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From YouTube: MARCH 28 2023 Question Period
Description
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
4th Session
42nd Parliament
C
C
C
D
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker
and
I
thank
the
member
for
the
question.
All
of
us
share
the
the
absolute
horror
and
words
can't
I
think
describe
the
feeling
of
just
how
awful
what
happened
outside
that
Starbucks
is
and
how
disturbing
the
images
which
sadly
have
been
shared
on
social
media
and
the
just
how
horrible
that
must
be
for
the
family
friends
of
the
family
and
for
the
public
in
general,
but
I
also
want
to
make
it
clear.
This
is
a
problem.
It
is
not.
D
This
upsurge
that
we
have
seen
is
not
something
that
is
unique
here
in
British
Columbia,
but
it's
something
we
are
seeing.
Indeed,
in
all
parts
of
the
country,
particularly
our
larger
cities
and
I,
can
tell
you
that
it
is
something
that
the
province
this
province
and
other
provinces
are
working
on
on
ways
to
be
able
to
deal
with
these
situations,
particularly
because
of
their
random
nature.
D
But
it
also
means,
as
a
government,
to
continue
to
be
committed
to
working
with
local
governments,
local
police
agencies,
other
provinces
in
the
federal
government,
to
come
up
with
new
different
initiatives
to
keep
our
public
safe.
But
recognizing
that
this
challenge,
in
particular
around
random
stranger
attacks,
is
there
has.
There
is
not
been
to
date,
an
easy
solution,
but
certainly
it
is
one
that
we
are
determined
to
work
to
find
a
way
to
ensure
that
our
streets
and
our
communities
are
safe,
because
no
one
should
have
to
feel
unsafe
and
certainly
what
we
saw.
D
C
This
Brazen
random
violence
unfolded
within
five
blocks.
The
downtown
area
before
police,
thankfully,
were
able
to
tackle
the
knife-wielding
suspect
to
the
ground,
Mr
Speaker.
It's
no
wonder
that
79
percent
of
Victoria
residents
in
a
recent
survey
answered
that
don't
feel
safe
in
the
downtown.
Here
again,
the
premier
was
the
attorney
general
for
five
years
in
this
province.
C
The
premier
is
at
that
time
was
the
person,
obviously
in
charge
of
our
failing
justice
system,
and
he
is
now
the
premier.
People
deserve
better
than
the
premier's
endless
cycle
of
Catch
and
Release
so
again
to
the
premier.
When
will
this
vicious
violence?
These
random
attacks
finally
end
in
communities
across
British
Columbia.
D
There
is
the
issue
of
those
of
the
random
stranger
attacks,
which
we
saw
so
horrific
yesterday,
which
leave
all
of
us
shaken
and
I
said
we
are
working
as
hard
as
we
can,
with
law
enforcement
of
authorities
and
other
governmental
authorities
to
come
with
strategies
to
try
and
deal
with
that.
At
the
same
time,
there
are
other
there
are
other
public
safety
issues
and
the
member
references.
D
It
was
this
government
that
sought
as
Broad
and
exact
as
broad
a
definition
as
possible
on
that
reverse
onus,
so
that
it
includes
knives
that
it
includes
weapons.
That
includes
bear
spray,
but
it
even
includes
histories
of
those
who
have
engaged
with
a
weapon
in
the
past,
and
we
got
that
commitment
from
the
federal
government
that
they
will
make
those
changes
and
the
expectation
is
those
changes
are
for
this
session.
D
It
is
this
government
that
has
put
in
place
the
funding
over
three
years
to
fill
the
provincial
RCMP
vacancies
in
small
and
Rural
communities.
Honorable
speaker,
we
have
undertaken
significant
initiatives
and
we
will
do
others,
but
the
situation
that
we
have
been
facing
in
this
province
and
other
provinces
is
complex
and
we
need
to
understand
and
recognize
that.
E
Thanks
honorable
speaker,
well,
we
we
hear
those
words
again
today
horrible
and
tragic,
and
they
are
all
too
appropriate
and
we
are
hearing
them
all
too
frequently,
I
think
with
the
greatest
respect,
Mr
Speaker.
What
people
are
looking
for
from
the
government
from
the
premier
is
acknowledgments
to
what
they
are
doing,
isn't
working.
E
I
think
people
understand
that
there
are
going
to
be
slight
variations
in
crime
rates,
but
Mr
Speaker.
The
fact
remains
that
this
premier,
this
Premier,
as
attorney
general
and
as
premier,
has
presided
over
a
steady
and
dramatic
increase
in
random
violence
in
this
province
to
the
point
where
people
across
BC
no
longer
feel
safe
in
their
neighborhoods.
E
Now
the
government
claims
that
it
is
tracking
closely
that
it
is
monitoring
and
has
data
relevant
to
the
impact
that
change
is
having
on
Public
Safety.
The
question
is
a
straightforward
one
for
the
premier
having
monitored
having
that
data.
Will
they
release
that
data
to
the
people
who
are
desperate
in
this
province?
British
Columbians,
who
are
desperate
to
see
whether
or
not
it
is
having
a
positive
impact
in
improving
safety
in
their
communities?.
F
F
That
directive
was
set
under
the
laws
that
we
currently
have,
but
at
the
same
time
we
were
advocating
for
changes
to
that
law
at
a
federal
level.
Minister
farnworth
and
I
met
with
Minister,
muddy,
Minister,
minichino
and
Ottawa,
and
we
joined
ministers
from
across
this
country
that
were
there
to
seek
changes
to
the
bail
bail
laws.
F
The
unintended
consequences
that
we've
seen
when
it
comes
to
people
committing
acts
of
violence
being
released
on
our
streets,
I'm,
happy
to
know
or
to
hear
that
they
made
commitments
to
those
changes
to
make
those
changes
as
early
as
this
spring,
we'll
be
watching
to
make
sure
those
changes
are
made
and,
at
the
same
time
we'll
be
watching
the
mod
and
monitoring
our
directives
and
how
they're,
showing
up
in
this
province
we're
using
every
tool
in
our
toolkit
and
our
justice
system
to
improve
the
situation
for
communities
across
BC.
Thank
you,
Mr
Speaker,
just.
E
The
stories
are
endless
and-
and
that
is
part
of
the
problem
in
my
own
community
on
the
weekend-
a
prolific
offender
notorious
prolific
offender,
apprehended
less
than
24
hours
after
having
been
released
in
the
police
issuing
a
statement
at
the
time
of
Mr
fontaine's
arrest,
he
had
just
been
convicted
of
possession
of
stolen
property.
Another
stolen
vehicle
Yeti
was
released
back
into
our
community,
not
even
24
hours
later,
and
there
were
story
after
story
after
Story
with
all
too
often
tragic
endings
involving
innocent
victims.
E
The
ministry
back
in
January
the
spokesman
said
in
the
aftermath
of
the
change
directive,
which
the
government
I
have
to
say,
took
an
awfully
long
time
to
adopt,
despite
having
had
a
recommendation
and
support
from
the
opposition
almost
a
year
previously,
the
ministry
says
in
January
we're
monitoring.
We
have
data
the
minister
herself
a
few
weeks
later
said.
E
E
F
A
Yeah,
thank
you.
Mr
Speaker
last
fall.
The
premier
said
quote:
we
cannot
continue
to
expand
fossil
fuel
infrastructure
and
meet
our
climate
goals.
End
quote:
he
was
placating
anxious
new
members
with
platitudes
after
he
was
outpaced
and
out
organized
in
the
BC
NDP
leadership
event,
and
when
he
announced
the
cedar
LNG
project
a
couple
of
weeks
ago.
He
sounded
a
lot
like
a
former
Premier
Mr
Speaker
Christy
Clark,
he
said
quote:
the
choice
between
protecting
the
environment
and
creating
good
jobs
is
a
false
one.
A
End
quote,
and
shortly
after
he
announced
the
cedar
LNG
project,
the
premier
announced
his
four
pillar
energy
action
framework
and
one
of
those
pillars
is
a
net
zero
requirement
for
new
fossil
fuel
projects.
Now
to
the
United
Nations
quote:
Net
Zero
is
entirely
incompatible
with
continued
investment
in
fossil
fuel.
End
quote
my
question.
Honorable
speaker
is
to
the
premier.
Can
he
please
provide
his
government's
definition
of
Net
Zero.
G
Environment,
thank
you
very
much,
honorable
speaker
and
thank
you
to
the
member
for
the
question.
I
think
Net
Zero
is
achieved
first
and
foremost
by
a
variety
of
measures
that
require
independent
and
internationally
accepted
methods
of
verification.
The
first
measure,
of
course,
would
be
to
take
every
step
possible
to
reduce
emissions.
G
That
includes
actions
like
our
regulation
to
reduce
methane
emissions
from
the
natural
gas
industry
in
all
industry,
by
significant
amounts
by
2030
and
near
Zero
by
2035.,
following
that
it
would
be
reducing
the
use
of
of
mission
generating
sources
of
energy
and
further
to
that,
it
may
be
technologies
that
are
being
developed
like
carbon
sequestration
and
storage.
It
may
be
legitimately
accepted
offsets
that
are
verified
and
proven
to
take
out
of
the
atmosphere,
emissions
that
would
otherwise
go
into
it.
A
Yeah,
thank
you
Mr
Speaker.
Of
course.
The
best
way
to
reduce
emissions
is
not
to
go
about
diligently,
creating
more,
which
is
what
this
NDP
government
is
committed
to
doing,
and
now
it
appears
that
they're
going
to
be
turning
to
the
accountants
and
carbon
offsets
and
carbon
credits
to
meet
their
Net
Zero
requirements.
A
The
problem
with
carbon
credits,
of
course,
is
that
they're
just
a
human
construct,
just
like
the
soft
pillow
that
we
rest
our
weary
head
on
at
the
end
of
the
day,
permitting
our
destructive
to
con
our
destructive
Behavior
to
continue
tomorrow.
Mr
Speaker
carbon
credits
don't
exist
in
nature.
They're
make
believe.
A
Government
and
corporations
are
over
accounting,
their
actual
emissions
in
millions
of
tons
now
the
bcndp
is
using
is
ready
to
use
these
faulty
programs
to
justify
more
fossil
fuel
expansion,
it's
worse
than
cognitive,
dissonance,
Mr
Speaker,
because
this
government
knows
much
better.
My
question
is
through
you
to
the
minister
of
environment
and
climate
change
strategy
or
the
bcndp
going
to
bet
our
future
on
carbon
offsets.
B
G
Exactly
what
I
thought
the
leader
of
the
third
party
has
been
asking
for
for
months
now,
which
is
something
to
give
life
to
our
sectoral
targets,
particularly
in
the
oil
and
gas
sector.
What
we
have
committed
to
is
a
regulatory
cap
on
emissions
to
achieve
our
sectoral
Target
for
the
oil
and
gas
sector
for
2030.
We
will
be
Consulting
with
industry
with
First
Nations,
beginning
in
April,
on
the
shape
of
that
cap,
and
then
we
will
be
introducing
the
regulation
to
accomplish
the
emissions
to
which
we've
committed.
Thank
you
very
much,
honorable
speaker.
H
You
Mr
Speaker,
so
many
of
the
measures
that
were
mentioned
by
the
Attorney
General,
the
only
impact
what
happens
after
another
person
becomes
a
victim
in
British
Columbia
and
the
violence
on
our
streets
were
created
by
the
premier
soft
on
crime
attitude,
as
attorney
general
from
day.
One
of
this
government
not
only
are
prolific,
offenders
released
back
into
communities
under
the
premier's
catch
and
release
system,
but
tent
cities
have
proliferated
under
his
watch
as
housing.
H
Nanaimos
mayor,
Leonard,
krogue
has
declared
the
city
is
at
its
Breaking.
Point
quote:
open
drug
use,
our
inability
to
provide
appropriate
housing
and
Continuum
of
Care,
what's
referred
to
as
catch
and
release
in
the
court
system.
The
failure
to
keep
people
in
custody
pending
trial
when
there's
significant,
repeat
offenders.
All
of
this
has
come
together.
It's
a
crisis.
End
quote:
local
business
owner
Clint
Smith
was
lucky
to
survive
after
being
shot
multiple
times
during
confrontation
at
an
encampment
Clint
sustained
such
severe
injuries
that
he
had
to
be
placed
on
an
induced
coma.
F
Thanks
for
the
question,
I
think
we
can
all
agree
in
this
house
that
everybody
deserves
to
feel
safe
in
their
communities
and
when
you
hear
about
horrific,
violent
acts
that
are
happening,
we
all
need
to
stand
together
not
only
to
condemn
them,
but
people
for
the
province
can
know
that
this
government
is
taking
action,
not
only
as
I
mentioned
earlier.
Are
we
advocating
for
a
very
badly
needed
criminal
code
changes
to
the
federal
government
and
we're
hoping
for
that
to
happen
this
spring,
but
we
have
a
whole
series
of
policies
under
our
safer
communities.
F
I
Thank
you,
Mr
Speaker,
homeless,
encampments
and
the
escalation
of
violence
and
Chaos
on
our
streets
has
never
been
worse.
Kansas
City,
10
cities
are
more
prevalent
than
they
ever
have
been
before,
and
that
is
under
this
premier's
watch,
mayor,
Leonard,
croak,
says
and
I
quote
we're
getting
to
a
breaking
point.
It's
a
crisis
I've
been
calling
it
a
crisis
for
a
long
time,
but
that
crisis
is
not
getting
any
better.
End
quote:
this
is
from
a
mayor.
I
This
is
from
somebody
who
sat
in
this
house
for
almost
two
decades,
most
of
which
was
as
critic
for
attorney
general.
He
understands
what
this
government
can
and
more
importantly,
is
not
doing
to
keep
his
City
safe.
My
question
is
to
the
premier:
how
much
longer
will
communities
have
to
suffer
from
the
crisis
called
by
his
failed
policies?.
J
Thank
you,
honorable
speaker,
and
we
we
can
visit
encampments
at
Great
Lengths
yesterday
and
again,
I'll
reiterate
the
comments
I
made,
which
are
the
encampments,
are
not
safe
for
the
people
living
in
them
and
they're
not
safe
for
the
community
large.
We
know
and
we've
been
working
actively
with
communities
to
deal
with
some
of
the
encampments
in
in
ways
that
work
for
communities
for
themselves.
We've
highlighted
on
Sunday
the
plans
we
have
for
Vancouver.
J
We've
been
working
actively
with
city
of
ninaimo
to
build
the
housing
that
we
know
is
needed
desperately
needed,
I
believe
just
over
800
units
of
affordable
housing
have
already
been
built
there,
and
we've
got
556
that
are
underway.
That
work
is
happening.
We've
also
offered
and
are
working
with
them
on
funding
for
a
navigation
Center,
so
that
those
that
need
help
can
go
to
one
place
and
get
all
the
supports
that
they
need.
J
We've
had
two
locations
that
we
have
found
worked
with
them
on
that
went
through
the
process
and
then
Council
came
to
the
conclusion
that
perhaps
that
wasn't
the
right
site.
So
we
found
a
location,
went
through
the
complete
process.
Council
decided.
Wasn't
the
right
site,
we
went
through
another
process,
they
found
and
we're
now
looking
for
a
third
site,
and
so
it's
going
to
require
us
to
work
together
to
find
locations
for
these
people
to
be
able
to
get
the
supports.
They
need
and
that's
the
work
we're
doing
with
them
right
now.
K
K
This
has
been
the
former
Attorney
General
and
now
the
premier's
responsibility
for
years,
not
months
or
weeks,
but
four
years
and
the
results
just
keep
getting
worse.
Almost
three
years
ago,
the
premier's
Mandate
letter
as
housing
Minister
tasked
him
with
implementing
a
strategy
to
address
homeless
encountments,
but
he
simply
didn't
do
his
job.
K
So,
according
to
the
premier's
transition
binder,
the
NDP
cabinet
approved
a
plan
in
2021,
but
it
was
never
implemented
or
released.
The
note
goes
on
to
give
this
advice
to
the
premier
of
British,
Columbia
and
I
quote:
encampments
are
increasing
in
complexity
and
numbers
across
the
province
and
are
not
a
suitable
form
of
shelter.
People
deserve
safe
homes
and
stability.
K
J
Thank
you,
honorable,
speaker
and
I
think
it's
important
to
highlight
that
the
challenge
we're
dealing
with
encampments
is
not
just
a
BC
problem.
It's
not
just
a
Canada
problem.
This
is
an
issue
we're
seeing
across
North
America
that
recently,
a
Canadian
Human,
Rights
Commission
wrote
a
report
on
how
encampments
can
be
dealt
with
in
communities
around
the
country.
Honorable
speaker,
I've,
spoken
to
colleagues
across
the
country,
we're
all
grappling
on
how
we
can
deal
with
this.
J
If
you
look
just
down
south
to
Washington
State,
if
you
look
down
to
Oregon,
if
you
don't
look
down
to
California,
every
Community
is
dealing
with
this
Challenge
and
trying
to
find
ways.
So
how
we're
dealing
with
this
Federal
speaker
is
as
examples
I
shared
yesterday
around
the
downtown
east
side,
we
had
200
people
in
an
encampment.
We
found
housing
for
90
of
those
people.
We
have
70
more
people
there
and
we're.
J
We
have
shelter
space
available
for
them,
and
my
message
to
them
continues
to
be
that
there
is
shelter
space
available
that
the
encampments
with
the
fires,
with
the
increase
in
in
crime
that
we're
seeing
there
that
the
shelters
are
a
safer
place
to
be,
and
so
that's
the
work
we're
doing
not
only
in
Vancouver
but
in
communities
around
the
province.
Working
with
Mayors
to
find
Solutions.
Honorable,
speaker
and
I
know
that
all
members
in
this
house
want
to
find
solutions
for
those
that
are
the
most
vulnerable
in
our
society.