B.C. Today – Daily Report December 14, 2018

Quotation of the day

“We claim they misused the power of their new offices ... to amplify the sting of what they were saying."

Lawyer Ian Fleming, who is representing former Liberal Party leader Gordon Wilson in his libel ​ ​ ​ ​ case against Premier and Jobs Minister Bruce Ralston, argues in court that ​ ​ ​ ​ Horgan and Ralston’s words justify adding a misfeasance charge to his client’s case.

Today in B.C.

On the schedule The House is adjourned for the winter break. MLAs are scheduled to return to the legislature on February 12, 2019 for the delivery of the government’s throne speech.

Today’s events

December 14 at 5 p.m. – Victoria ​

Premier John Horgan will make an announcement with Jonathan Wilkinson, federal Minister ​ ​ ​ ​ of Fisheries, Oceans and the Coast Guard; B.C. Agriculture Minister Indigenous ​ ​ leaders from Kwikwasut'inuxw Haxwa'mis, 'Namgis and Mamalilikulla First Nations; and aquaculture industry representatives. The premier will announce a “historic decision” regarding the future of salmon farming in the Broughton Archipelago area. The announcement will be made in the Legislative Library at the B.C. Legislature.

December 14 at 5 p.m. – Victoria ​

Lieutenant Governor Judith Guichon will host an “evening of festive carolling” at Government ​ ​ House. Singer Louise Rose will lead Christmas classics and seasonal favourites in the ​ ​ ballroom, and guests will be able to view Government House's holiday decorations. Donations for the Mustard Seed food bank will be gratefully accepted.

Weekend events

December 15 at 10:30 a.m. – Nanaimo ​

The B.C. Liberal Party will kick off a Super Saturday event at the Wenner Experience Centre.

December 15 at 1:30 p.m. – Nanaimo ​

The B.C. Green Party will hold its nomination meeting to choose a candidate for the Nanaimo ​ ​ byelection at the Beban Park Social Centre. Party members in good standing who are registered to vote in Nanaimo will be eligible to cast a ballot.

December 16 at 12 p.m. – Nanaimo ​

The B.C. NDP will hold its nomination meeting at the Beban Park Rec Centre to acclaim NDP MP as the party’s candidate in the Nanaimo byelection. Municipal Affairs ​ ​ and Housing Minister and Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog, formerly the NDP ​ ​ ​ ​ MLA for Nanaimo, will both attend. The meeting will be followed by a community outreach event.

Topics of conversation

● During a year-end interview with Global News, Premier John Horgan said his ​ ​ government has been considering the possibility of adding dental care to the province’s health care system. “We have been looking at it and hopefully we will be able to do something about it in the next budget,” the premier said. ​ ​ ○ The Ontario NDP promised dental coverage for 4.5 million people during the ​ ​ province’s election campaign earlier this year. The party estimated their plan would cost $1.2 billion. ○ BC Today’s year-end interview with Horgan will be published Monday. ​

● City Council approved a motion this week to ask the provincial government to butt out of its residential tax system and withdraw a planned increase to the school tax, ​ ​ which is scheduled to take effect next year. The new tax adds a 0.2 per cent surtax to property values of more than $3 million and a 0.4 increase to property values over $4 million. The tax is divisive and represents a “ political statement” from the government, according to Councillor Rebecca Bligh, who proposed the motion. ​ ​ ○ The motion itself described the tax as “an incursion onto an established municipal land tax base.”

● In B.C. Supreme Court this week, legal counsel for former Liberal Party leader Gordon ​ Wilson moved to add a misfeasance of public office charge to Wilson’s defamation suit ​ ​ ​ against Premier John Horgan, Jobs Minister Bruce Ralston and several media outlets. ​ ​ ​ ​ ● In a civil suit filed in August 2017, Wilson claimed Horgan and Ralston defamed him by disparaging his work as an LNG consultant for the former Liberal government soon after the NDP took power and fired him. ● Horgan said publicly that Wilson provided “no reports, no briefings and no memorandum" while pulling in a $150,000 salary. Records soon showed Wilson filed more than 180 pages of reports in his 15 months on the job. ○ "I'm like a pariah … trying to get work now,” Wilson said of the effect the premier and minister’s words had on his career. “People see me as an enemy of the state." Wilson’s suit claims damages of $5 million, but he said the case will cost the B.C. government “millions” in legal fees if it goes to trial. ○ Supreme Court Justice George Macintosh wants parties involved in the suit to ​ ​ set a date for a 10-week trial early in 2020. ○ Horgan and Ralson have both since apologized to Wilson.

● ICBC’s anticipated rate increase application is expected to go to the B.C. Utilities Commission today. Attorney General expected the application to be ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ announced yesterday.

● The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency has launched its environmental assessment process for Kwispaa LNG, an LNG export facility proposed for Sarita Bay, ​ ​ on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Public consultation on the assessment’s scope and specific environmental concerns about the project will close January 16, 2019.

News briefs - Governmental

Ministry of Children and Family Development The Ministry of Children and Family Development has filed a response to the civil claim launched against a former Kelowna social worker accused of stealing money meant for ​ ​ vulnerable children and youth in his charge.

The ministry admits “vicarious liability” for its former employee and agrees that damages and ​ ​ court-ordered interest for the plaintiff — an infant in provincial care — are “appropriate.” The ministry says it was first made aware of “financial irregularities” connected to the social worker in ​ December 2017.

The ministry says it has offered supports and services, including counselling, to the children and youth who were affected by the social worker's actions and will work with the plaintiffs' counsel “to address these matters in a manner that does not cause further trauma to the affected individuals.”

The ministry will respond to “a number of other separate but related court actions … in due ​ course.”

Funding announcements

● The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing is adding $8 million to its investment in ​ ​ the Station Avenue development in Langford to add 40 units of social housing for Indigenous families. The funding will come from the Building B.C. Indigenous Housing ​ Fund and will be part of the development’s second phase. ​ ○ The development will be managed by the Ma’kola Housing Society, an ​ ​ Indigenous non-profit housing organization. Phase one, which includes a six-storey apartment featuring 60 units of social housing, is expected to be complete by March 2020.

● The Ministry of Education is boosting its funding for the Play to Learn program, which ​ ​ ​ ​ helps secondary school students gain skills needed for “video-game design and other ​ technology-related and STEM career fields,” with a one-time grant of $230,000. The funding will help the program expand to schools outside Metro Vancouver. ○ The program, which launched in 2016, is administered by DigiBC. ​ ​

● B.C.’s Wood Stove Exchange Program is getting a $200,000 increase this year. The ​ ​ program offers incentives for homeowners in 15 communities to replace their old wood ​ ​ stoves — either with a more efficient, less polluting model or with a new type of heating system.

● The Ministry of Agriculture has launched its $5 million B.C. Tree Fruit ​ ​ ​ Competitiveness Fund, first announced in February. Tree fruit producers can apply for ​ ​ ​ funding to support infrastructure, marketing and research projects aimed at boosting efficiency, sales and productivity.

Appointments and employments

B.C. Provincial Court

● Raymond Phillips was appointed a provincial court judge, effective December 12, 2018. ​ ○ Phillips, who is a member of the Lytton First Nation — Nlaka'pamux, will fill a ​ judicial vacancy in Kamloops.

Destination B.C. Corp.

Three new directors were appointed to the board of Destination B.C.: ● Sheila Bouman and Douglas Neasloss will serve three-year terms effective December ​ ​ ​ 10, 2018; and. ● Linda Hannah will also serve a three-year term, effective December 31, 2018. ​

B.C. Housing Management Commission

● Harvey McLeod was re-appointed as a member of the B.C. Housing Management ​ Commission, effective December 10, 2018. ○ McLeod’s new term will end on January 29, 2020.