Liberals promise funding for mental health workers to partner with police

B.C. Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson says his party would expand a program that pairs police officers with mental health workers if the party wins the provincial election.

During a campaign event in Vancouver today, Wilkinson said a Liberal government would provide $58 million to hire 100 psychiatric social workers and registered nurses to staff joint teams with police to answer mental health calls.

He says the Liberals would also hire 200 more police officers to fill vacancies across British Columbia and 40 new Crown prosecutors.

As Wilkinson sought to boost the party's law-and-order brand, NDP Leader John Horgan unveiled further details of the party's 10-year cancer care plan.

The plan is part of the NDP platform released Tuesday and Horgan says it will mean bringing cancer care centres to Kamloops and Nanaimo, as well as renovations and upgrades for existing facilities.

In the first five years, the plan says patients will have one point of contact during their treatment.