david eby in no rush to help family budgets despite insisting the need is urgent
vaughn palmer: the b.c. premier could have recalled the legislature to approve tax rebates. he didn't
4 minute read
we apologize, but this video has failed to load.
try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
victoria — british columbians will have to wait for months, maybe longer, for the tax relief that premier david eby promised while seeking re-election this fall. eby promised relief from the carbon tax and the income tax. but at a news conference this week, he showed he is in no rush to expedite delivery of a reduction in either levy.
the ndp leader performed a dramatic reversal of his long-standing support for the carbon tax on sept. 12, less than 10 days before the official start of the campaign.
after months of accusing critics of the tax of being climate change deniers, eby suddenly declared that the portion applied to consumers would be eliminated.
“we don’t want people to have to choose between taking climate action and being able to feed their family and make their rent.”
the announcement, delivered during a pre-campaign event on reproductive health, gave every indication of a rush job.
there was no news release nor a shred of backup material. no one in the government could explain how the new democrats would make up the loss of revenue, or even how much it could be.
yet eby insisted that the need was urgent.
“people need support right now,” he told reporters. “we’ll have to figure out and work through all those pieces.”
advertisement
one of the pieces to be worked out was with the federal government, because ottawa would apply its own carbon tax to b.c. if the province removed its levy without approval.
“if the federal government decides to remove the legal backstop requiring us to have a consumer carbon tax in b.c., we will end the consumer carbon tax in b.c.,” eby vowed.
wednesday, i asked the premier if the province had requested the federal government for the change that would allow b.c. to phase out the carbon tax.
not yet, said eby. “our discussions with the federal government right now are very focused on the issue of tariffs. ”
the tariff threat from the incoming u.s. president, donald trump, is less than a week old. the premier’s election victory was certified a month ago.
more than enough time for the province to have drafted a request to ottawa, if the needed relief were as urgent — “people need support right now,” the premier said in september.
eby indicated the real reason for the delay when he assured reporters that “we will get to those discussions, whether it’s with this government or the next government, around the carbon price.”
the next government presumably being one headed by conservative leader pierre poilievre, a sworn enemy of the carbon tax. eby would appear to have calculated that the justin trudeau-led government is wedded to its version of the carbon tax and is unlikely to respond favourably to any request for relief.
advertisement
the next federal election could be almost a year away. the b.c. carbon tax is scheduled to increase again on april 1, when the levy on a litre of gasoline goes to 21 cents from the current 18.
will the april 1 increase go ahead if ottawa hasn’t cleared b.c. to phase out the tax? i asked eby.
“people can’t afford the carbon tax right now,” eby replied. “we need to make sure they’re protected from that. and we’ll explore all the options available to us to make sure that’s reality.”
despite 2½ months of lead time, it is not as if he even has a plan to head off any increase in the carbon tax.
eby’s other promise of tax relief, announced oct. 3, was for “a $1,000 boost for household budgets each and every year.”
the “grocery rebate” — $1,000 for households, $500 for individuals — would be delivered “as quickly as possible,” the premier promised.
until this week, the options for delivery were said to includea cabinet order to tap the government’s unspent contingency funds for the necessary $1.8 billion to fund the payments.
but eby disclosed on wednesday that the cabinet order wouldn’t work. payout would need to be approved by the legislature.
“we will have to pass legislation so that we’re able to provide that grocery rebate to people, because we’re not able to get the tax cut in place within this year unless we pass specific legislation. so we’re going to have to do that.”
advertisement
the premier made it sound as if the government had just discovered it would have to go the legislative route. i gather it was established weeks ago that the legislature would have to be recalled approving sending out the money.
the new democrats could have recalled the legislature for a brief fall session. eby even floated the possibility a few days after the election.
he decided not to go that route because he and his government were not ready to meet the legislature.
still, the unready eby insists that income tax relief is “a priority for me. we will deliver it.”
eventually, yes. just not on a schedule that would convey the sense of urgency that eby communicated when he was running for office and needed votes.
share story
