Lawrence Chen × Keenan Yang | Highlights Pt. 1: No Election, No One Listens | 2026 BC Election
【0:00 Highlights】
"I said, if you're not going to speak Chinese, I won't open an account here. I'm leaving." Fluent spoken English, an IELTS score of 7 — and he still couldn't stay. 
【0:10 Opening & campaign slogan】
Friends from the community, good evening, and welcome to tonight's CanWest Party press conference. I'm your host tonight, Sarah. What's your campaign slogan this time? "When the people call, we answer." In English, "Your voice, our action." 
【0:24 No election, no one listens】
And I've seen City Hall improving, taking our concerns into account. Because when you're running, they know you've got voters behind you, so they listen. And the media listen too. At election time, they ask what my platform is, why I'm running. They amplify my voice enormously. Without an election, they'd ignore me. Out on the street, nobody listens to you. Only at election time. Our English wasn't good, and we 
【0:45 The bank account story】
skilled immigrants couldn't find work. So we launched a campaign to get jobs for our own people: when spending money, we'd speak only Chinese, not English. Nothing wrong with that, nothing illegal. One example: I went to a bank to open an account. I brought $5,000. When I got to the bank and said I wanted an account, someone came to help me — Taylor, I think. He rattled away in English. I said, "English, no. Can't speak it." I said, "If you're not going to speak Chinese, I won't open an account here. I'm leaving." And not long after, I found that every bank's front counter had Mandarin-speaking staff. Great! Lao Chen gives us a story — and lessons too. Lessons too. 
【1:27 Voting rights for permanent residents】
Keenan, I'd also like to ask: just now — our CanWest Party is also pushing a policy, right? That our permanent residents, PR card holders, could one day get the right to vote. Everyone pays taxes into this community and this society, contributes, works here, holds jobs here, starts businesses here. Their contributions are really equal. PR holders may, for various other reasons, not be able to become citizens yet, but just like passport holders, they love this land just as much. We can start pushing from today. Without a first step, nothing comes after. Let's talk about everyday issues, 
【2:02 Three years without a family doctor】
like housing affordability, and how hard it is to see a doctor — the long wait times. I went to every clinic in Richmond; not one took new patients. In the end, I went nearly three years without a family doctor. I really want to speak up for family doctors. A few days ago I went to my family doctor and saw on his computer he had 49 patients to see that day. At 15 minutes per patient, his workday runs far past eight hours. I once referred a local 
【2:30 IELTS 7 — and still couldn't stay】
graduate, an international student, to our firm. After graduating, he got a 3-year post-grad work permit and worked with us for three years. But in that time, once in the pool, his score never got drawn. Think about it: a local bachelor's degree, three years' experience at a Western company — that's already Great credentials. Excellent credentials. But this gave me a huge shock: someone with a local bachelor's degree, three years of local work experience, fluent spoken English, an IELTS score of 7 — and he still couldn't stay. He still hasn't come back. That's a federal-level issue. Right, immigration policy. Yes, immigration is federal. We need to raise it with federal MPs.