YOUR PERSPECTIVE: More announcements, no outcomes

This week, Premier David Eby and Minister Bowinn Ma announced investments to “help people and communities better prepare for, mitigate and understand disaster and climate risks.” As the MLA for Abbotsford South, representing a community that has experienced the impact of natural disasters, and as the Shadow Minister for Emergency Management and Climate Readiness, I am pleased to hear that the government is now finally doing something after years of advocacy by communities, stakeholders and the Official Opposition for more supports to manage climate risks.

I have sounded the alarm for awhile on this matter. Two years since their town was nearly completely destroyed, the people of Lytton are yet to return home. Farmers in the Sumas Prairie who had to make enormous sacrifices during and after the floods are still waiting for the promised help. While better than nothing, this announcement today hasn’t changed much. Our communities in B.C. face the same risks of a climate emergency as they did two years ago, and that is the reality. People and their livelihoods are still at risk of catastrophic damage for as long as this government resorts to announcements without comprehensive action.

This trend of flashy announcements to build false hope is a classic trick from this Premier’s playbook on files he is failing on. Housing, health care, mental health, addictions and crime have all seen a plethora of announcements from Eby. But his government’s policies and plans are leading to worsening outcomes every single day.

If the Premier truly cared about getting those affected by natural disasters the help they deserve, I would not be hearing from farmers who get speedy rejections and lengthy bureaucratic responses when they reach out to get the help they were promised. Instead, the Premier is using announcements and media opportunities to attack the Opposition and win partisan points by falsely accusing my colleagues in the opposition and me of not wanting immediate support for communities at risk of climate emergencies. It’s frankly insulting to all the people and communities that came together to come back stronger from events such as the fires in Lytton, or the Sumas Prairie floods, that while results and outcomes are nowhere to be seen, the Premier is using these moments for partisan politics.