British Columbia

Last month the Canadian Taxpayers’ Federation took its “Debt Clock” on a tour of British Columbia to draw attention to the province’s mounting debt. The debt is currently $112 billion and rising by $53 million per week – faster than any other provincial government’s. That’s $20,000 for every British Columbian. The NDP-run province’s credit rating is “plummeting,” according to outside experts, driving up the interest rate it pays on new debt. It is spending $4 billion a year on interest and will soon pay more.

The NDP’s uncontrolled spending is a big part of the problem. In 2002, Campbell’s Liberal government forecast operational spending of $25.6 billion. Horgan’s first budget forecast spending of $53.6 billion. Eby’s government forecasts spending of $92.7 billion in 2026-2027, a 73 percent increase in only a decade. The NDP will have nearly tripled B.C.’s debt in only a decade – from $45.2 billion in Horgan’s first budget to a projected $126.5 billion in 2026-2027. Including Crown corporations, total provincial debt will have more than doubled from $69.4 billion to $165 billion.