BC Greens say they will not support Bill 15, which could put NDP government on the ropes

A bill meant to get the ball rolling on new schools and new hospitals in the province will not get the support of the Green Party — and this could have far-reaching implications beyond just delaying the building of infrastructure.

Bill 15 — introduced last week — would put too much power in the NDP government’s hands, says Jeremy Valeriote, interim BC Greens Leader and MLA for West Vancouver Sea to Sky.

“Bill 15, in its current form, grants the NDP cabinet sweeping powers to bypass environmental assessment, municipal authorities, and the jurisdiction of First Nations under the guise of fast-tracking major infrastructure projects,” Valeriote said. “We agree that hospitals, schools, and public infrastructure need to be expedited, and that unnecessary red tape must be removed to get these projects built.

“However, our concern lies with the bill’s provisions allowing the province to approve any project it deems ‘provincially-significant,’ a term that remains undefined and vague.”

Valeriote tells 1130 NewsRadio that, given the legislative session will end at the end of May, there won’t be much time to refine the bill.

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“It will go into committee stage, where maybe we can make some changes, but we’re not confident of that given the amount of time we have left,” he said.

“And so with previous bills, we’ve been able to work with them to make some changes, get some assurances. This one, I don’t know if there’s time, and they haven’t indicated that they’re willing to do that.”

This opposition comes despite a four-year supply-and-confidence agreement between the BC Green Party and the governing NDP.

Infrastructure Minister Bowinn Ma insists the province will benefit from expedited projects.

“This legislation is part of work underway across government to deliver projects faster, reduce overall permitting times, and strengthen B.C.’s economy through uncertain times,” she said.

“At every step of the way, we are committed to working collaboratively with partners and to ensuring projects uphold B.C.’s world-class environmental standards and consultation with First Nations. These new tools will allow us to advance critically important projects in a more timely way, such as when construction of a new school is delayed by over a year due to an outstanding permit,” she explained.

Without the Green Party’s support, and with this being considered a bill of confidence, the governing NDP will be pressured to gather as many votes as possible and may require the House Speaker to be the tie-breaker. Failure to get enough votes would topple the government, meaning another provincial election would need to be called.

Indigenous leaders voice opposition

Indigenous leaders in B.C. also spoke out about the legislation shortly after its introduction, conveying their “grave concerns.”

In a statement, the First Nations Leadership Council says Bill 15 signals a potential “backsliding on reconciliation efforts” by the province.

Tara Marsden, Wilp sustainability director for the Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs, says the government is attempting to make lawlessness legal.

“By ducking scientific assessment, public oversight, and Indigenous consent processes, B.C. is following in the footsteps of the United States, not addressing their threats and actions head on with legally, scientifically, and morally sound laws and actions,” said Marsden.

Janelle Lapointe, senior advisor at the David Suzuki Foundation and member of Stellat’en First Nation, says it shows how quickly governments are willing to sideline commitments for corporate interests.

“The province would be giving cover to projects that would never withstand public scrutiny, stripping away environmental assessments and sidelining Indigenous jurisdiction over our lands and waters. Now more than ever, we need climate justice and Indigenous sovereignty to be at the heart of every decision. There is no path to a just, livable future that bypasses free, prior, and informed consent,” said Lapointe.

Kai Nagata, communications director at Dogwood, says Eby would be addressing the threats from the U.S. administration by acting just like U.S. President Donald Trump.

“Imitating the president’s anti-democratic tendencies is not the solution. It is particularly disappointing to see the province once again sideline Indigenous communities in decisions about their lands and rights, undermining B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act,” said Nagata.

—With files from Charles Brockman