Thursday, February 25, 2016

The Keef Report...Face Value Analysis Of The Clarklandian Budget

What,Me
Dig?Ville


Let's go out past 140 characters this time and have a look at the lede of Keef's latest for the fine folks at Global:

To understand what drives the B.C. Liberal government more than anything, look no further than the budget it tabled last week.

I’m not referring to any particular service or program, or tax or tax break. No, the B.C. Liberals’ priority is zeroed in on one particular line in the budget.

That would be the bottom line, also known as the projected budget surplus. Everything else comes a distant second to the paramount importance the government attaches to balancing its books.

All spending and tax measures flow directly from the zeal with which the B.C. Liberals attach to achieving a balanced budget. The government continues to bet that the voting public backs its fiscal discipline over any kind of spending spree of tax dollars.

This conservative approach does little for those on the margins of society. To take just one example, social assistance rates continue to be frozen, as they have been for years now...



Conservative approach, indeed.

And unlike the Dean, Mr. Baldrey didn't even bother to explain what is really going on re: the massively rising accumulated provincial debt by babbling on incoherently about grocery bills or some darned thing.

Sheesh.


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Further on in Keef almost, but not quite, takes off his yoke when he states that, "...some kinds of taxation, as well as natural resource revenues — are flat-lining or declining..."...Gosh...Wonder if that last bit was actually an admission that Norm Farrell just might have a point or seven hundred what with all his pesky graphs based on publicly available data.
One last thing...Couldn't help but note that Mr. Baldrey got $77 per month disability pre-clawback number wrong (Keef said $72)....Geez...Don't those Global people even have editors anymore to keep sloppy on-air faces in check?...Not that I would want to all Ledgie Boy crazy/derogatory on sloppy on-air faces or anything.
Previous Keef Reports can be found....Here.



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8 comments:

Hugh said...

The BC budget is only balanced when you disregard the $167 billion in Total Provincial Debt and Contractual Obligations going into the future.

Which is what they're doing.

For example, power to BC Hydro from IPPs ($56+ billion) would previously have come from new BCH infrastructure, which would have been counted as debt, is now counted as a contractual obligation.

So now that cost is conveniently not counted as debt.

Same with P3, which make up much of the rest of the BC contractual obligation total of $102 billion.

http://www.fin.gov.bc.ca/ocg/pa/13_14/Contractual_Obligations.pdf

Add to that the $65 billion in Total Provincial Debt and you get $167 billion that they don't want to talk about.

RossK said...

Hugh--

Absolutely.

The Keef just ignored it entirely while the Dean tried to wave it away by saying it has nothing to do with the grocery bill.

Now.

If you have the bleach handy (to wash out your eyes when you're done) you might want to head over to read the Keef's entire 'report'...Therein you will see how he pivots on this to let us know that what the Clarklandians have done is really trouble for the Dippers because no matter what they do they will be seen as balanced budget busters.

Which, of course, is why this charade is so important to the Wizards and the Patrons (and why they count on the fact that fine Lotuslandian proMedia folks like the Dean and the Keef won't call them out on it).


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Anonymous said...

pt barnum was right?
dodge deflect delete?

Chuckstraight said...

I vaguely remember Christy uneducated Clark running around in a bus emblazoned with "DEBT FREE BC"?
Balanced Budget? Don`t think so.
Unfortunately - the man made science of "Economics " is utter bullshite in my view anyways.

Keep up the good work RossK.

Anonymous said...

parking debt party?the PDP

Grant G said...

You might be interested in this LNG article..

http://www.vancouversun.com/business/natural-gas/altagas+calls+halt+kitimat+project/11743911/story.html?__lsa=dcc5-8fa0

It might be of help is you read this backgrounder..

http://powellriverpersuader.blogspot.ca/2016/02/british-columbia-lng-dies-drip-by-drip.html

Cheers Eyes Wide Open

Lenin's Ghost said...

Economics is a very good and interesting science. It has been bastardized to economic policy being taught by the rightwingnuts starting the '80's and continued by bush/Harper economic mantras that economics that benefit the corporations are the only ones that count.

Grant G said...

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-lng-altagas-kitimat-1.3464576


Blah blah blah by Rich Coleman...

Like I said....Those LNG sparkle ponies are looking threadbare and matte..

Cheers