Record debt and higher taxes on small business a page out of the NDP’s book

February 21, 2012 – VICTORIA – John Cummins, leader of British Columbia’s Conservatives, made the following statement in response to BC Budget 2012:
 
“Premier Clark and Finance Minister Falcon have delivered a NDP budget. The core features of this budget are ballooning debt levels, higher taxes and growing spending masked by accounting tricks. This is another “fudge-it” budget, but we shouldn’t be surprised to see this from a government whose accounting practices the auditor general described as “unacceptable.”
 
“The Clark Liberals are raising taxes on the most productive part of our economy – small businesses. By cancelling the planned reduction of small business taxes, with only a month’s notice, they are killing jobs and reducing investment in British Columbia. In fact, this cancellation of the small business tax cut was part of Clark “HST fix” – a tax increase to offset an HST reduction. But the people voted against her HST fix, and small business gets the tax hike anyway.
 
“The projected debt at the end of the 2012/13 fiscal year is projected to be $58 billion. Five years ago, the government only had $35 billion in debt. That is a whopping 66% increase in just five years. The debt level is $4,400 more debt for every man, woman and child in BC. This growth in debt is even worse than NDP-lead Manitoba. Increasing debt at this rate is not the definition of conservative financial management.
 
“The government is claiming they are holding the line on spending, but most notably, they took the entire $1.6 billion expense from the HST debacle and applied it to the previous fiscal year, which makes the last year’s expenses look higher and this year’s lower. Accounting smoke and mirrors are being used to show decreased expenses, when spending has increased by $1.1 billion. Spending growth at this rate is not prudent fiscal management, it is a sign of a desperate government that is willing to spend taxpayers’ money to get re-elected.
 
Speaking of accounting smoke and mirrors, I will ask this question: Although the government is claiming there will be a surplus in the 2013/14 fiscal year, the provincial debt will be increasing by nearly $5.1 billion. Let me repeat: a surplus budget, but debt increasing $5.1 billion? Even if the government is calling it a surplus, the government is spending more than it is taking in. The only surplus the government is going to achieve is a surplus of debt.
 
“Even though the government is claiming they will have a surplus budget in 2013/14, there is an assumption that natural gas prices will dramatically rise from current levels. The government is gambling on a rise in the natural gas market to produce that surplus. This is a recipe for disaster.
 
“Most of the spending increases on justice are to maintain existing operations for the RCMP and prosecution services and do nothing to address the massive backlog in court cases and the potential for criminal cases being dropped due to delays.
 
“After Budget 2012, most working British Columbians will also pay about $75 more on their provincial income tax payments. On July 1, the carbon tax will be increased and will collect $212 million more from the pockets of British Columbians. MSP rates are increasing and will take another $134 million from British Columbians. ICBC is projecting an 11% increase for basic coverage, which is a stealth tax on British Columbians. BC Hydro is raising rates on customers, and is incurring more debt. All of these are measures which will make the lives of British Columbians more expensive.”

Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

February 20, 2012 – Vancouver – Rick Peterson has joined the BC Conservatives as the Deputy Chair of the Finance Committee.
 
“I’m happy to welcome Rick Peterson as the Deputy Chair of the BC Conservatives’ Finance Committee,” said John Cummins, Leader of British Columbia’s Conservatives. “Rick has been a political activist in Vancouver for many years, and is active in the business community. I’m excited that he has joined our party and will serve as the Deputy Chair of the Finance Committee.”
 
“I’m honoured and thrilled to join the BC Conservatives and work towards building a broad-based, progressive and conservative team that provides a common sense alternative for all British Columbians,” said Mr. Peterson. “John Cummins is providing the principled and focused leadership that free-enterprise supporters in this province are seeking today, and I am very much looking forward to working with him and supporting his efforts.”
 
Rick Peterson is a Vancouver-based investment industry executive who has been actively involved in federal, provincial and civic politics in British Columbia for the past 25 years. He is on the Board of Directors of the Ottawa-based Macdonald-Laurier Institute, one of Canada’s leading independent think tanks. He is also a volunteer instructor and on the board directors of Junior Achievement of BC, a non-profit organization that helps deliver financial literary courses to schoolchildren.
 
Mr. Peterson was a candidate for the BC Liberal Party nomination in Vancouver Fairview in 2008, and was a volunteer in Kevin Falcon’s BC Liberal leadership campaign.

Media Contact
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

February 17, 2012 – Vancouver – Today the Clark government released the HST transition rules for one sector of the economy – new homes, but for no other sectors.
 
“I was relieved to see that the Liberals finally got around to releasing some of the HST transition rules, but they only cover one small section of the economy,” said John Cummins, Leader of British Columbia’s Conservatives. “Where are the rest? The federal government has released all their HST transition rules, but the Liberals only seem to be able to manage a single sector. The problem still exists for all sorts of purchases that extend over the day the HST is rescinded. This impacts everything from home renovations, to gym and golf club memberships, even to magazine subscriptions.”
 
“The Liberals took less than a year to bring in the HST, but have taken five months just to announce when it will be repealed and release the rules for only one part of the economy. This combination of foot-dragging and incompetence is further proof the Liberals are not capable economic managers.”
 
“I have some questions for the Finance Minister: When will the rest of the HST transition rules be released? Will they be all at once or sector by sector? If the federal government can provide their HST transition rules for the entire economy in five months why can’t the provincial government?”

Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

February 17, 2012 – Port Moody – The Liberal government requires schools and hospitals to divert front-line funding to purchase carbon offsets from the Pacific Carbon Trust. The Pacific Carbon Trust uses the funds to purchase carbon credits from energy companies. In 2010 this totalled $18.2 million across the province, and local institutions were raided for the following amounts:
 
         School District 43 (Coquitlam) was forced to pay $233,545.
 
         Douglas College had to fork over $48,990.
 
         Vancouver Coast Health Authority was relieved of in excess of $1,146,831.
 
“The Liberals and the NDP have their priorities completely wrong when sorely needed funds are being taken from front-line services and sent to bureaucrats in Victoria,” said Christine Clarke, the BC Conservative candidate in the Port Moody-Coquitlam by-election. “Only British Columbia’s Conservatives will stand up for schools and hospitals in the Tri-Cities. The Liberals and the NDP are committed to the carbon bureaucracy – we think that education and health care funding should be spent on education and health care, not wasted on the Pacific Carbon Trust.”
 
“If raiding our schools and hospitals wasn’t enough the Liberals and NDP agree that we should all pay more whenever we drive – their carbon tax goes up 1 cent per litre on July 1st, on top of the new 2 cent per litre gas tax that they are bringing in this spring.”
 
A BC Conservative government would abolish the Pacific Carbon Trust and the Carbon Tax which costs British Columbians every time they fill up their gas tanks.

Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

February 17, 2012 – Chilliwack – The Liberal government requires schools and hospitals to divert front-line funding to purchase carbon offsets from the Pacific Carbon Trust. The Pacific Carbon Trust uses the funds to purchase carbon credits from energy companies. In 2010 this totalled $18.2 million across the province, and local institutions were raided for the following amounts:
 
·         School District 33 (Chilliwack) was forced to pay $56,368.
 
·         School District 78 (Fraser-Cascade) had to fork over $21,766.
 
·         University of the Fraser Valley was relieved of in excess of $76,517.
 
·         Fraser Health Authority handed over $933,720.
 
“Once again, the government has raided the coffers of schools, hospitals and other public institutions to fund one of their many vanity projects; in this case, the Pacific Carbon Trust,” said John Martin, the BC Conservative candidate in the Chilliwack-Hope by-election. “It is absurd and indefensible that schools and hospitals are being fined simply for trying to do the best they can with the resources and funding at their disposal. That this government believes cash strapped public institutions should be forced to subsidize profitable corporations illustrates just how out of touch the Liberals have become.”
 
A BC Conservative government would abolish the Pacific Carbon Trust and the Carbon Tax which costs British Columbians every time they fill up their gas tanks.

Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

February 13, 2012 – Vancouver – It has been revealed that the provincial Liberal government operates several “recognition” schemes that allow provincial civil servants to send each other unlimited numbers of presents at the taxpayers’ expense.
 
“The recognition cupboard should be closed immediately,” said John Cummins, Leader of British Columbia’s Conservatives. “At a time when our justice system is facing a crisis due to lack of funds, and when our hospitals are begging for more money, the Liberal government runs a wasteful program which is easily open to abuse. A BC Conservative government would cancel this program immediately.”
 
“It is outrageous that Finance Minister Kevin Falcon is defending wasting hard-earned taxpayers’ dollars on sending chocolates, gift cards and backpacks to civil servants on a whim. Wasteful spending is out of control in Christy Clark’s provincial government.”
 
Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

February 10, 2012 – Vancouver – John Cummins, Leader of British Columbia’s Conservatives condemned Premier Clark for disrespecting the Legislature.
 
“Premier Christy Clark should give the people of Port Moody-Coquitlam and Chilliwack-Hope their voices in the legislature by calling the by-elections as soon as possible” said Cummins. “Port Moody-Coquitlam has been without an MLA for 130 days and the MLA for Chilliwack-Hope resigned 32 days ago. Because of the delay in calling the by-elections the new MLA’s will not be in the house in time for the budget. The people of these communities deserve to be represented in Victoria.”
 
Cummins also commented on the Premier’s plan to outline her spring agenda on the Bill Good Show on Monday morning. “Premier Clark should present the government’s plans for the next session in the legislature to all of the people’s elected representatives. Ignoring the legislature for a radio show is disrespectful to the institution and to the electorate. Announcing this on the Bill Good Show is nothing more than a communications stunt designed to avoid debate in the house.”

Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

February 8, 2012 – Chilliwack -John Martin, BC Conservative Justice Critic and candidate in the upcoming Chilliwack-Hope by-election responded to Premier Clark’s release of a report on delays in the justice system.

“All this report does is confirm what judges and prosecutors have been telling us for months – that the system is bogged down and criminals are walking free because of Liberal cuts,” said Martin. “The most damning part of the report is that delays are getting longer, despite the fact the system is dealing with fewer cases.”

“What BC’s justice system needs is action, not more reports. A BC Conservative government will seek to restore all the Clark and Campbell cuts to the justice system. Yesterday’s announcement of hiring nine new judges is just a band-aid solution and does not deal with the cuts. The Liberals have been in power for nearly 11 years – the terrible delays and lack of resources are the result of this government not making criminal justice a priority.”

“Clearly this government has no plan, no blueprint to repair the ailing justice system.  Two weeks ago the Attorney General emphatically stated there was no money to hire new judges. Twenty-four hours ago they suddenly could afford to appoint nine judges.  Now this morning we’re told, once again, there’s no money to address a backlog that gets longer by the hour.”

“It is painfully obvious this government has lost all control of the management of the justice system and is in a state of desperate, reactive panic.”

Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

January 30, 2012 – Chilliwack – John Martin, BC Conservative Justice Critic and candidate in the Chilliwack-Hope by-election, reacted to the news that Interim Attorney General Shirley Bond does not know the cost impact of the federal crime bill on the BC government.
 
“Shirley Bond has been the interim Attorney General since last August and is clearly in over her head,” said Martin. “Bond also serves as the full-time Solicitor General. A seasoned lawyer, Barry Penner cited the tremendous workload of being Attorney General and the amount of time it took away from his family when he resigned.  Yet Shirley Bond is supposed to handle the important and complex duties of Attorney General off the side of her desk?”
 
“Unlike the previous Attorney General who had both a law degree and legal experience, Bond has no legal training or experience in criminal justice.  It shows.  Unable to offer any remedies for a crumbling justice system, Shirley Bond is now passing the buck and blaming judges and prosecutors for her government’s sorry record.”
 
“All British Columbians are now paying the price for this government refusing to take the state of criminal justice seriously.  The justice system is in disarray with a backlog of thousands of cases that are likely to be dismissed altogether.”
 
As reported in the Vancouver Sun on January 27, 2012 Samiran Lakshman, head of the B.C. Crown Counsel Association, said the system is reaching an all-time low. “People who have been in the justice system for decades say this is as bad as they’ve ever seen it,” he said. “It’s a symptom of the systematic stripping of funding resources.”
 
“British Columbia’s Conservatives demand that this Liberal government start taking the sorry state of criminal justice in this province seriously.  They can begin by appointing a full time Attorney General who knows their way around the justice system,” continued Martin.
 
“Under a BC Conservative administration, public safety and law and order would be a significant priority and the justice system will have the resources to ensure that criminal cases are dealt with in an efficient and timely manner. British Columbians do not deserve to have their safety and well-being put at risk by a government that is clearly unable to get its house in order.”

Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca

January 25, 2012 – Port Moody – Today, the Liberal government announced “pre-construction” work on the Evergreen Line.
 
“This announcement is more photo-op politics from the Liberals. The contractor for actually building the Evergreen Line hasn’t been chosen and the line will be finished at least two years later than the Liberals promised”, said Christine Clarke, the Municipal Affairs and Transit Critic for British Columbia’s Conservatives and the party’s candidate in the upcoming Port Moody-Coquitlam By-Election. “We’ve seen years of inaction – the Tri-Cities are tired of waiting.”
 
On October 1, 2010 former Liberal Premier Gordon Campbell said “I can tell you with a degree of confidence that you can take to the bank. The TransLink Evergreen Line is going to start in the spring of 2011, and it’s going to be there for people of the northeast sector of Metro Vancouver by 2014 when we open it up.”
 
“The Evergreen Line has been delayed due to Liberal mismanagement. These delays show that the Tri-Cities are not a priority for the Liberals. Not only will the project be two years late, but the gas tax the Liberals and Mayors cooked up will make life more expensive for everyone in the Lower Mainland. Instead of asking municipalities and TransLink to find savings of only 1% of their budgets to pay for their contribution to the project, the Liberals and the NDP supported a 2 cent per litre gas tax for everyone. A vote for the BC Conservatives in the Port Moody-Coquitlam by-election is a vote against the gas tax which will raise prices across our region,” said Clarke.

Media Contact:
Jim Mitchell
604-355-8152
conservatives@bcconservative.ca