Nina Krieger, centre, member of the BC Legislative Assembly for Victoria-Swan Lake, connects with community members. Krieger is the new public safety minister and solicitor general. <\/i>(photo from Nina Krieger)<\/i><\/p>\n
<\/i>After a cabinet shuffle last week, Nina Krieger, member of the legislative assembly for Victoria-Swan Lake, is the new public safety minister and solicitor general, replacing Garry Begg, who became parliamentary secretary for Surrey infrastructure.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Saying she is \u201chumbled and excited\u201d to take on the position, Krieger told the Independent<\/i>: \u201cOur province faces complex challenges, and I am committed to working with my colleagues, local governments, Indigenous leadership, police services, business and community organizations to build safe, healthy and resilient communities for everyone.<\/p>\n \u201cPublic safety is one of the central issues of our time,\u201d she said, \u201cand British Columbians are looking to us to strengthen public safety through effective support of our law enforcement services and working across government to address the root causes of public disorder.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI look forward to working with partners around the province to take meaningful action to keep BC a safe place to live, work and enjoy this beautiful province we call home,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Before being elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia last fall, Krieger was the executive director of the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre (VHEC). She takes over her new cabinet position after having served as parliamentary secretary for arts and film. Prior to this shift in roles, she spoke with the Independent<\/i> about her time in office since being sworn in.<\/p>\n \u201cThe role of MLA is a unique opportunity and responsibility. I don\u2019t think anything can quite prepare you for the busy, ever-changing schedule, and the range of issues and people that you encounter on any given day,\u201d Krieger said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe learning curve is steep but exciting and I\u2019m grateful to be learning alongside other new MLAs, from veteran members of caucus and from the incredible teams behind the scenes at the BC legislature.\u201d<\/p>\n Krieger describes the move from the VHEC as \u201cbittersweet,\u201d saying it was difficult to leave an organization and a community for which she cares deeply. Nonetheless, she said the skills, experience and values she honed during her work at VHEC have proved meaningful and timely in her current role.<\/p>\n \u201cI keep in close touch with former colleagues and the Holocaust survivor community and was honoured to return to the VHEC this spring to emcee a Yom Hashoah commemorative program featuring Premier David Eby, presented in partnership with the Province of BC and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Her introduction to the legislative side of the MLA job came during the recent spring session that concluded in May. She sat in the house and committee rooms, sometimes late into the night, delivering speeches about her community and constituents\u2019 achievements and needs, as well as debating and voting on proposed legislation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI was proud to deliver several statements in the house, marking days of significance for BC\u2019s Jewish community,\u201d said Krieger.<\/p>\n \u201cThis spring, government passed legislation to protect consumers, respond to the threat of tariffs and implement countermeasures, deliver more renewable energy projects and major infrastructure projects, among other work,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n During the summer months, MLAs return to their communities.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI visit and meet with local organizations to hear about the work they do and how we can spotlight and support them,\u201d she said. \u201cI also have the chance to attend local events as an MLA over the summer, from graduation ceremonies to festivals, markets and sports games. With so many amazing people putting on great events around town here over the summer, it adds to the fun of this role.\u201d<\/p>\n As the parliamentary secretary for arts and film, Krieger worked closely with the minister of tourism, arts, culture and sport to advance the\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n development and growth of British Columbia\u2019s film, television and animation sectors, as well as supporting and growing the arts and culture sectors in the province. One of the perks of that job was attending film-related events and meetings, like local film festivals.<\/p>\n \u201cIt has been amazing to see the talent and work coming out of BC, and rewarding to stand strong in support of workers in the face of tariff threats,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Krieger acknowledges that it is a difficult time for Jews in the province and throughout Canada, with challenges in finding their political \u201chomes.\u201d She is grateful that there were Jewish voters whose values aligned with those of the BC NDP.<\/p>\n \u201cI know that there is work to do to ensure that Jewish people in BC feel safe and supported, and that nobody is targeted because of who they are,\u201d Krieger said. \u201cCombatting antisemitism \u2013 which is illiberal, toxic to democracy and dangerous \u2013 requires the work of all levels of government and civil society.\u201d<\/p>\n She continues to be in active contact with Jewish constituents and community leaders in Victoria, which, she says, is home to a diverse Jewish community. Constituents from a range of backgrounds have contacted her and expressed deep concern about the toll of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war on the civilian populations of the region.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhile foreign policy is beyond my scope as a provincial representative, it is vital to discuss ways to ensure that BC is a safe and inclusive place for all people,\u201d Krieger said. \u201cFrom my work as a Holocaust educator, I know that it is vital to counter misinformation, disinformation and conspiracy theories, which can fan the flames of xenophobia, antisemitism and hate, and keep communities divided. In my work as MLA, I hope to counter this by bringing people together, modeling respectful dialogue and upholding the values of truth and trust in democratic institutions.\u201d<\/p>\n Krieger explained that her experience as an anti-racism educator showed her the importance of listening and continually learning with openness and compassion. It is relevant to her current work, she believes, because she is entrusted with the stories and experiences of many constituents, which are often shared to build a more just and inclusive society.<\/p>\n \u201cThe province helps fund anti-racism and anti-hate work done around BC,\u201d said Krieger, \u201cand I have the opportunity to talk to organizers that are the recipients of grant funding and hear about their work, share experiences and learn how we can continue to collaborate to do this vital work effectively.\u201d<\/p>\n Sam Margolis<\/b> has written for the <\/i>Globe and Mail, the <\/i>National Post, UPI and MSNBC.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Nina Krieger, centre, member of the BC Legislative Assembly for Victoria-Swan Lake, connects with community members. Krieger is the new public safety minister and solicitor general. (photo from Nina Krieger) After a cabinet shuffle last week, Nina Krieger, member of the legislative assembly for Victoria-Swan Lake, is the new public safety minister and solicitor general, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":47248,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[801,6422,6312,24191,1291,3597,597,2364],"class_list":["post-47246","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-local","tag-antisemitism","tag-british-columbia","tag-governance","tag-mlas","tag-nina-krieger","tag-politics","tag-vancouver-holocaust-education-centre","tag-vhec"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47246","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47246"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47246\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47248"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}