The two candidates in the Cariboo-Chilcotin riding for this year’s provincial election were at an All Candidates Forum at the Ashcroft HUB on Oct. 10, which was attended by about two dozen people and watched online.
Lorne Doerkson (Conservative Party of B.C.) has served one term as MLA for Cariboo-Chilcotin, while Michael Moses (B.C. NDP) is in his first term as a councillor for the City of Williams Lake. Both are longtime residents of the region, with Doerkson living in the Wlliams Lake area and Moses splitting his time between that city and Skeetchestn.
The candidates answered questions from moderator Barbara Roden and from audience members on topics including health care, seniors’ issues, government spending, the opioid crisis, and more. Each candidate had five minutes for opening remarks and three minutes for closing remarks, plus two minutes to answer each question directed at them and one minute for a rebuttal. Most of the questions were directed at both candidates; a handful were specific to one candidate or the other.
Moses used his introductory remarks to note that his ties with Skeetchestn would enable him to represent both the southern and northern parts of a very large riding. He acknowledged that “times are tough” right now, but said that the B.C. NDP was creating new affordable housing, had hired more than 800 family doctors in the past year and created more training spaces for doctors, and connected 400,000 people with health care practitioners; lowered ICBC rates and decreased child care costs; and worked to tackle climate change.
Doerkson used his opening remarks to state that “health care in our region is in crisis” and cited recent closures of emergency departments throughout the area, as well as the pressure being put on the system by drug addiction and the mental health crisis. He noted challenges facing seniors and said that these needed to be addressed, and said that it was imperative to get the B.C. economy going again, in particular by addressing a permitting system which he said was standing in the way of business.
When asked about challenges facing rural communities, both candidates spoke of the need to improve rural connectivity and internet access. Moses said that the NDP was taking action to support the resource industry and work with communities to retain jobs, and noted that the B.C. NDP was building more housing and health care services in rural areas.
Doerkson cited the poor state of much rural infrastructure and the need for funding. He added that a regional solution needed to be found for dealing with farmland, that the health care needs of rural residents were not being served, and that transit between communities was a barrier for many, especially seniors.
When it comes to making communities more livable for seniors, Doerkson said that the B.C. Conservatives would provide 5,000 more long term care beds, create funding for seniors’ services, expand respite care options, and create more opportunities for people to age in place. Moses said his party would also create 5,000 more long term care beds, noted that the B.C. NDP had doubled the seniors’ supplement, and said that by allowing more density on residential lots, such as secondary suites, there were more opportunities for seniors to live longer with families.
On health care, Moses noted that the B.C. NDP added 128 places to the UBC medical school to help train doctors, and was building another facility in Surrey to help train the next generation of doctors. He also noted his party is working to reduce barriers for foreign-trained health care workers and bring them to B.C., and has a financial plan in place to encourage doctors to practice in rural B.C.
Doerkson said that it was imperative to train health care professionals in rural B.C., and that post-secondary institutions needed to be encouraged to make this a priority. He also noted the need for a better structure for the funding of hospitals, as rural residents currently pay up to 40 per cent of the capital costs while residents in the Lower Mainland pay nothing, and said that residents should not be paying more for anything in rural B.C.
On keeping people safe during another COVID pandemic, Doerkson said that people needed to take whatever precautions they felt were necessary, while Moses said that his party would listen to the advice of Dr. Bonnie Henry when it came to booster shots and masking, adding that it was necessary to protect seniors especially in any way that was scientifically proven.
A question directed at Moses asked about the B.C. NDP’s deficit spending and no plan as to when the budget would once again be balanced. He replied that the B.C. NDP was taking action to build an economy that works for everyone, which sometimes meant spending tax money to ensure residents get the services they need such as health care and long term care units. Allowed a rebuttal, Doerkson pointed to the B.C. NDP’s record deficits and said that spending in the province was out of control.
A question directed at Doerkson asked how the B.C. Conservatives would find the money for their ambitious road- and bridge-building plans, and when a costing of the party’s platform would be released. He said that there were more than 10,000 building permits needing approval in B.C., going back seven years, and that if even half of the permits sitting on the shelf were approved it would have a huge impact on the province’s GDP. Asked by an audience member how he would deal with this backlog, he said that if it meant hiring more people, “Let’s get them.”
This led into a question about building affordable housing in B.C, with Doerkson noting that homes are taking so long to build they’re becoming unaffordable. He reiterated that this would mean addressing the permitting process to speed that up, and also mentioned the proposed rebate — scheduled to come into place as early as 2026 under a B.C. Conservative government — that would give relief to renters and to those with a mortgage.
Moses agreed that housing in B.C. was too expensive, and said that real estate speculators and inflation were two of the causes. He said that the B.C. NDP had taken action against real estate speculators, and that the party was cutting through red tape and breaking down barriers to construction in order to create affordable housing.
A question for Moses asked what his party would do to address the province’s opioid crisis, which has increased during the seven years the B.C. NDP have been in power. He replied that they had opened more than 650 more treatment beds and were building more treatment facilities, adding that the Foundry centres that have been created have provided more help for youth.
Doerkson said that the B.C. Conservatives hoped to create local crisis response stabilization units to take the pressure off emergency rooms, adding that there must be more support for the province’s police officers in dealing with the issue.
The forum can be viewed in full at The Hub Online Network Facebook page.
General Voting Day is on Saturday, Oct. 19, with all voting locations open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. For a full list of all voting locations on Oct. 19, as well as information about voter ID and more, go to https://elections.bc.ca/.
