Speech lacked substance, MLA says

By CAROLYN GRANT

Kimberley Daily Bulletin

September 1, 2009

With the provincial budget due to be delivered this afternoon, Columbia River – Revelstoke MLA Norm Macdonald is bracing himself for deep cuts, though he said if you listened to last week’s Throne Speech it didn’t give much indication of what will be a very lean budget.

“I’m hearing about incredible cuts.  They are cutting everything,” Macdonald said in a phone interview from Victoria.

“It will be interesting to see what the deficit really is.  They were clear during the election campaign that the deficit would be $495 million.  That was the same figure they used for the convention centre.  I guess it sound better than half a billion.  It sounds like they just pull it out of the air, although the Premier as quite clear that they’d stick to the number.”

Macdonald says that the entire Throne Speech last week concentrated primarily on justifying the controversial harmonized sales tax decision.

“The government had been asked specifically by groups that would be affected by the tax if it was a possibility and they were told the government wasn’t going to do it,” he said.

“After the election, Premier Campbell now says that the HST is ‘the most significant economic development initiative that BC can undertake’.  But key players in the tourism and hospitality industry, one of the largest economic sectors in Columbia River – Revelstoke, are saying that the new HST will be catastrophic, devastating and ruinous.

“Local tourism and restaurant owners are telling me that the implementation of the HST could result in the closure of their businesses.  Rather than working to support our tourism industry, this government is recklessly pushing ahead with this poorly thought through tax.”

Overall, the speech lacked substance, Macdonald says.  Talk of cosmetic pesticide bylaws, all day kindergarten and cellphone use dominated any real programming, he said.

“They talk mainly about the HST and then a series of things that seem unconnected.  When your lead item is a tax that 80 percent of the people are violently opposed to, it’s a pretty bad speech.”

Macdonald was also disappointed that there was no mention of anything for laid off forest workers or a plan to get them back to work.

“It’s almost like rural BC doesn’t exist.  I listened closely to the speech and the only mention that I heard of Interior communities was in reference to the Olympics.  And I don’t think there is anyone who believes that rural communities can depend on the Olympics to turn our economy around.

“I was disappointed that there was so little substance to this.  The Throne Speech is supposed to be an opportunity for the government to lay out their vision for the Province.  It seems that the Campbell Liberals have completely run out of steam as they hang all their economic hopes on the HST.  It’s a real shame as that is definitely not what the people of British Columbia voted for.”