The BC government has crunched the numbers and released what the state of its accounts are after a record-setting year of climate crisis spending.
The Province’s public accounts show they ended the year with a total deficit of $5.035 billion.
This figure is lower than some recent forecasts, claims the Province.
In total, the deficit is around $819 million higher than Budget 2023 accounted for and the BC government says this is due to increased emergency spending and lower natural-resource revenues.
Additionally, the Province says their financial setback is due to increased spending and support for priority services, including health care, education and housing.
“With British Columbians continuing to face challenges amidst high inflation, a growing population and climate emergencies, we remained focused on supporting people and the services they count on,” said Katrine Conroy, Minister of Finance.
“Record wildfire costs and the impacts of slower growth added to challenges, but B.C. was an economic leader in Canada, and we have continued to build a stronger, more secure B.C. for everyone.”
In terms of revenues, BC claims to have had higher-than-expected revenue from most sources, but reduced revenues from the natural-resource sector.
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The real setback was the Province’s increased expenses for responding to climate emergencies.
The Province says in total, they spent $1.1 billion on fire management—officially the highest year on record.
In addition to this, they needed to spend $401 million more than budget under the Emergency and Disaster Management Act in response to flooding and other events.
On top of these crisis spending, the government had to continue to improve and expand crucial services for the ever-expanding population of BC.
They say their focus was on building hospitals, schools, homes, transit and roads.
“Some say we should respond to challenges by making deep cuts to services and leaving people to fend for themselves, but that’s the wrong approach,” Conroy said.
“With a slower world economy and a growing population, we cannot afford to have a deficit of services. When we provide the services and support people need to build a good life, it makes our economy stronger and more resilient.”
The BC government says that the provincial economic growth of 1.6% outpaced the national average of 1.1%.
The Province also has one of the best credit ratings and one of the lowest debt-to-GDP ratios among provinces.
The next provincial finance report will be released in September.
