BC United party leader Kevin Falcon chose the growing community of Chilliwack to pitch his plan to fix the problems plaguing B.C.

About one year out before the next provincial election, Falcon breezed into Smoking Gun, a downtown coffee shop in Chilliwack on Tuesday (Oct. 24) to share his vision for the newly renamed BC United party.

B次元官网网址淚 think weB次元官网网址檙e at a time in history when thereB次元官网网址檚 a lot of division in politics right now, across North America and around the world. So uniting people together with a common purpose to try to fix things is something I think a lot of people can get behind,B次元官网网址� Falcon said in an interview with The Chilliwack Progress.

From health care, crime, and drug policy, to BC Ferries, transportation and infrastructure, a lot of things B次元官网网址渁re brokenB次元官网网址� right now, he said, B次元官网网址渁nd need fixing.B次元官网网址�

He points to the effort by the NDP to decriminalize small amounts of hard drugs as a B次元官网网址渇ailure.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淗onestly, it was like throwing fuel on an already raging bonfire and made things so much worse,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚 think if we get back to providing proper treatment for folks struggling with addiction, and make sure we fund it so that they get the care they need and deserve, and we will start to get different results than what weB次元官网网址檙e seeing on the streets today.B次元官网网址�

It ended up being a B次元官网网址渞ecklessB次元官网网址� mistake since it was rolled out without having B次元官网网址渢he proper guardrailsB次元官网网址� in place first.

So how will he tackle the thorny issue of housing?

B次元官网网址淲ell, first of all, we have to recognize that the NDP government made a fatal decision, misdiagnosing the problem,B次元官网网址� Falcon said. B次元官网网址淭hey said that the problem was greedy developers and Chinese foreign buyers and they just completely missed the fact that lack of supply was also contributing massively to the problem we face.

B次元官网网址淪o what they did was they added a whole blizzard of taxes to housing, and yet if youB次元官网网址榬e adding more to the cost of housing, it doesnB次元官网网址檛 make it more affordable. And not surprisingly, seven years later, weB次元官网网址檝e ended up with the most unaffordable housing in North America and the highest rents in all of Canada.B次元官网网址�

He points to the pivotal issue of supply.

B次元官网网址淲e have to make sure we get more supply into the marketplace. The people that can best deliver that supply are the private sector and the not-for-profit sector, but theyB次元官网网址檝e got to be properly incentivized, and working with local governments.B次元官网网址�

Falcon ticked off health-care concerns: one in five canB次元官网网址檛 get a family doctor; a million people waiting to see a specialist; and the government is sending cancer patients down south for treatment.

Attracting more trained physicians, and international medical graduates to come to B.C. as well as convincing the kids who B次元官网网址渟tudied abroadB次元官网网址� to come backB次元官网网址� to practise medicine here would help.

B次元官网网址淎nd IB次元官网网址檓 going to make sure we take a chainsaw to the stupid rules and regulations that have built up over 100 years so we can get them in, and helping people,B次元官网网址� he vowed.

BC United would expand and invest in infrastructure B次元官网网址渨hether itB次元官网网址檚 hospitals, and weB次元官网网址檝e got a record of building 14 hospitals while the former government, whether itB次元官网网址檚 highways and roads, or the 10-lane Port Mann Bridge.

B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 why we want to expand Highway 1 right through six lanes, right through to Chilliwack. WeB次元官网网址檝e got to get on with these things though,B次元官网网址� Falcon said. B次元官网网址淚t canB次元官网网址檛 just be about making promises and announcements, and re-announcements.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 got to be about actually getting things built and done.B次元官网网址�

It was no accident the leader of the Opposition was visiting Chilliwack this week with a press stop, and visits with business and agriculture leaders. ChilliwackB次元官网网址檚 two provincial ridings voted NDP in the last election, sweeping out the BC Liberal stronghold that had prevailed in an orange wave. So party officials are paying close attention.

B次元官网网址淚 think Chilliwack is a really important area for us because itB次元官网网址檚 one of the fastest-growing communities in the country,B次元官网网址� Falcon stated.

B次元官网网址淵ouB次元官网网址檝e got a lot of folks moving out of urban British Columbia that are moving to Chilliwack because thereB次元官网网址檚 more affordability, you know, although thatB次元官网网址檚 getting really tough now too and theyB次元官网网址檙e facing all the challenges of a fast growing community, lack of transit, frankly, the difficulty of just getting around in the community.B次元官网网址�

Falcon was expected to name some new BC United candidates on Oct. 25, the day after he was interviewed about his future vision for B.C.

B次元官网网址淲e only changed our names six months ago, but I feel very, very confident by the time we come up to the next election, theyB次元官网网址檙e going to look at the calibre of our candidates, the quality of our platform, and theyB次元官网网址檙e going to vote for the people that actually know how to get things done.B次元官网网址�

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