A year ago, NDP leader John HorganB次元官网网址檚 government was facing a long truck convoy of out-of-work loggers in downtown Vancouver and farmers protesting on the B.C. legislature steps in Victoria.
One of the issues was the provinceB次元官网网址檚 move to cancel a $25 million B次元官网网址渞ural dividendB次元官网网址� fund, shelving community applications to diversify local economies that have lost forest and other industrial employment. The money went toward retraining and other relief for the four latest victims of rural mill closures, Quesnel, Fort St. James, Vavenby and Chasm.
That kind of cost restraint goes out the window with the B.C. NDPB次元官网网址檚 pandemic election plan, which features a $3 billion-per-year B次元官网网址渞ecovery investment fundB次元官网网址� to add to the governmentB次元官网网址檚 $23 billion capital works budget for schools, roads, hospitals and other infrastructure.
The , the first to be released in full for the surprise Oct. 24 election, also adds another $400 million program to B次元官网网址渞evitalize community infrastructure,B次元官网网址� likely based on applications from municipalities like the late, lamented rural dividend.
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The big news on forest policy is a vow to B次元官网网址渄edicate a specific portion of the annual allowable cut towards higher value producers who can demonstrate their ability to create new jobs.B次元官网网址� That is a step beyond additional fees and wood salvage regulations that the NDP government has imposed on an industry with widespread shutdowns in recent years.
The NDP platform promises only to continue B次元官网网址渟ignificant investmentsB次元官网网址� in tree planting, wildfire protection and silviculture. Other industries get more vague support.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檒l create a Mining Innovation Hub to identify and support innovation, offering training for workers in new technologies, regulatory excellence, environmental management and low-carbon approaches,B次元官网网址� the party says.
Agriculture gets a similar mention, with a promise of a new B次元官网网址渞egenerative agriculture networkB次元官网网址� to merge traditional farming with technologies B次元官网网址渟uch as robotics, precision farming, and mesh networks.B次元官网网址�
tfletcher@blackpress.ca
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