By Lyonel Doherty
Liberal MLA Linda Larson says her government is making strides to eliminate the premiums people pay for medical services. But NDP challenger Colleen Ross says her party will eliminate it in the first term.
There was a lot of she said/she said in Wednesday’s all-candidates forum at Frank Venables Theatre.
For example, Ross, a farmer from Grand Forks, said the NDP would slide the minimum wage to $15 per hour, which is what she pays her own workers. Ross noted that she respects her workers enough to pay them a decent wage.
Larson said the Liberals have no plan to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour, but noted they will increase it from $10.85 to $11.35 per hour in September.
“I’m concerned about small businesses and how this ($15 per hour) will affect them,” Larson said.
On the issue of reducing red tape for small business, Larson said the Liberals have greatly reduced red tape in BC by 40 to 50 per cent (from what it was 10 years ago).
“BC has received international recognition for reducing red tape,” she stated.
But Ross said red tape is required to protect the public and the environment. She accused the Liberals of avoiding measures to protect the environment along the coast by entertaining pipelines. Ross pointed out that the Liberal government favours the Kinder Morgan pipeline project.
She then accused the Liberals of being investigated by the RCMP for lining its pockets with questionable donations.
But Larson fired back by saying the RCMP is investigating two individuals who raised money for both political parties.
“They’re not investigating the Liberals,” she stressed.
The issue of understaffed care homes was also raised at the forum.
Larson said the Liberals have pumped $15 million into increasing the number of hours for seniors care.
But Ross said these regulations (hourly mandates per senior) are not being enforced.
“The NDP will mandate that these care hours are enforced . . . it’s shameful (what is happening). I would not do this to my dad.”
Another question addressed the shortage of doctors and the temporary closures of the emergency room department at South Okanagan General Hospital.
Larson said doctors in Oliver work “incredible hours” at SOGH and there are times when there are not enough physicians to do the work.
She stated that, for the best possible care, it is better to close the emergency room for one night and have patients sent to other facilities for care. She noted that nobody in Oliver goes without treatment. “Everyone is taken care of within the appropriate time frame.”
Ross said the NDP will re-prioritize health care and properly fund hospitals. She suggested giving incentives for medical clinics to operate in communities by embracing nurse practitioners to take the pressure off doctors, who can start to focus on critical care.
Ross noted there have been pilot projects implementing this team-based approach, which has reduced wait times from five months to five weeks.
Dr. Alan Ruddiman, president of Doctors of BC, stood up and said that BC may be facing a huge health care crisis if more physicians aren’t trained in this province.
Ruddiman said BC is not training enough medical students here.
Education was another topic of debate.
Larson said the Liberal government has steadily increased funding, noting that per-student funding is $10,000 in BC.
But Ross said the real number is $7,200 per student, according to the BC Teachers’ Federation.
“We’re lagging behind the rest of the country . . . $1,000 less than the national average,” the candidate said.
Ross also questioned the Liberal government’s funding of private schools, saying it is growing by 45 per cent.
“The province should not be paying for private schools,” she stressed.
Local resident Larry Chalmers raised the concern about farmers impacting people’s health by burning in their orchards. He said farmers should be given enough money to chip their prunings or else face fines.
Larson acknowledged the concern and said the regional district has offered growers a chipping service for a cost.
Ross said other provinces have put moratoriums on burning in orchards. She suggested providing workshops for farmers on the benefits of chipping and mulching.
A question arose about the proposed national park, and Ross said she wholeheartedly supports it, citing the potential for 500-700 jobs created in the South Okanagan.
Larson said she is not opposed to looking at a national park for this area, adding that the Liberal government is doing exactly that.
“We are looking at ways to protect the environment and species at risk and the grasslands.”
But Ross pointed out that the Liberal’s map looks like a “patchwork quilt,” including two little parks and a nature conservancy which has “no teeth to protect it.”
Ross said they need Mount Kobau as part of the national park, which the Liberals have not included.
