By David Wiwchar

ADSS hosts candidate debate

Oct 10, 2024 | 8:23 AM

Even though most of them can’t vote yet, Alberni District Secondary students could be the only Valley residents to see a local provincial election debate yesterday.

The NDP’s Josie Osborne and BC Conservative candidate Adam Hayduk traded a few barbs but also agreed on some points.

Osborne said an NDP Government would continue to focus on improving housing and healthcare in the Alberni Valley

“Here in the Alberni Valley we’ve built almost 500 new affordable homes in the last seven years and knowing that we’ve added hundreds of childcare spaces including over a hundred $10 a day childcare spaces, these things are really starting to make a difference,” she said. “When it comes to healthcare and mental supports, we have never seen the kind of investment into mental health that we have until these last few years.”

Hayduk criticized the NDP’s housing and health care plans and said BC Conservatives would do better.

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“The number of times that we’ve had conversations with regular people at the doors and they go through their personal stories they start shaking and they get emotional because the last four years has affected peoples lives like I have never seen before in my 46 years,” he said.

Both candidates said they support lowering the voting age to 16

The event was organized by the Grade 12 theatre class, who said Green Party candidate Ross Reid was not able to make the meeting due to work commitments.