The B.C. Liberal critic for liquor and gaming recently stopped in Crranbrook to hear feedback from local business owners concerned about provincial approval wait times for retail cannabis licenses.
John Yap, the MLA for Richmond-Steveson, joined Kooteany East MLA Tom Shypikta to meet with local residents concerned about liquor and cannabis policies — topics that fall under the former’s shadow critic responsibilities.
The City of Cranbrook has given the nod to roughly eight zoning applications for non-medical cannabis retail locations, however, businesses need approval from the B.C. Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch in order to open their doors.
And those wait times are taking months, and retail cannabis business owners are frustrated at the lack of updates or information on the status of their applications, says Yap.
“It’s affecting entrepeneurs, it’s affecting investment into the community, and it’s affecting jobs,” Yap said. “Each of these locations, if they are approved and get up and running, will mean investment and jobs in the community.”
Shypitka and Yap said they want to draft a letter to David Eby, B.C.’s Attorney General and the office that manages the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch — to get some answers as to why private cannabis retail licenses are taking so long to get approved.
“I can’t tell my constituents why they’ve been approved municipally back in January, [yet] seven or eight months later, they still have heard nothing from the government,” Shypitka said.
Shypitka said that he had a meeting with one retail cannabis proponent who might lose their lease space because the process has taken so long.
He also pointed out that a retail cannabis location operated by the BC Liquor Distribution Branch is set to open at the Cranbrook Save-On-Foods plaza in a week, while private proponents are still waiting for their applications to move forward.
Both Yap and Shypitka also heard concerns about challenges for liquor licencees, such as bars or nightclubs, over wholesale sales service from the B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch.
Yap said he’s received feedback from private and independent liquor stores who say that B.C. Liquor Stores are given preference from the B.C. Liquor Distirbution Brach.
“Whether that’s true or not, they perceive that, so it’ll be something that we’ll be advocating that the LDB has to address and try to improve,” Yap said.
Both MLAs have also been told that liability insurance costs for liquor establishments are continuing to rise.
In addition to liquor and gaming files, Yap also serves as the critic for ICBC, the provincial crown corporation that manages auto insurance.
Changes to auto insurance are coming in September designed to penalize bad drivers instead of tying penalties to registered vehicles, but Yap noted that there is no universal standard to define and assess good or bad drivers.
The B.C. Liberal Party is advocating for opening up the market to competition between insurance providers in order to reduce costs, Yap added.
“It’s a system that’s served B.C. well for 45 years, but I think in this day and age, we need to consider other ways to deliver a needed service,” he said.
He also criticized a proposal that would see minor injury claims capped at $5,500 and questioned what defines a minor injury. Concussions, for example, fall under the definition of a minor injury, however, it will not be limited to the $5,500 cap if symptoms last longer than four months.
