To the editor:
In a letter to the editor, headline Don’t change guard now, in the Sept. 14 edition of the Free Press, Joe Sawchuk stated "The present B.C. Liberal government is on the right track regarding the management of British Columbians' taxpayer dollars ... the B.C. Liberals inherited a "have-not" province from the former NDP government.
“In 2002, after being government for a year, the B.C. Liberals once again made B.C. a "have" province ... why would we ever think of changing the guard when B.C. is well managed?"
So, Joe you think the B.C. Liberals are doing a great job financially for our province. Hogwash, they are simply NDP light when it comes to spending. I would encourage you to read the B.C. Budgets "Summary: Budget and Fiscal Plan - 2011/2012 to 2013/14."
This government document shows the total provincial debt at $47,757 billion for 2010/11, $53,437 billion for 2011/12, a projected debt of $57,572 billion for 2012/13 and projected debt of $60,355 billion ... and that was before the referendum vote to abolish the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST).
The B.C. Liberal government has been running annual deficits year after year, and it's not until the 2012/13 budget where we somehow have a budget surplus of $175 million. Can anyone tell me how they do that when that same year the debt is set to hit a record $60 billion?
In February 2010, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation stated:
"Taxpayers now spend $7 million per day to fund the debt, and that will go up to $8 million per day in 2011. This is money that could otherwise be spent on health care, education, or better yet, tax cuts. But no, it goes to bondholders to pay the interest on the debt."
Alan Forseth
Regional director
