Monday, October 31, 2022

Victoria Viewpoints: Saturday-Monday, October 29-31, 2022




Our compilation of some of the stories of note from the day, reviewing the political developments from the Provincial scene for  Saturday-Monday,  October 29-31, 2022

Agreement towards Doctor care



BC Government and BCTF reach agreement



Globe and Mail



CBC



Vancouver Sun 



Victoria Times-Colonist 



Victoria News




Global


The Tyee                                                                   




Miscellaneous

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Ottawa Observations: Saturday-Monday, October 29-31



Our compilation of some of the stories of note from the day, reviewing the political developments from the Federal scene for  Saturday-Monday, October 29-31, 2022

Emergencies Act Inquiry






Ukraine/Russia War



CBC





Toronto/Vancouver Star



Toronto Sun


National Post





Global          



Miscellaneous            


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BC Government introduces new payment model for doctors

It's been a busy day of clearing some outstanding labour issues for the incoming Premier Designate David Eby.

Earlier today we noted of some progress on Education, that with an announcement of an agreement with the BCTF quickly followed by one for the health sector.

That as Health Minister Adrian Dix introduced some changes ahead towards how the province pays medical professionals, a new payment model that the government is hopeful will retain doctors, as well as to help reduce the backlog of patients seeking family physicians.

As part of today's announcement outgoing Premier John Horgan noted of the work taken on with the Doctors of BC to reach a solution to the long running issues towards compensation.

“We know how important family doctors are in B.C., Rising costs, pandemic-related pressures and staffing shortages required action for doctors on several fronts. Working with the Doctors of BC, I am pleased that we have come up with a new payment model that makes B.C. a province that attracts, retains and supports family doctors, and ensures they can focus on what matters most – providing care to patients when they need it.”

There are two elements to the announcement from this morning, the first an outline of the scope of the Master Agreement.



That was followed by some background towards the new Full service family doctor payment model that the province will put in place by February of 2023.



Health Minister Adrian Dix, spoke of commitment and takin action towards the health care system coming out of the agreement.

“In January, as our B.C. pandemic entered a new phase, we said it was time to renew, rebuild and strengthen our health-care system. And the actions we’ve been taking, including the new payment model, come from working so closely with Doctors of BC and BC Family Doctors to find solutions that strengthen our health-care system, that renew its essential function, and that build on our support for doctors and the patients who count on them. Today is about commitment, action, and collaboration, and all they make possible in our health-care system.”

The Doctors of BC have provided for this backgrounder for their membership.

The full press conference introducing. the new agreement can be reviewed below:




The Province's statement and links to more background on the agreement can be reviewed here.

More notes on health care in the Northwest can be explored through our archive page.


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Significant pay bump on the way for BC Teachers, if contract agreement is ratified

Public school teachers in Prince Rupert and across BC are on the
cusp of a new three year labour deal according to the BCTF

There seemingly be labour peace in the education sector for the next three years, with the BC Government and BCTF coming to terms on a deal that the teachers' union says will make for some significant pay gains for British Columbia teachers, taking them to the top of the national pay scale.


The BCTF advised its members today of the success at the bargaining table, breaking down the deal further through a social media thread that provides some key elements of the labour agreement.

Towards the salary advances, the BCTF notes By the end of the three-year agreement, new members’ annual salary will be approximately $6,000 to $8,500 per year higher than it is now. 

For those teachers at the top of their grids, the annual salary will be $10,000 to $13,500 more per year than it is now by the 3rd year. 

Something the BCTF notes will  see its members get close to, or even exceed, teachers in places like Calgary and Toronto. An element that the BCT notes is critical for recruitment and retention. 

So far the Ministry of Education has not issued any comment related to the weekend agreement, the BCTF is holding its ratification vote in mid November.

Should they offer up some background to the conversation, we'll add it to the story as it arrives.

***********************************Update******************************

The BC Government provided a short information  update on the agreement reached with the BCTF, noting how it fall sunder the Government's Shared Recovery mandate.

More notes from the Legislature can be explored here.

A wider overview of education in the Northwest can be found from our archive page.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.

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Joy Thorkelson interview for BC Labour Heritage Centre one of a number of features on Prince Rupert labour history now available for viewing

Former UFAWU President and Prince Rupert City Councillor
Joy Thorkelson is featured in two video presentations by
the BC Labour Heritage Centre


A short note on the UFAWU-Unifor Social media feed last week, offers up a lead for those with an interest in local history to pair of rather extensive interviews with Joy Thorkelson, the long serving union rep and former president of the union, as well as a former city councillor in Prince Rupert.

There are two,  hour long plus interviews  that make for the history trip into the city's past, you can review them from this link to the BC Labour Heritage Centre. 

The interviews for the project date back to 2019, and were conducted by Rod Mickleburgh and Donna Sacuta and they recount some pivotal moments in Prince Rupert labour history, along with some of the key moments from Ms. Thorkelson's time as City Councillor.

The first of the hours explores her arrival in Prince Rupert and some of the key moments on the waterfront in the early 70's through the 90's with the focus then shifting to what propelled her to City Council.

That portion of the interview takes us the the days of the Port Expansion and how Thorkelson felt that Council needed some representation from someone from the fishing sector to keep the discussion on the struggles there.

As that part of the first of the two sessions, Ms. Thorkelson observes how her focus while on council was to be the one who spoke for the working class and those at the lower end of the social spectrum who were being ignored and marginalized.

She also speaks of her advocacy in 2005 as housing was beginning to become a key issue for the community; with the costs increasing and stock declining. 

Some foreshadowing then, towards housing concerns that still resonate to this day.

The second hour returns to the state of the Fishery and some of the changes of corporate agendas and government oversight of the fishery of the past that led to where the industry is at today.

The interview with Joy Thorkelson is just one of a number of presentations to review as part of an evolving library of Prince Rupert  labour related video presentations to be added to their work in recent months.

Included in the listings, the. 1919 Prince Rupert General Strike, the organization work of Mary LaPlante and the reminiscences of the fishing industry by Arnie Nagy.


More notes on items of interest on the labour scene in Prince Rupert can be explored through our archive page.

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Fewer local news items for TV7 after recent departures

All's quiet around the TV7 newsroom in 
Prince Rupert following the departure of former
Bell Media North reporter Eddie Huband

If you're a follower of CFTK TV7 in the Northwest you probably have noticed a decline in the number of local features and interviews, particularly from the Prince Rupert outpost, that after a string of departures for the regional Bell Media broadcast outlet.

screen shot from CFTK TV

For the most part TV7 anchor Brandon Cassidy appears to be the news department at the moment, holding onto his newscast duties and for the most part doing voice overs on stock video footage from the North Coast and other locales.

screen shot from CFTK TV

The exodus from the Terrace station began in August, when news director Hannah Schmidt departed for new adventures in Ontario, currently as a reporter with CTV News and Bell Media in Kitchener.

Heading further east in the early fall was Zack Power, who now works the news beat with Global TV in Saint John New Brunswick.

screen shot from CFTK TV

The most recent departure came in the last few weeks, when Eddie Huband who joined the TV7 staff in May and worked out of the Atlin Terminal studios of Bell Media, covering Prince Rupert stories, took his leave for anchoring duties at CKPG in Prince George.

For those with a satellite TV package, if you look through your listings you may be able to find their work on live feeds from each community, or through the websites for each TV station noted in red above.

As for the local news beat, so far there's no indication from Bell Media North in Terrace as to when they may be back up to full staffing for their positions and once again able to provide a bit more in depth coverage to the items of note from the Prince Rupert area.

At the moment their Career page is still seeking a News Director and  Video Journalist for the Terrace station.

For more items of interest from the local media scene see our archive page here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.

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CN Waterfront Station project work is moving along

 

The City's remaking of the old CN Waterfront Station into the new home for the Wheelhouse Brewing Company continues on with its steady construction pace.

We took advantage of a sunny day last week to check out the site, which proved to have a busy pace of work on the inside as workers take to their tasks after the gutting of the interior.

The Waterfront station project didn't make the list this time around for Operations Director Richard Pucci's Major project update this month.


However, the project was one of the items of note from the recent Farewell to Council by outgoing Councillor Blair Mirau who observed of the waterfront projects which will create waterfront amenities for the Community.

Originally the timeline for the project was marked for a fall move for the Wheelhouse, that move in date has since been extended to sometime early in 2023.

You can review some of the past history to the project through our Waterfront Project Archive page.


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Saturday, October 29, 2022

MLA's Week: October 24-27, 2022



British Columbians will have a new Premier by mid November, with the BC NDP Government having set November 18th for the transfer of Power from John Horgan to David Eby. 

The seemingly lengthy transfer process getting another nudge this week when the Lieutenant Governor asked Mr. Eby to form the next government following the soon to come departure of John Horgan.


When he does take office the new Premier is going to find the Opposition ready to take him on with little in the way of a honeymoon period to enjoy.  

The BC Liberals and Green Party members warming up this week with a range of topics making for the narrative to come for the new Premier.  

The focus this week in the Legislature included opposition concerns towards Health Care to Housing and Crime 

The listings for the Northwest contingent featured participation from all three Northwest MLA's, with the Minister of Municipal Affairs and the Skeena MLA all part of the Legislature broadcasts as the week moved forward.

As for more on the recent week of work from the House, the four days unfolded as follows:

*************************************************************************




On the week, Ms Rice was mentioned twice  in the record for the week in the  Legislature from October 24-27.

Housing was the focus of some early discussion on Monday, with Ms. Rice speaking in support of government measures on rent control and also sharing some notes in the Legislature on some housing success in the Prince Rupert area.


The North Coast MLA also provided her support towards the Provincial Government's new legislation of the Health Professions Act, that as part of debate on Wednesday.


Ms. Rice also spoke to a local Haida Gwaii issue through Social media this week, noting of some success when it comes to the addition of air service for the Masset region  



The North Coast MLA is also a member of the Following committees:




Ms. Rice serves as the Government's Parliamentary Secretary for Emergency Preparedness

The North Coast MLA also addressed a range of themes through her Social Media Stream.

*****************************************************************************




For our readers from the Terrace-Kitimat region, Skeena MLA Ellis Ross  was mentioned twice in the record for the week in the Legislature from October 24-27.

The Skeena MLA paid tribute to the work of the Kitimat Community Foundation during the Monday statements portion of the session, noting of their work and the success of the annual Aluminum City Telethon.


Mr. Ross also joined in on the  Tuesday debate on the Health Professionals Act, focusing some of his discussion of the health service the concerns of constituents in Skeena, as well as to how the BC NDP government consulted with First Nations towards the legislation

The MLA's Social media feed also notes of some of his work over the last week towards expanding BC's presence in the energy sector, with Mr. Ross meeting with German officials as well as appearing in a number of interviews towards the topic.

The Skeena MLA also used his social media platform to comment on the recent arson incident in the Smithers area, expressing his concern over the lack of consequences from previous incidents in other areas of the Northwest.

Mr. Ross serves as the Liberal critic on LNG and Energy

The Skeena MLA is also a member of the Following committees:



The Skeena MLA also addressed a range of themes  featured as part of the MLA's social media work.


*****************************************************************************




For our readers from the Bulkley Valley area, Stikine MLA Nathan Cullen  was  mentioned twice  in the record for the week in the  Legislature from October 24-27.

The Stikine MLA also had comments of support for the Government's Health Protections Act, making for the third participant from the Northwest in the Tuesday debate on the topic.

Thursday, Mr. Cullen provided an update on the province's efforts and support towards Ukrainian Refugees as they begin to make their new lives in communities across the province.


As Mr. Ross, did, the Stikine MLA also used his Social media feed this week to comment and express concern over the recent incident of arson in Smithers.



Mr. Cullen serves as the Government's Minister of Municipal Affairs

The Stikine MLA also had comments on a range of themes through his Social Media stream this week

*****************************************************************************

There is more background on all three Regional MLA's available from our MLA's Week Archive,  as well as our constituency archives below. 






MLA's return to the Legislature on Monday, October 31.

MLA's also participate in a number of Committee sessions scheduled through the week.

A larger overview of provincial issues can be found on our Political portal D'Arcy McGee 




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Friday, October 28, 2022

Victoria Viewpoints: Thursday-Friday, October 27-28, 2022




Our compilation of some of the stories of note from the day, reviewing the political developments from the Provincial scene for  Thursday-Friday,   October 27-28, 2022



Globe and Mail


CBC




Vancouver Sun 



Victoria Times-Colonist 




Victoria News



Global




The Tyee                                                                   

Miscellaneous

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