BC Today – Daily Report August 19, 2020 Quotation of the day “They got beat up very badly by us.” Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson says the NDP “had really no answers for substantive ​ ​ questions” posed by the Liberals during the summer session. Today in B.C. On the schedule The house is adjourned for the summer. NDP has put B.C. behind economic recovery: Wilkinson The NDP are lacking leadership and running scared from tough questions. That’s according to BC Liberal Party Leader Andrew Wilkinson, who told BC Today in an ​ ​ ​ ​ interview that he’s expecting the governing party to dodge parliamentary accountability this fall. “I would be surprised if they've got the stomach to come back for a fall session where they'll be obliged to tell the public the truth once again,” Wilkinson said. As the pandemic wears on, the Liberals remain particularly concerned with the government’s lack of an economic recovery plan. Wilkinson pointed out that several other provinces — including Ontario, Alberta and Quebec — presented recovery plans months ago. B.C.’s is not set to be released until next month, a move that has left many British Columbians simmering in uncertainty, according to Wilkinson. “People are looking for leadership and guidance from the provincial government, and they're just simply not getting it,” Wilkinson said, citing feedback the Liberals received during a series of town halls covering a variety of topics, including economic recovery and education. “This economic plan should have been out two months ago.” Deferred business taxes should not come due before Christmas, Wilkinson says For Wilkinson, the most obvious of the “huge challenges” facing B.C.’s economy is how to support the province’s tourism and hospitality sector through the next few months. “One hundred and thirty thousand people are out of work this summer, and the prospect of [those businesses] surviving into next year is not good,” he said. “We need to see an appropriate level of support for key parts of our economy to make sure that people have a job to go back to after Christmas.” But before the holiday season rolls around, B.C. businesses that have deferred tax payments under the NDP government’s COVID-19 action plan may have to pay the piper. “We're looking at a $6.5 billion dollar tax bill that has to be paid on September 30 by small businesses, and for many of them that's going to put them into bankruptcy,” Wilkinson warned. The Liberal caucus has argued companies should be allowed until at least the end of the year to repay their taxes. Finance Minister Carole James has promised to review the September 30 ​ ​ deadline “well before” it arrives. In May, Wilkinson sent a letter to Premier John Horgan detailing several other proposals aimed ​ ​ at aiding economic recovery, including an up to 90 day pause on provincial sales tax, hotel tax and employer health taxes and a freeze on any new regulations that could increase costs for businesses. The Liberals also called on the province to provide funding to help small businesses cover the costs of protective equipment required to operate during the pandemic. Hybrid learning should be an option for back to school Wilkinson also sees room for improvement in the NDP’s back-to-school plan, and would like to see more support for parents who want to shift their kids to independent distributed learning (IDL). “One thing that has been clear since March is the need for internet distance learning in schools,” he told BC Today. “That’s what parents are looking for, and it’s simply not available.” ​ ​ Just before the pandemic hit, the NDP announced a $12-million funding cut for IDL schools — where students learn mostly from home but follow a prescribed curriculum — framing it as an adjustment to bring per student funding in line with brick-and-mortar schools. In a letter addressed to Education Minister Rob Fleming yesterday, Wilkinson joined Liberal ​ ​ Education critic Dan Davies in calling for the funding to be immediately restored. ​ ​ They said the province should also “establish a viable” hybrid back-to-school framework that allows for both in-classroom and distance learning options. “The conflicting information, lack of flexibility, and overall poor administration of the government’s plan is creating unnecessary anxiety for families,” Wilkinson said in a statement. Currently, parents who opt to homeschool or enroll their children in an IDL program will have to forfeit their spot in a local school. Today’s events August 19 at 10 a.m. — Online ​ Health Minister Adrian Dix will make an announcement about cancer care in the Interior. ​ ​ August 19 at 7 p.m. — Online ​ The BC Green Party’s South Island riding association will host a virtual roundtable featuring ​ ​ leadership candidates Sonia Furstenau, Kim Darwin and Cam Brewer. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Topics of conversation ● B.C. reported 83 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday. There were 775 active cases (up 32) with six people in hospital (up two), three of them critical. No new deaths were reported, leaving the provincial total at 198. ● B.C.’s state of emergency was renewed for the 11th time yesterday and extended through September 1. Yesterday marked five months since the state of emergency was declared in response to the coronavirus pandemic. ● There were 93 active wildfires in B.C. as of yesterday afternoon, according to the BC ​ ​ Wildfire Service, and 70 of them started within the previous two days. Many of the fires were the result of a lightning storm that blew across the south coast and central Interior on Sunday. ● The Pacific Salmon Commission has revised its projections for this year’s Fraser River sockeye salmon run and is now expecting just 243,000 sockeye will return to spawn this year. The salmon run averaged 9.6 million fish from 1980 through 2014. ○ This year’s projection is the lowest ever for the Fraser River sockeye run, and Stó:lō Tribal Council vice-president Tyrone McNeil still suspects the ​ ​ commission’s projection is on the high side. The First Nations Leadership Council has called for the fishery to be closed. ​ ​ ○ The Narwhal explored the factors that have contributed to the Fraser River ​ ​ ​ sockeye’s decline. ● Joseph Gosnell, hereditary Nisga’a Nation chief and well-known politician, died of ​ ​ ​ cancer yesterday. Gosnell was the president of the Nisga’a Nation when the Nisga’a Final Agreement — the first modern treaty in B.C. — was finalized by the nation and the provincial and federal governments in 1998. ● The Globe and Mail’s editorial board says “Site C has become a cash bonfire” and “hard ​ ​ decisions” will have to be made about the future of the mega-dam. ○ While the previous Liberal government may have been “reckless” in approving the project and the NDP government may have “made the wrong call” in 2017 when it decided to proceed with the project, the Globe editorial argues “the only ​ ​ ​ ​ thing to do now is take a clear-eyed look at the present” and consider all the options going forward. ● Green Party MLA and leadership hopeful Sonia Furstenau has locked down several ​ ​ endorsements from local government officials in the past week. Victoria city Councillor Sarah Potts pledged her support, following in the footsteps of Victoria Mayor Lisa ​ ​ Helps, who offered her first-ever political endorsement to Furstenau back in January. ​ Nelson city Councillor Rik Logtenberg and Burnaby city Councillor Joe Keithley also ​ ​ ​ ​ endorsed Furstenau this week. ○ Furstenau also counts former federal Green Party leader Elizabeth May and ​ ​ environmentalist David Suzuki among her backers. ​ ​ .