Not really new information, but FWIW
Editorial: B.C. will never be financially responsible under Eby's leadership
Premier David Eby’s New Democratic Party government is addicted to spending money it does not have.
British Columbians have had a few days to digest all the bad news in the provincial budget, one of the most irresponsible, disastrous and tone-deaf budgets in our history.
If there is a bright side, it’s that Finance Minister Brenda Bailey’s budget could have been worse — but rest assured, the worst is yet to come.
Premier David Eby’s New Democratic Party government is addicted to spending money it does not have. Borrowing it, in other words. That pushes responsibility down the road, making it someone else’s problem.
In this budget, the provincial government plans to tax more, borrow more and spend more — and it still can’t do everything it has promised to do. That’s almost beyond belief.
At times, deficit budgets make sense. Deficits in an economic downturn, for example, can help the province get through without serious cuts to services. But when deficits become the accepted norm, as they are under Eby, they create long-term problems for short-term gain.
All those deficits add to the provincial debt. The larger the debt, the less room the province will have to work on behalf of British Columbians, through good times and bad.
Consider the numbers:
The 2026-27 deficit will be $13.3 billion, the largest deficit in B.C. history. That is being driven by provincial spending, which is up 40 per cent in five years.
Revenue in that time is up only 18 per cent, which means more than half of the increase comes from borrowing. Debt servicing works out to $1,147 per person per year.