In its speech from the throne, B.C.'s government announced new tax breaks for families, more accountability and transparency for B.C. Ferries and significant changes for education.
Lieutenant-Governor Steven Point read the speech in the legislature on Tuesday, Feb. 9, marking a three-day opening of the legislature. The legislature will adjourn for a three-week Olympic break, returning on March 2 for the provincial budget.
Point said the B.C. Liberals will introduce a new family children property tax deferral option that allows families with children under 18 years to defer paying their property taxes. He said the family plan will be similar to the current government plans that allow seniors and others facing financial hardship to defer their property taxes.
Point also said "new accountability and transparency will be brought to B.C. Ferries" and a "fresh look at B.C.'s regulatory regimes, including the B.C. Utilities Commission, the B.C. Ferry Commission, the TransLink Commission and others."
The Canadian Environ-mental Assessment Act must be amended to create a unified federal-provincial review process that does away "with redundancy and unnecessary costs," Point said.
"Byzantine bureaucratic practices have no place in the 21st century," he added.
A new Clean Energy Act, Point said, will encourage new investments in independent power production while strengthening BC Hydro.
B.C. also plans to modernize the education system, Point said, by introducing new forms of schooling that include greater choice and diversity for students and administrative approaches that result in more money being spent on students than bureaucracy.
New Democrat MLA Nicholas Simons, who represents the Powell River-Sunshine Coast riding, said the families that are most vulnerable in the province didn't see anything in the speech that was going to help them.
"Not everybody can defer their taxes in order to provide for their family," he said. "I'm concerned about that."
The throne speech is one thing, while the budget is another, Simons said.
"Unfortunately, most people are saying that we can anticipate some serious cuts to services that have been buffeted by funding cuts already," he said. "It's interesting the throne speech came now before the Olympics, and the real economic circumstances of our province will be revealed in the March budget."
