Renee Merrifield was first elected as the BC Liberal Party MLA for the Kelowna Mission in 2020. She now acts as an opposition critic on the environment and climate change.
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When I was growing up, my grandfather taught me the value of a dollar.
He used to tell me, “Pay when you get up so you get up when you get up.”
He always wanted value for what he spent and was careful with those dollars. An uneducated rancher and farmer, he and my grandmother were millionaires when they died. As? Because they were smart with their money.
This past month has produced some surprising financial results for BC.
The Treasury Secretary announced that BC reported a surplus of $1.3 billion for fiscal 2021-22 and forecast a surplus of $706 million this year.
Sounds like great news, right?
Until you look at the details.
The government showed that the excess came from higher taxes, including carbon taxes, higher fuel taxes, higher corporate taxes and higher personal taxes.
Simply put, the increased government revenue came from you and BC taxpayers.
So how does this NDP government spend money?
Let’s have a look.
At the moment, health care has never been so bad. Over 20 percent of British Columbians do not have a primary family doctor and have no access to medical care.
Our hospitals are overwhelmed, and BC has been one of the few jurisdictions that hasn’t added ICU capacity with the federal dollars made available to us for capacity expansion during COVID.
Any additional healthcare expenses? no
Is our tax money going to improve emergency services? no People die while waiting for an ambulance to arrive.
How about psychological support? no
I’ve heard from parents who can’t find support for their children, from adults who don’t know how to get help with life’s problems, and from those who are on the brink of a crisis and can’t get help or support .
Where are these complex care beds? So far they’ve been promised twice, but with no location, physical structure, or allocated dollars. Sounds like help is a long way off for the hundreds on our streets and in social housing.
How about a new Rutland Middle School or a new high school in Glenmore? nope
However, the money was enough for a new hidden bonus for BCGEU employees.
This new deal will cost BC taxpayers $2.6 billion. This is in addition to the additional 140,000 government employees costing BC taxpayers over $11 billion a year!
That’s an amazing dollar number.
Meanwhile, this administration still has people waiting for its $110 ICBC rebate promised in March, as well as a promised rent rebate for the last two elections.
The government may be patting itself on the back for the post-COVID economic recovery, but Stats Canada’s jobs report tells a very different story.
Private sector jobs are declining while government jobs are growing.
British Columbians are paying more taxes than ever before, are not receiving the services they need and are instead being given huge government staffs with massive salaries but no measurable results.
A big government and a small private sector is a terrible combination. It will mean a drop in BC’s GDP because government jobs produce nothing but cost taxpayers a lot of money.
Taxpayers deserve better. British Columbians earn more.
If BC will post a surplus, it should be because the private sector economy is growing, not because taxpayers are paying more.
Especially when they get less for those dollars.
My question this week is, do you feel you’re getting value out of the taxpayer money you pay?
I love hearing from you!
Please email me at [email protected] or call me at 250-712-3620.
