AFTER the BC NDP introduced its latest budget, Surrey’s BC Liberal MLAs say they are concerned the government’s plan for the coming year fails to address Surrey residents’ priorities. Like last week’s Throne Speech, Budget 2019 contains noticeable gaps in areas like education, affordability, and transportation.
“Education is a priority across the province, and especially in Surrey where thousands of students still study in portables,” says Surrey-Cloverdale MLA Marvin Hunt. “We’re nearing two years since the NDP promised to have cut the number of Surrey school portables in half, but this issue has fallen completely off the government’s radar. Eliminating portables doesn’t even come up once in the entire budget.”
While government has put some new money towards building schools, the investment will not keep up with Surrey’s population growth. Schools in many catchments are full, making an overall reduction in school portables unlikely. With no new major capital investments south of the Fraser, there are no new seats for either K to 12 or post-secondary students in this budget.
School construction isn’t the only area where projects have been delayed. Major transportation projects like the Surrey SkyTrain and George Massey Tunnel replacement have also stalled.
Stephanie Cadieux
“Once again, the NDP has abandoned commuters battling traffic south of the Fraser,” says Surrey South MLA Stephanie Cadieux. “With no new money in this budget for Surrey SkyTrain and no money to replace the Massey Tunnel, Surrey commuters are bracing for at least another year without relief.”
“This budget comes as taxpayers are still reeling from this government’s Speculation Tax, which has all homeowners in areas like Surrey filing an exemption to avoid paying this misnamed tax,” adds Hunt. “But despite new taxes, Surrey residents are still waiting for much-needed investments in their community.”
Tracy Redies Photo: Twitter
“This budget shows the NDP still has no plan to create high-paying jobs that hard-working British Columbians need,” concludes Surrey-White Rock MLA Tracy Redies. “Their own throne speech indicates people are holding down two jobs to make ends meet, but where are the plans to encourage companies to invest in B.C. and create those jobs? Meanwhile they have introduced 19 new and increased taxes which does nothing to make life more affordable for British Columbians.”
SURREY RCMP announced on Wednesday that a suspect had been arrested and charged after allegedly committing four robberies in a four-hour span on February 12.
At approximately 1:45 p.m., Surrey RCMP officers responded to a report of a bank robbery located in the 10400-block of 152nd Street. The suspect allegedly threatened and demanded money from a bank employee before fleeing the area on foot prior to police arrival.
Within the next four hours, Surrey RCMP received three additional reports of similar robberies at different financial institutions in the North Surrey area. The second incident occurred in the 15100-block of 101st Avenue and the third incident occurred in the 12800-block of 96th Avenue. The fourth alleged robbery occurred in the 10400-block of King George Boulevard at approximately 5:45 p.m. Officers quickly responded and located the suspect outside the financial institution. He was arrested without incident.
The Surrey RCMP Robbery Unit took conduct of the investigation and began coordinating all four incidents with the continued assistance of the other officers. Investigators were able to gather and analyse sufficient evidence from each occurrence to allegedly link all four robberies to one suspect.
Richard Orr, 24, has now been charged with four counts of robbery and remains in custody.
Anyone with information about this incident who has not yet spoken with police, is asked to call Surrey RCMP at 604-599-0502, or contact Crime Stoppers if they wish to remain anonymous, at 1-800-222-8477 or www.solvecrime.ca.
En Karma filming in Merritt for "Unforgettable: Tera Pyar": (L-R) Karmvir Cooner (dholi), Inder Kooner (lead vocalist), Nick Chowlia (keys) and Pip Dhaliwal (drums).
En Karma filming in Merritt for “Unforgettable: Tera Pyar”: (L-R) Karmvir Cooner (dholi), Inder Kooner (lead vocalist), Nick Chowlia (keys) and Pip Dhaliwal (drums).
JUST in time for the month of love and heart, Vancouver-based bhangra band, En Karma, releases a new song just for those reminiscing about a love gone by.
Titled, “Unforgettable: Tera Pyar,” it is the band’s second release from their new album in less than six months.
The song questions one’s “karma” when it comes to dealing with heartbreak – a special song for the category of lovers and hopeless romantics around this time of year.
Lead singer of En Karma, Inder Kooner, says, “Love and heartache come in all forms and this song captures some of those feelings many of us may have experienced. Music for me is a great outlet for emotions. Even though this song wasn’t my favourite on this new album, it quickly grew on me. It’s just the evolution of making a song.You never know which song will strike a cord with you.”
The song comes off their third album together in a decade together. The new release comes just weeks after the hot debut release of Femme Fatale: Chori Chori – a more techno dance sound.
“With Unforgettable: Tera Pyar, people can expect a more chill, trap kinda vibe,” says the band’s keyboardist Nick Chowlia.
En Karma drummer, Pip Dhaliwal, says “We stepped out of our element with this new song. We took the opportunity to portray a different sound and vibe of En Karma.”
En Karma also just announced they will be teaming up with Sharry Mann for his upcoming concert on April 27 at the Bell Centre.
A real highlight for En Karma’s dholi, Karmvir Cooner: “It’s always exciting to share the stage with Sharry and play for a large venue like this. We are all pretty excited for this show.”
This is not first time En Karma is headlining with a big name in the Bhangra world. They have played with many greats including Malkit Singh, Jazzy B, Sarbjit Cheema, K.S. Makhan and H Dhami.
For the band, a couple of other most memorable performances include the Canada 150 celebration in the province’s capital and their electrifying energy at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
En Karma is currently North America’s only Bhangra band – a distinct and unmatched commodity in the Bhangra industry. The band’s members are award-winning musicians. They were nominated for BritAsia awards, which was a great honour for a band with roots in the UK and Canada.
En Karma’s debut album titled “En Karma” reached #1 on the iTunes World Music chart and featured the lead single Tohar Naal Jeena. It was followed by the release of “EnKarmafied” which reached #2 on the iTunes World Music charts featuring the singles Dil Naal Khedey and Tu Nach. En Karma is one of the biggest names to dominate the dance floors at international jazz festivals as well as numerous Indian, fusion and world music festivals.
Tera Pyar is available now for download on iTunes and Google play.
THE NDP says that last year they asked the wealthiest 2% of British Columbians to contribute a little more. That revenue helped government reduce costs for regular families and invest more in underfunded services like healthcare, education, childcare, and housing.
On Tuesday, the government announced a new budget that takes another step forward on those priorities.
But in Andrew Wilkinson’s first year as BC Liberal Leader, he has pledged to reverse course by cutting taxes for the richest British Columbians and making everyone else pay for it, points out the NDP. Wilkinson’s commitments would mean:
Cancelling the Employer Health Tax and paying for it by continuing unfair MSP premiums.
The 2017 BC Liberal platform provided no timeline or new revenue to eliminate MSP premiums. The BC Liberal Party re-affirmed this approach at its November 2018 convention, meaning British Columbians would be stuck paying premiums for years to come.
Handing a $1 billion giveaway to the richest 2%, real estate speculators, and profitable corporations. In the last year, Wilkinson has promised at least $1.051 billion in giveaways:
$200 million per year to owners of B.C.’s 2% most expensive homes by eliminating the progressive component of the school tax, which only impacts homes worth over $3 million;
$185 million to people with multiple vacant homes by cancelling the speculation and vacancy tax;
$316 million to the top 2% of income earners by eliminating the top income tax bracket on people making more than $153,000;
$350 million per year to large, profitable corporations by cutting the corporate income tax rate from 12% back to 11%.
Cutting services to pay for his billion dollar giveaway to the rich. The revenue he has promised to cut is currently paying for new initiatives, including:
A new B.C.Child Opportunity Benefit, which will provide as much as $28,800 for families with one child, and $40,000 for families with two children before the children turn 18;
Historic investments in new housing supply for low and middle income families;
Reducing childcare costs for families and creating new licensed spaces;
Reducing wait times for knee surgeries, hip surgeries, and MRIs;
Reducing class sizes by hiring 3,500 new teachers.
Carole James Photo: Vinnie Combow
Finance Minister Carole James said: “Sixteen years of choices the BC Liberals left people on the outside looking in. Our government is making life more affordable, improving services, and creating good jobs. Andrew Wilkinson would cancel these essential investments to pay for a billion dollar giveaway to the top 2%. Governing is about choices, and we’re going to put hardworking British Columbians first every single time.”
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
New Delhi (IANS): India and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday strongly condemned the terror attack on Indian forces in Pulwama, called upon countries to renounce use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy, and underlined the importance of comprehensive sanctioning of terrorists and their organisations by the United Nations.
The remarks on the UN sanctions regime during discussions between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and visiting Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman comes two days after the joint statement issued during visit of the Saudi Arabian leader to Pakistan which had “underlined the need for avoiding politicisation of UN listing regime”.
Briefing the media following delegation-level talks between Modi and Salman here, Secretary (Economic Relations) T.S. Tirumurti said they expressed strong condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
India is keen to get Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar designated as a global terrorist by the United Nations. JeM has cliamed responsibility for the Pulwama terror attack that killed 40 CRPF personnel.
Asked how the remarks of the two leaders squared up with Saudi-Pakistan joint statement, Tirumurti said he did now want to comment on it, but “if you are really looking at politicisation, you know who is politicising it”.
Tirumurti said the two leaders called on all states to reject the use of terrorism against other countries, dismantle terrorist infrastructure, cut off any kind of support and financing to terrorists from all territories against other states and bring the perpetrators of terrorism to justice.
“The two leaders condemned in the strongest terms the recent terrorist attack on Indian forces in Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir. Both leaders called upon all countries to renounce use of terrorism as an instrument of state policy. They called on states to deny access to weapons to commit terrorist acts against other countries.
“Both leaders underlined the importance of comprehensive sanctioning of terrorists and their organisations by the United Nations. They called for concerted action by the international community against terrorism and early adoption of the UN comprehensive convention on international terrorism,” he said.
Answering a query, he said the complicity of Pakistan in Pulwama attack was very much underlined.
The official also said both sides agreed to set up a Strategic Partnership Council and Saudi Arabia will invest $ 100 billion in India in a range of areas. He said the two leaders agreed to constitute a comprehensive security dialogue at the level of NSAs.
He said that Crown Prince Mohammed appreciated “consistent efforts” by Modi since May 2014 including Prime Minister’s personal initiatives to have friendly relations with Pakistan”.
“In this context both sides agreed on the creation of conditions necessary for resumption of dialogue between India and Pakistan,” he said.
He also said that no mediation was offered by the Saudi authorities.
Tirumurti said that the Crown Prince highlighted extremism and terrorism as matters of common concern and expressed his determination to cooperate with India to fight this menace particularly through strong intelligence partnership.
“To enhance cooperation in counter-terrorism efforts and benefit mutually in real-time intelligence sharing, the two leaders agreed to constitute a comprehensive security dialogue at the level of National Security Advisors and set up a joint working group on counter-terrorism.
“On the defence front, they agreed to hold the first naval exercises at the earliest and expand defence relations in other areas like defence exercises, joint production, supply chain development,” he said.
Tirumurti said the meeting was held in “an atmosphere of great warmth and friendship testifying to the close rapport between the two leaders”.
He said the visiting leader conveyed his appreciation of the Indian model which signifies the ethos of inclusiveness, pluralism and tolerance.
“Both sides agreed to set up a Strategic Partnership Council which will be guided by Prime Minister and the Crown Prince and will have ministerial representation covering all aspects of bilateral relations. This is an extremely important development in line with desire of Saudi Arabia to deepen partnership with eight strategic partners one of which is India.”
He said Modi welcomed the announcement of Crown Prince to invest $ 100 billion in India in a range of areas like energy, refining, petrochemicals, infrastructure, agriculture, manufacturing.
“This is a clear reflection of confidence of Saudi Arabia in the vibrancy of Indian economy,” he said adding there was talk of realising untapped potential in trade particularly non-oil trade.
He said they expressed satisfaction at first joint venture in energy of a refinery and petrochemical project estimated at $ 44 billion and the prime minister welcomed Saudi Arabia’s participation in India’s strategic petroleum reserves.
Tirumurti said the two leaders agreed to increase the frequency of direct flights of carriers India and Saudi Arabia by 384,000 seats per annum which will give a huge boost to tourism as well as the large Indian community.
He said at India’s request, Saudi Arabia decided to increase Haj quota from India to 200,000. India, he said, has also decided to extend e-visa facilities to Saudi nationals.
Tirumurti said Saudi Arabia also agreed to resolve issues related to Indian workers who are currently stranded in Saudi Arabia.
The two leaders agreed to enhance maritime security in the Gulf and the Indian Ocean Region and agreed to cooperate along with other Indian Ocean rim countries in serving as the net security provider for IOR.
In a veiled reference to China’s ‘One Belt, One Road project’ which also includes the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, Triumurti said both sides agreed that regional connectivity projects should be based on universally recognised international norms including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of states.
The two leaders expressed serious concern over cyber terrorism and misuse of cyber space and said they will also work together to address the problems and issues of fugitive economic offenders.
Answering queries, Tirumurti said Afghan situation was not discussed, but there was a discussion on areas relating to Middle East, Syria, Palestine.
Answering a query, he said the two sides agreed for comprehensive sanctioning of not only terrorists but terrorist organisations by the UN.
Born December 8, 1926, Joginder Kooner passed away peacefully at home surrounded by his loving family on February 18, 2019. He is survived by his wife Gurbax Kooner, daughters Manjeet, Surjeet and Abtar (Sukhwinder), son Davinder, grandchildren Alisha, Diya and Armaan.
He first came to Canada in 1951 with the dream of building a new life and settled in Lake Cowichan. His generous spirit and giving nature drew many people to him. He joined a large community of people who he treated as family, and took great pride in helping others settle into this new country. Through his 40 years of working in the lumber industry, he demonstrated a strong work ethic and provided for his family.
His legacy will live on through his wife, children, grandchildren, extended family, neighbours and friends.
Joginder’s life will be celebrated on Friday, February 22 at 11:30 a.m. at Hamilton Harron Funeral Chapel, 5390 Fraser Street, Vancouver, with a prayer service to follow at 2 p.m. at the Ross Street Gurdwara, 8000 Ross Street, Vancouver.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in the name Joginder Kooner to Variety – The Children’s Charity.
IN the wake of the recent series of violent incidents and homicides in Kamloops, the RCMP are providing an update on the numerous cases that have been cited in the media and to speak to the trend and its impact on public safety.
WHAT HAS HAPPENED RECENTLY?
On October 3, 2018, the RCMP entered into a high risk missing person investigation. It was later determined that the missing person, Troy Gold, had in fact been murdered. This is an open investigation and clearly part of the local Kamloops drug scene. The victim was a participant in the local Kamloops drug trade, as are all of the suspects.
This investigation is progressing.
Suspects are identified.
Serious Crime Unit (SCU) investigators are optimistic with its progress and continue to treat it as an open and active investigation.
On December 6, 2018, the RCMP with assistance from the Emergency Response Team executed a search warrant at a local business. This was the conclusion of an investigation into a home invasion that was initially reported in January of 2018. The home invasion occurred at a rental home that was being used as a stash house by participants in the Kamloops drug trade.
Cameron Cole was arrested and charged with numerous firearms and explosive offences.
Charles Patrick was arrested and charged with firearm, weapon and property offences.
On January 23, 2019, the RCMP entered into two related murder investigations. Both occurred at Kamloops hotels. One victim was a participant in the local Kamloops drug trade, as are the suspects.
Both Rex Edward Gill and Cody March Mathieu were killed in separate shooting events.
Rex Gill has no known connection to the Kamloops drug trade. The RCMP are exploring the possibility that this might have been a case of mistaken identity.
Suspects are identified.
SCU investigators continue to treat it as a priority and its an open and active investigation.
On February 14, 2019, the RCMP entered into a robbery, forcible confinement and kidnapping case. The victims are participants in the local Kamloops drug trade, as are the suspects.
This was a very fluid and dynamic investigation that led to several dynamic and tactical operations around the community which concluded with a tactical operation in Kelowna.
Justin William Daniels was arrested in Kelowna and has been charged with armed robbery using a firearm and forcible confinement.
Police continue to work on identifying and arresting the additional suspects.
On February 15, 2019, the RCMP responded to a shooting at a north shore residence. This is now a murder investigation. Both victims are participants in the local Kamloops drug trade.
Jason Glover died from his injuries.
The second victim, and the victim’s condition will not be subject of further comment.
The RCMP are working many leads and this investigation is still in it’s very early stages.
WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?
The RCMP say we are in the middle of an opioid crisis which is largely caused and fuelled by organized crime.
Police have seen a trend in Kamloops of high levels of violence occurring with the local participants of our drug community.
Many of these crimes are being committed by people against their own local allegiances. Not all violence is one group against another.
Police say it is not safe to be a drug trafficker in Kamloops right now. The group who is supplying your drugs today may be the same ones who will kill you tomorrow. If you know who is doing the violence, it’s time to contact the police.
Police say they continue to target those who pose the greatest risk and commit acts of violence in the community. Crimes like this will attract police to your drug organization.
Reducing organized crime is a top priority for Kamloops Detachment as it is for the Province of BC as a whole and policing partners across Canada.
Police routinely issue news releases requesting the public’s assistance in helping us solve crime because we know that there are people in the community who know who is responsible for those crimes. Police need those individuals to come forward and help them target the small group of individuals who are responsible for the majority of our crimes.
WHAT RCMP SAY THEY ARE DOING ABOUT IT?
We are aggressively working on these investigations. The best solution is to get those committing this violence in jail. Our officers are working hard to identify and strategically target and investigate individuals with ties to the ongoing gang conflict.
We are relying on our partners to support the sudden demand on our resources.
Our Southeast District Command is fully engaged and re-deploying resources to us as required.
We are working in close partnerships with the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (CFSEU-BC). They assist us with manpower and specialized resources including the Uniform Gang Enforcement Team who is back in our community right now.
We recognize that recent acts of violence are concerning for the residents in our community and the Kamloops RCMP is committed to identifying those responsible. While we cannot say there is no risk to the general public, we can say that each of the incidents appear to be targeted.
For those involved in these shootings or people who know them – we ask that you think about the safety of your family, friends and the general public. The manner that you have chosen to resolve this dispute is careless and unacceptable.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi receives Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman on his arrival at Palam Airport in New Delhi on Feb 19, 2019. (Photo: IANS/PIB)
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi receives Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman on his arrival at Palam Airport in New Delhi on Feb 19, 2019. (Photo: IANS/PIB)
New Delhi (IANS): Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is on his first state visit to India, on Wednesday received a ceremonial welcome by President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhawan here.
The Crown Prince arrived here on Monday evening following his visit to Pakistan. From Islamabad, he flew to Riyadh before departing for New Delhi.
After the ceremonial welcome where Prime Minister Narendra Modi was also present, the Saudi royal told the media: “Today, we want to be sure that this relation is maintained and improved for the sake of both countries.
“With the leadership of the President and the Prime Minister, I am sure we can create good things for Saudi Arabia and India.”
He also said that the ties between India and the Arabian Peninsula “is in our DNA”.
The Crown Prince is slated to hold a bilateral meeting with Modi later in the day.
BC Liberal Finance co-critics Shirley Bond and Tracy Redies say that Finance Minister Carole James has presented another tax-and-spend budget that has no plan for economic growth.
“This is a spending budget that relies on taxation revenue and a one-time $1.6 billion transfer from the federal government,” said Bond. “There is absolutely no focus in the budget to grow the economy or measures that support well-paying, family-supporting jobs. Furthermore, it’s irresponsible for this government to continue to make promises when taxpayers could well be on the hook for the costs. Clearly the NDP plan is all about tax and spend with zero regard for growing the economy.”
Tracy Redies Photo: Twitter
Despite raising taxes on individuals, homeowners, and businesses to the tune of $5.5 billion since July 2017, the NDP government is projecting only a narrow surplus of $274 million for the coming fiscal year.
“I am deeply concerned this budget leaves B.C. vulnerable in an uncertain global economy,” said Redies. “The minister has forecasted razor-thin budget surpluses over the next three years. This seriously calls into question how the minister can actually balance the budget in the face of an unforeseen downturn in the economy or even another unpredictable and devastating wildfire season.”
Furthermore, the NDP’s 2019 budget fails to appropriately tackle the growing affordability crisis in the province.
The BC Chamber of Commerce states that business confidence has hit a low with only 46 per cent of businesses believing this government supports them – a significant drop from the 78 per cent mark two years ago.
DELTA Police have launched a new way for the public to get involved in helping keep the community safe –the Community Watch Program.
The program creates an online database of homes and businesses with video cameras. Signing up is voluntary, and easily done at https://deltapolice.ca/cwp/
“There are a variety of situations where police might want to view video that is privately collected,” says Staff-Sgt. Dave Schaefer, who spearheaded the program. “Our officers might be looking for information to help solve a spree of thefts from vehicles, or they may be urgently trying to find a high risk missing person. This database will help provide a starting point of where public-facing video cameras in the area may be.”
Currently officers have to conduct a door-to-door canvass for each instance, and that can be a time-consuming process.
The role the public can play in assisting police with investigations has grown over the years as technology has continued to evolve. The Community Watch Program provides a mechanism for the public to proactively register, and help police solve crimes more rapidly, which could be critical in missing person or serious crime investigations.
The process was very simple and easy to navigate, says Michael O’Connor, a Delta resident who just signed up for the program.
“You never know how you might be able to help police out – it might be providing footage of someone breaking into your neighbour’s house, or maybe your cameras have a key bit of footage of someone’s tattoo that could help solve a serious crime,” says O’Connor of his rational for registering.
“We’re fortunate to have citizens who are so active in helping to keep our community safe,” says Schaefer. “We thought this program would be a good fit here in Delta.”
