Wednesday September 20, 2023 | VANCOUVER, BC [Updated 8:25 am]
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends | POLITICAL NEWS SECTION
The 2023 Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) convention continues this week in Vancouver, with over 2,000 delegates attending this 120th annual convention.
The 2023 convention theme is “Balancing Act” — recognizing an essential element in the art of governance. The program covers a wide range of topics and issues. [See overall convention profile]
Today’s Day 3 highlights include cabinet town halls on housing, emergency preparedness and strong public services.
There will be a keynote speech by former Canada Soccer head coach, John Herdman, at 9:25 am for an hour.
Also headlining today are BC Green Party Leader Sonia Furstenau at 10:25 am and Minister of Municipal Affairs Anne Kang at 2 pm.
Cabinet town halls today:
- Housing – Mins. Ravi Kahlon, Katrine Conroy & Jennifer Whiteside – Room 11/12, VCC East
- Emergency Preparedness – Mins. Bowinn Ma, Bruce Ralston, Nathan Cullen & Pam Alexis – Room 2/3, VCC East
- Stronger Public Services – Mins. Adrian Dix, Lisa Beare & Rachna Singh Room 1, VCC East
Delegates are mayors and councillors and regional district directors from around the province. Many MLAs attend, as do deputy ministers and ADMs and a range of experts and consultants.
Keynote speakers on Thursday and Friday:
- Thurs Sept 21 – Leader of the Opposition (Kevin Falcon / BC United) – 8:35 to 8:55 am
- Fri Sept 22 – Federal Address by Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources – 10:35 to 10:55 am
- Fri Sept 22 – Address by the Premier (David Eby / BC NDP) – 11:15 am to 12 noon
More to come:
Check back at IslandSocialTrends.ca through the week to see our coverage of various aspects of UBCM 2023.