Saturday October 12, 2024 | VICTORIA, BC
BC ELECTION CAMPAIGN DAY 22 of 28
BC Election 2024 news coverage by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Your 28-day voter’s guide for BC Election 2024
Small business in BC is in the viewfinder for the BC Green Party.
The platform calls for attention to key sectors such as technology, hospitality, and retail to help them thrive in British Columbia’s rapidly evolving knowledge-based economy.
In BC, previously the BC United Party (formerly BC Liberals) had been considered to be the party of business, though more so big business than small.
21st century approach to business:
“We need a new vision and action plan for British Columbia’s economy,” said BC Green Party leader Sonia Furstenau.
“The world has changed, and we need to acknowledge that. As we move further into the 21st century, sectors like technology, hospitality, and retail are where we see the future – sectors that provide 20 percent of jobs across BC. These industries have the potential to create long-lasting, well-paid jobs that reflect a clean, green, and people-focused economy,” she said in a news release today.
Helping small business:
- Helping innovators early. We will invest $2 million per year to expand the Advanced Research and Commercialization (ARC) program to provide mentorship and funding for innovators at the earliest stages of development, helping turn ideas for clean, green technology into successful businesses.
- Supporting hospitality workers and small businesses. We will invest $2 million per year to fund and launch a new careers program for the food, beverage, and hospitality sector. This program will provide job training and mentorship for people entering these industries, while also easing the financial burden on small businesses by sharing the costs of hiring and training new staff.
- Revitalizing our downtown cores. We will convene a panel to study the challenges faced by businesses in our downtown cores, including rising rents, insurance costs, and labour shortages. The goal is to better understand what’s happening and to explore solutions, like commercial vacancy control, that could help keep these businesses open and our downtowns vibrant.
Key focus on hospitality sector:
Furstenau’s riding of Victoria-Beacon Hill includes the downtown area of Victoria where businesses have been struggling for several years now. Impacts have included reduced parking, the presence of more homeless people on the streets, use of drugs on the streets, and an overall feeling of being unsafe when downtown. People who used to go downtown to shop often don’t anymore.
“As a small business owner myself, I understand the enormous pressures that many businesses, especially in hospitality, are facing,” said David Evans, BC Green candidate in Juan de Fuca-Malahat.
“That’s why we’re stepping in with a training program that helps job seekers while easing the burden on small business owners. This initiative will create new opportunities for workers and provide businesses with the skilled staff they need to thrive,” said Evans in a news release.
In her presentation to the audience at an all candidates event in Esquimalt-Colwood last week, BC Green candidate Camille Currie also addressed the concerns of small business, including the challenge to train apprentices if they can’t afford to live in Greater Victoria.
Downtown businesses:
“We also know our downtown businesses are struggling,” says Evans in the BC Greens news release today.
“Rising costs and vacancies are making it harder to keep our city cores vibrant. Our expert panel will work to fully understand these challenges and find long-term solutions so that these businesses can survive and flourish.”
The downtown business struggle has also been articulated by the BC Conservatives, including the on-street safety aspects which drives away customers and visitors from the downtown core area of Victoria.
===== RELATED:
- Poll shows BC Green Leader Sonia Furstenau could win Victoria-Beacon Hill (October 11, 2024)
- David Evans for Juan de Fuca-Malahat: he’s Green, he’s local (October 11, 2024)
- BC Green candidate Camille Currie pitches to small businesses & workers (October 11, 2024)
- NEWS SECTIONS: BUSINESS & ECONOMY | BC ELECTION 2024