VANCOUVER, B.C.: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is sounding the alarm as B.C.’s second quarter financial report shows an unaffordable deficit increase. The deficit is now projected at $9.4 billion, up by $1.5 billion from projections in Budget 2024.

“Premier David Eby took his terrible budget and made it even worse by wracking up an even bigger deficit for B.C. taxpayers,” said Carson Binda, B.C. Director for the CTF. “Big deficits mean more debt and bigger interest charges for taxpayers.”

British Columbians are on the hook for $4.3 billion to pay interest charges on the provincial debt. That works out to $757 per British Columbian. 

B.C.’s provincial debt has risen to $130 billion in today’s financial report. 

“We can’t afford more cost overruns and blown budgets from the Eby government,” Binda said. “The more money that Eby wastes by blowing past his own budget, the less money there is to lower taxes or invest in schools and hospitals.” 

B.C. has faced a series of credit rating downgrades. The most recent downgrade from S&P Global cited “outsized” deficits and a “steep increase in debt” as reasons it downgraded B.C.’s credit rating. 

“Instead of taking warnings from the experts and credit rating agencies seriously, Eby keeps wasting too much money,” Binda said. “Today’s financial report will make life harder for generations of British Columbians who will be stuck paying off Eby’s government credit card.”