The House met at 10:03 a.m.

[The Speaker in the chair.]

Routine Business

Prayers and reflections: Heather Maahs.

Introductions by Members

Donegal Wilson: I’d like to take a moment to introduce two members of my constituency team who are with us today, Christina Quaedvlieg and Ainsley Stewart. Please stand.

[10:05 a.m.]

They’re integral to ensuring that my office runs smoothly and the people of Boundary-Similkameen are served well. So please make them feel welcome.

Macklin McCall: I’d like to take a moment to introduce two important members of my constituency team who are with us in the gallery today, Nicole Day and Jane Inkster.

Nicole and Jane serve as my constituency assistants in West Kelowna–Peachland, and each and every day they prioritize the needs and concerns of our constituents with professionalism, care and compassion. Their dedication, hard work and commitment to our community do not go unnoticed, and I’m truly grateful for their ongoing service.

I ask all members of this House to please join me in warmly welcoming Jane and Nicole to the Legislature today.

Hon. Christine Boyle: It is a delight for me to ask you all to join me in welcoming the newest member of my team, my executive assistant, Ayesha Irfan.

I’m just looking around, trying to find her so I can embarrass her and make her wave. But I’m delighted to have her in this role and working with us. Ayesha comes from the student union at UBC and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience. I’m excited to get to work with her.

Will the House join me in welcoming her.

Macklin McCall: It is my pleasure to introduce a bright young constituent from West Kelowna–Peachland who is joining us in the gallery today. Isaac Day is the son of my constituency assistant Nicole Day. I am proud to share that Isaac was recently accepted into the University of Victoria, where he will be pursuing studies in psychology. It’s always encouraging to see young people in our communities taking big steps toward their future.

Will this House please join me in welcoming Isaac to the Legislature and wishing him all the best as he begins his journey at UVic.

Hon. Bowinn Ma: We are joined today by several leaders from the construction industry, from multiple organizations, who have done so much work to get us to where we are today in our ability to table prompt pay legislation.

I want to acknowledge Chris Atchison, Byron Tarby, Cameron Betts and Jessica Sidhu from the B.C. Construction Association. We are also joined by Kim Barbero and Trevor Hildebrand from the Mechanical Contractors Association of B.C., as well as Matt McInnis and Melissa Cornwell from the Electrical Contractors Association. They have all been such incredibly strong voices in the industry.

Would the House please join me in making them feel very welcome today.

Lorne Doerkson: I want to introduce my constituency assistant Bev Marks, who I think showed up here a day early. I just want everybody to know that she is an amazing assistant in the Cariboo-Chilcotin and has served the people for many years in South Cariboo.

I also wanted to introduce her husband, Ken, who kindly gets voluntold to do a lot of things around our office.

Thank you very much for your support.

Hon. Sheila Malcolmson: Joining us today in the legislative gallery are representatives from cooperatives across British Columbia.

Will the House please welcome executive director Tara Chernoff, board chair Kirsten Emhoff and members from across the province who are delivering, on our behalf, from housing and child care to credit unions, agriculture and worker co-ops. The cooperative movement has been at the heart of building a strong and inclusive province.

All members are invited by the Co-operative Association to join their trade show, I guess it is, in the Hall of Honour from 11:30 to 1:30. They invite you to join them, and will you please join me in welcoming them to the Legislature.

Gavin Dew: I wanted to wait until I was last so that I could be assertive in saying that joining me from my constituency office are the best staff in any constituency office in the entire province of British Columbia, Mr. Jarrod Stocker and Ms. Sonia Sandhu.

I’m so thankful for you being here today. I’m thankful for you every day. You keep me sane. You keep me organized. You force me to carve out time in my schedule to make sure I see my family. Thank you so much for all that you do.

[10:10 a.m.]

Ministerial Statements

Ben Mizrachi and Second Anniversary
of Attack on Israel by Hamas

Hon. David Eby: I wanted to rise to mark a horrific anniversary. Today is the anniversary of the terror attacks by Hamas in Israel. Those attacks took 1,200 lives. Hundreds of people were taken hostage. Families in British Columbia were affected by that.

Ben Mizrachi was at a music festival with his friends, and instead of running away from danger, he ran to help. It cost him his life. Today we mourn Ben, we mourn the loss of innocent life, and we mourn the instability and the violence.

We call on Hamas for the immediate release of all of the hostages. They should be home with their families and with their friends. This event also marked the beginning of two years of war in Gaza, the loss of thousands of innocent lives. We mourn those lives, as well — all innocent lives lost in war. We stand with the international community calling for immediate ceasefire and the release of the hostages.

We support Canada’s effort to find a two-state solution and to get aid to Gaza. May the memories of those lives lost on October 7 be a blessing, and may we stand for peace.

Introduction and
First Reading of Bills

Bill 19 — School Amendment
Act, 2025

Hon. Lisa Beare presented a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant Governor: a bill intituled Bill 19, School Amendment Act, 2025.

Hon. Lisa Beare: I’m pleased to introduce Bill 19, the School Amendment Act, which will expand the type of child care that boards of education may provide on their property and allow them to recoup reasonable fees in doing so.

Currently, boards may offer child care on school grounds only to students enrolled in their district and are limited to before and after school, only on days when school is in session. We know families who need child care generally need more comprehensive coverage than that.

These amendments will provide clear legislative authority for boards to directly operate school-age child care on school grounds on business days like pro-D days and over school breaks, not just on days when school is in session. They’ll be able to offer child care on board property for children aged zero to five and are able to recoup reasonable costs incurred in providing that care.

This legislation maintains that boards must still be licensed child care providers and that any child care program must not interfere with K-to-12 educational activities.

Taken together, these amendments aim to give boards greater flexibility to meet the child care needs of families in their communities and to promote greater sustainability of child care programs they choose to offer.

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

Motion approved.

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

Motion approved.

Bill 20 — Construction Prompt
Payment Act

Hon. Niki Sharma presented a message from Her Honour the Lieutenant Governor: a bill intituled Bill 20, Construction Prompt Payment Act.

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

I am pleased to introduce the Construction Prompt Payment Act. This bill ensures that those workers contributing service or materials on construction projects in British Columbia will be paid on time.

For too long, delayed payments down the construction pyramid have created serious financial strain. This is especially so for subcontractors and small businesses, leading to project delays, job losses and even bankruptcies. This bill sets clear timelines for payment on construction projects, ensuring that once owners receive the information they need in what is called a proper invoice, payment flows quickly down the construction chain.

[10:15 a.m.]

The bill also creates a process that enables parties to refer payment-related disputes to adjudication, ensuring a fast and accessible process to resolve disputes, keep payments flowing and keep construction projects on track.

Ultimately, it’s about protecting and supporting our construction sector, a really vital sector here in B.C. — and many of them are joining us here today — and making sure that everyone gets paid on time for the work that they do.

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

Motion approved.

Hon. Niki 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.

Motion approved.

Members’ Statements

Ben Mizrachi and
Support for Jewish Community

Reann Gasper: Two years ago today, the Jewish people endured the deadliest single-day massacre since the Holocaust.

On that same day, British Columbia lost a remarkable young man, Ben Mizrachi, a graduate of King David High School in Vancouver. Ben was at the Nova music festival in Israel when terrorists attacked. Instead of fleeing, he stayed to help the wounded. As a medic, he ran towards danger, not away.

While mourning with a rabbi, his friend asked: “Why didn’t Ben save himself?” The rabbi answered: “If he had, he would not have been Ben.” He died as he lived — selfless, courageous, a hero.

What followed for Vancouver’s Jewish community should have been a time of compassion, but instead, they were met with intimidation. At a vigil, even as they prayed for Ben, uncertain if he was alive or dead, they were mocked, threatened and faced with violent gestures. While antisemitism has clouded the mourning of his loss, we must remember who Ben was — warm, kind, selfless, a friend to all. His life was taken by terrorists who sought not only his death but the destruction of the Jewish people.

May Ben’s memory forever be a blessing and a call to live with selflessness, as he showed until his final breath.

We not only remember Ben, but we stand with the Jewish community today. We say: “You are mourning, and we mourn, and we send our love and our prayers to you.”

Foster Family Month and
Appreciation for Caregivers

Rohini Arora: This October marks the 35th anniversary of Foster Family Month in our province. Foster Family Month is a time for us to celebrate the people who provide caring homes to children and youth who need a safe, emotionally supportive place to live until they can safely return home. It’s a chance for us to say thank you and recognize the immense contribution caregivers make in our communities.

Fostering a child or youth can be an incredibly rewarding life experience. It is a unique opportunity to have an impact in the life of a child or youth in need of support, an impact that can last a lifetime.

Foster care givers are people who open their hearts and their homes to welcome children and youth into their lives. While their individual circumstances may vary, they all share a common goal of making a positive difference in the lives of young people.

Supports for caregivers in B.C. went unchanged from 2009 to 2019. In 2019, we boosted support payments for foster care givers and we ensured that extended family members receive the same rate as foster care givers.

We also know that Indigenous children do best when they’re able to be connected to their own family, culture and language. That’s why our government is working with Indigenous communities to support their resumption of jurisdiction over their own child and family services so children can remain connected to their family’s culture and language.

In 2023, we increased monthly caregiver rates by up to 47 percent, addressing a critical need to help with costs for items such as food, clothing and transportation.

[10:20 a.m.]

Being a caregiver is challenging work, but we hear incredible stories from caregivers across the province about how rewarding it is. On behalf of the government, I share my deep appreciation to all those who have answered the call and to those ready to step forward to help a child or youth who needs a safe and supportive home.

Crime in Surrey

Mandeep Dhaliwal: Our community in Surrey is struggling. We have been under threat and violence for over a year. Crime and violence are everywhere. Businesses, families and communities are desperate for help and desperate for action. No other community experiences the violence and threat that Surrey has — 50 shootings in one year.

We must thank our Surrey police. The police are doing everything they can to protect us with the limited resources. I hear from them how frustrated they are. They feel unsupported. Shootings are happening all the time — family homes, a restaurant, a radio station, a police station. What is next? Enough is enough.

Surrey is a city, not a gangland. We don’t need more press conferences or fake promises. We need action, and we need it right now. Any other community would have gotten a fast response from government. Surrey is ignored. Every action is too little, too late.

Surrey deserves better. Taxpayers deserve better. Businesses deserve better. Families deserve better. Our community deserves better, and they demand a strong response.

Lower Columbia Community Health Centre

Steve Morissette: On September 20, I had the privilege of attending the grand opening of the Lower Columbia Community Health Centre in Trail, a project eight years in the making, driven by the vision and determination of local leaders Linda Sawchenko, Win Mott, Frank Marino and a large team of community folks volunteering their time and expertise to achieve this goal.

Their vision and persistence are a powerful example of how small communities roll up their sleeves and get things done. We know that health care is a provincial responsibility, but when communities step up and shape a project to meet their own unique needs, the results are extraordinary.

The new health centre now provides 18 exam and office rooms for family physicians, nurse practitioners, social workers and other providers, alongside a large collaborative workspace, a physiotherapy room, two fully equipped treatment rooms, a quiet space off the waiting room and even a staff lunch and meeting room to support teamwork.

Already the centre is attaching over 3,600 patients, with the capacity to serve an additional 3,600 once recruitment is complete. The current complement includes 3.7 physicians, with more being recruited; 1.7 nurse practitioners, with more on the way; and 2.5 social workers.

This is what resilience looks like. This is how rural communities build solutions that work for their people.

I want to thank everyone who has played a part in bringing the Lower Columbia Community Health Centre to life. Congratulations, team. This is a tremendous accomplishment and a shining model of community-driven health care.

Thanksgiving

Ward Stamer: Thanksgiving in Canada is a time when nature, the changing seasons and family come together in harmony. As autumn settles across the country, forests glow with shades of gold and crimson, and the air turns crisp with the promise of winter. It’s a moment to pause, reflect and give thanks for the harvest and the beauty that surrounds us all.

[10:25 a.m.]

Rooted in the cycles of nature, Thanksgiving reminds us of our deep connection to the land. Canadians have long celebrated the harvest and offered gratitude to the earth for its generosity. Today the tradition continues as families gather around the tables filled with seasonal foods of turkey and ham, root vegetables and my mom’s pumpkin pie, sharing not only meals but stories, memories, the laughter and the love.

Family gatherings are at the heart of the celebration. They bring warmth to the chilly October days and strengthen bonds across generations. Whether in a bustling kitchen or a cozy dining room, these moments remind us that we are incredibly blessed to live here.

Thanksgiving is more than a holiday. It’s a reflection of Canada’s natural beauty, the rhythm of the seasons and the importance of family and friends.

Nick’s Auto Body in
North Vancouver

Susie Chant: I would like to acknowledge that I am speaking on the lands of the lək̓ʷəŋən People, specifically the Songhees and the Esquimalt. I also live and work in North Vancouver–Seymour, which is the home to the səlilwətaɬ and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Nations.

Quality service has always been a main focus at Nick’s Auto Body Ltd. For more than 35 years, this family-owned business has proudly served North Vancouver, committed to returning vehicles to their original, factory-fresh appearance. Mama is still in charge, a tiny lady who knows what everybody is supposed to be doing and to what standard.

At Nick’s, they believe in treating people the way they would like to be treated, meaning trusted, high-quality and honest service at reasonable and competitive prices. Nick’s does this all with specialties in collision repair, glass replacement and the repainting of old cars and trucks. Their highly trained team has over four decades of expertise and excels at fully comprehensive collision services, expertly handling dents, scratches, glass replacement and full repaints.

Nick’s doesn’t stop there, though. They offer free courtesy cars and meticulous sanitation with environmentally friendly disinfectants, reflecting their commitment to customer safety and convenience as well as safeguarding the environment.

Simply put, Nick’s Auto Body is a North Vancouver treasure, exemplifying old-school service and a commitment to care that continues to make them a trusted community resource today. Their motto of “We make old cars look new again” is absolutely spot-on.

Oral Questions

Government Action on Safety Concerns
at Bulkley Lodge Seniors Facility

Sharon Hartwell: I rise today to speak on an issue that’s very concerning to me. It’s government’s responsibility to look after the most vulnerable in our communities, and it saddens me to have to bring this issue forward.

Bulkley Lodge seniors are living in conditions described by a patient’s family member as “dangerous and unacceptable.” An elderly resident was injured after a safety belt was not applied properly, with signs of physical abuse linked to rushed or unfamiliar staff.

If seniors truly deserve dignity, compassion and safety, why do these horrific conditions continue?

Hon. Josie Osborne: Thank you to the member for the question and for raising what clearly is a very serious concern. Of course, we all want to see…. We know that seniors deserve the very best care in those years of their lives. Knowing that that is a top priority of this government, to ensure the highest of safety standards, being the first government to bring in legislated minimum care standards, for example, to continue to work to bolster the health care workforce in long-term-care homes and facilities that are providing these services….

I want to assure the member that I am deeply committed to this work. I welcome her to bring forward the circumstances directly to me through my office so that I can work with her to address these concerns.

The Speaker: Member, supplemental.

Sharon Hartwell: At the same facility, a nurse reported that a resident was assaulted not once but twice by staff. The family wasn’t told for 48 hours, despite management knowing the day it happened. On some shifts, there is one care aide and one nurse for 18 residents. Former staff say there’s no proper orientation for nurses, missed breaks, and thin supervision. Those who speak up face retaliation.

[10:30 a.m.]

Will the minister order an urgent, independent inspection today, guarantee whistleblower protections and immediately set minimum safety standards ratios at Bulkley Lodge for staffing?

Hon. Josie Osborne: Thank you again to the member for the question.

Of course, no one should face any form of violence in any health care facility in this province. That’s why this government continues to take steps to ensure that minimum safety standards are in place and that they are met.

There is nothing more important than taking care of the most vulnerable members of our society and of seniors, the people who have built this very province. That’s why this government has worked so diligently and taken so many actions to strengthen health care, to build long-term care facilities, to build up the workforce in these facilities, to ensure that people are there and that minimum hours of care are being kept. Of course we are going to continue this work because we know we have so much to make up for. We’re not going to stop.

The Speaker: Member, for a second supplemental.

Sharon Hartwell: That’s interesting. The minister says they’re clamping down on overtime and ending travel nurses, but Bulkley Lodge is already running on fumes. Staff are exhausted, families are stepping up to fill in the gaps, and residents are the ones paying the price. In rural B.C., where there’s no backup, cutting overtime isn’t a solution. It’s a sentence.

How does this government expect seniors to receive safe, dignified care when they’re taking away the very lifeline keeping these facilities running?

Hon. Josie Osborne: I want to start just by thanking the people who are working in these facilities and these centres for their dedication and for the exceptional care that they provide across B.C.

Now, the program that the member opposite is referring to is a program that was brought in as a temporary COVID-19 top-up during some very exceptional circumstances that we were facing during the pandemic to assist private providers. We’re five years out from that now. The program is winding down October 31. There are some months that facilities will have to be able to make the transitions they need to. But I want to again underscore the fact that this is just one program that has been used to support providers during a really challenging time.

We continue to take action. We continue to take action to strengthen long-term care by continuing to build new facilities and completing more long-term-care beds across the province. With 36 completed and ongoing projects, we’re continuing to grow the workforce, training more health care assistants, improving services so that seniors can stay at home longer before needing to transition into a care facility.

This is the work that we’re going to continue to do with our partners to ensure safe, dignified living circumstances and care for the people who helped build this province.

Funding for Long-Term-Care Facilities

Brennan Day: Nonsense. Well, 900 care spaces in this province are at risk with the funding cuts. We have not changed the basic principle which we have started this program under, which is that we have chronic staffing shortages that are affecting rural British Columbians.

Why is this government cutting off the only support keeping care homes open in rural British Columbia, Minister?

Hon. Josie Osborne: We are building long-term-care beds in this province at a rate that hasn’t been seen for years — over 1,290 beds complete, with another 4,300 beds on the way.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh. Members. Members.

Hon. Josie Osborne: We’re training more health care assistants…

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members.

Hon. Josie Osborne: …adding more than 2,400 health care assistant training seats into the complement of training seats that are necessary to build up this workforce.

I know that the member is new to being on that side of the House. I know the member is new to this House.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh. Members. Members, come to order. Members will come to order now.

The minister will continue.

Hon. Josie Osborne: Let me remind the member that when his colleagues were on this side of the House, they left nine out of ten care homes not meeting government standards.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh. Members. Members.

Interjection.

The Speaker: Member.

Hon. Josie Osborne: What’s shameful is they ripped up contracts.

Interjections.

The Speaker: The minister will continue.

[10:35 a.m.]

Hon. Josie Osborne: What’s shameful is they passed laws that led to the layoff of 10,000 workers. They forced workers to work at multiple care facilities, leaving homes dangerously understaffed and having residents face serious risk of infection. They froze SAFER rental supplements for seniors.

This government takes a different approach, improving the safety of long-term care homes, adding staff, legislating minimum care standards, putting money back into seniors’ pockets by increasing SAFER supplements. We are not going to stop this work.

The Speaker: Member, supplemental.

Brennan Day: I don’t need a long history lesson or more excuses and long answers. Will the minister commit right now to immediately pausing these cuts, or are you going to throw 900 seniors out of their homes and into overcrowded hospital hallways?

Hon. Josie Osborne: What I’m going to commit to is the plan that we are already on, building more long-term care beds, expanding existing long-term-care facilities, supporting staff for treatment…

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members, please.

Hon. Josie Osborne: …and training, working closely with health authorities, with non-profit providers, with our allied health providers and ensuring that seniors get the care they need, providing supports at home to keep seniors safe. Nothing could be more important than this work. I am open to working with the member opposite. I hope that we’ll be able to come to some constructive dialogue and do this work together, because that’s what seniors deserve.

Health Impacts of LNG Projects

Jeremy Valeriote: It’s good to be back in this, the people’s House.

What a gift Alberta’s Premier is giving this government. They get to stand up for our precious northern coastline, prevaricating on an imaginary bitumen pipeline project. It’s a perfect distraction from the very real work underway, the massive offshoring of our public resources in the form of liquefied fossil gas to enrich American billionaires.

Meanwhile, gas flaring at LNG Canada is poisoning the air in Kitimat. It’s only just begun, yet Northern Health has already documented asthma rates 74 percent higher than the provincial average, not to mention risks of lung and heart disease, cancer, preterm birth and low birth weight that come from living in the LNG sacrifice zones.

My question is for the Minister of Energy and Climate Solutions. Is he unaware of the health risks to British Columbians, or is pressure from industry lobbyists and foreign billionaires just that much more important to this government?

Hon. Adrian Dix: First of all, I’d say to the member that the Cedar LNG project, for example, and the Ksi Lisims LNG project, for example, are led by First Nations. It’s okay for the member to be opposed to those things or to criticize those things. It’s not okay, it seems to me, to consistently efface the role of First Nations, which is significant in those projects, which is consistently happening. I just encourage him…. It’s absolutely okay for him to express his view on the project.

As he will know, LNG projects in B.C. are significantly reviewed independently by the environmental assessment office in B.C. that addresses these very questions extensively. These issues are extensively dealt with and are continuing to be dealt with. There are conditions on each of the licences during the construction period and thereafter to ensure the protection of communities and support for human health.

I think that that continues to be the case in B.C. We have, as the member will know, the lowest-emission LNG projects in the world. We have, I think, some of the most comprehensive and significant reviews to address those projects. That will continue to be the approach of the government, and it’s proved to be successful in attracting resources and capital to those projects. It continues to be successful and to make B.C. distinctive in the world for having the development of a new industry and the highest standards related to that industry.

The Speaker: Member, supplemental.

Energy Regulator and Environmental
Assessment of Energy Projects

Jeremy Valeriote: I’m happy to debate the true ownership of these projects on another day.

We keep hearing that the government cupboard is bare, so it’s baffling that the minister justifies billion-dollar corporate welfare in exchange for a handful of jobs and a crippling burden on our teetering health care system from fossil fuel pollution.

[10:40 a.m.]

This government is making decisions based on old information or no information at all. The B.C. Energy Regulator is not effectively tracking emissions from gas flaring. Environmental assessments and industrial carbon pricing give companies a pass on emissions and air quality impacts during the start-up phase, which, as we’ve seen in Kitimat, can go on for months.

Again, to the Minister of Energy and Climate Solutions, we need a comprehensive, cumulative and independent impact assessment and cost-benefit analysis of fracking and LNG export. Will the government fund it?

Hon. Adrian Dix: What the member suggests is not the case. Kitimat has an extensive network of air quality monitors for fine particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and other air contaminants, and the data is publicly available. So I think to suggest that that’s not the case or that the extensive reviews done of LNG projects under environmental assessment haven’t taken place on environmental issues is not the case. We continue, yes.

The member may say that 50,000 Canadians who worked on the first phase of LNG 1 is not a lot of jobs. Well, it’s 50,000 jobs, and having met many of those workers, I can tell you that they feel very strongly about it.

At the same time, nobody more than the people on the North Coast, nobody more than the Haisla Nation, nobody more than the Nisg̱a’a Nation are concerned about the environment on the North Coast.

I believe that strong environmental assessment, a process that really supports jobs in British Columbia and drives forward jobs in British Columbia, is the right approach. The evidence for that is the success of these projects and their low emissions relative to any similar projects in the world.

Economic Development and
Youth Migration to Alberta

Tara Armstrong: We have the highest debt in B.C.’s history. This Premier has run up the highest deficit in B.C.’s history. Now he is obstructing the most productive industry in the country, oil.

Young people are fleeing to Alberta, including my own son, where there are more jobs, better pay and cheaper housing.

My question to the Premier is this. Will he apologize to the mothers of British Columbians for chasing our sons out of this province?

Hon. Adrian Dix: First of all, having visited LNG projects in different parts of B.C., having visited renewable projects in different parts of B.C., I can tell the member that sons and daughters and everyone else who works on those projects…. I just object fundamentally to this suggestion by the member.

The province of British Columbia is driving the Canadian economy with dozens of projects, not projects that are…

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh, shhh.

Hon. Adrian Dix: …communications exercises, with a large communications staff but without proponents, without business plans, without routes, without projects.

We are supporting projects across British Columbia, renewable projects, which the member opposes; the North Coast transmission line, which the member opposes; and LNG projects across B.C. We are leading a new industry with the lowest emission of LNG in the world.

In short, what we’re concerned with is driving the Canadian economy with real projects, and yes, protecting our economy and our coast and standing up for British Columbians as we always will.

The Speaker: Member, supplemental.

Tara Armstrong: Yeah, more like driving it into the ground. Numbers don’t lie. Twenty-five thousand young people left B.C. for Alberta last year alone.

In Alberta, taxes are lower, the jobs pay better, and people can afford housing. What a concept. Projects actually get built. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith knows what she’s doing and lets Albertans create their own prosperity.

But here in B.C., this socialist Premier is busy blocking pipelines and taking away people’s futures.

Will the Premier fight for B.C.’s future by allowing Alberta’s lead to be on the map?

[10:45 a.m.]

Hon. Adrian Dix: I’d be concerned with members who oppose projects in British Columbia but support fantasy projects from other provinces.

Here in British Columbia, we are, I think, leading Canada in the development of real projects. It’s why, when the Prime Minister identified the first list of major projects in Canada, 40 percent of them were in British Columbia. It’s because of the work of the people of British Columbia, of the workers of British Columbia, of the government of British Columbia and of all British Columbians, in fact, in driving economic development at an important time.

We know our economy is facing headwinds as a result of really vicious and unprecedented actions from the United States. As a result of that….

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members.

Hon. Adrian Dix: Everybody knows that. Everybody in our country knows that, whether it’s Premier Ford or Premier Smith or our Premier.

Here in British Columbia, we are leading on the question, and you see it in the dozens of projects we’re putting forward. In February, we announced 18 priority projects in B.C. All of those projects have advanced since that time because we are driving to ensure that people in British Columbia get the jobs they need and we build the economy that we need.

Drug Decriminalization Program and
Substance Use Policies

Claire Rattée: In a stunning admission of failure last week, the Premier said, “I was wrong on drug decriminalization and the effect that it would have; it wasn’t the right policy,” and that it became a permissive structure that caused really unhappy consequences. That’s putting it lightly.

If the Premier now admits that his government’s flagship drug policy has failed, why are the same ideological architects still in charge of B.C.’s addictions response?

Hon. Nina Krieger: Thank you so much for the question. I’m pleased to stand here to respond to my first question as B.C.’s Minister of Public Safety. I look forward to productive and meaningful conversations with members opposite about matters related to public safety.

Now, the challenges that we’re seeing on our streets, here and across the country, are very troubling. Let me be clear that public drug use in British Columbia is illegal. Where there is drug use in public, police have the power to seize drugs and move people along.

You’ll recall that we stood up this policy as a response to a public health emergency. We want people to be able to call 911 if they are overdosing. The opposition and the police supported this policy when it started, and when it did not work as intended, the Premier made changes to address the concerns that we heard.

We are going to keep working with our police partners to ensure that we save lives and keep our communities safe.

The Speaker: Member, supplemental.

Government Contract with Consultant
for Downtown Eastside

Claire Rattée: That wasn’t a response to the question that I asked. I understand that this is the minister’s first time getting up in question period. I can appreciate that, but that is not the question that I asked.

To be clear, it’s not true. The police do not have the ability to do anything about open public drug use, and we’re seeing the real-world consequences of that. They’re not doing anything about it because there’s nothing they can do. Their hands have been tied.

After eight years of failure on mental health and addictions, this Premier has zero credibility on this file. Now he has appointed Larry Campbell to yet another czar-like role but again refuses to release the details of his contract or mandate.

Will the Premier commit today to releasing not only the details of this contract but also an unredacted version of any report that this contract produces? Yes or no?

[10:50 a.m.]

Hon. Christine Boyle: Thanks so much for the question. I’m proud to be standing here as Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs.

The Downtown Eastside is a vibrant community which, as the member knows, has experienced incredible amounts of struggle and resiliency. Our work as a government, alongside residents in the community and organizations serving the community, is to create tangible improvements in the lives across that neighbourhood.

Interjection.

The Speaker: Member. Member.

The minister will answer.

Hon. Christine Boyle: As a former Vancouver mayor, and federally, as a senator, Mr. Campbell brings significant experience to this role, helping to expand upon the work we’ve been doing as a government and to bring together three levels of government to create tangible results.

The contract, as well as the dollar amounts, connected to Mr. Campbell have been released. That information is public. Mr. Campbell has made himself available to media and will continue to.

His continued priority is working alongside community organizations, bringing together those voices and levels of government to create tangible results, because it is a continued priority of this government to address the needs of vulnerable communities, including those in the Downtown Eastside. That’s the work that Mr. Campbell is going to help us continue to do.

Mobile Crisis Response Unit
in Langley-Willowbrook Area

Jody Toor: Car 67 mental health response team, pairing police with nurses, still isn’t running in my riding, a year after this government promised it. Everyone’s ready, the city and police, except this government. They’ve failed to plan and failed to care.

Can the minister commit today? Will my community get Car 67? Yes or no?

Hon. Nina Krieger: Thank you very much to the member for the question.

We have seen the Car programs, the integrated crisis response teams, help communities across B.C. We’re committed to providing communities with the resources and police with the resources to work together to address some of the challenges of our time.

We’ll certainly speak with the community to….

Interjection.

The Speaker: Member, let her answer, please.

Hon. Nina Krieger: I’d be happy to speak to the member to talk about resources that may be available to support public safety, to support the most vulnerable in our communities.

Emergency Health Care Services

Anna Kindy: When we ask this Minister of Health about ER closures, she always tells us that this government doesn’t “take them lightly.” But what are people in the North supposed to think when there have been 231 closures in nine months? What about Interior Health, with 129 closures? What the minister is doing to address this crisis is not working.

Can the minister guarantee that, on this Thanksgiving long weekend, no ER will be closed — yes or no?

Hon. Josie Osborne: Thank you to the member for the question.

I can guarantee that this government is going to continue to take every action possible to support health authorities, to fill staffing gaps at a time when we are experiencing shortages of physicians, nurses and other essential health care workers that help staff these emergency rooms across B.C.

I know, and I think everyone in this House knows, just how important it is to be able to rely on that emergency room and knowing it is there for you when you need it.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh.

Hon. Josie Osborne: That’s why this government continues to take actions to recruit, to train, to retain more health care professionals here in B.C. Our efforts are working. As I said yesterday, from January to August of this year, we are down 25 percent in the number of hours that emergency rooms have been closed in this province.

[10:55 a.m.]

It’s not just B.C. that’s experiencing these challenges. Thirty-eight percent of our emergency departments have experienced a closure, but that number is 70 percent in Manitoba, 66 percent in Nova Scotia and 57 percent in Saskatchewan.

That’s why we’re going to continue to take advantage and seize the opportunity of what’s happening in the States to attract more health care workers here. That’s why we’re building a new medical school to train doctors to work here in B.C.

We’re going to continue to do everything possible. We know just how important it is to have those emergency rooms here for people, in communities big and small, across this great province.

Delta Hospital Emergency Services

Ian Paton: Last night members of Delta council expressed their outrage at yet another closure of Delta Hospital’s emergency department — the fourth time this year. This is completely unacceptable for a city of over 100,000 people. Mayor Harvie was on RedFM this morning and said that health care in Delta is broken.

When will this government stop making excuses, take responsibility and assure Delta residents that we will have no further ER closures, including this upcoming Thanksgiving weekend?

Hon. Josie Osborne: Thank you to the member for the question.

I’m glad that Delta city council had an opportunity to canvass, at their meeting yesterday, the incredibly important topic of what’s happening in their emergency room and was able to talk about steps and actions they can take. I look forward to continuing that conversation with the Delta mayor and council.

I know that building out primary care in the community is an important component of this so that people don’t have to go to the emergency room if they don’t need to, because that’s the work that we’re doing to increase access to primary care providers.

It’s incredibly hard on everybody when these things happen, but we need to uplift and thank the staff that are doing everything they can to fill those gaps, to work overtime and spend the time providing the support and the care to people when they need it most.

It is extremely unfortunate, of course, that Delta had an experience for the fourth time this year. We know that other communities are seeing this issue too. We did not get into this problem overnight, and we are not going to solve it with a single silver bullet. We are not going to solve it overnight either.

What we are going to do is stick to our plan of recruiting more physicians, of training more physicians, of ensuring that they know about the opportunities to work in incredible facilities and communities across this province. We’re going to continue that work, because people deserve the care when they need it.

Government Action on Health Care Issues

Trevor Halford: Let’s be clear. The minister, in previous answers, used the word “dignified,” right? They talk about all the work that she’s doing, the meetings that she’s having, the commitment that she has.

Any moral high ground that this minister or this Premier had on the health file left when they deprived a child, terminally ill, of medication and made her, her family, a community and a province beg to get it back — unacceptable, an absolute embarrassment.

We come in today, and we ask specific questions on Car 67 — yes or no? — and questions on a seniors program that is ending on the 31st of this month — yes or no?

Can the Premier answer those questions today? Car 67 — yes or no? The seniors program that is ending on the 31st of this month — yes or no? On the Thanksgiving weekend that we’re going into, will we have ER closures — yes or no? Will the Premier get up and stand up for health care in this B.C.? Or will he hide again and let his minister stick to her talking points?

Interjection.

The Speaker: Thank you, Members. The minister will answer.

Hon. Josie Osborne: This government remains committed to building out and strengthening our universal, public, health care system here in British Columbia, not adopting a two-tier system, which I know members of the opposition would do, if they had the opportunity, on this side of the House.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Shhh. Members. Members.

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members, the question period is over. It’s concluded.

[11:00 a.m.]

Hon. Josie Osborne: This government has invested more in new hospitals and health care facilities than the previous government did, building a hospital, even in the Leader of the Opposition’s riding that he’d refused to build, having two ATCO trailers stuck together and thinking that that was a good way of delivering care to the people of Fort St. James

Interjections.

The Speaker: Members.

Hon. Josie Osborne: We are building in Terrace. We are building in Fort St. James. We are building in Dawson Creek.

We are going to continue this work because every community, every person in British Columbia deserves strong health care, and that is what this government is committed to.

[End of question period.]

Tabling Documents

The Speaker: Hon. Members, I have the honour to table the Auditor General’s report, Annual Follow-up Report: Status of Performance Audit Recommendations (2019-2023).

Petitions

Lorne Doerkson: I rise today to present a petition. The petition notes the serious concerns regarding a lack of consultation with respect to proposed power projects in the South Cariboo; 1,023 members of our communities have signed the petition titled “Halt the Wind Turbine and Solar Projects in the Cariboo.”

[Mable Elmore in the chair.]

I am presenting this petition on behalf of very frustrated residents that are calling for a stoppage on this work unless there is proper consultation brought to the Cariboo.

Orders of the Day

Hon. Mike Farnworth: In this chamber, I call continued second reading on Bill 12.

In the Douglas Fir Room, Section A, I call committee stage for Bill 9, Health Care Costs Recovery Amendment Act.

Second Reading of Bills

Bill 12 — Motor Vehicle
Amendment Act, 2025
(continued)

Deputy Speaker: Okay, we’ll continue with second reading on Bill 12, Motor Vehicle Amendment Act, 2025.

[11:05 a.m.]

Trevor Halford: I’m grateful to get up today to talk about Bill 12 in second reading.

It’s kind of a funny thing, because I actually have two kids right now that are going through the process of getting their licence. One has just gotten his, and the other one is well on his way. It is scary times. I mean that, because there’s good and bad that comes with it. There’s a little bit more simplicity going to school, going to work, things like that. But there’s also a fear too.

We heard about that, put so passionately by my colleague who served as a police officer. I think every parent has that fear when their child leaves the house. You think about…. You can’t protect them when they’re on their own.

For me, it comes down to safety. Those are going to be the fundamental things that I think this side of the House will be canvassing in committee, the safety aspect of this piece of legislation. I think the primary goal here is to ensure that our roads are safe and ensure that our drivers are best prepared to be on our roads.

You know, we look at different things in the structure. When I got my licence, it wasn’t through the graduated program. I never had an N. I see the N’s all the time. I see the L’s. I think if we’re making changes to that, we need to ensure that those changes are enhancing the safety of our roads.

We’ve talked about backlogs that have occurred. Obviously, there are some effects with the strike that’s going on. I know some people have had their tests cancelled, which is very unfortunate.

This is legislation that’s existed since, I think, 1996. Part of the thing that I’m really curious about is — I’m sure there’s good rationale — the statistics in terms of reducing the age from 19 to 18 of who can apply for a full licence themselves; in terms of allowing for regulatory power regarding driver’s education that could shorten wait times for novice drivers to get their full licence; the length of time that a person has held a valid licence; how a driving record is translated into another jurisdiction as well.

I think that those are all very important questions that I know myself and my colleagues will be canvassing.

We do need to make sure, too, that we help reduce the backlog that we are currently seeing. There are some people in some areas and even in my area…. I live in an area that’s very populated, right by the border crossing. Actually, in the area that I live, there’s no public transportation available whatsoever.

If you’re just getting into the workforce or you’re going to university, you’re actually depending on a vehicle. Right now, we’re talking about months and months for people waiting to get their tests.

We want to make sure though, too, that if somebody’s behind the wheel, we know that we have legislation in place that makes sure that they are as qualified as they can be. I think that’s something everybody in this House would agree on. How do we do that with matching high-quality training programs to ensure that that’s occurring?

We’ve got to talk about cost too. A lot of times the cost of some of these training programs, to a lot of families, especially right now when we’re in an affordability crisis, is very cost-prohibitive. So what is occurring there? Some families cannot afford driving lessons.

[11:10 a.m.]

I know that in some cases it can potentially save on insurance and other such factors, but we need to talk about equality with that. We need to talk about affordability. We need to make sure that that enhances the safety on our roads.

We also need to talk about the way we’re monitoring these changes. I’m sure ICBC and the, I think, previous government, because this was done, as I said before, in 1996…. I think those stats will show how those changes affected things, and I think we need to know what the statistical rationale is for making these changes now. I’m sure that exists, but I think we in the House have a duty here to canvass that and make sure that we can exemplify how that will happen and if there are ways to improve that. I think some of my colleagues will lay that out.

I am looking forward to canvassing this in committee stage. I know there are a number of speakers here. Again, I stress the fact that getting your licence is one of the most liberating times you’re ever going to experience, especially as a young adult or maybe even a new Canadian and such. I live in a riding that is heavily populated by seniors, and a lot of issues I have are seniors coming in that are saying: “I’ve got to do all these things to get my licence.”

We also have a duty to make sure…. Yes, we want to make sure people on the roads have the freedom to get from A to B, to get to their appointments, to get to their loved ones, to get their groceries. But also, the paramount goal that we always need to focus on is the safety of our roads. That is first and foremost the most paramount thing, the safety of our roads. How does this do this? I know that’s the intent. How does this shape the backlog? Those are the issues that I’m looking forward to canvassing in committee stage.

I am looking forward to hearing the comments of my colleagues that have served as first responders. A previous colleague spoke, and I think we’ll hear from another colleague that served, and these people have seen it firsthand. I know there are people on the government side of the House that have gone to MVAs and the trauma associated with that, the fact that they’ve gone and knocked on somebody’s door and told them that their son or daughter is not coming home anymore. As hard as those stories are to hear, I think it’s very important that we have that lens when we go through this process.

This is legislation that was done a few decades ago, and I think the changes that are being considered here…. I think that as we flush them out, we can get a sense of what they’re intended to accomplish, what those benchmarks will be and how they’ll be measured. So I look forward to that conversation, and I look forward to hearing my colleagues on both sides of the House speak to this in second reading.

Jennifer Blatherwick: I’d like to begin by acknowledging that I am on the territory of the traditional kʷikʷəƛ̓əm people. I’m grateful to live, work and serve on this land.

I want to thank the member for Victoria–Swan Lake for bringing forward these graduated licensing program design changes. I appreciate the thoughtful, evidence-based approach to amending the legislation, reviewing our approach to see if we’re getting value from the process and how, without sacrificing safety, we can be more efficient and serve all communities better.

Driving is an essential life skill. For many, especially in rural and remote parts of the province, it’s a necessity. In commuting to work, taking your kids to school, accessing health care, having a driver’s licence can make all the difference. This will help remove barriers for Indigenous, rural, remote and northern communities and marginalized communities in urban environments.

In my previous role, supporting youth who were coming out of care and employees who were just embarking on their social work career, many really struggled to get their driver’s licences. Youth in care are much less likely to have access to the supports that will help them get that licence: access to a vehicle; a group of adults who are willing and able to drive with them, instruct them and guide them; help and advice that mean they can get their driver’s licence early.

[11:15 a.m.]

When they graduate from high school and then graduate out of care, that becomes even more challenging. I want to thank this government for the supports that they’ve provided for youth out of care, recognizing the challenge this group of people have in getting education, job training and acquiring those skills that can help them successfully move on to adult life.

The real challenge, the moments of learning, come during the time when they’re actually doing the driving. Practising, practising, practising is key. But when they leave high school, those kids have a real and serious lack of resources. They don’t have a vehicle, they are often working two jobs or shift work, and they have less opportunity to make appointments for drivers’ tests.

They need good jobs in order to be able to have the money to get the car to practise and then take the test. Because they lack those things, they’re just that much more likely to delay getting a licence until they have that better job. But then how do you get a better job without a licence?

I mentioned that I was also supporting young social workers, who are very often kids who were, at one point, in care and now want to help children like they once were. When supervising practicum students who are learning about working in the social work field, we’d spend time strategizing about how they’re going to progress to their goals. The number one thing that we discussed was how they could get a full driver’s licence. Those are exactly the youth and the young adults that this program will benefit — responsible, thoughtful, hard-working kids who need a full driver’s licence to pursue job opportunities.

So today I’m very pleased to be able to talk about the changes we’re making to improve how people in British Columbia learn to drive, get licensed and stay safe on our roads, the action that we’re taking to modernize British Columbia’s licensing program to make it clearer, more consistent and more accessible without compromising on safety.

Removing the requirement for a second road test to obtain a full class 5 driver’s licence. B.C. is one of only two provinces, the other being Ontario, that still requires new drivers to take two separate road tests to graduate from a novice class 7 licence to a full licence. The evidence indicates the second test alone doesn’t improve safety outcomes significantly. What does improve safety? Time, experience and practice.

So instead of our second road test, we change to a new 12-month licensing restriction period for the new class 5 licence holders. For one year after receiving the class 5 licence, maintaining a clean driving record is essential. No alcohol, no drugs in your system, no excessive speeding and no distracted driving.

If drivers can do that, they earn their full, unrestricted class 5 licence automatically, without needing to book and pass a second road test. That’s increasing safety. It’s efficient, but it doesn’t sacrifice safety. Those changes do not lower the bar. They’ll strengthen it by extending the time the drivers need to get their full class 5. We’re reinforcing good habits, helping to reduce the risk of crashing, especially amongst younger and less experienced drivers.

Older drivers face a slightly different risk profile. Research shows that drivers aged 25 and older have a 20 percent lower crash risk than those under 25. That’s why we’re tailoring the rules accordingly, to reflect real-world data and better align with other provinces.

We’re also taking strong action to improve safety for motorcycle riders. Motorcyclists are some of our most vulnerable road users. The risks they face are real, and the consequences of an accident are often devastating. The new motorcyclist licensing program will have stricter safety requirements, including mandatory protective gear beyond just helmets.

Head injury is a real risk, but bodily injury is also a serious concern. Protective gear can help keep people safe. Zero tolerance for drugs and alcohol. No one should be driving impaired, especially as a new driver. New safety training standards to help ensure that every motorcyclist has the skills and awareness that they need to stay safe on the road.

These changes are in direct response to long-standing concerns from the riding community, from health care professionals and from families who’ve lost loved ones in preventable crashes. These changes aren’t just about safety. They’re also about access.

[11:20 a.m.]

We know that in many parts of British Columbia, road test appointments can be hard to come by, especially true, especially acute, especially challenging for people in those remote and underserved communities where travelling can be very long, sometimes for more than one appointment to complete a licensing process.

By removing the second road test, that will reduce pressure on the system and allow more appointments for new drivers who are starting their journey and help more people access the service they need.

That’s especially important for the young people, like the youth and the young employees I mentioned, who are entering the workforce and need a driver’s licence to get ahead. That licence can be a job requirement or restriction to moving forward into a more senior position.

I also want to address a few important pieces. This change is not about cutting costs or reducing staff at ICBC. ICBC is actively hiring 20 new driver examiners to meet that current demand, and we’re committed to supporting that staff every step of the way.

The changes are not going to happen immediately. We’re targeting early 2026 for implementation to allow for proper consultation with Indigenous communities, driver training schools, safety experts and industry partners.

Most importantly, if a driver receives a penalty, whether for speeding, impaired driving or using their phone behind the wheel, their 12-month restricted period will restart. That means that accountability stays in place and safe behaviour is non-negotiable.

Public safety is the most important piece. Every decision from data analysis to policy design was assisted and guided by expert advice, real-world evidence and a responsibility to keep people safe on our roads.

We’ve seen too many families impacted by preventable collisions. We’ve heard from too many parents and too many first responders and too many communities. So we will continue to do better, and with these changes, we will.

Above all, this is about people, about young drivers working hard to earn their licences. It’s about parents struggling to teach their teens to drive, and the people who work hard in those professionalized capacities in order to support young people in learning to drive. It’s about workers in rural B.C. who need safe, reliable access to road testing. This is about motorcyclists who deserve the best protection we can offer and about building a licensing system that’s fair, efficient and puts safety first.

To everyone who provided input and your expertise, we thank you. It’s incredibly challenging to shift technical legislation like this, and the expertise you provided was a key piece of understanding how we could move forward without sacrificing safety.

I am also going through the getting-the-licence process with my children right now. To the driver examiners, we thank you for your service and your kindness in guiding our young drivers and your expertise in ensuring that drivers who are not ready are not on the road.

We thank the road safety experts who provided guidance, who provided expertise and who helped guide this legislation as it comes forward, and community advocates who shared their stories, who told us about the experiences of their family and their loss. Thank you.

To every person who is doing their best to drive responsibly: you’re a part of this solution. This isn’t just about policy. This is to ensure that roads are safer and we’re supporting people where they are.

We’re looking to build a system that reflects the values of this province — smart, fair and forward-looking.

Bryan Tepper: Hon. members, distinguished guests, who seem to have cleared out very quickly today, and anybody tuning in at home, from Vancouver to Prince George, thank you for joining me to discuss a bill that revs up change on our roads.

Bill 12, the Motor Vehicle Amendment Act, 2025, is the NDP’s attempt to put the pedal to the metal on driver licensing reform. It aims to clear the gridlock at ICBC testing centres where novice drivers are stuck in neutral, waiting months for a road test to shift from class 5 novice licence to full class 5.

In all seriousness, this appears to be about accessibility and opportunity. It scraps the mandatory second road test for novice drivers with clean records, replacing it with a one-year restricted period to prove safe driving.

[11:25 a.m.]

It lowers the independent application age from 19 to 18, grants ICBC and cabinet flexible regulatory powers and tightens safety rules for motorcycles and distracted driving. If it comes into force, it’s the biggest overhaul of the B.C. graduated licensing program since 1998.

While the Conservatives believe in tackling bureaucracy and reducing simple hurdles as principles we can all rally behind, this can never come at the expense of safety.

For young British Columbians, whether they’re heading to UBC, starting a job in Kelowna or just picking up pizza in Surrey, backlogs stifle independence.

Why don’t cars trust bureaucracy? It’s because it keeps putting them in park.

The bill’s focus on high-quality training programs and evidence-based pathways is promising. However, are they just making it too expensive for some people to simply carry on with what is a necessary part of life today?

We support improving road safety and recognizing that structured driver education can prepare novice drivers better than a one-size-fits-all road test. But here’s the catch. It’s not a speed bump. We must ensure that this isn’t a shortcut to clear backlogs at the expense of safety. British Columbia’s roads aren’t a racetrack for reckless reform.

Every year, crashes claim lives, break families and strain our health care system. Novice drivers are over-represented in these tragedies. So I ask if the NDP has studied the stats from before 1997, when our two-test system began, to after its implementation. Does Bill 12 balance efficiency with evidence, or are we risking a collision with safety?

In principle, less red tape is a green light, but safety is the road sign we can’t ignore. Let’s take this bill for a test drive, clause by clause, with an eye on the data and the human cost.

The 1990s were a different era for driving in B.C. A knowledge test, one road test, minimal practice, and vroom, you’re fully licensed. No waiting periods, no passenger limits, no zero-tolerance alcohol rules. It was the Wild West of driving, and the stats were a wreck.

In the early ’90s, young drivers aged 16 to 19 were crashing at rates of 20 to 25 fatalities per 100,000 licensed drivers annually, according to ICBC and Transport Canada. The risks were clear. Inexperience led to nighttime collisions, teen-packed cars, speeding and impaired driving. A 1999 study in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine noted that pre-graduated systems across North America saw young driver crashes up to four times higher than adults.

My colleague spoke of his personal experience, and I’m going to tell a story from one of mine in my career as a police officer. I had to go twice, to two different families, over my career having to tell them that their child had died because of driving behaviours that caused loss of life.

In one particular instance, it was a vehicle that had gone off the road, rolled, and there was a person missing from the car that we couldn’t locate. Over the course of that time, as police, we were forced to call the home to find out if he had returned there during that time. Because of the rollover and not wearing a seat belt and multiple people in the car, he had been thrown from the vehicle and killed. A family received that phone call with no knowledge of where he was and what had happened.

[11:30 a.m.]

I was the one that had to go to the house, with our victim service worker, thankfully, to talk to them. When they got the phone call that we were on the way to their home, a 45-minute drive from where we were, I can’t imagine what that was like for a family. I spent several hours there, hugging the family, dealing with their issues, their tragedy.

This is something that nobody ever wants to go through, that nobody ever wants to hear about. As I said, I had to do that more than once in my career, and I don’t know if there are police officers that don’t have to do that.

In B.C., the data screamed for reform. In 1998, in the graduated licensing program, our province’s roadmap to safer roads…. It introduced three stages: learner, class 7L, one year with a supervisor; novice, class 7, two years with restrictions like no nighttime driving after midnight, one passenger under 25 unless supervised, and zero alcohol; and then your full licence, class 5. A second road test was the finish line — a real-world check of skills.

The results were a game-changer. ICBC’s evaluation showed that within three years, novice crash rates dropped 16 percent, saving 31 lives and preventing 17,500 collisions. Meta-analysis by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that GLP slashed teen fatal crashes by 26 to 40 percent across jurisdictions, with overall crashes between jurisdictions between 20 and 50 percent.

In B.C., nighttime restrictions alone cut novice involvement by 20 to 30 percent. By 2016, young driver fatalities fell from over 50 annually pre-1997 to 20 to 25 in recent years, per B.C. Coroners Service, which I wish I did not have to quote.

During those years, working with the RCMP, I was not a traffic member or a highway safety member. I worked closely with them on many occasions. The goal of zero deaths on our highways is an admirable goal, and we have moved a long way towards that. It’s still too much.

From 2012 to 2021, police reported that novice crashes kept declining, even as vehicle kilometres travelled rose. So this wasn’t luck; it was structure. Was it the two-test system building competence, or was it the time behind the wheel? Were the other restrictions being followed more closely by the youth of today?

But this all is like telling a car you don’t get to race until you’ve mastered the parking lot. So I challenge the NDP. Did you dive into these pre- and post-1997 stats? At some point in Hansard, it mentions the evolving road safety practices, but we haven’t seen the deep dive. Have you modelled crash rates under no-test systems?

In 2023, a UBC study on GLP tweaks suggested that removing tests without robust training could spike novice crashes by 5 to 10 percent. Safety isn’t a suggestion. It’s the seatbelt of this debate. We need evidence, not just horsepower.

Let’s pop the hood on Bill 12’s clauses. It appears to me that clauses 1 and 7 are tune-ups, minor edits to sections 21 and 261 for clarity. I don’t see any red flags there, looking at it myself at this point.

[11:35 a.m.]

But clause 2 amends section 23, adding subsection 2.11: “The Lieutenant Governor in Council can prescribe different amounts of driving experience for different classes of persons.” It’s flexible, yes. It recognizes out-of-province licences or clean records, which is great. It’s like giving a seasoned driver a fast lane. ICBC’s new power to compare out-of-province offences adds fairness.

But “classes of persons” is as clear as a foggy windshield. Who qualifies? Urban drivers, rural, newcomers? Without definition, it’s like handing ICBC a blank roadmap.

I will say, why did the driver get lost in clause 2? The directions said: “Turn left at prescribed clauses.”

Clause 3 is the potential flat tire. It amends section 25 to make road tests optional. People only take a knowledge test, road test or science test if ICBC requires it. For class 7 to class 5, no test if you’ve held the novice licence for the prescribed period, which is now set by cabinet, and completed approved training. Instead, a one-year restriction period enforces safe driving. Lowering the application age to 18, in clause 4, empowers young adults. Data shows 18-year-olds are as mature as 19-year-olds for licensing.

Approved driver education courses that shorten wait-lists are fantastic. Studies show that they can cut crashes from 10 to 20 percent. We support this in principle.

Backlogs, apparently over 100,000 waits in 2024, push some to drive unlicensed, risking fines or worse. A monitored year of driving could prove skills better than a 30-minute test. It’s like, again, show me how you handle the highway, not just the cul-de-sac.

Why will novice drivers love the new system? It’s because they don’t have to parallel park for a grumpy examiner.

But safety can’t stall. New subsection 10(f) lets regulations adjust conditions based on how long you’ve had a licence, driving record or other prescribed conditions. That’s vaguer than the GPS saying: “Recalculating.”

What are these considerations? ICBC can deem out-of-jurisdiction licence equivalents, but without transparency, how do we ensure fairness?

My own fear is that we will have drivers over the age of 25 that we know have a harder time picking up on tasks requiring concentration and coordination. Just try playing a video game with a 16-year-old. The previous speaker actually mentioned that people over the age of 25 are generally safer. This is for people that do have some driving experience. It’s the general coordination and ability to pick up skills and muscle memory that become more difficult as somebody ages over 25. I don’t know how we’re going to address that in this bill.

Rural drivers in Prince George face different roads than Vancouver commuters. So will their experience be judged equally?

The bill mandates monitoring, but where is the independent oversight? Pre-1997 data warns us loose gates lead to crashes.

Let’s hear from stakeholders. The B.C. Trucking Association supports streamlined licensing but urges mandatory training standards. Parents I have spoken to worry. “My teen is ready, but no test? I need proof they’re safe.”

We need clarity, consultation and data-driven exemptions.

Move on to clause 5, the mandates for protective gear for class 6L, 8L motorcycle operators and passengers — jackets, boots, helmets. Long overdue.

I am going to tell another personal story, but this one is not quite as heavy.

[11:40 a.m.]

Back at the beginning of my career, I was working with a traffic program that was ongoing with the commercial safety inspectors. On the way back, we’re driving down a gravel road when a fellow pulled out on a motorcycle wearing shorts, no shirt, no helmet.

I was in the commercial vehicle with that driver. He turned on the lights and the siren. The person got a little scared, apparently, wobbled in the gravel and dropped over on his motorcycle. Of course, we got out quickly to make sure he was okay.

He was fine, other than picking gravel bits out of some of his skin here and there. I would have been happy with that as enough punishment for what he had done. However, if we know our commercial vehicles safety inspectors, he pulled out his ticket book and wrote up a long list of infractions.

That could have been far worse than just a simple story where somebody had some gravel in his skin — other than that, unhurt. So yes, I do applaud the new restrictions for protective clothing. Motorcyclists face fatality rates 25 times higher than cars.

Clause 6 bans hands-free devices for classes 6L, 7, 7L, 8, 8L learners and has zero tolerance for distractions. Smart, since distractions cause 25 percent of young driver crashes.

Clause 8 shields pre-amendment licence holders from retroactive bans, which is fair.

While I’m sort of still talking of the distracted drivers, getting rid of all…. I applaud it for all levels of this with distracted driving as well, to move it in there. It is, I believe, right now…. I haven’t seen the stats in a few years, but distracted driving is the number one cause of crashes. I will have to see updated stats, and hopefully, they are coming if this moves forward.

Clauses 9 to 10 streamline classes 7, 8 and 5, 6 and grant cabinet broad regulatory powers.

Clause 11 scraps the redundant 2020 amendment, and clause 12 sets commencement by regulation.

The bill cuts red tape, but the regulatory blank cheque in sections 23 and 25 is like giving ICBC the keys to a sports car with no speed limit. The government must define classes, mandate consultation and ensure equity. Safety isn’t just a road sign; it’s lives. Bill 12’s no-test pathway must be grounded in evidence, not just a quick lane change to clear backlogs.

Post-1998, GLP slashed novice fatalities by 40 percent. Removing the second test risks backsliding unless we double down on monitoring. Again, I ask: is it the second test, or is it the restrictions on the licence?

Mandate annual crash rate reports for exempted drivers using telematics. ICBC has the tech to track violations in that first year.

For motorcycles, protective gear is a start, but mandate advanced training. Ontario’s motorcycle program cut novice crashes by 15 percent with mandatory training courses.

These stats, NDP, show us the evidence. Pre-1997, 16- to 19-year-old crash rates were double today’s. Post-GLP — a 16 percent drop in three years. Again, was it the second road test or some other factor? We need to know. The government needs to present this House with real data and supporting statistics.

A 2024 ICBC pilot in Kelowna showed test-exempt novices with training had crash rates equal to tested drivers, but it was small-scale. Model Bill 12 provincewide. Will it hold up? If not, pilot it in low-risk areas first.

I heard from my constituent. “My daughter is 20, ready for her class 5. No test sounds great, but I want data that this is safe.” Full disclosure — that was me. Once again, government must present this bill with the stats and evidence that led to this bill.

Bill 12 is a chance to shift gears: less bureaucracy, more trained drivers, safer roads. I understand the NDP’s intent to clear backlogs, embrace training, ban distractions. But safety is our top priority.

[11:45 a.m.]

Learn from pre-1997’s wild ride. Don’t repeat it. The people of British Columbia deserve roads where a teen’s first drive ends at home, not at the hospital. Pass this bill with amendments that prioritize evidence, equity and real lives. For our kids, for our communities, let’s keep safety in the driver’s seat.

Stephanie Higginson: I rise today to speak in support of Bill 12, but I want to start by thanking the members opposite from Kelowna-Peachland and Surrey-Panorama for their service and for their personal stories around this issue of road safety.

I live in a rural community. We don’t have sidewalks. My son used to walk four kilometres to school and see four streetlights. So the issue of road safety is a daily concern in my community for both young and old. We have lost members of our community, both young and old. It’s an issue that’s really important to the members of my community.

I welcome the goal of this bill to modernize the graduated licensing program and to provide improved safety standards to the motorcycle licensing program. I remember getting my driver’s licence at 16 years old in Toronto and literally the next day driving down the 401, a 16-lane highway, in my mom’s 1985 Chevette, thinking: “I really shouldn’t be here.”

So I welcomed when the graduated licensing program came in, because I really remembered that day, thinking I shouldn’t have been there. But I think it’s also really important for us to remember that the current graduated licensing program has been around for over 25 years. It is time for an update. It’s time for a refresh to respond to today’s context and the changing nature of the roads since this was put in place.

The changes will create simpler and more accessible processes for new drivers while at the same time maintaining the high safety road standards for motorcycle riders and all road users. The changes propose to remove the requirement for a second road test to obtain a class 5 licence and to create a new 12-month restriction period for new class 5 holders.

The proposed changes will also establish a new motorcycle licensing program with stronger safety measures, including mandatory protective gear and zero tolerance for drugs and alcohol. These changes will help new drivers build safe behaviours, reduce barriers to earning a full licence and help improve access for those seeking a road test to earn their novice class 7 licence. The changes also do aim to reduce fatalities and serious injuries, especially among new motorcycle riders.

I am also…. There are a lot of us in this House who are moms or parents of teens, one of whom just got his N almost a year ago. Because of that, I’m surrounded by a lot of teens who are also going through this process. Our family found the requirement for the second road test to be an arbitrary hurdle that may or may not reflect the ability or skill of a new driver.

There are too many factors at play that impact the outcome of that test. Then there are the required wait times after each test if you don’t pass, which may or may not have happened in my house. We may have been one of the more than 50 percent that did not pass the test the first time.

If you’re lucky enough, then, to get another test in a timely manner…. It’s not a common occurrence to get another test in a timely manner. You kind of have to wait months and months. That creates inequitable access to this hurdle, for many directly impacting their ability to seek employment. The disparity of that hurdle is often dictated by where you live in the province.

The proposed changes instead focus on experience, not a date on a calendar, because a longer period of experience is demonstrated to be better at building the right skills and behaviours for safe drivers. Research indicates that age and inexperience can contribute to a crash risk. As new drivers get more experience, their crash risk decreases. Evidence also shows that having an extended period with restrictions and enhanced driver record reviews builds the necessary skills and behaviours to promote safe driving.

[11:50 a.m.]

The restrictions on new drivers for the first 12 months of their class 5 will be introduced, which will extend the period that they are not allowed to have any drugs or alcohol in their system. They must also maintain safe driving behaviour, no driving suspensions or prohibitions, and have no excessive speeding or use-of-electronic-device tickets on their record during this 12-month period to be eligible to receive an unrestricted class 5 licence. No excessive speed and no electronic tickets are currently not a requirement to exit the graduated licensing program.

This approach is used in other Canadian provinces to encourage and require new class 5 drivers to operate in safe and responsible manners and not to engage in risky behaviours. With these changes, drivers will be older, they will have more time behind the wheel when restrictions are removed, and all of these changes remove requirements not proven to increase road safety, which will reduce wait times for those seeking road tests to earn their novice class 7 licence.

I’ve heard some accusations or concern that perhaps we’re putting this forward for efficiency. This government has always stood on safety, sometimes at the impact of efficiency. I have to say that I find those concerning accusations, because it’s not fair. We heard from the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, at the beginning of this, the evidence that was used to make these changes.

They also align B.C. with other provinces across the country. At this time, only B.C. and Ontario require a second road test.

I want to also speak in support of the proposed changes to create a new motorcycle licensing program with stricter safety requirements. I was actually quite surprised, as a mom of teens, to learn that, in my opinion, it’s actually easier to get a motorcycle licence than it is to get a vehicle licence.

As a mom of teen boys, that really scared me. Luckily, my kids are super risk-averse. Neither of them, at this point, wants to ride a motorcycle on the road. But some of them have appeared in my yard with their friends riding them, and it was way easier for them to get that licence than it was to pass the vehicle test.

We’ve heard concerns, and we’ve also heard about the deep consultation that has occurred with industry experts in order to bring forward the motorcycle licensing program. The approach ensures that new riders gain the unique skills required to ride safely. These changes will also help reduce fatalities and serious injuries resulting from motorcycle-related crashes.

There were a lot of good questions asked, and I look forward to Bill 12 making it to second reading so that we can go through those questions and ensure that there are safer roads for every British Columbian.

I reserve my place and move adjournment of debate.

Stephanie Higginson moved adjournment of debate.

Motion approved.

George Anderson: Section A reports progress on Bill 9 and asks leave to sit again.

Leave granted.

Hon. Bowinn Ma moved adjournment of the House.

Motion approved.

Deputy Speaker: The House stands adjourned until 1:30 p.m. this afternoon.

The House adjourned at 11:53 a.m.