The B.C. government says it will use the province's post-Olympics momentum to drive changes that include offering tax breaks to families with children, reforming education and lobbying Ottawa to amend "Byzantine bureaucratic practices."
Lt.-Gov. Steven Point outlined the B.C. Liberal government's political agenda in a throne speech Tuesday that marked a three-day opening of the legislature.
"We must choose a new path that meets the tests of today and shapes a future where our grandchildren will live with the knowledge that we did all we could for them," Point said.
B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell said the throne speech sees the government using the Olympics to embrace economic, environmental and social success over the next 20 years.
"What we're saying here is we will use this Olympic opportunity to really set a course of action for use that encourages a change in our economy, that encourages us to improve the environment," he said.
Opposition New Democrat Leader Carole James said the government offered little hope for British Columbians struggling through tough economic times.
"I did expect that the government would at least acknowledge the challenging economic times people are facing in this province," she said. "I saw a government that didn't have any ideas to deal with things post Olympics."
The B.C. legislature will sit until Thursday before adjourning for a three-week Olympic break, returning next month for the March 2 tabling of the budget, forecast to include a deficit of $1.7 billion.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper will become the first Canadian prime minister to deliver a speech in the B.C. legislature.
Point said the B.C. Liberals will introduce a new Family and Children Property Tax Deferral Option that allows families with children under 18 years to defer paying their property taxes.
He said the family plan will be similar to the current government plan that allows seniors and others facing financial hardship to defer their property taxes.
British Columbia also aims to modernize the province's education system by introducing new forms of schooling that include greater choice and diversity for students and administrative approaches that result in more money being spent on students than bureaucracy.
"New emphasis will be placed on parental involvement and on tailoring our education system to each child's individual needs, interests and passions," he said.
The B.C. Teachers' Federation said the throne speech reveals the government remains in denial about what it believes is an education funding crisis across the province.
Federation spokeswoman Susan Lambert said in a statement that a recent report for school district superintendents concluded the system needs an extra $300 million to maintain current levels.
Point said the government will work with local governments to develop neighbourhood learning centres to develop and use education facilities that are managed seven days a week.
The success of the Canada Line, which connects downtown Vancouver to the airport, has reinforced the government's commitment to public transit, including the construction of the Evergreen Line to extend the rapid transit system into the suburbs east of Vancouver, Point said.
He said new accountability and transparency will be brought to BC Ferries and that BC Rail will be wound down as a Crown corporation - seven years after its assets were sold to CN Rail.
Spurred by the recent Supreme Court of Canada ruling approving the Red Chris mine project in British Columbia, the government will lobby Ottawa and other provincial governments to develop a joint national project approval process, Point said.
"The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act must be amended to create a unified federal-provincial review process that does away with redundancy and unnecessary costs," Point said, referring to the need to reform federal practices.
"Byzantine bureaucratic practices have no place in the 21st Century."
He said the B.C. government will not permit mining, oil and gas development and coalbed gas extraction in the Flathead Valley, an area bordering on a world-designated heritage zone in the neighbouring United States.
Point said the government will forge a partnership with Montana to sustain the environmental values in the Flathead River Basin consistent with current forestry, recreation, guide outfitting and trapping uses.
The Olympic Games offers British Columbia and Canada a golden opportunity to reach new heights, he said.
