NDP Leader David Eby Friday (Sep. 27) Friday pledged the introduction of province-wide standards and pre-approved designs for pre-manufactured homes. 

Eby said his pledge responds to calls from industry to eliminate red tape and streamline process. "If the design is approved for the whole province, that means they don't have to go municipality by municipality to negotiate, 'are you going to approve this...?'" he said. "That standardization across the province brings efficiencies for them." 

He added that pre-approved designs also create efficiencies for municipalities. "They know (designs) are approved by the province," Eby said. "They know that they don't face any liability if they sign off on them. They are able to get them built quickly and efficiently and affordably for families in their communities." 

Eby added would-be buyers can also count on getting quality products, noting that pre-manufactured homes generally use less resources and face fewer quality issues because their construction takes place in controlled environments. Pre-manufacturing also requires fewer skilled trades and trades themselves find themselves working in better environments, he added. 

"It's just faster, cheaper, easier and more efficient for everybody," Eby said. 

Eby made the announcement in Cumberland, where six New Democratic candidates (George Anderson, Michele Babchuk, Stephanie Higginson, Ronna-Rae Leonard, Shelia Malcolmson and Josie Osborne) joined him at ORCA, a modular home construction company. 

Eby said fast-tracking the growth of B.C.'s pre-manufactured home industry will create more housing cheaper and faster. Cutting red tape at home can also stimulate the industry's expansion into other markets, he added. 

Eby framed pledges for province-wide standards and designs for pre-manufactured homes as part of a larger push to create more housing across B.C. inclusive additional investments in skills training announced Thursday in Chilliwack. 

"What we are doing is, we are systematically going through and removing every barrier to build that housing we need, whether it is red tape at the municipal level, whether it is red tape at the provincial level or lengthy permit approval times, whether it is a lack of standardization or inconsistent standards between cities for things like pre-manufactured homes...," he said. 

Eby's appearance in Cumberland came after campaigning in Nanaimo Thursday evening, where he pledged to build another hospital tower in that community. Eby's stop in Cumberland is part and parcel of a larger swing nearly along the entire length of Vancouver Island. 

While the region has historically favoured New Democratic in recent elections, the Conservative Party of B.C. under John Rustad is looking to challenge the NDP's dominance, at least in the central and northern parts of the island.

Many of its communities have felt the economic effects stemming from B.C.'s declining forestry sector and communities like Port Hardy have almost become synonymous with health care challenges also seen in smaller communities of B.C.'s interior. Meanwhile, ridings in and around Nanaimo — the largest urban area on Vancouver Island outside Greater Victoria — have also experienced health care challenges, while dealing with rising housing prices and growing concerns about public safety and homelessness. 

Conservatives have recognized the electoral potential of these regions and Rustad held a large campaign kick-off event in Black Creek north of Cumberland and his party's mailing address lies in Courtenay. 

When asked whether he was concerned about holding on to these mid-to-northern Vancouver Island ridings, Eby said his campaign is not taking anything for granted. 

"We got to show up," he said. "We got to show people this is where we are headed, this is how we are taking on health care, this is how we are going to make sure you will have access to a family doctor, this is how we are going to make sure you will have access to a home," he said. Eby then drew an analogy to 2013, when he campaigned and defeated the then-incumbent premier Christy Clark, who was the MLA for Vancouver-Point Grey. Eby said he won by being physically present in the community.

"You will see that from my campaign," he said. "I'm going to be physically present in as many places as I can be. We started yesterday in Chilliwack and then we were in Nanaimo. Today, we are going to be all over the Island and meet people where they are at and answer their questions and be open about what the challenges we face, but also what the opportunities and solutions are, of which today's announcement is one of them."