Rosalyn Bird says she’s noticed a change in her discussions with area residents since getting elected this fall.
On Oct. 19, Bird was elected as the BC Conservative MLA for Prince George-Valemount, succeeding Shirley Bond after her 23 years in the Legislative Assembly.
The former naval officer received 55.2 per cent of vote cast, beating out BC NDP candidate Clay Pountney and Green candidate Gwen Johannson.
“It’s been an interesting journey,” Bird reflected in a Dec. 20 interview looking back at 2024 and looking ahead to 2025. “It’s been quite different since the election than before the election. The types of things that people are bringing to you or talking to you, they’re much more individual-focused rather than community-focused.”
That’s not to say that Bird is shifting her focus away from the communities she now serves.
On Dec 15, a public memorial service was held for the late former BC Premier John Horgan. Bird said she would have loved to attend, but she’d already committed to attending a Christmas Party held by members of the local Filipino community.
She said she felt heading into the election that there was a disconnect between people and their elected officials at all levels of government.
“People are starting to get more vocal about that and the fact that they’re wanting to see change,” Bird said. “I also think that post-COVID, people were very frustrated that they couldn’t reach people whether it was in a mayor’s office, whether it was a BC services office. There was this point in time where it was very, very difficult to get anything done.”
This was something Bird said she heard a lot about while knocking on doors during the campaign and she thinks part of party leader John Rustad’s success was a promise that the BC Conservatives would handle things differently.
Going to community events is part of that process.
“(it’s about) getting out there, talking to people and being communicative and letting them know that you’re there to hear their voices and concerns,” Bird said.
As a member of the party’s board of directors, Bird said she always believed that Rustad should be party leader. She also said she was “very hopeful” they would form government, but she’s not unhappy with the Tories being just two seats shy of the NDP in their first stint as Official Opposition since 1937.
Her faith in Rustad and the party was repaid when she was named to Rustad’s shadow cabinet as critic for citizen services.
Bird said she doesn’t think a lot of people realize just how big the portfolio is and what it entails. The ministry handles files like Service BC offices, the province’s IT strategy, BC Services Cards, properties and real estate services, government filings, open government documents, freedom of information requests and internet connectivity.
Among those mandates, Bird said connectivity is one of her priorities. After the pandemic, she said a lot of people learned how important connectivity is for their physical, mental and spiritual health and communities learned how important it is for their economic health.
Connectivity is especially important for her constituents in the Robson Valley, she said, given the area’s focus on tourism. She also said it’s important for rural and northern communities, especially for First Nations.
While she said she wouldn’t frame the situation as Jasper’s loss being her constituency’s gain, Bird said some people who would have visited the national park before its devastating fire this past summer might be interested in visiting the Robson Valley for its backcountry recreational activities and those opportunities need to be communicated to potential tourists.
One of her party’s priorities, she said, is to boost economic development and employment opportunities. One of the areas she said she believes will be key to that is boosting the fortunes of BC’s resource sector.
On that front, she said she’s supportive of her Prince George-Mackenzie caucus colleague Kiel Giddens to deal with a foreign subsidy issue that Tidewater Renewables said is making it difficult for its Prince George diesel refinery to compete.
Bird also wants to help the province’s forestry industry.
“I am exploring a project currently in the McBride area with a private investory who is wanting to open a pellet plant,” Bird said.
The MLA’s other focuses for her constituency include looking into bringing a new hospital to the Robson Valley and improving road safety for Highway 5 between Tête Jaune Cache and Kamloops.
When the NDP and Greens announced their post-election confidence and supply agreement, the parties agreed that they would work together “to implement frequent, reliable, affordable regional transit on key interregional routes,” including Highway 16.
Transportation along the corridor is important, Bird said, especially for people travelling to and from medical appointments.
“There has to be a solid and well thought out transportation plan to address those types of things, but particularly around health care,” she said.
She said she’d also like to see more detox and publicly-funded recovery beds for those recovering from addictions, as well as wraparound supports.
While her constituency office isn’t open for business yet, Bird said hopefully it’ll be ready in the new year. In the meantime, constituents can reach her by emailing [email protected] or calling her assistant Wanda Jones at 778-744-8598.
