Ag in B.C.’s throne speech

The government promises to take lessons from other industries and apply them to agriculture

B.C. Lt-Gov. Wendy Cocchia’s throne speech on Feb. 18 on behalf of Premier David Eby’s government mentioned agriculture and farmers only twice.

The first time referred to the government’s commitment to protect British Columbians against tariffs from the U.S.

“We will never back down from defending workers, farmers, businesses and livelihoods here in British Columbia and across Canada,” Cocchia said in the speech. “This is not a fight we started. This is not a fight we want. But we won’t ever roll over or let our guard down.”

The second mention came during a section about reducing red tape and other barriers.

The government touted its work on reducing timelines on some mining projects by more than 35 per cent and is looking to extend that work into other industries.

“Now, we are accelerating that work, while applying those lessons to other sectors, such as construction, forestry and agriculture,” Cocchia said.