Whether the BC Liberals or BC NDP form government, the people of Richmond can expect an expanded Richmond Hospital.
That was the message from dueling provincial election campaigns on Saturday, as the two parties attacked each other over their health care records and both sought to claim ownership of the Richmond project.
The BC Liberals launched concept planning for a new tower at the hospital in 2016, and pledged to develop a business case for the facility in their 2017 election platform.
The NDP government announced a concept plan for the hospital revitalization in 2018.
In July this year, the government said the new nine-storey tower would include a new emergency room, intensive care unit and imaging department along with nearly 220 beds, increasing the hospital’s total to 350 from the current 240. (Some of the new beds would replace old ones.)
Detailed business planning and budgeting was expected to wrap in September, but then the election was called.
BC Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson appeared at the hospital with his full slate of Richmond candidates, Teresa Wat (Richmond North Centre), Jas Johal (Richmond-Queensborough), Alexa Loo (Richmond South Centre) and Matt Pitcairn (Richmond-Steveston).
“This hospital was approved by the BC Liberals in 2016. It was then handed to the NDP in 2017 when they took office and they have accomplished nothing,” Wilkinson said.
“They had the gall to come out here last week and say, yet again, they support the Richmond Hospital. Where’s the proof they support the Richmond hospital?”
Wilkinson accused the NDP of having no budget for the project, and promised that the expanded tower would form a core part of his party’s infrastructure plan immediately upon forming government.
NDP Vancouver-Kingsway candidate Adrian Dix, who served as health minister in the NDP government, also appeared at the hospital Saturday, where he argued the Liberals had 16 years to expand the facility.
“It wasn’t done by the Liberals,” said Dix, arguing there was no concept or business plan for the expansion when he was appointed health minister.
“We delivered on this project, we moved it forward. We’re giving people the Richmond Hospital they deserve for the next 50 years.”
The NDP government’s 2020 budget contains no specific mention of the Richmond Hospital, but Dix insisted Saturday that the project was fully funded.
Dix also accused the Liberals of not having the financial resources to complete the project if they eliminate the PST for a year, a policy expected to cost $6.8 billion.
Dix was joined by candidates Aman Singh (Richmond-Queensborough), Henry Yao (Richmond South Centre) and Kelly Greene (Richmond-Steveston).
BC Green Leader Sonia Furstenau was on Vancouver Island on Saturday, where she called for a reformation of the financial system used by local governments to help them better address issues brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
— With files from the Canadian Press