. We’re investing in new schools.

Just recently the Leader of Opposition was in Surrey, and he did a big speech there. He promised action for Surrey. Now, the problem with that is people still remember the actions he took when he was there before. They still remember the tolls on the bridges. They still remember when he rejected a second medical school. They still remember when he sold lands that were available for schools and hospitals that are no longer there for us to have buildings invested in.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Member.

Hon. R. Kahlon: So just with all due respect, I think the people of Surrey don’t want to see that type of action anymore.

[End of question period.]

Tabling Documents

The Speaker: Members, I have the honour of tabling the Auditor General’s report on Managing Hazardous Spills in B.C.

Petitions

H. Sandhu: I rise to present a petition on behalf of my constituents, asking for an amendment in the Cemetery Act. Details of this petition are mentioned in the cover page. I’ll be presenting this petition to the Office of the Clerk.