British Columbia Federation of Labour

The provincial budget update released today by Finance Minister Colin Hansen ignores the hardships faced by tens of thousands of unemployed British Columbians and their families, focussing instead on minimizing the deficit and tax cuts.

"This budget is another spin doctor's dream, until you walk out the door into the real world and realize that we have more than 150,000 people without jobs, forest communities in crisis, seniors without proper care and students without a chance to get a decent education or proper training," says Jim Sinclair, President of the B.C. Federation of Labour.

"At a time when industrialized countries around the world are spending aggressively to protect and create jobs, the Campbell administration is preoccupied instead with minimizing the deficit which will cause even more job losses," says Jim Sinclair.

"This budget does nothing to get people back to work. It does nothing to get people into classrooms for training or retraining. It does nothing to help British Columbians weather the economic downturn or prepare for a recovery," Sinclair added. "In real terms, the government should be spending money to put people in school and to work. Instead of helping people and communities they are going to axe 1,500 jobs in the public sector."

Sinclair also noted that today the minimum wage in British Columbia became the lowest in Canada.

"The people of British Columbia do not want an HST tax transfer from consumers to corporations, instead they want the HST killed and the minimum wage raised," he said. "Shame on Gordon Campbell for telling us to tighten our belts while he has doubled his own salary and benefits."

Although the government says it is protecting health care and education, the front line workers who deliver those services are anticipating severe cuts in both health care and education. "Every day we hear of cuts to health care and education but to listen to the Finance Minister all is well in British Columbia and there's lots of money for services."

"Colin Hansen was the last Finance Minister in the industrialized world to spot this economic collapse. He now wants us to believe that he's spotted a supposed recovery," Sinclair added. "This government doesn't understand that a so-called ‘jobless recovery' is not a real recovery. BC has lost full-time jobs faster than any other province. This budget does nothing to reduce those numbers, and combined with the HST will lead to even more lost jobs."

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For more information: Evan Stewart, Director of Communications (604) 220-3095.