VICTORIA – After a 200-day hiatus, Premier Clark has finally returned to the Legislature to face scrutiny on just how well her government is doing on meeting its election promise: a debt-free BC. The Throne Speech, which is intended to provide a framework for how the government intends to proceed is just like the BC Liberals’ election promise; without any basis in fact, says Columbia River – Revelstoke MLA Norm Macdonald.
“The continued claim that the BC Liberals will be presenting a balanced budget, similar to the claims that have been made for the last 6 years, are simply not accurate,” Macdonald said in a statement released Tuesday, February 11. “This government continues to rely on questionable practices to make the budget appear as if it is balanced.”
Short-sighted methods such as liquidating government assets and requiring BC Hydro to borrow money in order to pay dividends into the provincial government’s general revenue are simply unsustainable.
“In the real world, where most British Columbians live, we’ve seen rising provincial debt, drastic increases in costs such as BC Hydro rates, as well as serious job losses,” he said. “This Throne Speech does nothing to address these serious issues.”
Since the last sitting of the Legislature, BC’s debt has risen by $2.5 billion, climbing faster under Christy Clark than any premier in our province’s history. BC Hydro rates will rise 26% over the next five years. And BC lost another 8,500 private sector jobs last month.
“Instead of providing real leadership and providing solutions to the real problems that British Columbians face, this government is proving its only interest is in playing political games.”
