In the course of my job, I’m regularly reminded of my mistakes, inadequacies and blind spots. I heed the advice without taking the criticism personally.I make mistakes. Not all my responses are adequate. I have blind spots.Recently a constituent let me know that he felt my actions during the labour disruption in the Saanich schools would not be...
In week four of the podcast Nick Gilchrist and Adam Olsen cover quite a bit of ground.They open the episode with a potential new theme song for the series and discuss a possible name other than just the current week. Listeners are encouraged to provide their ideas of possible names for the podcast. The labour disruption in School District #63 was...
Last December, a violent windstorm blew through Southern Vancouver Island and Gulf Islands. Power and communication lines lay strewn across the roads cutting off both services and leaving residents in the dark. At one point, 100% of the roads on the Southern Gulf Islands were closed and, in addition, ferries were cancelled, snarling...
Earlier this week, I delivered my second reading speech to the Climate Change Accountability Amendment Act (2019). In that speech, I highlighted the overwhelming scientific evidence that we are facing an immense challenge to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Preparing and defending our communities by renewing and reinforcing aging...
People have asked me how one person can represent such a large and diverse community? They ask how I know what my constituents want? With 50,000 people, all with their own opinions, needs, wants, wishes and desires, it’s a steep challenge for sure.The best way to keep the pulse of the community is to create as many connections as possible....
One of the more controversial actions of the provincial government in recent years is the attempt to protect caribou by shooting wolves from helicopters. We can all agree that many caribou herds in British Columbia are at a crisis level. Some herds have gone extinct, some are close to extinction and others are in...
Bill 38, the Climate Change Accountability Amendment Act (2019), strengthens the responsibility of the provincial government to take action on reducing emissions and addressing climate change. It is important that government is accountable because trust us is not good climate policy. The Bill establishes the...
With relief coming to Saanich families and educators as the doors of our public schools are open again and knowledge transfer resumes, I took the opportunity in Question Period to ask a couple of unresolved questions ahead of our deeper look at the future of our public education system in British Columbia. One of the...
Watching and following sports is a pressure release valve for the politics. However, as the pressure increased recently, my favourite hockey team the Toronto Maple Leafs have had a disappointing first 20 games. They are a lousy distraction right now. My first communications and public relations gig was in earliest days of the Victoria Salmon...
Episode Summary In Week 3, Nick Gilchrist and Adam Olsen discuss the past week in Saanich North and the Islands and British Columbia politics. The conversation covers a range of topics starting with the brand new opening music sequence that Nick created and that he really does not like. For the past three weeks the Saanich School district has...
The past three weeks have been incredibly challenging. I have heard hundreds of stories about all aspects of the state of public education in our local school district. Most recently, the message is crystal clear that families on the Saanich Peninsula are desperate. The cost of this languishing labour disruption on their budgets that are already...
This week I have been writing, talking and thinking a lot about schools: public education schools.Those aren’t the only schools I have focused on in my time as an MLA. The other is salmon schools. That’s the well that I’m drawing inspiration from today.There was a time in the 20th century when the provincial government invested in fisheries. We...
On Tuesday I posted about public education. Teachers across the province are still without a deal. Closer to home, the Saanich School district is locked horns with their support staff, represented by CUPE 441. In offices a little further south, in downtown Victoria, people in fancy outfits are having a staring contest. Who will blink first? This...
We had Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back on in the background of dinner the other evening. It’s not often that we have the television on during dinner but it's Ella’s introduction to Star Wars and she is very excited! Emily got to reminiscing and was telling us that before moving to Canada from New Zealand in 1990 she had only seen four movies...
Last week I posted about the day my son came to work with me. He is in grade 7 at Bayside Middle School and has spent a lot of time over the past two weeks sitting on the sidelines waiting for resolution to the labour dispute in the Saanich schools. I hear with crystal clarity how the disruption is deeply impacting families in my riding. Families...
Today I will mute my pen in honour of those who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we may enjoy the freedoms our former Prime Minister describes.“I am a Canadian, a free Canadian,free to speak without fear,free to worship in my own way,free to stand for what I think right,free to oppose what I believe wrong,or free to choose thosewho shall...
Week 2: 11/10/2019 Welcome back to The Public Circle Podcast. In this episode I return with my brother-in-law Nick Gilchrist to pick up our weekly discussion about life in British Columbia politics. I enjoy these conversations and I think we are finding a nice mix of information and entertainment. We start this episode by talking about the B.C....
Thinking back to my first campaign to be the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Saanich North and the Islands, it was a brief introduction to life on the Southern Gulf Islands. In the time between my first run and my second run my awareness grew. It's only after my election and two years as the provincial representative responsible for the...
(This column was originally published in The Province newspaper on November 5, 2019.) Opinion: For centuries governments tried to exterminate Indigenous peoples and their culture. This bill is designed to do the opposite. As the First Nations Leadership Council and provincial government come together for the annual First Nations Leaders Gathering...
One year before I was elected to the Central Saanich Council table in 2008, my sister Joni was elected to the Tsartlip Council table. She was the first in our family to be elected to a governance table. 12 years later, Joni's name is back on the Tsartlip ballot. It will be her seventh election. That's right: seven elections in 12 years. We elect...
In a recent podcast with my brother-in-law Nick Gilchrist, we discuss the process for bringing a Bill forward, the formal Legislative steps it goes through prior to adoption and the role of the opposition in the process.He asked me if the role of the opposition is to just simply oppose everything the government does?His question highlights an...
Fish farms have been a flashpoint issue in British Columbia for much of the past decade.There is a growing movement to get open-net operations off the west coast. It’s not just environmental activists and actors, the business community is also demanding action.As I have written before, as extensively as any subject on this blog, there is a hugely...
Last week, my son Silas spent a day shadowing me. He was available because the schools in our district are shuttered due to a labour dispute. Tuesday evening I made the executive decision that if he was not going to learn at school then I would broaden his experience by letting him see first hand what I do on a daily...
I suddenly stopped publishing new episodes of The Public Circle Podcast shortly after launching the "second season" in September. Producing this podcast takes some effort and as we started the Fall sitting of the Legislature my workload increased dramatically. Something had to give - it was the podcast. My brother-in-law Nick Gilchrist works in...
I have spent each morning last week on the picket line listening to members of CUPE 441 and Saanich teachers.In Question Period, I asked the Education Minister about the labour disruption in School District #63 and have subsequently written him a letter seeking further clarification with respect to his responses.There is a great deal of...
For my first two-minute Members Statement of the 2019 Fall session I celebrated the lives of three incredible constituents of Saanich North and the Islands. This year we have lost Vern Michell, Patrick Lane and Bill Foster. Each have made important contributions to our community and our province. It's certainly...