{"id":502342,"date":"2026-02-27T04:54:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T04:54:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/502342\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T04:54:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T04:54:07","slug":"federal-minister-acknowledges-historic-b-c-snub-calls-for-greater-ottawa-presence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/502342\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal minister acknowledges historic B.C. snub, calls for greater Ottawa presence"},"content":{"rendered":"

Federal Housing Minister Gregor Robertson, the former Mayor of Vancouver, says British Columbia must continue pushing for a stronger voice in Ottawa, acknowledging that the province has historically struggled to command attention in the nation\u2019s capital.<\/p>\n

Speaking at an event hosted by the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade (GVBOT) last week, Robertson responded to concerns that B.C. can be overlooked due to geography and political dynamics centred in Central Canada and Eastern Canada.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think historically, that has been the case,\u201d said Robertson. \u201cIt\u2019s been tough to get Ottawa\u2019s attention on B.C. \u2026 We\u2019re a big country, and B.C.\u2019s as far away as it gets.\u201d<\/p>\n

Robertson, who serves as B.C.\u2019s most senior member in the cabinet of Prime Minister Mark Carney, said the province\u2019s influence has grown over the past decade. He credited stronger representation and what he described as a more coordinated effort among B.C. Members of Parliament.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have 20 B.C. Members of Parliament in the government caucus right now, which is the biggest complement we\u2019ve ever been in,\u201d he said, referring to what he called the \u201cB.C. Pacific Caucus.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur work is not done\u2026 there is relentless pressure from the East Coast, from Alberta. There\u2019s always Ontario and Quebec that surround Ottawa.\u201d<\/p>\n

Robertson encouraged business leaders and community representatives to increase their presence in the capital.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to do everything we can to fly the B.C. flag in Ottawa,\u201d he said. \u201cWe just have to be at the table, and that means showing up at every opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

The discussion also turned to Vancouver\u2019s bid to become the global headquarters office location of the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB)<\/a> \u2014 a newly created multilateral institution designed to finance defence, security, and resilience projects for North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) members and allied nations.<\/p>\n

The bank\u2019s headquarters could generate an estimated 3,500 high-paying jobs in its host city, providing significant long-term economic spinoffs and positioning a city to have greater global influence.<\/p>\n

The first step would be to convince NATO members to select Canada for the bank\u2019s headquarters, at which point, if successful, it would be up to Prime Minister Carney and his cabinet to decide on the precise Canadian city.<\/p>\n

GVBOT is backing the bid for Vancouver to land on the lucrative headquarters. While Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal may have traditional advantages as financial and diplomatic hubs, proponents argue Vancouver\u2019s geographic position as an Asia-Pacific gateway makes it strategically compelling.<\/p>\n

While the final decision on the bank\u2019s Canadian location rests with the Prime Minister, Robertson\u2019s remarks signalled cautious optimism that Vancouver could compete on the national stage \u2014 provided B.C. continues to assert itself in Ottawa.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbsolutely, we stand a chance,\u201d said Robertson when asked about Vancouver\u2019s prospects, while noting that as a cabinet minister he must avoid appearing to favour one Canadian city over another.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Prime Minister\u2019s got to make that decision,\u201d added Robertson. \u201cFirst and foremost, Canada has a really, really great opportunity here. We are positioned very well for this.\u201d<\/p>\n

He praised local advocates for advancing the proposal and encouraged continued engagement as negotiations among NATO countries progress this spring.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we get over that hurdle \u2014 which is looking promising right now \u2014 huge thanks to your work,\u201d he said. \u201cKeep up that strong advocacy. It makes a real difference.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Federal Housing Minister Gregor Robertson, the former Mayor of Vancouver, says British Columbia must continue pushing for a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":502343,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194295],"tags":[49,48,20739],"class_list":["post-502342","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ottawa","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-ottawa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502342","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=502342"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502342\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/502343"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=502342"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=502342"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=502342"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}