With the provincial election set for just a couple of months away, BC United is out with another campaign-style announcement, this time targeting the middle class.
Leader Kevin Falcon says, if elected, his party will eliminate the provincial income tax on the first $50,000 earned by people in B.C.
This, he says, will completely eliminate provincial income tax for 60 per cent of residents. Falcon claims this would be the largest tax cut in B.C.’s history, and would put an average of $2,050 back into the pockets of British Columbians.
The plan, according to BC United, would provide relief for the average earner, “nearly eliminating provincial income tax for average taxpayers,” whose income is an average of $54,450.
“David Eby’s NDP have made British Columbia unaffordable with a blizzard of taxes over eight years in power. BC United’s tax cut policy would immediately be reflected in higher paycheques for folks across the province who are struggling right now. Only BC United will create a more affordable British Columbia,” said Falcon.
Eby calls BC United plan ‘extreme and radical’
The premier was asked to comment on BC United’s proposals at an unrelated news conference Tuesday.
Eby acknowledged the affordability crisis that people in his province are facing, from high grocery prices to other day-to-day costs. However, he questioned the feasibility of the opposition’s plan, noting the effect it would have on services and infrastructure across B.C.
“It’s critical for government, in my opinion, to support people with those costs of daily life issues wherever we can. That’s why we got rid of the Medical Service Premium that people used to have to pay just for health care in British Columbia — a very significant tax cut across the province,” Eby said.
“What Mr. Falcon has proposed is quite an extreme and radical proposal that would require cuts to the provincial budget of at least $5 billion.”
Falcon’s other promises would result in an additional budgetary cut of $6 billion, Eby said, adding this whole plan just isn’t realistic.
“If you’re going to cut more than $10 billion from the provincial budget, here’s what that means. It means fewer schools, fewer teachers, fewer new schools, any new hospital expansions being cancelled, cuts to doctors, physicians, people who work in hospitals, nurses. I’m looking at a bus, bus drivers, transit. Some of the most extreme cuts,” said the premier.
“I think he is truly revealing who he is, which is someone even to the right of John Rustad when it comes to cutting public services in service to particular ideology. The way that he will propose to do this is the same way he did it before: ‘Oh, don’t worry, I’ll cut your taxes over here, but you’ll pay MSP. You’ll pay road tolls, bridge tolls, fees, and charges.’”
The B.C. election is set for Oct. 19.