►
From YouTube: OCTOBER 19 2021 Question Period
Description
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
2nd Session
42nd Parliament
C
Thank
you,
mr
speaker.
The
premier
has
repeatedly
dismissed
questions
about
his
government,
withholding
critical
data
related
to
the
management
of
covid19.
He
said,
and
I
quote,
we're
not
hiding
anything
end
quote
well.
The
premier
is
hiding
he's
hiding
key
data
and
information
that
the
public
is
entitled
to
last
month.
This
government
was
finally
forced
to
admit
that
it
had
been
keeping
two
sets
of
numbers
on
how
many
coveted
patients
are
actually
in
hospitals,
one
for
the
public
and
the
accurate
one
is
actually
46
higher.
C
The
majority
of
british
columbians
want
to
do
the
right
thing,
but
they
need
specific,
detailed
information
to
help
them
make
better
decisions,
including
choosing
to
be
vaccinated
so
to
the
premier.
Why
is
his
government
still
failing
to
provide
accurate,
hospitalization
and
icu
numbers,
despite
making
a
promise
to
do
so?
A
month
ago,.
D
Thank
you
very
much,
honorable
speaker.
Thank
you.
The
member,
the
leader
of
the
opposition
for
a
question
since
the
beginning
of
the
coven
19
pandemic
in
march
of
2020,
was
declared,
and
even
before
that
we've
been
providing
british
columbians
with
information
on
a
daily,
sometimes
on
a
weekly
basis,
through
regular
briefings
through
our
online
dashboard
through
multiple
reports,
for
example,
in
terms
of
long-term
care
and
assisted
living,
an
acute
care
outbreaks
information
since
january
weekly
information
on
case
counts
on
on
the
number
of
people
who
passed
away
in
outbreaks
and
so
on.
D
The
the
amount
of
information
that's
provided
on
a
daily
and
weekly
basis
is
exceptional.
In
bc,
we
receive
new
requests
for
different
information
all
the
time.
The
issue
of
discontinued
isolation,
as
the
member
will
know
in
the
community,
is
a
significant
issue
that
we've
been
asked
about
many
times,
just
because
you've
recovered
and
are
no
longer
infectious
doesn't
mean
because
of
long
covet
that
you're
not
continuing
to
suffer
the
the
consequences
of
getting
sick
from
coven
19..
So
there's
a
massive
amount
of
information
and
requests
that
goes
out
every
day.
D
I
I
think
to
suggest-
and
I
just
disagree
with
the
leader
of
the
opposition
on
this-
that
that
this
mountain
of
information
and
the
desire
to
have
more
than
a
mountain
of
information
is
a
reason
for
anyone
not
to
get
vaccinated
is
just
not
correct.
People
need
to
get
vaccinated
now,
and
I
know
the
member
agrees
with
that.
So
we're
not
having
that
debate,
but
I
don't
think
that's
the
reason
we're
providing
on
a
daily
weekly
basis.
Today,
dr
henry
will
be
briefing
again.
D
We
promised,
I
think,
a
couple
of
weeks
ago
and
monthly
report
on
this
school
year
and
on
outcomes
of
cases
in
the
school
year.
Dr
henry
will
be
briefing
in
detail
on
that
and
we'll
be
providing
other
information,
as
requested
as
we
expand
to
the
hundreds
of
requests
that
we
get
every
week
from
members
of
the
media
and
the
public
with
respect
to
the
covet
19
pandemic.
C
Well,
certainly,
the
minister
can
list
off
all
the
briefings
and
the
the
information
that
is
currently
provided,
but
what
british
columbians
expect
from
the
premier-
and
this
minister
is
accurate
information.
People
expect
that
the
premier
will
trust
british
columbians
with
key
information.
It's
not
good
enough
to
say
there
are
daily
briefings,
there's
information,
it
is
what
information
is
provided
and
how?
C
Let's
talk
about
attempts
to
get
information
about
covid19
outbreaks
in
hospitals
through
freedom
of
information,
those
have
been
stonewalled
and
denied
fraser
health,
for
example,
recently
blacked
out
55
of
79
pages
in
a
document
that
was
finally
provided
after
months
of
delay.
So
the
minister,
can
you
know
list
all
of
that
information?
That
is
the
fact
fraser
health
blocked
55
pages
out
of
79.
C
jason,
wada
of
the
bc,
freedom
of
information
privacy
association
says,
and
I
quote,
trying
to
hide
behind
redacted
documents
and
not
getting
the
information
out
there
as
quickly
as
possible
can
erode
trust
in
public
institutions.
End
quote,
and
that
is
exactly
what
this
government's
provision
of
details
and
detailed
information
has
done.
It
has
eroded
trust.
C
It
should
not
take
an
foi
request
to
get
detailed
information
about
the
kovid
19
situation
in
british
columbia.
It
shouldn't
take
an
foi
request
so
again
to
the
premier.
Will
he
and
his
government
provide
the
accurate
hospitalization
and
icu
numbers
that
were
promised?
That
is
what
british
columbians
expect,
and
that
is
what
they
deserve.
D
Minister
of
health
in
british
columbia
in
a
pandemic,
the
people
who
are
responsible,
providing
accurate
information
is
why
we
have
a
public
health
act.
It's
why
information
is
gathered
under
the
public
health
act
are
public
health
and
I
support
every
single
one
of
their
decisions,
because
I
support
them.
D
The
leader
of
the
opposition
asks
about
requests
for
information
about
cases
of
in
hospitals
and
about
an
foi
request
that
I
think
was
was
made
by
media
members.
It
is
not
surprising
and
it's
one
of
the
real
challenges
of
the
pandemic,
sometimes
because
early
on
a
member
will
remember.
There
was
the
first
case
in
interior
health.
People
wanted
to
know
where
the
person
lived,
and
I
repeatedly
said
we're
not
going
to
provide
that
information
for
for,
for
good
and
important
reasons.
D
May
the
redactions
that,
as
I
understand
it,
many
of
the
redactions
which
were
made
by
the
the
freedom
of
information
people
responsible
and
the
fraser
health
authority
in
that
case
were
made
consistent
with
the
freedom
of
information
and
privacy
act.
They
made
those
things.
D
Of
course
there
is
a
process
for
appeal
of
that
process,
and
that
may
well
happen,
but
it's
not
surprising
that
the
details
of
case
histories
of
hospital
outbreaks
fall
under
the
privacy
provisions
of
that
act
there,
and
I
think
the
member
surely
would
agree
that
you
would
expect
redactions
from
such
a
request
and
redactions
occurred.
There
is
also
a
process
to
review
that,
and
I
know
the
members
will
be
canvassing
this
in
further
questions,
but
that's
the
process.
Now
we
have
an
independent
process.
D
Independent
people
take
a
look
at
it,
they
respond
to
that
and
they
they
have
in
mind
protection.
The
desire
for
information
which
is
critically
important,
which
we
do
every
single
day
on
our
dashboard
and
every
single
week
in
our
reports
on
outbreaks
and
as
well,
they
expect
the
privacy
of
individuals
in
our
healthcare
system
to
be
protected.
D
E
West,
mr
speaker,
I
I
think
that,
through
this
extraordinary
time
this
pandemic,
most
people
have
endured.
They
have
endured
without
complaint.
They
haven't
been
out
protesting.
They
haven't
been
complaining,
they've,
simply
gotten
on
with
their
lives
as
best
they
can
and
tried
to
make
the
best
decisions
they
can
for
the
safety
and
well-being
of
their
families
and
they've
only
asked
for
one
thing
in
return:
they've
asked
for
the
government
to
be
honest
with
them.
E
D
Thank
you
very
much
honorable
speaker,
the
member,
the
leader,
the
former
government
health
leader,
will
know
from
his
experience
that
the
reason
why
information
and
pandemic
the
definition
of
information
how
it's
provided
is
provided
by
the
public
health
officer
is
for
exactly
that
question
and
the
importance
of
that
question
of
credibility.
D
It's
why
we
have
been
so
supportive
and
I
would
say
overall,
the
opposition
has
been
supposed
so
supportive
of
dr
bonnie
henry,
who
is
responsible
for
that,
and
I
I
just
can't
let
the
premise
of
that
question
go
by
the
premise
of
that
question.
Go
by
when
the
member
says
that
dr
henry
and
other
public
health
officials
not
being
honest.
D
There's
extraordinary
effort
being
made
to
provide
information
to
everyone
about
this
pandemic,
there
is,
as
members
will
know,
on
the
foi
process,
there's
a
process
that
people
go
through
independently
to
determine
issues
of
the
applicability
and
whether
information
provided
or
not.
That's
the
the
nature
of
the
freedom
of
information
privacy
act,
but
I
I
think
members
know
this
and
members
of
the
opposition.
I
say,
although
I
I
I
wasn't
going
to
let
that
statement
go
by
without
responding
to
it.
D
I
think
members
of
the
opposition
have
been
exceptionally
supportive
of
dr
henry
as
well,
and
I
I
would
never
say
otherwise,
honorable
speaker,
but
I
would
say
this
honorable
speaker
that
I
think
public
health
has
done
an
exceptional
job
in
providing
information
to
british
columbians.
I
support
them,
I'm
responsible
for
their
actions
in
this
house
and
I'm
proud
to
support
them
today.
E
E
He
hasn't
answered
the
question
about
why,
when
a
request
for
information
about
the
safety
of
hospitals,
a
request
that
shouldn't
even
require
an
foi
request,
it
shouldn't
be
necessary
to
double
check
numbers
provided
by
the
government.
But
that
is
necessary
because
the
government
has
released
false
numbers
in
the
past.
E
He
hasn't
answered
this
question:
why
is
it
that
55
pages
are
blanked
out
and
the
excuse
used?
Is
that?
Because
it
would
be
harmful
to
the
financial
or
economic
interests
of
the
government?
Those
are
what
the
documents
say.
Mr
speaker,
the
government,
the
minister,
the
premier,
want
british
colombians
to
trust
the
government,
but
unfortunately
the
government
doesn't
trust
british
colombians.
Mr
speaker.
E
Here's
the
pattern:
here's
the
pattern
that
the
minister
and
the
premier
don't
want
to
acknowledge.
They
failed
to
release
a
report
on
covid19
and
long-term
care
homes.
They
failed
to
provide
accurate
case
counts,
accurate
case
counts
and
hospitalization
data
at
the
local
level
and
they're
still
failing
to
provide
true
hospitalization
and
icu
numbers.
Let's.
D
Minister
of
health,
public
health
has
been
providing
information
through
the
bc
center
for
disease
control
and
through
the
provincial
health
office
from
the
beginning
of
this
pandemic,
and
there
have
been
throughout
the
pandemic,
as
is
absolutely
understandable,
requests
for
more
information
and
they
have
consistently
met
those
requests.
The
number
of
reports
that
are
made
available
on
a
daily
and
weekly
basis
is
exceptional.
D
Beyond
anything,
that's
provided,
I
think,
on
any
other
issue
in
government,
because
dr
henry
believes,
because
I
believe
that
people
need
to
know
the
information
about
a
pandemic,
that's
affecting
everyone's
lives
and
that's
what
we've
been
doing
from
the
beginning
of
the
pandemic.
They
define
and
we
define
information.
This
is
why
you
consistently
define
hospitalizations.
D
You
know
that
in
the
first
in
the
first
period
of
the
pandemic,
the
first
phase
of
the
pandemic,
we
topped
out
about
149
people
in
hospital
and
72
people
in
critical
care
that
in
the
month
of
april,
we
hit
183
people
in
critical
care.
That's
more
that
now
we're
at
151
people
in
critical
care.
That's
a
lot
that
we're
moving
people
around
the
province.
We've
provided
details
in
to
the
opposition
and
to
everyone
else
about
all
of
that,
and
we're
going
to
continue
to
do
so.
D
The
people
leading
that
effort
of
getting
the
information-
and
this
assures
public
confidence
as
a
provincial
health
office
in
the
bc
center
for
disease
control
and
that's
not
a
way
of
dodging
the
question.
I
support
them
and
I'm
responsible
for
their
actions
in
this
house
and
I'm
proud
of
them.
I'm
proud
of
the
bccdc
and
their
courageous
seven
day
a
week
effort
throughout
this
pandemic
and
I'm
proud
of
our
provincial
health.
F
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker
yesterday,
this
government
told
my
colleague
that
they
view
housing
as
a
human
right.
We
agree,
everyone
has
the
right
to
livable,
affordable
housing,
but
in
bc
housing
has
been
treated
like
a
commodity
instead
of
a
right
in
the
first
quarterly
report
of
bc's
finances.
Last
month,
this
government
touted
a
quote
stronger
than
anticipated
financial
recovery
and
a
smaller
deficit
than
was
projected,
but
the
numbers
don't
tell
the
whole
story.
F
Our
economic
growth
is
tied
to
an
explosion
in
housing
prices.
According
to
the
bc
real
estate
association
prices
for
all
homes
increased
by
17.1
percent.
Last
year
this
year
the
increase
in
prices
shows
up
on
the
province's
books,
deepening
our
government's
reliance
on
an
overheated
and
unsustainable
housing
market.
F
A
Thank
you.
Thank
you
very
much,
mr
speaker,
and
I
have
to
say
to
the
member
how
much
I
appreciate
her
asking
the
question.
As
a
government,
we
have
been
very,
very,
very
strong
on
making
sure
that
housing
affordability
is
addressed
here
in
this
province.
We've
recognized
that
bc's
housing
market
continues
to
be
a
priority
for
our
government,
and
we've
made
significant
efforts
to
address
that
from
a
30-point
housing
plan
where
I
believe
all
all
elements
of
the
plan
have
been
enacted.
Most
of
them
have
been
completed.
A
We've
brought
in
a
speculation
and
vacancy
tax
to
make
sure
that
we
can
deliver
for
british
columbians.
We've
brought
about
billions
of
dollars
of
investment
into
housing,
but
not
just
for
those
on
the
bottom
end
of
our
of
the
income
scale,
but
for
middle
income.
British
columbians,
with
2
billion
invested
into
the
housing
hub
to
make
sure
that
we
can
also
bring
housing
about
for
those
middle-income
british
columbians.
Mr
speaker,
we
know
that
the
pandemic
has
jolted
the
the
housing
market
in
a
significant
way.
A
We
were
making
headway
on
addressing
housing
prior
to
the
pandemic.
We
know
that
there's
more
to
do
and
we're
a
government
that's
committed
to
continuing
to
address
housing,
affordability
here
in
british
columbia,.
F
Thank
you,
honourable
speaker,
and
thank
you
to
the
minister
for
that
response.
And
yes,
I
appreciate
what
she's
identified
the
30-point
housing
plan,
the
speculation
tax,
investments
in
housing
and
the
housing
hub.
F
However,
however,
let's
go
back
to
the
17.1
percent
increase
in
housing
prices
this
year,
and
so
the
outcomes
are
not
the
desired
ones.
If
this
government
is
truly
committed
to
housing
being
a
human
right,
let's
just
consider,
for
example,
how
many
people
who
work
in
this
building
who
are
struggling
to
find
affordable
rentals
and
for
whom
the
dream
of
home
ownership
in
victoria
is
an
impossible
one.
F
This
is
connected
to
the
commodification
of
housing.
Government
is
overly
reliant
on
housing
revenue
to
display
a
quote
healthy
economy,
but
the
economy
isn't
healthy
if
it's
not
working
for
the
vast
majority
of
people.
Let's
remember
gdp
measures,
everything
except
that
which
makes
life
worthwhile
yes,
kovit
19
has
impacted
the
economy
and
the
housing
market,
but
that
doesn't
absolve
the
government
of
its
responsibility
to
act.
We're
facing
a
housing
crisis.
The
crisis
is
deepening
through
you,
honourable
speaker,
again
to
the
minister
of
finance.
F
A
Thank
you
very
much,
mr
speaker,
and
perhaps
the
member
didn't
quite
understand
my
previous
response,
given
the
significant
efforts
that
this
government
has
made
after
after
vacancy
of
the
previous
government
on
this
file,
we
have
taken
significant
action.
In
fact,
in
our
last
budget
was
two
more
two
billion
dollars
more
into
addressing
that
very
gap
in
the
housing
continuum.
That's
a
government.
A
That
is
a
government,
that's
taking
action.
No
one
here
is
saying
that
we're
that
we're
done.
Mr
speaker,
we
have
a
lot
more
work
to
do,
and
I
know
that
the
members
opposite
will
join
with
us
in
that
work.
The
fact
that
we
have
just
in
the
last
I
think
three
years
we
have
24
25,
no
wait
is
35
000
rental
homes
in
the
pipeline
in
the
last
four
years,
and
that
is
going
to
be
coming
online.
A
G
G
H
And-
and
thank
you
to
the
member
for
the
question
and
for
the
opportunity
to
talk
about
the
extraordinary
work
that
our
school
districts
have
done
as
front
line
leaders
in
keeping
our
schools
open,
keeping
them
safe
throughout
the
pandemic,
and
I
can
assure
this
house
that
the
that
school
districts
have
taken
the
significant
investment
that
we
have
made.
H
87.5
million
dollars
over
the
last
two
budgets-
240
million
dollars
in
this
budget-
to
invest
in
in
improving
the
the
the
heating
and
ventilation
systems
in
our
schools,
and
we
know
in
my
riding,
for
example,
of
new
westminster,
my
my
community.
We
know
that
that
community
has
school
district
has
in
increased
all
of
their
hvac
systems,
up
to
them
up
to
merv
13s.
We
know
several
other
districts
have
done
that.
We
have
asked
extra
districts
to
meet
with
their
local
community,
local
occupational
health
and
safety
committees.
H
To
talk
about
the
work
that's
been
done.
I
know
that
the
the
leadership
in
in
the
vancouver
school
board
has
spoken
with
many
parents
about
the
work
that
they've
that
they've
done
in
that
school
district
and
we've
asked
that
they
do
in
fact
make
all
of
that
information
available
so
that
it
will
be
available
in
one
central
location,
we're
working
to
support
school
districts.
H
G
There
is
no
doubt
that
the
work
done
by
school
boards
is
extraordinary.
Those
of
us
who
have
served
on
school
boards
know
the
work.
What
we're
questioning
is
the
work
done
by
government.
This
is
a
premier
who
started
the
school
year
by
hiding
details
on
outbreaks
in
schools.
He
said
he
didn't
want
to
stress
parents
out.
G
You
know
what
really
stresses
parents,
not
knowing
if
their
children
are
safe
or
not.
The
premier
gave
his
office
a
three
million
dollar
raise
this
year,
but
he's
making
parents
crowd
source
work
to
find
out.
If
there
are
cases
in
their
children's
school
will
the
premier
provide
with
the
centralized
information
parents
need,
instead
of
adding
to
their
stress.
H
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker,
and,
and
thank
you
to
the
member
for
the
for
the
question.
I
I
think
that
when
it
comes
to
the
information
that
is
provided
again,
we
have
a
very
robust
system
in
place
with
respect
to
to
the
provision
of
information
to
to
school
communities
about
potential
exposures
in
in
their
schools.
That
information
is
recorded
on
health
authority
websites,
and
I
want
to
assure
british
columbians.
I
want
to
assure
families
that
if
your
child
is
at
risk
of
exposure,
you
will
be
notified
by
public
health.
That
is
the
process.
B
H
B
Member
for
delta
salt.
Thank
you,
mr
speaker.
Well,
mr
speaker,
this
government
has
been
hiding
a
report
on
long-term
care
blackening
out
in
for
key
information
about
covid
and
hospitals,
then
concealing
vital
information
for
parents,
and
now
the
premier
is
concealing
critical
massey
tunnel
documents.
B
While
the
premier
plays
politics,
the
losers
are
the
drivers
stuck
in
traffic
for
another
decade.
It's
pretty
obvious
that
the
premier
is
ashamed
of
his
decision
to
replace
a
10
lane
bridge
with
an
eight
lane
tunnel.
He
decided
taxpayers
should
pay
more
to
get
less,
including
no
rapid
transit
option
and
he's
hiding
the
documents
justifying
his
decision.
B
B
C
I
And
I
must
say
I
must
say.
Honourable
speaker,
I
must
say
I
do
find
it
fascinating-
that
they're
asking
for
the
full
release
of
the
business
plan
around
the
bridge,
which
was
released,
which
was
released
but
what's
funny,
but
what's
funny
honorable
speaker
what's
funny.
Honorable
speaker
is
that
when
they
did
the
initial
announcement
of
a
bridge,
they
had
no
business
plan
in
place.
Not
one.
I
They
ignored
they
ignored
they
ignored
what
the
regional
governments,
the
regional
mayors
wanted,
which
was
the
tunnel
honorable
speaker,
that's
what
the
the
local
governments
who
actually
have
to
deal
with
trump's
want
in
place.
Honorable
speaker,
they
wanted
the
tunnel.
I
It's
also,
it's
also
interesting
honorable
speaker
that
when
the
the
the
bridge
the
port
man
bridge,
was
put
in
place,
they
told
that
bridge
honorable
speaker.
They
told
that
bridge
that
wasn't
part
that
wasn't
part
of
the
the
deal
and
they
were
looking
at
and
having
tolls
on
the
bridge
over
the
fraser
river.
Honourable
speaker,
the
massive
replacement
they
wanted
tools.
I
I
J
South,
thank
you,
mr
speaker.
We've
heard
today
about
the
extraordinary
efforts
to
prove
that
this
government
is
going
to
provide
fois.
Let's
review
some
of
those
extraordinary
efforts.
Shall
we
it's
extraordinary
the
burying
of
long-term
care
reports,
hiding
data
on
hospitals,
hiding,
critical
information
from
parents
and
blacking
out
of
reports.
The
premier's
list
keeps
growing.
J
J
B
D
D
You
know
honorable
honorable
speaker
from
the
beginning.
From
march
2020,
we
provided
public
information
through
public
briefings
on
public
dashboards,
we've
released,
we've
responded
to
thousands,
even
tens
of
thousands
of
media
requests.
We've
provided
detailed
information,
sometimes
general
response
to
links
to
everyone,
sometimes
a
la
carte
to
everyone
in
the
population.
D
There
is
massive
response
in
terms
of
information
on
cobit
19.,
and
the
result
of
that
is
the
result
of
that
is,
has
been
the
actions
of
british
columbians
who
have
worked
together
in
difficult
times
to
help
one
another,
I'm
very
proud
of
the
government's
response.
I'm
very
mound
of
british
columbians
response
to
covet
19.,
and
I
will
continue
to
act
as
we've
acted
to
continue
to
continue
to
work
with.
D
Everybody
in
this
legislature
continue
to
provide
information
to
everyone,
including,
I
say,
with
great
respect
the
member
for
cowboy
north,
who
I'm
absolutely
committed
to
providing
every
piece
of
information
about
her
riding.
She
requires
to
do
her
job
and
everyone
else
in
this
house.
That's
been
my
approach
from
the
beginning
of
the
pandemic,
and
I
want
to
say
this.
I
want
to
say
this.
I
think
all
members
of
this
house
have
shown
themselves
in
good
light
here.
We
have
repeatedly
provided
in
advance
confidential
briefings
to
the
opposition.