Rishi Sharma, a project manager for the BC Construction Association and a construction industry veteran, has announced he will be the BC Liberal candidate for Saanich South.
In addition to his role as director of corporate initiatives and stakeholder/intergovernmental relations for the province, Sharma has spent the last year championing the BC Builders Code. The code seeks to create inclusive, safe and diverse construction jobsites.
Sharma believes his background working with tools has helped him hone problem solving skills that could prove useful in government.
Sharma attended Camosun College where he learned appliance repair and welding.
“Going through that I learned the benefits of basic troubleshooting and how to think strategically about what is wrong with something,” said Sharma.
Sharma – who grew up in a family that worked in mills, built roads and constructed homes – was constantly learning new construction skills. By age 12 he was using a jackhammer and he even had to sleep in a house his family was framing to stop thieves from taking windows. He went on to become an ironworker, a millworker and built his own home on Vancouver Island.
Sharma said he has been talking to Saanich residents to get a sense of what their concerns are.
“We need more homes,” said Sharma. “Housing is a big issue. I know climate change and action on that is a serious issue. Economic development and business development is also something we will be focusing on driving. People are the core of the economy so we will look at how we can get people spending being a part of creating this new economic system.”
Sharma noted the Liberals’ promise to cut provincial sales tax could do just that, especially in construction where it could ease costs for goods that many trades use.
“I have a sincere appreciation for the construction sector and how it has helped me in my life and moving forward I want to help it,” said Sharma. “If the Liberals are lucky enough to win, I would like to get construction highlighted more in government. There should be a minister who represents just the construction sector. I think we deserve a bit more attention than we are getting.”
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