Please note that the Members’ Guide to Policy and Resources is currently being reviewed for the upcoming Parliament of the Legislative Assembly. Some information on this website is outdated. If you would like clarification on transition-related content, please see the transition guides. If you have questions about other content, please reach out to Client Care at clientcare@leg.bc.ca.

 

The Legislative Assembly website is a comprehensive source for House records, transcripts and webcasts of proceedings, and legislative resources. This section describes key documents and proceedings, including related links.

Orders of the Day

The Orders of the Day (commonly referred to as the Order Paper) is the daily agenda for House activities, published in advance of every sitting. Available daily in print and on the Legislative Assembly website during sittings, the Orders of the Day provide an overview of the status of business before the Assembly.

Votes and Proceedings

Votes and Proceedings is the official summary of the proceedings of the Legislative Assembly. Similar to minutes, the Votes and Proceedings include a listing of all bills and motions introduced, documents tabled, decisions of the Legislative Assembly, and vote results. The Votes and Proceedings are made available in print and online the morning following a sitting.

At the end of a session, the Votes and Proceedings are compiled into the Journals, the formal and permanent record of proceedings.

Transcripts and Webcasts (Hansard)

The Official Report of Debates and Proceedings (commonly referred to as “Hansard”) is a substantially verbatim report of all remarks in Assembly debates and of meetings of its committees. A preliminary draft transcript called the “Blues” is produced for all Assembly debates and proceedings. The Blues are produced and posted online on an ongoing basis during any given sitting or meeting, with the complete Blues typically available online approximately an hour after adjournment.

Blues are further revised and edited before being published as the Official Report of Debates (House) or the Report of Proceedings (Parliamentary Committees). All final Hansard documents are published in a digitally certified, archival PDF standard and posted on the Legislative Assembly website.

Hansard Services also provides live television coverage and webcast services for all proceedings of the Assembly and its committees, including travelling committees. Archived broadcasts and webcasts are available on the Legislative Assembly website. The Channel Guide and Broadcast Schedule provide information about where and when to view proceedings throughout the province on cable television. Live television broadcasts are also available within the Legislative Assembly via an in-house cable television system.

Transcripts, indexes and webcasts of the debates of Legislative Assembly (including Committee of the Whole and Committee of Supply) may be accessed at Debates (Hansard).

Transcripts, indexes and webcasts of committee proceedings may be accessed at Parliamentary Committees.

Guidelines for the use of Hansard video and transcripts can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly website.

Bills

Full text of First Reading, amended, and Third Reading bills are available on the Legislative Assembly website. There you can find information on:

  • Progress of bills: Lists the status of bills before the House.
  • List of bills with Hansard debates: Contains links to stage-by-stage debates on Bills.
  • Bills from previous sessions: Lists bills introduced in previous sessions, including dates of passage.

Statutes and Regulations

Consolidated versions of B.C. statutes and regulations are searchable on the B.C. Laws website. Information is updated continually as new and amended laws come into force. The BC Laws website also contains information on:

  • Provisions in Force: Lists all statutes enacted, amended, or repealed for a particular session.
  • B.C. Regulations Bulletins: Contains summaries of regulations by statute.
  • Order in Council and Ministerial Order Resumes: Lists government decisions implemented by Orders in Council, including reports of the decisions, listed chronologically by year.

Related links

Act/Ministry Responsibilities

Lists statutes and the minister responsible both alphabetically and by ministry. In most cases, an entire act is assigned to one minister, but in some cases, the responsibility is shared.

Summary of Ministry Responsibilities

Lists the general responsibilities of each ministry, along with major agencies, boards and commissions.