Leader David Eby sat with candidates from all the ridings yesterday at Beban Park as he outlined their priorities including housing, healthcare, affordability, and education but he says there is still much more they can do if re-elected.
Eby says island residents are focused on healthcare, and even though it won’t be cheap his government will expand on work they’ve done in the past.
“If we gain the confidence of British Columbians, and return to government, we will begin right away and build a new patient tower at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital,” Eby says. “We will begin right away to build the business plan with doctors and nurses to build the project.
Local efforts going into building the project, and existing projects, play a huge role in making sure a potential NDP government can transition the work easier, and Eby says fundraising and advocacy at the municipal level will play a key part in fast-tracking construction.
“It really matters to have a local community that is prioritizing this project and stepping up to partner on it,” he says. “It’s definitely a factor in making these decisions.
Eby says in addition to improving healthcare, he will make sure support is in place for those who need support for mental health and addictions across the province.
According to an earlier media release, the government said they will convert several correctional facilities into treatment centres for those needing care, and Eby says he will commit to installing them in record time.
“We’re hopeful to have the Maple Ridge facility up in six months, and for Surrey pre-trial centre work is already underway,” he says. “There’s space already in the pre-trial facility, we just need to hire the staff to deliver the care.”
When the BC Conservatives and United party merged Eby says he expected it to happen, but he was surprised to see the outcome and that won’t change his party’s platform.
“It was a surprise to see it unify around the far right,” he says. “This makes the stakes that much higher for people on the island.
“It really makes the mark on the ballot that much more important, and a significant election for people on the island.”
He adds the union of the two parties hasn’t changed his views and this is also true when it comes to the BC Greens.
“There’s lots we agree with the Green Party on, but there are some areas of difference between us,” Eby says. “Anyone who cares about the environment doesn’t want to go back to where we’re clear-cutting old growth, doesn’t want to back to a world where we fire carbon pollution in the air without concern.
“Then I think people have to think very carefully about how they mark the ballot in October.”
According to 338 Canada’s projections of the provincial election, the BC Conservatives and NDP are still deadlocked to form government, with the NDP having a 47 per cent chance of forming a majority and the BC Conservatives having a 45 per cent chance.
