B.C. Premier David Eby speaks during a news conference in Vancouver, on Oct. 22.ETHAN CAIRNS/The Canadian Press
B.C. Premier David Eby says he is ready to implement his election mandate if the NDP’s precarious victory holds in the final ballot count, but that his agenda will also reflect the voter frustration that the Conservatives tapped into, especially on the issues of cost of living and public safety.
The NDP came up shy of a majority government in the preliminary count for Saturday’s provincial election, with 46 seats. The Conservatives have 45 seats and the Greens have two. A final count is under way, which will be followed by at least two recounts. If the numbers hold, the Greens with their balance of power will effectively decide if Mr. Eby, who remains premier, can pass any legislation. Talks are on hold until the final results are determined.
“British Columbians sent us – and me – a strong message that we need to do better, and in particular on the affordability challenge, and on public safety in our communities,” Mr. Eby told a news conference on Tuesday, his first public appearance since election night.
Whichever party forms the next government of B.C., it is set to face challenges in acting on the key issues that dominated the election campaign.
All three parties delivered deficit-spending platforms designed to appeal to voters with tax cuts and more public services, but the bond rating agencies that determine the province’s cost of borrowing are not impressed. When the NDP passed a record-breaking deficit budget in the spring, the fiscal plan prompted a credit downgrade from one agency, and a warning from another. Now, a third agency is sounding the alarm.
Morningstar DBRS, which currently rates B.C. as AA (high), released a report Monday on the credit implications from the election outcome. No matter who ends up in power, they warn, it is likely there will be sustained deterioration in the province’s finances, putting downward pressure on ratings.
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The NDP platform includes billions of dollars in new spending that will push the $9-billion deficit even higher next year, while the Conservatives’ promises are even more expensive.
“Contrary to the [Conservative] party’s initial campaign indications, the costed platform indicated an even higher deficit forecast compared to the NDP,” the report notes.
One of the top issues for voters in this election was the rising cost of living. Public sector workers have been insulated from some of those pressures with wage increases averaging about 13.75 per cent over the span of their three-year contracts, which will expire in the spring. The coming round of bargaining will be challenging.
At last count, total public sector compensation costs $43.8-billion annually – roughly half of the provincial budget. And that figure doesn’t reflect recent hiring in health and education.
An Eby government will be expected deliver benefits to the unions who helped carry his election campaign. At the same time, he will have to be mindful that the public’s concerns about affordability suggest little appetite for big public-sector pay raises.
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A Conservative government might be stepping into a minefield with contract talks. Party leader John Rustad says the public service is bloated, which suggests he is ready for a fight. But that won’t help recruitment and retention, especially around health care workers that he’s promised to deliver.
On Tuesday, addressing public safety, Mr. Eby told reporters that tackling open drug use in downtown cores, in particular, is one of his top priorities right now. It’s an issue that galvanized voters for the Conservatives who promised tough new measures, including an end to the province’s existing prescribed safer supply program.
But either party may be constrained by the courts in what they can accomplish. Just days before British Columbians went to the polls, B.C.’s Drug User Liberation Front announced it has filed a Charter of Rights and Freedoms challenge to the federal law that criminalizes the possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking. The activist group argues that the law violates the Charter by restricting access to a safer drug supply.
The courts have tied the hands of government on drug policy before. Under B.C.’s decriminalization experiment that began in January, 2023, adults were not being arrested or charged for possessing small amounts of certain illegal drugs most commonly associated with overdoses. The pilot project resulted in a major backlash over open drug use, and in November of that year, Mr. Eby’s government passed a new law to curb use of drugs in certain outdoor locations, including places frequented by children.
The NDP’s attempt to establish guardrails around open drug use was quashed. The Harm Reduction Nurses Association successfully argued in court that the measure would threaten the lives, health, safety and Charter rights of their clients. The B.C. Supreme Court agreed, saying the law “will cause irreparable harm” by forcing drug use back into the shadows.