With the provincial election just days away, BC NDP Leader David Eby is promising $30 million to finish the unused sixth floor at Kelowna General Hospital.
However, it’s an announcement drawing criticism from those who say the expansion has been needed for years.
“As far as I can tell, the only thing that has changed is that there’s an election happening now,” said Gavin Dew, the Conservative Candidate for Kelowna-Mission. “We’ve been pushing for this for years, and David Eby has not moved an inch.”
Eby announced the funding commitment during a campaign stop in Kelowna, saying the money would go toward building out the sixth-floor inpatient unit and expanding the hospital’s capacity.
“Our government is committed to put $30 million into Kelowna General Hospital to build out the sixth-floor inpatient unit for the people of Kelowna,” Eby said while on a campaign stop in Kelowna Tuesday.
“This isn’t just a plan on paper. This is something that’s actually going to be delivered,” Eby said.
The sixth floor is one of two floors in the hospital’s Centennial Tower that have remained unfinished since the building opened in 2012.
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The unused space has long been a point of contention as patients continue to be treated in hallway beds.
Eby said planning for the expansion began before the election and argued the BC Conservatives have not committed funding to the project in their platform.
“They have no money set aside to do this, and we do, so it’s going to get done,” Eby said.
Dew said a Conservative government would also move to open the unused space, but would first need to review Interior Health’s capital planning.
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“Conservatives will move forward with getting to 33,000 square feet of unused space open at Kelowna General Hospital,” Dew said. “We’re going to have to get in there and get a clear understanding of what’s actually happening inside Interior Health in terms of capital planning.”
While expanding the hospital’s physical capacity is one part of the equation, staffing the additional space is another challenge amid ongoing health-care workforce pressures.
Eby said hospital staff need the space to care for patients, although further recruitment will be necessary as Kelowna’s population grows and new services are added.
“The good news is that the staff are at the hospital, and they need the space for the patients,” Eby said. “There will be additional recruitment that’s required, of course, as the population of Kelowna grows and we add new services.”
more useless promises
Eby will promise you the moon. He’s full of promises (also know as sh *t). It’s going to be so funny to watch him lose in 3 days, and it was all initiated by himself. Bye bye Gumby!
This government running HUGE deficits somehow always manages to find the money to spend on things when they call an unneeded, unwanted election. Amazing.
That said, governments do this regardless of their political stripes but Eby is doing it after calling an unnecessary election in a bid to take advantage of turmoil on the right/center.
They had a governemtn that could operate, but cynically called this election early to secure control for another 4 years.
Wasn’t the NDP the group that pushed for, and enacted, fixed election dates to prevent this sort of manipulation? Yes they were, only to drop that at the first opportunity once they were in power.
Shame!
Why is all this funding suddenly available when Eby is campaigning?
Eby is reading all the polls and that’s why there’s a smell of desperation in the air…
I’ll believe Eby when Nanaimo has a Cath Lab two years ago!
If there was plans before the election call to fund this why did it take an election call to announce it?
News flash !!!!
Eby just announced if the NDP get
re-elected he’s going to give everyone in BC the $1000 Grocery credit he promised and never paid in the last election with interest as a sweetener.
I’m committed to waiting for my grocwery benefit Eby promised in the last election. He lied. He knew the books were bad and lied.
Again more empty promises from Eby. Eby has had 4 years to do everything he has promised in this campaign and he has always says there is no money just like he didn’t fulfill his last election promises because of there being no money. I don’t believe a word Eby says. I wouldn’t vote for Eby and the NDP if they were the only name on the ballot