Legislative session focused on building a stronger British Columbia for all

During the spring 2022 legislative session, Premier John Horgan and the Government of British Columbia continued to deliver on their commitments to put people first and build a stronger province for everyone.

“The challenges British Columbians face today reinforce that we are at our best when we take care of each other,” said Premier Horgan. “Instead of tax cuts for those at the top and deep cuts in services, our government is choosing to put people first. We will continue to work to reduce costs for families, build a cleaner future and build a stronger economy that benefits everyone.

The government passed 22 pieces of legislation aimed at improving lives across British Columbia and supporting people in difficult times.

A new law has taken steps to protect people in an overheated housing market by allowing the creation of a homebuyer protection period. This would give homebuyers more time to review their offers, secure financing and get a home inspection, instead of feeling pressured to waive those terms.

Working with Indigenous peoples, the government released the historic Declaration Act Action Plan, which outlines specific actions to create a better province for Indigenous peoples in British Columbia. The government has also taken new steps to dismantle systemic racism and discrimination faced by Indigenous people, black people and people of color, with new anti-racism data legislation.

New changes to make collective bargaining more accessible will help protect workers who want more say in workplace safety, compensation and benefits. A new one-step certification process will allow workers to join a union when a clear majority of employees say they want to, and will help protect them from interference or intimidation.

A new oil and gas royalty system was introduced, putting the interests of British Columbians first and eliminating the largest fossil fuel subsidy in British Columbia. In addition to eliminating other outdated and ineffective subsidies, these changes will give British Columbians a fair return and allow the government to invest more in their priorities, such as improving services, reducing costs and fighting against carbon pollution. In addition, the expanded low-carbon fuel standard will accelerate the use of cleaner, made-in-BC fuels and reduce pollution equivalent to taking more than 700,000 vehicles off the road.

Introducing Budget 2022 helps build a stronger British Columbia for all by investing in:

• saving parents money on child care, halving fees for many families on the $10-a-day path, and building on the fastest space creation in the history of British Columbia;
• accelerating record investment in building affordable housing for people, resulting in the building or building of 32,000 homes under a 10-year plan;
• deliver a record number of surgeries and reduce wait times for hip and knee replacement surgeries to the shortest in Canada, after being among the longest in Canada prior to 2017;
• build 17 new or expanded hospitals, advance new cancer care centers and provide new training seats for nurses to help add to the 30,000 healthcare workers hired since the start of the pandemic;
• building more resilient infrastructure, with landmark projects including the Broadway Subway, Pattullo Bridge and Highway 1 via Kicking Horse Canyon underway, with other projects in the planning stages including the Surrey-Langley Skytrain ;
• protecting people and communities from climate-related disasters, including transitioning BC Wildfire Services to a year-round proactive model and strengthening BC’s defenses through climate preparedness and new support for local governments;
• a plan to connect everyone in British Columbia to high-speed internet by 2027, building on the connection of more than 500 remote, rural and Indigenous communities; and
• grow an inclusive and clean economy with the Stronger BC Economic Plan, which will close the skills gap, grow BC’s life sciences, manufacturing and agriculture sectors, and build an economy that works for more of people.