Jane Shin

Early life and education

Shin was born in South Korea and emigrated to Canada when she was 11 years old. Around her 16th birthday she was hospitalised for a serious health crisis which was attributed to leukemia or aplastic anemia. According to Shin, the experience made her a passionate advocate for Canada's health care system.

Two months after her 16th birthday, Shin was awarded $400 by the City of Surrey, British Columbia as part of their inaugural Youth Recognition Awards. As a child, Shin had volunteered for the Canadian Red Cross Society, Greenpeace, the Multicultural Society of B.C. and others.

"When my family's small ice cream store failed, my parents, in their 50s, found the courage to go back to school and earn their credentials in health care," Shin said in the Legislature. "My family is a testament to our fight to keep quality education accessible and affordable for all of us, even for the oldest, like my parents." She added, "I'll be continuing that good fight in this Legislature for our students, our families and our educators."

Shin studied genetics and cell biology at the University of British Columbia for several years but did not receive an undergraduate degree. Shin later completed a doctorate in medicine in 2007 from Spartan Health Sciences University in Vieux Fort, St. Lucia, in the Caribbean, an institution recognised by both the B.C. College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Medical Council of Canada. During medical school, Shin performed clinical rotations at University of Edinburgh, Dalhousie University, and John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital. Shin's rotation research at the Royal Victoria Infirmary of Newcastle upon Tyne co-authored two publications on chronic fatigue syndrome.

Shin later decided that she preferred teaching over conventional medical practice, and thus did not complete a residency necessary to gain a license to practice medicine in British Columbia. Shin has taught at British Columbia Institute of Technology, Vancouver Community College, and West Coast College of Massage Therapy.

Provincial politics

Shin's intention to seek the Burnaby-Lougheed NDP nomination under the party leadership of Adrian Dix was announced in May 2012. Shin's competitor for the nomination was Craig Langston. Shin won the nomination in November 2012, ahead of the 2013 provincial election.

During the campaign, Shin faced allegations that she had misrepresented her educational credentials in her campaign materials, although she quickly corrected the misunderstandings and clarified that they were not intentional.

Shin defeated Liberal candidate Ken Kramer, who replaced the retiring Harry Bloy who had held the riding for 12 years, with 44.26% of the votes over Kramer's 40.59% and Green Party candidate Darwin Burns with only 8.23%, and B.C. Conservative candidate Christine Clark, who ran unaffiliated due to a paperwork glitch, earned just 6.92% of total votes. The confusion during the campaign and Shin's subsequent election victory earned her the 2013 Newsmaker of the Year title from Burnaby Now.

Shin is currently the deputy spokesperson for Trade, Immigration, and Multiculturalism in the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet, and serves on the Select Standing Committee for Health. Shin had previously been assigned the Deputy Critic role for International Trade, Asia Pacific Strategy, Multiculturalism, Immigration, Intergovernmental Relations and, prior to that, Small Business, Tourism, and Arts and Culture.

Shin's first motion was a private member's bill to permit electronic petitions from the public to be accepted by the legislature. The bill was designed to enhance petitioning with increased accessibility and efficiency said Shin in Victoria. “Electronic petitions can serve as a low-barrier entry point for our citizens, especially the youth, to communicate their concerns to this House.”

Shin later introduced Bill M-215, the Business Practices and Consumer Protection (Money Transfers) Amendment Act. This seeks to cap the fees a money broker can charge for international money transactions, and insists they mark that fee as a line item so consumers can tell who has the best (and worst) rates.

In late 2016 Shin announced that she will not run in the 2017 provincial election. The BC NDP nominated Katrina Chen, a Burnaby school trustee, and the BC Liberals nominated Steve Darling.