The Tri-Cities have two voices in the new provincial cabinet.
Today (Tuesday), during Premier John Horgan's swearing-in ceremony, Port Coquitlam NDP MLA Mike Farnworth was named the province's new minister of public safety and solicitor general — a portfolio that oversees emergency management (including wildfires) and marijuana legislation implementation, among other things.
The veteran politician is also the government house leader, a key position for the Green-backed NDP as it narrowly controls the legislature.
Coquitlam-Maillardville NDP MLA Selina Robinson was appointed B.C.'s new minister of municipal affairs and housing, a portfolio held by Farnworth in the late 1990s under then-premier Glen Clark. Her ministry was called Community, Sport and Cultural Development under Christy Clark's BC Liberal government.
During the spring election campaign, Farnworth told The Tri-City News he and former party leader Carole James had been studying marijuana models in Washington State and Oregon before the federal government is due to legalize weed next July. He was quoted as saying the legal age to purchase the soft drug should be 19 "because it doesn't make any sense to have it different from alcohol," and said he doesn't believe B.C. should rush into a regulatory framework.
Farnworth also called for Riverview Hospital to be returned as a mental health facility and he advocated for a raise to the minimum wage to $15 per hour.
Robinson, a former Coquitlam city councillor, vowed during the campaign to improve housing affordability.
"Governments have to recognize that there is a problem and have a conversation about it," Robinson told The Tri-City News in April. "The BC Liberals have refused to have this conversation for years. [Housing] Minister [Rich] Coleman said to stop whining. [Premier] Christy Clark said if you don’t like it, move to Fort St. John."
She also reiterated her party's commitment to build 114,000 new homes over the next decade by partnering with community, church and non-profit groups.
PoCo Coun. Brad West, Farnworth's campaign manager, was at today's ceremony in Victoria with PoCo Mayor Greg Moore, the board chair for Metro Vancouver.
"This is a real shift from the previous government where the Tri-Cities lacked cabinet representation," West said in a text to The Tri-City News. "Now, we have two senior cabinet ministers in Mike and Selina, and it means a bigger voice in government for our communities."
Added Moore, also by text: "It is good to see our longtime MLA Mike Farnworth as a provincial government minister. I look forward to working with Mike on items facing Port Coquitlam. We have a good friendship so I am sure we will be able to accomplish a lot for our residents and businesses."
B.C.'s new cabinet (Photo by Greg Moore).
Mayor Greg Moore with Mike Fanworth after today's swearing-in ceremony (Photo courtesy of Greg Moore).
