Business group serves B.C. Premier Eby a budget blast at breakfast meeting

VICTORIA — British Columbia Premier David Eby has been served up a heap of criticism about his government’s budget while attending a breakfast meeting of business leaders.

Bridgitte Anderson, president and CEO of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, says she hopes he heard the “concerns and the anxiety of the business community” about Tuesday’s budget, which forecasts a $13.1 billion deficit and includes various tax hikes.

They include the expansion of the provincial sales tax to some professional services, which Anderson says will add costs to small businesses, major projects and the delivery of housing.

She says the business community is struggling to understand how the province plans to bring the deficit back on a “sustainable path” when it is projected to rise by nearly $4 billion next year.

Eby says all provinces and countries around the world are struggling with rising deficits and growing debt, and his government “inherited a massive infrastructure debt” that is now being fixed through investments in schools, hospitals and roads.

He says the key to getting the deficit under control is to grow the economy, which he predicts will see “significant momentum” as various major projects get underway and the federal money boosts defence spending in B.C.

Anderson told the premier that the business community is “not on same page” as his government, but Eby says he “welcomes a frank and tough exchange” because it is the only way to move forward.

The board gave the budget a “D” rating.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 20, 2025.

Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press