Coquitlam–Burke Mountain candidates answer voters’ questions

The Tri-Cities Dispatch gave candidates in the Coquitlam–Burke Mountain riding five days to answer a questionnaire. Three of the four candidates responded by the deadline, and each was asked to keep answers to 100 words per question. The respondents were Kaden Mann of CentreBC, incumbent Jodie Wickens of the BC NDP, and Valerie Morrison of the BC Green Party.

**Kaden Mann, CentreBC**

Mann said he was born and raised in Coquitlam and has lived there all his life. He attended Canyon Springs Preschool, Hampton Park Elementary, Summit Middle School and Gleneagle Secondary. He began swimming lessons at Coquitlam Aquatic Centre at six months old, played Coquitlam Minor Hockey, including practices that meant 4 a.m. wake-ups, and later refereed in the community. He said his strongest memories, friendships and experiences come from Coquitlam and that he is running to ensure the community continues to be well represented.

To create more local jobs, Mann proposed expanding dual-credit programs in health care and trades, along with training and apprenticeship opportunities. He said increased investment in trades training would create about 3,500 training and apprenticeship spots each year by 2028. He also wants to support B.C.-made products and local industry. He said he understands the difficulty of finding work while paying for school because he has faced it himself.

Mann said AI data centres operating in B.C. should meet clear conditions: pay the full cost of their electricity so regular BC Hydro customers do not subsidize them; use water responsibly and adopt water-recycling or closed-loop cooling systems; and, for larger centres, plan to reuse waste heat. He also said B.C. businesses and universities should benefit from the technology built in the province. He noted that residents already face water-use restrictions.

On climate change, Mann said the province can reduce its effects while maintaining a strong economy and affordable living. He proposed a Climate Accountability Office that would report annually on progress, and support for homeowners to install heat pumps, insulation and solar without upfront costs, with loans repaid over time. His plan also includes 1,500 highway fast-charging ports by 2030, expanded clean power and lower methane emissions. To maintain fiscal responsibility, he proposed directing at least $100 million a year from existing industrial carbon-pricing revenue to the CleanBC Industry Fund, avoiding unnecessary debt or extra taxpayer costs.

Mann said spending restraint, smarter spending and collecting money already owed could double the Watershed Security Fund to $200 million. It would support local drinking-water, salmon, flood-protection, reservoir, irrigation and aquifer-recharge projects in areas facing repeated drought. Farmers would have a formal role in watershed planning. He also proposed working with the First Nations Health Authority and Ottawa to help end long-term drinking-water advisories in B.C. First Nations communities, while protecting parks, conservation areas, clean water and salmon habitat with local communities involved in management.

On proportional representation, Mann said a change to B.C.’s electoral system is worth discussing. He said systems involve trade-offs, including how closely results reflect the overall vote and how local representation is maintained. MLAs should have a strong connection with the people they represent, he said, and if constituents want a change, it should be discussed. He added that people should have more say in decisions that affect them and that government should serve the public.

Mann supports continuing micromobility options such as e-bikes, scooters and cycling, while emphasizing safety. He said his position also depends on what residents want and what works for them, and he would work with Coquitlam’s municipal government and residents on practical solutions. He said officials should listen to concerns and suggestions and adjust policies when needed.

Mann said provincial school funding has not kept pace with population growth. Too many Coquitlam students rely on portable classrooms because school infrastructure has not expanded quickly enough alongside new housing and growing communities. CentreBC would invest about $750 million over four years to add 25,000 school seats by 2031; he said the plan is fully costed within its fiscal plan. He said education and other essential services should be a funding priority, and students deserve permanent, well-planned classrooms with the space and resources to succeed.

To improve ambulance response times in the Tri-Cities, Mann proposed changes across the emergency-care system: work to keep emergency rooms open, expand the health-care workforce and set public targets for ER wait times so delays can be identified and addressed. The goal would be to cut unplanned ER closure hours in half by 2029/30. He would also advocate for ambulance resources to keep pace with population growth. He said more efficient hospital handoffs would help paramedics return to the road sooner.

Mann opposes privatizing medical care. He said privatization would not automatically eliminate or significantly reduce taxes, since governments would still fund many public services and likely some health care. Families could end up paying substantial taxes as well as premiums and medical bills, he said. In his view, British Columbians already pay enough, and the focus should be on making the publicly funded system work for them.

Asked why residents should vote for him, Mann said he has confidence in his party and in his ability to bring energy, creativity and a different perspective to government. As a younger candidate, he thinks about the future he will inherit and the one being left to the next generation. He said rising taxes, growing debt and infrastructure that has not kept pace with what people pay for motivated him to run. He wants government to be more responsible, accountable and fair, and said he is willing to work for change for his generation and those to come.

**Jodie Wickens, BC NDP (incumbent)**

Wickens said she lives in the riding and has been proud to call Coquitlam home for 23 years. She has raised her children there, lives in a multigenerational household with her 85-year-old mother-in-law, and has spent more than two decades working alongside children and families.

She said the BC NDP would work with the federal government to open new markets for B.C. products and help businesses grow and trade internationally. The party would provide direct relief to small businesses affected by U.S. tariffs and create a hiring incentive credit for businesses that employ young people in their first full-time job.

Wickens said the BC NDP passed a law last fall to limit the power available to data centres, protect the electricity grid and support climate goals. The government would also set strict water-efficiency standards, require public reporting of water use, and require engagement with local communities on conservation and drought planning.

She said emissions per dollar of economic activity are down more than 30 per cent under the BC NDP, and methane emissions are down 48 per cent. The party’s proposed Clean Futures Fund would dedicate part of provincial oil and gas revenue to climate-action programs that help families and businesses choose lower-cost clean energy and create jobs. It would begin with a $50-million investment. Wickens also said many Conservative candidates do not believe in climate science and cannot be trusted to take serious action.

Wickens said B.C. is on track to protect 30 per cent of its land by 2030, with 20 per cent, or 18.9 million hectares, currently protected. She said the government successfully defended the North Coast Tanker Ban to protect a unique ecosystem. The party would next invest $30 million a year in the BC Watershed Security Fund. She said the Conservatives oppose the 30-by-30 goal and would roll back conservation.

On proportional representation, Wickens said a strong democracy needs tools to adapt to changing pressures on the system. In a 2018 referendum, British Columbians indicated they wanted to keep the current voting system, she said, while adding that more work is needed to ensure the political system reflects their needs. An all-party committee was struck in 2025 to examine democratic engagement, and she said the parties would continue working together to protect the integrity of democracy.

Wickens said lower-carbon transportation options are exciting, but the safety of all road users must come first. The government launched a detailed e-scooter study on how to integrate scooters safely into transportation networks. Municipalities can opt in to the study period because local governments know their needs best, she said. She also cited BC NDP investments in cycling lanes and multi-use paths to make local travel easier.

Wickens listed completed school projects including seismic replacements at Moody and Irvine Elementary, additions at Charles Best Secondary and Scott Creek Middle, and the new Coast Salish Elementary. Projects underway include the seismic replacement of Montgomery Middle, the replacement for Hazel Trembath and the new Burke Mountain Secondary. She said the government will also build a new middle school for Burke Mountain. Wickens said Conservative politicians closed 250 schools the last time they governed, including eight in SD 43; the BC NDP has 250 new or upgraded schools completed or underway across the province.

On ambulance services, Wickens praised local paramedics. She said the BC NDP has added 156 ambulances and more than 2,100 positions at BC Emergency Health Services across the province since 2017. The government has also improved training and mental-health support to help retain paramedics.

Wickens said she strongly opposes privatizing medical care. She and every BC NDP candidate have signed a Public Health Care Guarantee, she said, because everyone should have access to quality care when needed, regardless of income. The party would close loopholes that let clinics charge user fees or bill extra for publicly insured, medically necessary services. She said Alberta’s Conservative government is creating a two-tier system with private-pay options that draw resources from public care, and B.C. must not let the same happen.

Wickens said Coquitlam has been her home for more than 23 years, where she has raised her family, built relationships and devoted much of her life to community service. She said her commitment began before she was elected and will continue after an election. She cited experience in community leadership, advocacy and government, and said she has worked to secure investments in schools, child care, infrastructure and family services. For her, public service means showing up, listening, building relationships and delivering results.

**Valerie Morrison, BC Green Party**

Morrison said she has lived in the Tri-Cities for more than five years and has been involved in her townhouse community’s strata council in recent years, most recently as vice-president and secretary.

She said expanding public services would create jobs in areas such as health care and infrastructure construction. She proposed capping commercial rent increases to support small businesses, giving local businesses first choice to buy property when it becomes available, and helping them with provincial loans. She also said raising the minimum wage and supporting unionization would improve job quality and encourage people to stay and work locally.

Morrison called for an immediate pause on all AI data centres until a public-interest audit is completed and restrictions are introduced. She said generative AI consumes significant resources, amplifies misinformation, diminishes livelihoods and threatens personal privacy. She also proposed allowing people to opt out of websites’ algorithms, strengthening the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy acts, and banning surveillance pricing.

She said B.C. needs a managed transition away from fossil fuels. In her view, fracking and gas extraction release harmful emissions in communities and worsen the climate crisis. Rather than subsidizing those companies, she said, major polluters should pay their fair share for cleanup. She proposed working with First Nations and local governments to prepare for wildfires, floods, drought, extreme heat and other hazards, creating more urban forestry and green buildings to cool neighbourhoods, and promoting heat-pump installation so people can access cool spaces with clean air.

For forest planning, Morrison said each area’s needs for ecosystem health should be identified first, then used to set long-term forestry limits for workers and businesses. She proposed permanently protecting all old growth and banning clear-cutting, providing conservation financing for Indigenous-led protection, and replacing lost forestry revenues where needed. She said water should be protected for people and the environment rather than the profits of data centres or bottled-water companies. She also proposed coordinating watershed planning, monitoring and restoration with First Nations and local governments.

Morrison strongly supports proportional representation, calling the first-past-the-post system outdated. She said the Greens would introduce legislation for a proportional system for the 2030 election. Responding to concerns that proportional representation could give extremist parties power, she said the current system does not prevent that because major parties adopt extreme policies to win those voters. She said a recent all-party B.C. committee examining proportional representation recommended a citizens’ assembly to consider options, but Eby shut it down. She added that many democracies use proportional representation and she believes B.C. can find a system that works.

Morrison said more transportation options benefit communities, allowing people to use transit when a destination is too far to walk, promoting active lifestyles and potentially helping people with some disabilities travel farther. She welcomed the introduction of scooter parking stations, saying scooters left in the way on sidewalks had blocked people with disabilities and created a safety hazard.

Morrison said the province has not provided enough for new schools. Citing research by the British Columbia Teachers Federation, she said provincial education funding covered only 75 per cent of what B.C. school districts spent, a gap that has persisted for at least 18 years. The BC Greens would close it, develop a detailed plan to ensure school facilities meet high standards for safety, functionality and climate resilience, and review per-pupil funding to create a new, needs-based, stable and sustainable model for each district’s costs.

On ambulance response times, Morrison proposed better emergency-department funding and preventive care to reduce call volumes. She said when early intervention is unavailable, conditions can worsen into more severe health issues that are costly and resource-intensive to treat. The BC Greens would establish an integrated Community Health Centre in every riding, support effective ER triage with more long-term-care beds, and fund Virtual Group Care for people with complex chronic diseases. She also proposed working with health unions to improve medical professionals’ working conditions and retain care staff.

Morrison also opposes privatized medical care. She said she has spent time in the U.S. and believes people may not realize how expensive care can be even with employer coverage. She said the Eby government spends millions of dollars each year on private care, contributing to staffing shortages in public hospitals and higher costs due to profit margins and labour costs. She also said private care in Alberta has reduced surgical capacity and worsened wait times. The BC Greens would keep public dollars focused on health care so all British Columbians can access needed care regardless of income.

Morrison said she decided to run because she shares voters’ frustration with the state of government and political games between major parties. She wants policies that improve things and to give voters that choice. If elected, she said, she would not get bogged down in campaigning and politicking, but would remember why she ran and focus on the issues.