Surrounded by a large group of supporters, Premier Christy Clark reiterated her families-first platform at a rally Tuesday in Comox, following a stop promoting economic development at the new Comox Valley Discovery Centre.
"What can government do to make families healthy and whole? We can enable or impair the creation of jobs," said Clark at the Black Fin Pub. "We need to recognize that government can do something to support families, and that's to enable the creation of jobs all across the province so that families have the ability to support the people they love and do the job that's so necessary to building a great country."
Clark noted her government has a unique role to play — enable the creation of jobs while connecting citizens to the value of a healthy economy.
"(In our province) it has gotten so easy to be against everything. Everyone is against cutting down trees, or they're against that development, or they're against that mine, or they're against oil and gas, or they're against hunting and fishing.
"Not everybody, but there's a significant portion of our province, and I think we have to start connecting people in their personal lives to a healthy economy, so when they think about what's happening over here with economic development, they might say to themselves 'even if I don't get a job from that directly, my neighbour might be getting a job from that,' " she noted.
Rather than thinking about what people are against, British Columbians have to stand up for what they want to make happen in the province, Clark added.
"What is it that we're in favour of?" she asked. "There's so much opportunity out there. When I talk about jobs, and I talk about families, it's trying to connect the two. So that we understand that our individual health and happiness and future depends on actually being for something then against it."
Afterwards, Clark spoke to media, emphasizing again her connection between families and strong economic growth.
"We need to find way to start saying yes to economic development. It's when jobs are created, that families can be healthy. If families have jobs to be able to but food on the tables for their kids, because our economy thriving, our country is going to be really strong," she said.
Clark said she spent time Tuesday afternoon talking with members of the Comox Valley Economic Development (CVEDS) board, adding there is a strong interest in furthering economic development between the Valley and Asia-Pacific.
"We have a big focus on that as a government. (CVEDS) wants to be part of our trade mission to Asia-Pacific, which I think would be great, because the Comox Valley is so unique and has so much to offer economically and tourism-wise," she noted.
"(Asia-Pacific) is the fastest growing middle class in the history of humanity ... (and the) fastest urbanization. We want to be there and I think the Comox Valley should be there, too."
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