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From YouTube: FEB 22 2023 Question Period
Description
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
4th Session
42nd Parliament
C
Thank
you
speaker
once
again,
NDP
incompetence
is
on
Full
display,
as
we
has
witnessed
the
latest
mess
in
Surrey
continuing
to
unfold
now.
To
begin
with,
they
gave
the
green
light
to
a
policing
plan
that
included
18
months
of
severance
pay
for
a
mere
six
months
worth
of
work.
Now
they
can't
even
make
a
decision
dragging
their
feet
while
confusion
and
chaos
and
costs
spiral
out
of
control,
and
yet
it's
Surrey
residents
that
are
paying
the
price
for
this
facing
a
up
to
a
20
property
tax
increase
the
largest
property
tax
increase
in
surrey's
history.
C
D
D
Contracts
are
negotiated
by
the
city
of
Surrey,
the
police
department,
not
by
the
provincial
government.
It's
the
same,
whether
it's
New
Westminster,
Delta,
Port,
Moody
or
Vancouver,
or
for
that
matter
the
RCMP.
We
do
not
sign
off
and
we
do
not
oversee
them.
So
honorable
speaker,
his
colleague
the
wrong
yesterday
and
he's
wrong
on
that
today.
What
I
want
to
assure
the
member,
though,
is
that
Surrey
has
decided
to
move
to
a
that.
D
They
want
to
go
back
to
the
RCMP
RCMP
police
force
and,
as
the
member
will
know,
the
original
decision
by
the
previous
Surry
Council
was
to
go
to
a
surrey,
Police
Service,
a
decision
which
I
note
that
the
honorable
member
supported
when
he
said
that
he
hoped
to
see
a
we
will
work
hard
for
a
smooth
and
successful
transition
for
surrey's
own
local
police
force.
Honorable
speaker,
the
council
has
changed
its
mind,
which
they
are
entitled
to
do.
D
My
responsibility,
as
solicitor
general,
is
to
ensure
that
there
is
a
plan,
an
orderly
transition
plan
that
would
allow
that
to
take
place.
We
have
received
an
initial
plan
from
the
city
of
Surrey,
the
Surrey
Police
Service
and
the
RCMP.
There
are
gaps
and
information
missing
that
were
identified.
We
went
back
to
them.
My
staff
have
been
working
closely
with
Surrey
and
the
RCMP
to
get
answers
to
the
questions
and
to
deal
with
those
gaps
issues.
My
responsibility
is
to
ensure
safe
and
effective
policing,
not
just
in
Surrey
but
in
the
province
as
a
whole.
C
Part
of
the
challenges
we've
discovered
is
whether
it's
trying
to
manage
this
legislature
or
trying
to
make
decisions
protecting
taxpayers.
This
government
apparently
doesn't
know
what
they're
doing
now
this
time
their
incompetence
has
resulted
in
a
total
emerging
disaster
for
the
residents
of
Surrey
and
this
government.
C
We
already
know
from
polling
that
up
to
46
percent
of
residents
are
200
a
month
or
less
away
from
not
being
able
to
meet
their
family
budgets
and
now,
under
this
NDP
they're
facing
a
record,
almost
20
percent
property
tax
increase
because
of
their
inability
to
stick
to
making
a
decision
for
the
residents
of
Surrey.
So
my
question
is
a
straightforward
one:
will
the
person
responsible
and
who
is
to
blame
for
this
20
property
tax
increase?
Please
stand
up.
E
That's
for
sure,
so,
Mr
Speaker
well,
a
a
new
standard
in
abdication
of
responsibility
has
been
set
here
today
in
the
house.
Mr
Speaker.
E
So
so
look
the
problem
the
government
is
having
is
he
can't
have
it
both
ways?
They
can't,
on
the
one
hand,
try
to
tell
the
house
and
the
people
of
Surrey
that
they
were
engaged
in
this
intricate
oversight
process
that
assessed
every
aspect
of
this
transitional
process
and
then,
on
the
other
hand,
deny
any
responsibility
whatsoever
for
this
looming.
Astronomical
tax
increase.
E
So
so
so,
which
is
it
now
now
happily
happily
to
answer
that
question,
we
can
go
to
some
documents
from
the
the
estimates
briefing
binder
from
May
of
last
year,
I,
don't
know
Mr
Speaker
how
much
we
paid
for
these.
It's
undoubtedly
more
than
it
used
to
be.
E
But
but
but
however
much
we
paid,
we
have
them
I,
remember
the
briefing
binders,
you
know
what
I
remember.
They
were
never
that
brief.
Actually,
here's
what
it
says:
here's
what
the
note
says
the
government's
position
on
Surrey
policing
model
transition.
First,
it
says
the
policing
and
security
Branch's
policing
model
transitions.
Secretariat
was
established
in
2019.
E
Then
in
May
22,
the
RCMP
Surrey
police
formally,
and
the
committee
agreed
to
jointly
develop
Human
Resources
strategy
and
plan
and
transition
which
was
approved
by
that
committee
that
the
province
was
on
and
finally,
the
police
and
security
branches
policy
model
transition.
Secretariat
continues
to
play
an
active
role
in
supporting
and
facilitating
the
city's
policing
transition,
including
provincial
responsibilities
for
contract
management.
So.
E
So
Mr
Speaker,
which
is
it
which
is
it
were
the
province,
the
premier
and
his
government,
simply
asleep
at
the
switch
and
let
this
incredible
provision
Slide
by
to
the
detriment
of
the
Surrey
taxpayers.
Or
were
they
fully
aware
of
it
and
left
the
Surrey
taxpayers
on
the
hook
to
pay
astronomical
tax
increases.
D
General,
thank
you
honorable,
speaker
and
I
appreciate
my
colleague
I've
come
to
to
appreciate
his
efforts
to
advance
the
opposition's
position
over
over
our
years
in
this
place,
but
I
I
want
to
inform
him
that
he
is
mistaken,
that
is
about
the
service
contract.
That
is
not
about
the
collective
agreements
or
collect
sorry.
D
Member
and
the
negotiation
honorable
speaker
I
know
we.
We
know
what
they're
trying
to
do
and
unfortunately
they
failed
yesterday
and
they
failed
again.
Today.
That's
about
the
service,
it's
not
about
the
individual
Collective
agreements
that
are
signed
with
the
Surrey
police,
which
is
done
separately
from
that
honorable
speaker.
The
reality
is
this:
the
city
of
Surrey
voted
to
change
their
police
force
initially
to
go
to
their
own
Municipal
Police
Force.
They
subsequently
then
said
we
want
to
go
back.
D
Their
mayor
has
made
it
clear
that
the
previous
council
is
what
entered
into
this
Arrangement
my
responsibility,
our
responsibilities
government
to
ensure
that
there
is
a
plan
that
will
ensure
safe
and
effective
policing
to
on
a
transition
plan
back
to
the
RCMP.
If
that's,
what
Suri
wants
to
do?
That's
exactly
what
is
taking
place.
Honorable
speaker,
that's
what
my
staff
are
working
on
will
continue
to
do
to
ensure
that
we
have
safe
and
effective
policing
in
the
city
of
Surrey
and
the
rest
of
the
province,
foreign.
B
E
E
E
E
Does
the
minister,
the
premier
and
the
government
really
expect
the
people
of
Surrey
to
believe
that,
despite
that,
they
didn't
turn
their
attention
even
for
a
moment
to
unprecedented
levels
of
severance
that
are
going
to
likely
result
in
unprecedented
levels
of
Taxation
increase
for
the
Surrey
people?
If
that
is
true,
then
the
premier,
his
government,
should
simply
say
so
and
believe
me
before
people
in
Surrey
have
a
chance
to
assess
this.
At
the
Civic
level,
they
are
going
to
have
a
chance
to
assess
it
at
the
provincial
level
at
the
next
election.
B
Saw
no
question
that
sorry,
sir,
no
and
questioning
that
question
that
they
asked
so
anybody
still
wants
to
make
a
statement.
D
You
know
honorable
speaker,
we
have
watched
ever
since
the
vote
on
the
transition
in
the
city
of
Surrey.
The
opposition
has
been
silent,
except
at
the
beginning
where
they
said.
This
is
a
local
government
decision,
honorable
speaker
and,
let's
be
clear,
the
binder
The
Briefing
notes
have
been
available
to
them
and
absolutely
there
has
been
superintending
of
the
transition
by
my
ministry,
as
is
their
statutory
responsibility.
D
But
let
us
also
be
clear,
honorable
speaker,
that
that
does
not
mean
negotiating
the
contracts
between
the
city
of
Surrey
and
the
police.
That's
done
by
themselves
in
the
same
way
that
it
is
done
for
Vancouver
for
New
Westminster
for
Port
Moody
and
the
RCMP
honorable
speaker,
the
deputy
of
police
services.
D
My
responsibility
is
to
ensure
that
that
transition
goes
smoothly,
that
it
abides
by
the
agreements
that
the
parties
are
working
together
in
a
Cooperative
fashion,
so
there's
a
smooth
transition,
which
is
something
that
the
leader
of
the
opposition
said
he
wanted
honorable
speaker
when
he
spoke
to
the
Punjabi
media
when
he
said,
despite
it
being
a
local,
a
local
issue.
He
said
he
wanted
to
ensure,
and
he
said
it
on
March
15
2022-
that
he
will
work
hard
for
the
smooth
and
successive
successful
transition
of
surrey's
own
local
police
force.
D
D
We
want
to
make
sure
that
if
the
city
of
Surrey
wants
to
go
back,
that
we
have
safe
and
effective
policing
that
there
is
a
plan
that
ensures
that
takes
place
without
taking
resources
from
Prince
George
or
from
Kelowna
or
the
North,
Shore
or
Coquitlam,
or
also
recognizes
the
challenges
in
that
transition
that
involve
the
the
that
were
getting
the
recruits
out
of
the
depot
and
just
so
members
understand
the
complications
involved
in
this
eat.
D
You
seem
to
take
you
know
the
the
you're
all
very
interested
in
it.
I
want
you
to
understand
some
of
the
complexities
900
recruits
900
recruits
on
average
each
year.
Honorable
speaker
17,
don't
make
it
those
recruits,
then,
after
that
17
have
to
supply
the
federal
line.
The
provinces
of
Alberta,
Manitoba
Saskatchewan
and
the
maritimes
British
Columbia
gets
about
a
third
of
them
RCMP
retire.
D
They
have
to
fill
spaces
for
members
who
want
them
in
their
community
and
at
the
same
time,
to
be
able
to
deal
with
the
issues
in
Surrey
and
the
277
that
we
want
that
we're
hiring
in
this
province.
Honorable
speaker,
that
is
a
lot
of
work.
My
staff
are
doing
that
work
and
they're
doing
it
professionally.
F
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker.
As
a
member
from
Vancouver,
Mount
Pleasant,
so
eloquently
reminded
us,
we
have
a
responsibility
to
the
most
vulnerable
people
in
our
province.
British
Columbians
with
disabilities
are
forced
to
choose
between
buying
food,
putting
a
roof
over
their
heads
or
meeting
their
health
care
needs
every
single
month.
The
rate
for
a
person
with
disabilities
is
sixteen
thousand
three
hundred
per
year
with
a
375
dollar
a
month.
F
G
Thank
you,
Mr
Speaker,
and
thank
you
to
my
colleague
across
the
aisle
I'm
grateful
to
be
in
this
role
as
minister
of
Social
Development
of
property
production,
I'm
grateful
to
carry
on
the
work
of
my
predecessors
and
thankful
to
her
for
raising
issues
that
don't
often
get
aired
in
this
place.
Everybody
deserves
to
be
treated
with
respect
and
poverty
and
and
not
live
in
poverty.
G
Everybody
deserves
and
our
government
is
committed
to
having
each
person
do
their
have
their
very
best
life
to
live
in
dignity,
to
have
the
security
of
food
family
of
housing,
and
our
governments
made
poverty
reduction
a
priority
since
we
formed
government
in
2017.
since
2017
we've
increased
social
assistance
rates
three
times,
including
the
largest
ever
increases
in
2021
we've
doubled.
The
seniors
supplement
the
first
increase
in
the
entire
history
of
the
benefit
we've
restored,
the
minimum
shelter
allowance,
even
with
all
of
these
increased
supports
and
all
of
these
changes.
G
F
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker,
I
I,
think
if
this
government
were
determined
to
do
more
and
to
ensure
that
people
have
dignity
and
that
they
can
live
their
best
life,
the
action
that
needs
to
be
taken
is
to
raise
the
rates
that
people
with
disabilities
are
living
on.
It's
simple,
it's
not
words.
It's
not
Victory
lapse.
It
is
an
action.
F
People
with
disabilities
in
this
province
live
in
poverty
today,
and
this
government
can
make
the
decision
and
the
choice
to
resolve
that
by
at
least
raising
the
rates
to
the
level
of
poverty.
The
poverty
line.
My
question
honorable
speaker
again,
is
to
the
premier:
will
his
government
support
the
people
who
need
it?
The
most
by
increasing
BC's
disability
rates
and
removing
punitive
clawbacks.
G
Thank
you,
Mr
Speaker.
Our
government
wants
everybody
to
do
better.
Our
government
has
had
poverty
reduction
at
the
core
of
its
work.
Since
we
formed
government
in
2017,
we
have
increased
the
rates
of
ones
that
were
stalled
out
for
for
a
very
long
time
before
we
have
legislated
poverty
reduction,
we
have
exceeded
our
legislative
poverty
reduction
targets
that
includes
lifting
104,
000
children
out
of
poverty,
and
there
is
more
to
do
and
and
we
are
determined
to
do
it.
The
throne
speech
speaks
to
our
commitment
to
to
supporting
the
most
vulnerable
people.
G
That
is
further
work.
That
is
ahead
of
us.
Notwithstanding
the
action
that
has
been
taken
year
after
year,
the
five
years
that
we've
been
in
government
and
notwithstanding
the
that
very
heavy
toll
of
global
inflation
and
the
crushing
increases
in
food
prices,
means
that
the
people
in
the
deepest
poverty
still
need
more
help,
and
we
are
Contin
continuing
to
do
it.
H
The
Thompson
region,
family,
obstetrics
Clinic,
which
delivers
60
percent
of
the
babies
born
each
month
in
Kamloops,
has
just
announced
that
it
is
no
longer
accepting
any
patients
with
due
dates.
Beyond
July
31st
they've
made
this
announcement
after
nearly
a
year
of
raising
the
alarm
with
this
government
Mr
Speaker,
this
comes
less
than
a
month
after
another
clinic
Sage
Hills
also
announced
its
impending
closure.
H
Obviously,
expectant
mothers
are
scared
and
they
have
nowhere
to
go.
Kristen
is
15
weeks
pregnant
and
unable
to
obtain
the
prenatal
care
that
she
needs
she
applied
to
local
clinics.
As
soon
as
she
found
out,
she
was
pregnant.
They
were
all
unable
to
take
her
and
now
having
been
referred
to
the
Thompson
region
Clinic
over
seven
weeks
ago.
She
has
discovered
that
the
clinic
is
closing,
leaving
her
without
any
options
for
prenatal
care
and
I
would
point
out
that
she's
one
of
the
45
000
residents
in
Canada's,
that
does
not
have
a
family
doctor.
H
She
says
and
I
quote
I,
have
been
told.
I
can
attend
our
local
overcrowded
emergency
department
if
I
need
care.
End
quote
Mr
Speaker.
My
question
is
to
the
premier:
what
is
the
Premier
going
to
do
to
urgents
urgently
fix
this
absolutely
unacceptable
lack
of
prenatal
care
in
a
city
of
a
hundred
and
ten
thousand
the
city
of
Kamloops.
I
Honorable
speaker
is
Minister
of
Health
I
recognize
that
the
Thompson
Rivers
family,
obstetrics
Clinic,
is
is
critical
to
the
people
of
chemicals,
the
people
of
the
region.
It's
why
honorable
speaker
that
we've
worked
with
family
doctors
in
particular
over
the
last
year
to
change
the
very
funding
Arrangements
that
are
one
of
the
key
sources
of
the
problem.
It's
a
plan
that
has
been
supported
by
94
percent
of
doctors
across
the
province
is
to
move
away
from
fee
for
service
models
to
models
that
reflect
the
work
done
by
people
in
communities.
I
Interior
Health,
the
Ministry
of
Health
and
I
are
are
specifically
supportive
of
alternative
payment
models
for
those
working
at
this
Clinic.
We
are
hard
at
work
to
ensure
that
this
problem
is
resolved.
This
issue
is
resolved
and
that
services
to
expectant
mothers
and
everyone
served
by
the
clinic
are
maintained.
J
You
Mr
Speaker,
well
the
crisis
at
this
Thompson
region.
Family
obstetrics
Clinic,
has
been
brewing
for
over
a
year
and
it
still
hasn't
been
solved
by
this
government,
but
once
again
they
need
to
get
it
to
a
crisis
before
they
leave
and
acknowledge
it.
They
are
continually
lurching
from
crisis
to
crisis,
failing
to
fix
any
of
them.
J
We've
heard
about
the
45
000
people
in
counts
about
a
family
doctor,
but
we
have
rotating
ER
closures
in
Clearwater
and
Merit
and
health
centers
in
barrier
and
Ashcroft,
putting
incredible
strain
on
that
same
Hospital
in
camels,
because
it
is
the
hospital
for
the
broader
region.
Just
yesterday
in
Merit
their
ER
closed
again
and
in
fact
the
community
found
out
after
it
was
already
closed
to
make
matters
worse.
Mr
Speaker.
Yesterday
the
coca-hella
between
Kamloops
and
Merit
was
a
nightmare.
It
was
bad
enough
when
I
drove
down
on
a
Monday.
It
was
worse.
J
Yesterday,
a
senior
citizen
with
pneumonia
and
her
80
year
old
husband
had
to
drive
through
Kamloops
on
those
roads
just
to
try
to
seek
medical
help,
Mr
Speaker
through
the
snowstorm.
How
much
longer
will
people
of
Merit
cameras,
barrier,
Ashcroft,
Williams,
Lake,
Clinton,
Cash
3,
have
to
keep
suffering
at
the
hands
of
this
government's
incompetence,
and
when
will
this
Premier
and
Minister
stop
with
the
platitudes
and
I
should
get
on
with
fixing
the
problem.
I
Well,
honorable
speaker,
this
government
and
I
think
everybody
in
the
region
is
incredibly
supportive
of
the
staff.
The
Nicola
Valley
Regional
hospital
I
would
say
this
honorable
speaker
that
what
what
occurred
yesterday
is
what
has
happened
from
time
to
time.
That's
why
we're
working
hard
to
ensure
long-term
Solutions
it?
I
What
happened
yesterday
was
it
a
staff
person
at
the
last
minute
was
unable
to
attend
a
doctor
was
unable
to
attend
the
ER,
and
so
it
was
required
in
order
to
ensure
patient
safety
to
take
the
action
that
was
taken
and,
of
course,
the
very
roads
mentioned
by
The
Honorable
member
effect
of
people's
ability
to
come
in
and
support
that
what's
happened
in
Kamloops,
what's
happened
everywhere
during
this
pandemic
is
extraordinary
work
by
health
care
workers.
There
are
more
net
70,
more
working,
for
example,
at
Royal
Inland
Hospital.
I
Today
the
member
refers
to
Clearwater
a
problem
that
we
all
work
very
hard
to
resolve.
He
talks
about
closures.
I
haven't
been
any
closures
since
Labor
Day
honorable
speaker,
because
people
work
together,
the
community,
the
healthcare
workers,
Interior
Health
myself,
the
mayor,
everybody
to
see
that
that
situation
was
addressed,
and
we
have
to
continue
to
do
that.
We
have
38
000,
more
health
care
workers
than
when
I
was
appointed
minister
of
Health
to
address
the
enormous
challenges
we've
had
in
this
period,
and
especially
now
during
the
pandemic.
I
A
Thank
you
very
much.
Mr
Speaker
and
no
one
in
this
legislature
is
questioning
the
incredible
work
that
is
done
by
Health
Care
Professionals.
What
they
want
this
minister
to
understand
is
they
are
burnt
out.
They
are
overworked
and
they
want
this
minister
to
stand
up
and
do
something
to
help
them.
The
people
of
Merit
are
worried,
and
rightly
so,
and
they
are
fed
up
that
they
don't
even
have
the
basic
medical
services
for
the
minister
to
say
that
happens
from
time
to
time.
A
He
knows
full
well
that
emergency
rooms
across
rural
British
Columbia
have
closed
Time,
After,
Time,
After,
Time
and
in
fact
the
mayor
of
Merit
believes
that
the
emergency
room
will
be
looking
at
50
closures
in
the
next
year.
That
is
hardly
something
that
happens
from
time
to
time.
Let's
look
at
the
Eagle
Ridge
Hospital
in
Port
Moody.
It's
another
example
of
BC's
collapsing
Health
Care,
System
nurses.
There
are
compelled
to
work,
26
hour
shifts
and
they
have
an
emergency
department
with
only
the
half
the
staff
that
they
require.
A
A
A
Partner
would
like
to
get
up
and
have
a
discussion
about
the
health
care
crisis,
the
housing
crisis,
the
affordability
crisis,
anything
other
than
a
two-clause
bill.
So
will
the
premier
answer
to
British
Columbians
today
lots
of
talk,
little
action
and
worse
results?
When
is
he
going
to
do
something
that
will
improve
health
care
outcomes
in
this
province?.
K
Honorable
speaker
and
I
think
the
member
for
the
question
I
know
for
British
Columbians
access
to
a
family
doctor
making
sure
they
have
access
to
Emergency
Care
is
front
of
mind
for
them
across
British
Columbia.
Right
now
we
know
the
impact
of
the
pandemic
has
been
profound
on
health
care
workers.
We
know
that
they're
stressed
out
and
burned
out
and
working
long
hours.
K
We
know
that
we
need
to
bring
more
people
into
the
system
to
get
them
the
support
they
need
and
members
will
have
seen
action
taken
by
our
government
before
my
time
and
in
the
first
hundred
days
since
I've
been
appointed
Premier
to
get
those
folks
into
our
Health
Care
system.
So,
first
of
all,
internationally
trained
nurses,
2
000
nurses,
tied
up
at
the
at
the
College
of
nurses,
trying
to
get
approved
to
work
in
our
health
care
System.
They
want
to
work
right
now.
K
So
they
can
get
to
work
the
same
for
internationally
trained
doctors,
so
they
can
work
under
the
supervision
of
a
BC
doctor
right
away
and
they're,
not
waiting
years
to
do
retraining
when
they
meet
those
standards
when
they're
ready
to
practice
right
away
fast
track
assessment
for
them
through
the
College
of
Physicians
and
surgeons.
Beyond
that,
the
health
Minister
talked
about
the
groundbreaking
deal
with
doctors
of
BC
for
family
doctors.
K
This
is
a
huge
thing
that
in
incenting
people
to
take
more
patients
to
work
longer
hours
to
support
more
British
Columbians
and
the
kind
of
family
practice
that
people
deserve.
We
are
taking
those
actions
we
recognize.
This
is
a
serious
issue
in
our
health
care.
System
I
took
ministers
to
Ottawa
to
talk
directly
with
the
prime
minister
and
key
ministers
about
the
issues
facing
British
Columbia,
where
we
need
a
strong
Federal
partner.
Health
was
certainly
one
of
them,
and
then
we
joined
with
all
the
premiers
across
Canada
that
are
all
facing
this
issue.