Archive
Does BC need a UK-style Minister of Loneliness?
Mar 28, 2018
A British Cabinet Minister, Tracey Crouch, has been given the task of coming up with a national strategy to combat an epidemic of loneliness in the UK. Loneliness is a health problem around the world, and British Columbia is no exception. Social isolation is increasing here and across our country. SFU’s Director of Gerontology, Andrew Wister, notes… View Article
Poverty interventions are health interventions: Three considerations
Mar 23, 2018
An irrefutable evidence base demonstrates that socioeconomic conditions—in particular poverty and inequality—impact health. In health care we call these conditions ‘social determinants of health’ (SDOH)—a term that describes the downstream health impacts of multiple forms of systemic inequity. In the context of a society, culture and health system that focus on the individual, it is… View Article
Comprehensive action on surgical waiting times is good news for BC
Mar 22, 2018
The case for bold, evidence-based action on surgical waiting times—especially for hip and knee replacements that are among the longest in the country—is clear. That is why the BC government’s move to take decisive action to reduce surgical waiting times throughout the province is very good news for all British Columbians. Data reported by the… View Article
In defence of BC’s new “speculation” tax
Mar 22, 2018
Among the housing measures announced in BC Budget 2018, the new speculation tax has caused the most uproar. Some of this stems from a lack of clarity on how the tax will be applied. Details are being worked out by the Ministry of Finance and in their absence there’s been some confusion and alarm. The… View Article
Do you want a more transparent, accountable government? Tell them so!
Mar 19, 2018
The story goes that Franklin Delano Roosevelt once met with a group of activists who wanted bold action. He listened and then said, “You’ve convinced me. Now go out and make me do it.” BC’s new government is holding a consultation on updating our Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy legislation. On the basis… View Article
A missed opportunity to help people with disabilities: BC Budget 2018
Mar 15, 2018
I approached BC’s February budget full of hope. It was the first full budget by an NDP government in 17 years and had been hyped as a spending budget. As a disabled woman and disability advocate, I was encouraged to see an image including someone in a wheelchair on the cover of the budget document…. View Article
Technology is changing how we work. How this affects workers is up to us.
Mar 8, 2018
While many workers of my parents’ generation expected to spend their entire careers in a permanent full-time job with one or two employers, young workers today increasingly face project-based or limited-term employment options. In fact, the very structure of what a job looks like is changing as technology unbundles traditional occupations into smaller tasks that can… View Article
Relax. Employer health taxes haven’t sunk businesses in other provinces
Mar 8, 2018
The cries of concern from some are startling, but BC is only catching up to the rest of the country by eliminating the Medical Services Plan and replacing it with the new Employer Health Tax. In last month’s budget, the provincial government confirmed it will scrap Medical Services Plan (MSP) premiums in 2020 and partly… View Article
Seven ways to grow BC’s co-op sector
Mar 6, 2018
On May 17, 2017, some 36 representatives from British Columbia’s co-operative (or ‘co-op’) sector met to share ideas about how to grow the sector, to better understand challenges that co-ops are facing, and to explore next steps—both in terms of what the sector can accomplish itself, as well as what government support will be needed… View Article
Mobility pricing: An idea whose time has come?
Mar 1, 2018
Metro Vancouver is at a critical point where congestion-induced delays are the norm on the region’s roads and bridges. Congestion problems will only steadily worsen because of our growing population and with every additional car added to the region’s roads. Expansion of public transit is widely seen as essential to ensure accessible mobility, but progress… View Article
Everything you wanted to know about the housing taxes and expenditures in BC Budget 2018
Feb 28, 2018
BC Budget 2018 was billed to have major investments in housing, and did not disappoint. Indeed, the surprise of the Budget was just how far the BC government went on the demand side through new tax measures to make the property tax system much more progressive, and to discourage out-of-province investors from parking capital in… View Article
Western Canada needs real climate action, not disingenuous arguments
Feb 26, 2018
In Western Canada’s slow lurch towards sane climate and energy policy, two prominent arguments have been advanced for the continuation of business-as-usual for the fossil fuel industry in BC and Alberta. Both are interesting because they invoke the need for climate action to justify the further growth of fossil fuel production. The first argument comes… View Article
Fresh from the lockup: Highlights of BC’s action-packed budget 2018
Feb 20, 2018
BC Budget 2018 includes major new investments in child care, housing and infrastructure combined with significant improvements in tax fairness. This budget—the new provincial government’s first full budget—is a turning point. For too long, BC budgets have prioritized tax cuts and balancing the books over all else—preferring to sweep social, economic and environmental problems under… View Article
The Fraser Institute is warning that BC must stop social investment before it even starts
Feb 15, 2018
In a “bulletin” released yesterday, the Fraser Institute points out that public investment in BC has been extremely low since 2001, with real per capita program spending growth of only 0.9% annually—the lowest in the country. On this much, we agree. But the Fraser Institute’s odd conclusion is that, because public investment has been low… View Article
T’Sou-ke First Nation: Building a network of clean energy systems
Feb 14, 2018
A First Nation cannot survive without a healthy environment. If we take care of the environment, the environment will take care of us. Offsetting fossil fuels or the destruction of [the] planet in any way is something that all First Nations can grasp because we have a deep connection to the land, the animals, and… View Article
Raising the minimum wage is good for public health
Feb 5, 2018
Soon we expect the Fair Wages Commission to advise the BC government on a path towards a $15 minimum wage and a plan for regular increases. This will be very good news for our province. Increasing the minimum wage is an important step in reducing poverty and income inequalities that cause poor health. In charting… View Article
BC needs bold, transformative change. Will Budget 2018 bring it?
Feb 1, 2018
BC is a beautiful place to call home—and an extraordinarily wealthy one. Yet, despite this wealth, our province is facing crises of affordability, inequality, poverty and environmental degradation. Next month’s provincial Budget is an opportunity to face up to and truly tackle these crises—something that would require the new BC government to think big and… View Article
As UK Auditor disparages P3s, BC continues to use them
Jan 25, 2018
The public private partnership (P3) model to provide public infrastructure and services is an expensive mess, and new international evidence confirms this. The question now becomes, when is that mess going to wash up on BC’s shore? Despite increasing evidence that P3s are a bad idea, BC’s government is going ahead with this flawed procurement model,… View Article
It’s time for forestry to benefit British Columbians not multinational companies
Jan 22, 2018
There was a time when securing a good-paying forestry job in British Columbia was not just an option but an expectation for many. This was a time when the provincial government took an active role in managing our public forests and overseeing the activities of private companies whose workers cut trees, milled wood and made… View Article
Site C’s economic justifications unconvincing: It’s time we made decisions differently
Jan 16, 2018
There is no question that the new BC government’s decision to proceed with the Site C dam was a very difficult one. The previous government left them with a poison pill. With $2 billion already spent, the Horgan government faced a no-win choice, with substantial political and economic costs for either terminating or proceeding with… View Article