At least Liberal inconsistency is consistent
BC’s recent Budget and Fiscal Plan states total provincial debt is $63 billion. This amount, 62% higher than in 2009, is 27.3% of gross domestic product. Five years ago, the…
Norman Farrell
Dealmakers have been busy
People reacted to a tweet of information first published at Northern Insight. Many read it but do not want to believe it, because, as much as anything, this demonstrates whom…
Express yourself
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$80M annual power subsidy, one LNG proposal
Regular readers know that I focus attention on natural resource revenues earned – more often, not earned – by the citizens of British Columbia. Click here to read many articles…
Numbed by numbers
I’ll be talking with Ian Jessop, Monday June 9, on CFAX1070. While the BC Government lays seige to public education, it seems a good time to see if all the…
A system guaranteed to fail
I grumble about the quality of political journalism hereabouts and these complaints seem justified, even urgent, when an Ontario pundit demonstrates an example of powerful advocacy for the public interest.…
"We Won"
The title refers to BC’s 2013 election. It comes from a “Proud American.” When he said that, Krishnan Suthanthiran did not mean that citizens of the province were victors. More…
Austerity is limited
School districts are forced to economize and they’ve done it in many ways. However, despite squeezing operating budgets so hard that supplies of classroom paper run out, certain costs are…
Good questions
Not a nincompoop blogger, RossK at The Gazetteer mentioned difficulties faced by Bob Mackin, the province’s preeminent investigative journalist, when Bob digs, and pays, for information the government does not…
LNG facilities: siting, safety, regulation
When British Columbia conducts LNG negotiations behind closed doors, without public statements of principles or bargaining frameworks, citizens should worry. I have written about our government’s willingness to provide the…
Premier Clark promised a review
In the two and one half years since that review began, we have evidence of its results.
Vapourtax
A few tech companies are noted for vapourware, which are products announced with much fanfare that never materialise. In my view, BC Liberal assurances of more than $70 billion new…
Charting BC natural gas revenues
The following charts are created with production data from Statistics Canada (CANSIM 131-0001) and other reports from government ministries. These demonstrate significant changes of income from exploration and production of…
Economics, by and for lay people
George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer and Second Lord of the Treasury of the United Kingdom, boasted recently about his nation’s modest economic growth. If expansion continues, Britain will soon…
Ignorance occasionally has a purpose
Franklin D. Roosevelt, “Taxes, after all, are dues that we pay for the privileges of membership in an organized society.” If you’re older than 30, you remember the nineties. Hard…
On resources with Ian Jessop, Apr 17
Gadget Google – Lecteur multimédia de Google – http://www.liens-du-vin.ch/google-audio_player-script.htm
When special interests buy a government
Before BC Liberals were first elected in 2001, they promised natural resource producers to materially cut the public share of values extracted. They kept their promise and producers filled party…
Money laundering and casinos, who knew?
CTV Vancouver: Money laundering rampant in casinos, April 10, 2014 “Confidential documents are shedding light on a host of suspicious behaviour at B.C. casinos, where patrons routinely carry bags loaded…
Premier Clark ditches coal & LNG for renewables
Christy Clark announced today that the province is terminating coal exports and ending negotiations to provide free land, power, natural gas feedstock, shipping facilities and other capital and operating supports…