File photo (image credit - CFJC Today)

By Michael Reeve

CABINET SHUFFLE

‘Status quo cabinet’; Stone doesn’t believe new cabinet will improve life in B.C.

Dec 8, 2022 | 4:20 PM

KAMLOOPS — On Wednesday (Dec. 7) morning, David Eby announced his first cabinet as premier of British Columbia. The new cabinet sees 29 NDP MLAs receive a ministerial post, with 18 more receiving minister of state or other smaller roles in cabinet.

The new NDP cabinet is larger than their previous by two newly-created ministries, making it the largest B.C. cabinet in decades. Kamloops South-Thompson MLA and Opposition House Leader Todd Stone is struggling to see how it will help British Columbians.

“Bottom line is this is a status quo cabinet. It’s hard to see in the faces around the cabinet table how this government is going to do any better in tackling the challenges that British Columbians face when it comes to crime, health care and housing affordability in particular,” said Stone.

One of the biggest surprises to Stone was Minister Adrian Dix retaining his post in health.

1000 Ways to Heal

1000 Ways to Heal: Moons

Dec 10, 2024

Question of the Week

Should Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson apologize or resign after it was found he breached a section of council's code of conduct for allowing false or misleading information to be communicated?

Dec 09, 2024

One Man's Opinion

COLLINS: Donald has it wrong - again

Dec 08, 2024

“The person who has been at the helm of health care for the past five years is Adrian Dix. And I think that British Columbians are going to be shocked that David Eby, when given the opportunity to put a new face, a new person on this health ministry challenge, that the premier decided to double down on Adrian Dix,” stated Stone.

Recently, the NDP government reversed course on changing the model for autism funding. The minister responsible for the proposed change and then the reversal is Mitzi Dean, who will remain in her post.

“Parents will be forgiven for the fact that they do not trust Mitzi Dean up to this point and it’s hard to imagine how they will trust her and the government moving forward considering that she is still in charge of this very important file,” said Stone.

While the Liberals feel Dean should have been replaced, Kamloops mom Bonnie McBride has been advocating for better funding for other neurodiverse children, and feels replacing Dean would be a step backward.

“A lot of that work, if we are going to put it into place quite quickly, we are going to need to work with the players that have already been at the table. It is nice to see the same group of people moving forward in the work that has already been done, because we are going to have to pivot to make some changes to make sure children and families that are in crisis right now receive services,” said McBride.

The other big surprise from Wednesday’s announcement was the appointment of a new finance minister in Katrine Conroy, who moves from forestry

“We are all perplexed that Eby would select as his finance minister Katrine Conroy, she is a very nice person, very capable in many, many ways. But, when you look at her professional experience, her expertise, there is nothing there that would suggest that it would be a good fit to be the person responsible for a $70-billion provincial government,” said Stone.