NDP House Leader Farnworth says government plans passing 18 bills during fall session

VICTORIA — British Columbia house leader Mike Farnworth says the NDP government plans to pass 18 bills in the fall session of the legislature by the time it ends in late November.

Farnworth says the government will focus on growing the economy, protecting health care and dealing with affordability and good governance issues, adding most of the bills will be tabled during the session's first week to give MLAs time to read the legislation.

He says one of the bills would enable BC Hydro's planned North Coast Transmission Line between Prince George and Terrace.

The house leader says government will not bring back elements pulled from a bill in response to American tariffs, which spurred criticism over powers it would have given government to revise almost every law and regulation in B.C. th