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From YouTube: JUNE 10 2021 Question Period
Description
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
2nd Session
42nd Parliament
C
C
D
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker,
and
I
appreciate
the
question
from
the
member
opposite.
The
peonies
is
vitally
important
to
our
communities,
especially
it's
an
iconic
attraction
in
east
vancouver.
Recently
we
heard
good
news
that
they
were
opening
on
june
11th,
and
that
is
positive.
The
restart
plan
is
showing
promise
that
we
are
going
to
return
to
a
new
level
of
normal.
D
I
want
to
assure
the
member
that
we
have
worked
with
the
peony.
My
staff
have
met
with
the
peony.
There
are
some
technical
pieces
that
the
member
is
aware
of.
The
municipality
is
responsible
for
the
peony.
I've
spoken
to
the
mayor
about
the
peony.
We
are
working
with
the
peony,
and
that
was
part
of
the
announcement,
for
our
major
anchor
attractions
is
to
support
those
that
have
been
impacted
by
this
pandemic.
That
was
a
call
to
action
for
targeted
funding.
D
The
application
deadline
closed
on
monday,
and
I
hope
that
there's
good
news
that
will
work
in
favor
of
the
peony
and
other
anchor
attractions,
but
I'll
just
put
it
on
the
record
honorable
speaker
that
we
are
doing
the
advocacy
working
with
the
peony
and
also
asking
the
federal
government.
400
million
dollars
was
put
on
the
table
for
events
and
festivals
and
we're
going
to
make
sure
that
bc
gets
its
fair
share.
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker.
C
Thank
you
very
much,
I'm
not
sure
which
part
of
the
question
the
minister
missed
yesterday,
the
president
of
the
pne
said
that
the
request
was
falling
on
deaf
ears,
so
the
minister
can
trot
out
all
the
lines
she
wants.
The
president
of
the
pne
said
this
government
is
not
doing
what
its
premier
promised
to
do.
He
made
a
promise.
I
will
save
the
pne.
C
Let's
hear
what
else
the
premier
said
he
said
a
month
ago,
and
I
quote
it's
attractions
like
the
pne
that
we
had
in
mind
when
we
developed
the
program.
End
quote,
but
the
pne
has
over
2
million
guests
and
4
300
employees
over
30
times
more
employees
and
guests.
As
other
attractions
in
the
category
again,
shelly
frost,
writes-
and
I
quote,
interestingly,
fairs
and
festivals
are
not
even
eligible
for
this
funding.
We
are
only
able
to
apply
through
playland,
so
it
is
not
designed
to
support
organizations
like
ours.
End
quote.
C
D
Thank
you
honorable
speaker,
so
the
peony
recently
announced
that
they're
opening
on
june
11th.
That
is
positive
news.
The
member
is
mischaracterizing
the
announcement
that
remained
two
weeks
ago
that
the
premier
and
I
made
it
wasn't
designed
for
the
peony.
It
was
designed
to
support
the
ecosystem,
our
tourism
ecosystem.
D
It
was
designed
as
a
call
to
action
in
partnership
with
industry
experts
who
said
that
we
needed
to
send
relief
out
the
door
to
help
with
anchor
attractions
in
the
lower
mainland
in
rural
communities
and
for
tour
bus
operators.
That
was
the
intent
of
the
grant,
and
it's
not
just
it's,
not
a
loan.
It's
a
grant
up
to
a
million
dollars
is
available
for
applicants.
The
deadline
is
closed.
On
monday
decisions.
D
Thank
you.
Honorable
speaker,
decisions
haven't
been
made,
but
I'll
I'll
put
it
on
the
record
again.
Honorable
speaker,
the
the
city
has
a
role
to
play.
They
have
jurisdiction
over
the
peony.
We
have
a
role
to
play,
which
is
why
we
announce
the
the
major
anchor
attraction
and
hopefully
good
news
is
going
to
come
once
we're
finished
reviewing
the
applications,
hundreds
of
which
that
we've
received
and
the
federal
government
I've
had
active
conversations
with
the
federal
government
on
what
they're
doing
for
major
events
and
attractions.
D
E
Well,
thank
you
very
much,
mr
speaker,
just
to
clarify
it's
play,
land
that
is
opening
and
we're
excited,
but
where
is
the
support
for
the
p
e,
so
the
pochin
doesn't
end
with
attractions
like
the
p
e?
Oh,
no.
The
premier
has
completely
bungled
this
file.
E
The
minister
of
tourism
virtually
stood
in
this
legislature
and
told
groups
like
the
quanel
rodeo.
The
north
thompson
fall
fair,
the
ipe
and
a
host
of
other
groups
to
apply
for
this
funding,
and
so
what
did
these
groups
do?
They
listened
to
the
minister
they
applied,
but
what
was
the
response,
and
I
quote
as
noted
in
the
program
guidelines,
festivals
and
events
are
ineligible.
End
quote:
can
the
premier
please
tell
these
groups
why
they
were
so
badly
misled.
D
Thank
you
honorable
speaker.
The
only
people
that
are
misleading
the
public
are
the
official
opposition.
This
has
been
a
call
to
action
from
the
tourism
sector,
who
suggested
who
advocated
that
we
get
targeted
funds
to
anchor
attractions,
which
is
exactly
what
we've
done.
This
is
a
part
of
the
tourism
task
force,
calls
to
action
and
recommendations,
I'll
remind
the
member
that
we've
been
acting
around
working
around
the
clock
to
get
relief
dollars
out
the
door
to
help
the
much
impacted
tourism
sector.
D
So
you
know
when
I,
when
I
tell
the
member
opposite
in
full
transparency,
that
we
are
advocating
with
the
federal
government
to
ensure
that
we
get
our
fair
share
of
the
400
million
dollars
for
events
and
festivals,
that
that
advocacy
is
going
to
continue.
But
50
million
dollars
in
a
grant
not
alone
is
a
significant
investment
on
top
of
the
4
100
tourism.
D
Businesses
that
receive
the
small
and
medium
size
grant
up
to
45
000
in
grants,
not
loans
and
I'll,
remind
the
member,
as
I
did
last
week,
that
money
has
gone
out
the
door
through
the
bc
arts
council
to
support
festivals
through
creative
bc
through
amplify
bc
through
gaming
grants,
our
government
is
doing
everything
we
can
to
support
these
vitally
important
institutions
across
british
columbia.
Good
news
is
coming,
especially
as
we
continue
to
restart
and
open
up
our
communities
for
travel
and
gathering
and
events.
Thank
you.
Honorable.
E
E
E
So
why
is
it
that,
when
we
asked
this
minister
for
groups
that
had
up
till
now
been
ineligible
for
the
multitude
of
different
programs
that
the
minister
said
to
apply,
this
minister
stood
in
this
chamber
and
told
them
to
apply
and
gave
them
false
hope?
The
minister's
incompetence
have
left
these
groups
wondering
how
they're
going
to
survive
so
to
the
premier?
E
E
D
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker.
Well,
maybe
the
member
will
stand
in
the
chambers
and
talk
about
the
claw
back
on
people
with
disabilities
and
their
bus
passes
and
apologize
for
that
cruel
decision.
What
I've
been
doing,
honorable
speaker
from
day,
one
is
moving
the
dial
on
the
calls
to
action
from
the
tourism
task
force.
That
is
what
the
public
service
has
been
doing.
We've
been
working
around
the
clock
to
get
relief
out
the
door
to
support
the
sector.
It
is
disingenuous
for
the
member
to
suggest
that
we
are
trying
to
mislead
anybody
a
transparent
process.
D
D
The
application
deadline
closed
on
monday,
and
I
hope
that
good
news
is
going
to
come
good
news
that
is
going
to
help
a
sector
that
has
been
hard
hit,
we're
going
to
continue
doing
that
work,
and
I
hope
that
it's
going
to
support
constituencies
across
our
province
to
welcome
visitors
back
to
anchor
attractions,
because
we
haven't
been
able
to
gather
and
travel
and
all
of
those
things
because
of
the
pandemic.
I
think
it's
going
to
good
news
and
I'm
going
to
continue
doing
the
work.
Thank
you
honorable
speaker.
F
F
The
attorney
general
told
me
in
budget
estimates
that
until
an
aboriginal
crown
has
been
negotiated
by
treaty
or
decided
by
courts
through
litigation.
The
crown
maintains
control
over
the
land
and
resources
that,
mr
spiegel,
mr
speaker,
is
the
old
position
of
denial,
and
it's
not
what
our
supreme
court
has
said.
F
These
agreements
are
based
on
the
denial
of
indigenous
rights,
saying
rights
are
asserted,
not
accepting
that
they
exist
not
recognizing
that
nations
have
any
ownership
in
land
and
resources.
Mr
speaker,
they
are
designed
to
achieve
greater
stability
for
the
crown
to
keep
cutting
trees,
to
keep
extracting
resources.
G
G
Regrettably,
I
think
the
member
fundamentally
misstated
what
I
told
him
in
estimates
we
talked
about,
and
it
was
an
important
discussion,
the
importance
of
negotiation
and
partnership
between
government
and
first
nations,
in
as
we
wait
for
a
formal
treaty
agreement
or
a
decision
from
a
court,
a
recognition
of
rights
and
title
on
the
land
and
that
there
are
two
competing
sovereignties,
indigenous
sovereignty
and
government
and
the
european
colonial
sovereignty,
and
that
reconciling
those
two
is
the
work
ahead
of
us
and
so
for
him
to
stand
in
this
place
and
and
pretend
the
conversation
was
about
something
else
or
that
that
we're
taking
an
approach
of
three
decades
ago
when
so
much
has
happened
since
then,
including
all
of
us
standing
together
on
land
drip,
is
very
regrettable.
F
F
The
members
of
this
chamber
and
all
british
columbians
should
know
the
truth.
This
bc
ndp
government
is
currently
arguing
in
court
in
multiple
pieces
of
litigation.
The
opposite
of
what
the
government
is
saying
publicly,
that
certain
indigenous
people
don't
exist
as
a
people
that
their
rights
have
been
extinguished
if
they
ever
had
them
in
the
first
place,
and
even
if
there
is
rights
that
they're
effectively
meaningless.
F
G
G
I
I
wouldn't
discount
the
agreements
that
government
has
reached
with
nations
like
lake
babin,
with
carrier
sakani,
remarkable
progress,
section,
seven
agreements
being
negotiated
across
the
province,
there's
really
important
work
happening
and,
in
fact,
in
one
of
the
areas
that
the
member
raised
in
this
house
on
a
number
of
occasions,
very
creek
agreements
with
and
partnership
with,
the
three
nations,
their
respect
for
their
positions
with
respect
to
the
resources
in
that
area.
G
So
you
know
I
I
take
his
point
on
litigation:
there's
room
for
improvement,
we're
working
with
the
first
nations
leadership
council
on
guidelines
related
to
litigation,
but
we're
not
going
to
reach
reconciliation
through
courts
and
it's
not
binary
treaty
or
courts.
As
the
member
said,
and
nor
did
I
say
that
in
estimates
there
are
a
number
of
agreements
that
we
can
reach
with
nations
in
between
those
two,
as
we
work
towards
a
long-term
and
sustainable
treaty.
I
think
this
is
important
work.
I
think
we're
making
good
progress
and
there
is
more
to
do.
A
Thank
you,
mr
speaker.
During
the
the
premier's
pandemic
election,
he
made
clear
to
small
businesses
that
supports,
for
them
would
not
be
delayed.
We
now
know
that
the
premier
has
bungled
this
as
well.
In
estimates,
the
minister
of
jobs
admitted
that
less
than
50
percent
of
the
business
support
grants
have
actually
been
paid
out
to
businesses.
H
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker,
and
during
the
14
hours
of
estimates
discussions
I
shared
with
the
member
multiple
times.
The
facts
which
are
bc
has
the
highest
per
capita
support
for
people
and
businesses
in
canada,
and
we're
really
proud
of
that,
and
that's
reflected
honorable
speaker
in
the
99
percent
of
job
recovery
rate
leading
the
country
honorable
speaker.
Just
recently,
we've
had
economists
from
various
organizations
talk
about
how
good
of
a
position
vc's
economy
is
in.
We
know
that
businesses
have
been
struggling.
H
We
know
that
and
that's
why
we
put
significant
dollars
on
the
table
to
support
them.
The
member
wants
to
talk
about
grants.
The
original
program
had
15
000
businesses.
We
were
hoping
to
support
where
well
over
18
000
businesses
have
applied.
In
fact,
we've
increased
the
budget
from
300
million
dollars
to
430
million
dollars
so
that
we
can
support
more
businesses
during
what
is
a
very
challenging
time.
Honorable
speaker,
we're
proud
of
the
support.
A
Thank
you,
mr
speaker.
Well,
the
reality
is
that
british
columbia
is
actually
number
eight
in
the
country
number
eight
in
per
capita
direct
supports
and
grants
for
a
small
business
number
eight,
not
number
one.
Mr
speaker,
68
of
all
of
the
supports
that
are
provided
to
small
business
here
in
british
columbia
are
in
the
form
of
deferrals
and
loans,
which
I
remind
the
members
in
government
have
to
be
paid
back.
A
The
cfib
has
said
that
the
average
debt
that
a
small
business
in
bc
has
taken
on
during
the
pandemic
is
a
hundred
and
seventy
thousand
dollars.
Mr
speaker,
the
the
the
minister
talks
in
glowing
terms
about
his
government's
record
and
pushing
supports
out
the
door.
Let's
take
a
look
at
that
as
well.
The
circuit
breaker
grant
launched
two
months
ago.
40.4
of
those
dollars
are
out
the
door.
The
launch
online
grants
launched
four
months
ago.
Only
37.9
of
those
dollars
are
out
the
door,
but
this
is
the
doozy.
A
This
is
the
big
one.
The
small
business
recovery
grant
launched
eight
months
ago.
Only
49.8
percent
of
the
dollars
are
out
the
door.
Mr
speaker,
this
government's
support
for
small
business
has
been
characterized
by
half
measures:
arbitrary
eligibility
rules,
delays
getting
dollars
out
and
being
number
eight
of
all
provinces
in
the
country
per
capita
in
direct
supports
it's
it's
embarrassing
how
how
the
premier
continues
to
bumble,
along
with
less
than
half
of
these
supports
out
the
door
and
that's
according
to
to
the
jobs
minister
he's.
A
These
are
his
numbers
from
estimates
over
the
last
couple
days
now,
I've
heard
from
tony
who
runs
a
fitness
center
in
fort
nelson
and
and
tony
says,
and
I
quote,
I
still
haven't
even
received
a
response
on
whether
or
not
I
I
qualified
or
how
much
I
will
be
receiving,
even
though
the
circuit
breaker
is
over
end
quote.
So
the
question
to
the
premier
is
this:
how
many
business
more
business
owners
like
tony,
are
still
waiting
and
waiting
and
waiting
for
the
money
that
is
owed
to
them
by
the
premier.
H
You,
honourable
speaker,
and
as
we
canvas
for
many
hours
in
this
house,
the
member
chooses
to
cherry
pick
one
line
of
a
report.
If
he
chooses
to
read
the
rest
of
the
report
highlighted
for
the
member,
in
fact,
over
12
pages,
where
it's
highlighted
that
bc
leads
the
country
in
economic
recovery,
support
for
people
and
businesses.
H
The
uncomfortable
truth
for
the
member
opposites,
all
the
members
opposite,
that
bc
is
leading
the
country
in
economic
recovery
in
jobs
leading
the
country
honorable
speaker,
every
single
province.
We
are
leading
an
economic
recovery.
Brian
you
central
one
chief
economist
for
central
one
says:
bc's
economy
has
performed
better
than
expected.
H
Ken
peacock
chief
economist
for
the
bc
business
council
said,
I
would
say,
bc's
economy
is
in
pretty
good
shape.
It's
pretty
healthy
peacock
said
more
dire.
Forecasts
didn't
materialize
because
bc's
lockdown
didn't
last
as
long
as
expected
and
government
spending
supported
businesses
and
individuals
and
businesses
adapted.
H
Honourable
speaker,
I
I
appreciate
that
the
members
got
a
job
to
do
and
he
has
to
find
something
to
be
to
be
critical
of,
but
he
should
be
proud
of
how
we
collectively
in
this
province,
have
handled
the
pandemic
and
how
well
the
economy
is
doing
and
we're
going
to
continue
to
support
those
businesses
that
do
need
supports.
I
Thank
you,
mr
speaker.
The
premier
has
bungled
the
cruise
ship
issue
from
day
one
he
arrogantly
refused
to
work
with
the
americans
on
technical
stops.
Blithely
said
the
bill,
bypassing
our
ports
would
never
pass
and
he
refuses
to
acknowledge
the
danger
to
a
three
billion
dollar
industry
that
employs
tens
of
thousands
of
people.
J
Thank
you,
mr
speaker,
and
thank
you
to
the
member
for
the
question.
The
cruise
ship
industry
is
incredibly
important
to
our
economy
and
I'm
very
pleased
that
the
numbers
prior
to
the
pandemic
under
our
government
we're
very
encouraging.
For
the
first
time
in
bc's
history,
for
example,
we
exceeded
over
a
million
passenger
boardings
in
the
cruise
ship
terminals
in
our
province
at
22,
increase
over
2018.
J
Clearly,
the
industry
views
us
as
a
very
valuable
market,
an
area
of
international
expansion.
The
pandemic,
however,
has
changed
everything.
This
has
been
one
of
the
most
hard
hit
industries
around
the
globe.
It
has
been
one
of
the
industries.
That's
been
under
an
intense
spotlight
in
terms
of
safety.
These
are
very
confined
spaces.
J
J
J
We
certainly
have
no
objections
of
americans
getting
to
another
part
of
america,
in
this
case
alaska,
using
our
ports
using
our
waters.
We
want
to
support
them
as
they
recover
from
the
economy,
but
look
the
united
states
and
canada
are
doing
things
a
little
bit
differently.
We
don't
have
fifty
thousand
people
in
a
baseball
stadium
right
now
in
canada.
J
That's
not
how
we're
doing
things
here,
they're
opening
up
in
a
way
that
perhaps
would
make
many
canadians
very
uncomfortable,
but
the
discussion
around
border
reopening
is
being
led
by
the
prime
minister,
he's
told
canadians,
he'll
have
an
update
on
or
about
june
21st,
and
we
look
forward
to
that
and
we've
made
our
views
known.
I
Thank
you,
mr
speaker,
and
I
thank
the
minister
for
his
response.
However,
I
I
did
not
hear
the
answer
to
the
question
in
that
response.
No
one
is
saying
to
give
the
cruise
ship
sector
special
treatment.
They're
saying,
treat
everyone
equally
and
fairly.
The
sector
for
british
columbia
employs
thousands
of
people
directly
and
indirectly.
I
I
If
the
land
and
air
borders
are
opening,
we
hope
the
premier
is
making
sure
the
ports
open.
At
the
same
time,
it's
only
fair
end
quote
so
again
to
the
premier.
Has
he
secured
a
commitment
advocated
for
and
secured
a
commitment
from
the
prime
minister
that
the
federal
government
will
open
up
the
marine
border
at
the
same
time
as
the
land
border.
J
You,
mr
speaker,
I
think
this
discussion
to
the
member
flows
out
of
what
we
just
heard
from
the
minister
for
jobs
and
economic
recovery.
The
reason
british
colombia
has
performed
better
than
other
provinces.
The
reason
our
economy
is
in
better
shape
is
because
we
haven't
had
political
rhetoric
guiding
our
response.
We've
led
with
science
about
how
to
safely
reopen
every
single
industry
and
guide,
reopening
and
safe
business
practices
in
the
province,
and
that
is
no
different.
J
When
it
comes
to
the
cruise
ship
industry,
we
are
going
to
let
the
center
for
disease
control,
our
provincial
health
officers
and
our
canadian
federal
counterparts
guide
that
discussion.
I
I
find
the
line
of
questioning
a
little
bit
absurd
because
it
ignores
how
complex
the
cruise
ship
industry
is.
J
It's
a
congregate,
setting
it's
buffet
dining,
it's
a
whole
bunch
of
things
that
are
very
supportive
of
the
spread
of
transmission
it
just
the
other
day
in
the
mediterranean,
passengers
with
variants
are
spreading
the
disease
on
a
ship
there,
they
disembarked
in
sicily,
there's
worry
about
exposure
there.
So
this
is
something
that
should
not
be
rushed
into.
It
should
be
examined
carefully.
That's
what's
happening
right
now.
We
believe
we
can
support
the
request
of
the
alaskans.
J
We've
made
that
position
known
that's
what
british
columbia
feels
and
we
put
that
in
writing
to
the
minister
when
it
comes
to
reopening
the
borders.
This
is
a
multi-layered
discussion.
We
want
to
have
american
visitors
here.
We
want
to
do
it
safely.
There
are
discussions
about
vaccine
passports
and
all
the
sorts
of
safe
measures
that
would
allow
that
to
happen,
and
we
look
forward
to
to
the
cruise
ship
industry
opening
up
again
in
british
columbia.
We
were
on
a
trajectory
of
incredible
growth.
We
support
that
industry.
We
support
a
strong
tourism
economy.
J
That's
what
we've
done
to
support
that
industry
through
this
pandemic
and
we'll
do
it
when
it's
safe
to
reopen
and
when
science
sets
its
safe
to.
H
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker,
and
I
think
it's
fair
to
say
that
every
member
in
this
legislature
respects
our
veterans,
certainly
certainly
to
suggest
otherwise
as
absurd.
I
shared
with
the
member
just
in
the
last
day
or
two
I
shared
with
a
member
from
kamloops
that
we've
received
the
request,
so
we're
working
on
it
and
we'll
have
more
to
say
soon.