Both main parties in this election campaign are accusing the other of being big spenders. The BC Liberals claim the BC NDP is making election promises that are too expensive and argue the 1990s (the last time the NDP was in government) was a time of particularly high spending. The BC NDP points out that [...]
Entries Tagged as 'Provincial budget & finance'
Reality check on government spending: is the overspending fear mongering justified
May 9th, 2013 · Iglika Ivanova · 2 Comments · Economy, Provincial budget & finance
Tags: budget·campaign·deficit·government priorities·government spending·Liberals·NDP·platform·recession·role of government·unemployment
Are average Canadians paying too much in taxes?
April 24th, 2013 · Iglika Ivanova · 4 Comments · Economy, Poverty, inequality & welfare, Provincial budget & finance, Taxes
On April 23, the Fraser Institute released the annual update of their misleading Consumer Tax Index report. The piece is meant to feed the anti-tax sentiment with numbers sprinkled liberally for their shock value instead of providing any meaningful analysis. Here are some of the main flaws with the report’s methodology. If what follows sounds [...]
Assessing BC’s Fiscal Health: Can BC afford more deficits?
April 17th, 2013 · Seth Klein · Comments Off · Economy, Provincial budget & finance, Taxes
By Seth Klein and Iglika Ivanova [Note: this piece has also appeared in the Tyee here.] OK, time for a reality check on BC’s deficits. Simply put, while arguments about deficits and “who is the better fiscal manager” may make for entertaining politics, there is no compelling economic reason why BC cannot run a few [...]
BC’s Auditor highlights big differences between the Evergreen and Canada Lines
April 4th, 2013 · Keith Reynolds · 2 Comments · Provincial budget & finance
With all of the uproar over the British Columbia Auditor General’s report on the Pacific Carbon Trust in late March there was a second report that didn’t get as much attention as it deserves. The AG issued his report on the Evergreen Line being built through Coquitlam and Port Moody on March 28th. Compared to [...]
Absolving our Carbon Sins: the Case of the Pacific Carbon Trust
April 2nd, 2013 · Marc Lee · 1 Comment · Climate change, Energy, Environment, resources & sustainability, Provincial budget & finance
Last week’s report from BC’s Auditor General dealt a huge blow to the credibility of carbon offsets and claims that BC had achieved a state of “carbon neutral government.” Coverage of the AG’s report was coloured by accusations from the Pacific Carbon Trust, the Crown corporation created to buy and sell BC offsets, and “experts” [...]
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Your BC income taxes are lower than you think
March 15th, 2013 · Seth Klein · 1 Comment · Provincial budget & finance, Taxes
As we approach tax filing time, here’s a little context regarding your BC income taxes… One of the problems plaguing debates about taxes in BC is that people think they pay much more in provincial income taxes than they actually do. For example, if I suggested that everyone pay 20% more in provincial income taxes, [...]
Tags: Taxes
BC governments extends outsourced health information management despite issues raised by Auditor General
March 11th, 2013 · Keith Reynolds · Comments Off · Health care, Privatization, P3s & public services, Provincial budget & finance
British Columbia’s government today announced it had extended its agreement with Maximus BC, a US subsidiary corporation, to manage BC’s health information for another five years. The $264 million contract will run from 2015 until 2020. The original contract began in 2005. That ten year deal cost $324 million. On a comparable basis the new five year [...]
The Shifting Terrain of Taxes in BC: Budget signals new openness to tax increases
March 3rd, 2013 · Seth Klein · Comments Off · Provincial budget & finance, Taxes
[The following piece was also published on The Tyee here.] These are certainly interesting times. For all the faults in last week’s BC Budget (and there were many), it’s worth noting that the conversation about taxes has fundamentally shifted, and in a welcome direction. After vigorously insisting for years that tax increases would be ruinous [...]
A new government? It’s not as easy as it looks
February 28th, 2013 · Keith Reynolds · Comments Off · Economy, Privatization, P3s & public services, Provincial budget & finance, Transparency & accountability
If there is a new government in BC on May 15th, it will be confronted with issues that make the transition particularly challenging. The financial issues are a given. Debt has gone up. Possibly, given the economic recession we faced, it should have gone up even further. The dramatic rise in long term contractual obligations [...]
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Seniors Advocate position a mixed bag of hopeful and disappointing
February 21st, 2013 · Janine Farrell · 2 Comments · Health care, Provincial budget & finance, Seniors
A year ago (February 2012), the province’s Ombudsperson released a comprehensive report addressing the crisis in BC’s home and community care system, including 176 recommendations for a creating a more accessible and accountable system. The centrepiece of the provincial government’s response was the announcement that it would create an Office of the Seniors Advocate, following [...]
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