Dan Knight: B.C. Credit Downgrade
S&P cut B.C.’s rating from ‘AA-’ to ‘A+’. Moody’s dropped it from ‘aa1’ to ‘aa2’. That’s the fourth downgrade in four years. Four. This is a province that used to hold AAA status—the financial gold standard. That means British Columbia was once considered one of the most fiscally stable jurisdictions not just in Canada, but globally. Not anymore.
Even more alarming? S&P didn’t just hit their long-term rating—they downgraded the short-term rating too, from ‘A-1+’ to ‘A-1’. Why? Because even in the short term, B.C. is starting to look like a risk. A liquidity risk. That means the money might not be there when it’s needed. That’s a red flag for anyone with a calculator and a memory longer than five minutes.
This is not some vague bureaucratic move. This is a direct indictment of the NDP’s economic policies in British Columbia. This is what happens when you treat taxpayers like an ATM machine and the economy like a social experiment. And now, international financial institutions are officially saying what a lot of people have been screaming for years: B.C. is in serious fiscal trouble.
Leaving the left coast: Seattle taxes itself into a $47M revenue shortfall and now the state is considering doing the same.
“S&P cited the impact of reduced immigration levels.”
Heads I win, tails you lose.
Reducing immigration means everyone loses.
The real issue is the fact the land, resources and governing authority is being given away to Aboriginals. The world is becoming aware of this travesty.
A few years ago, I made a lot of road trips to B. C. Once I crossed the provincial border, I couldn’t avoid seeing a big sign reminding me that I’m on “Treaty 8 territory”.
On the way back, once in Alberta, there was a big sign welcoming me to my home province. No other associations or affiliations.
In fairness, it’s a bit of a big deal to have a treaty in BC, you can see that they might want to boast about it. Not so elsewhere.
Someone I worked for had a BC government issued bond that paid 15%. This was in the 90’s.
Every single economist today learned from a professor who spent their career telling students that what happened in the 70’s and 80’s didn’t happen.
Burn baby, burn. All of it, the whole damned rotten edifice. When the spoiled children can’t get stuff, they’re going to throw a tantrum, may the dead government types number in the tens of thousands.
I have a relative who lives on Vancouver Island. She thought that Christy Clarke was a crook and, I believe, voted accordingly in 2017.
She wasn’t happy with Horgan, but I had no sympathy for her. She voted for it. Let her pay for it.
Christy Clarke is a piece of shit. Hoigan was a piece of shit. They are/were both part of the lib-dip-green consortium. When there’s nothing to vote for vote none of the above. We had the same thing in the last election. Difference a bunch of liberals masquerading as conservatives. Still vote none of the above.
To be honest, I haven’t followed B. C. politics for years, so I can’t really comment about Clarke’s reputation.
But, I’m sure that under her rule, the oil industry in NE B. C. did better than under Horgan and that the highways in that part of the province were in better condition with the Liberals than with the Dippers.
I voted Con in 2017. Held my nose and voted Krusty previously, despite finding the Libs a pyhrric choice then. Yes, Krusty was and is an awful choice. Since then, she has proven those snake like traits, by becoming a token Con to support Charest(!) in his failed Con leadership bid, then briefly throwing her hat in the ring for the Lib job. Of course, she immediately put both high heels in her mouth.
The BC Lib party since then has imploded and largely disappeared, she was the catalyst of that.
Yes, the NDP is awful, not a fan, Horgan was a Covid Nazi, and Karma got him. Small, small, silver lining. At least Horgan ran, or simulated a somewhat fiscally more responsible admin, than Eby’s wild reckless spending ways.
Now, finally, chickens come home to roost. Eventually, reckless borrowing, with nothing to show for it forces the credit agencies to act, clearly and forcefully.
The NDP will now be forced to make those choices that they always love to accuse others of, but now have to perform themselves and be those evil mean awful authorities that hate people.
1. Cut services.
2. Raise taxes.
Both will cut into their support base, from the welfarians to the champagne socialists.
Socialists never learn!
“Christy Clarke is a piece of shit.”
Yes.
” Hoigan was a piece of shit.”
No. John Horgan was an honourable man even if he was part of the NDP. I actually voted for him twice (and I’m a life-long conservative/libertarian). He foiled Christie Clark’s plans to put tolls on every bridge, tunnel and highway in the Lower Mainland. Then, as a bonus, he did away with BC medical premiums (I used to get a 75 dollar bill every month just for the privilege of living in BC)…
1) The tolls were a good idea. User pays
2) Medical premiums are also a good idea. If people want “universal” healthcare make them pay for it. Nothing good came of abolishing them in Alberta
Conservatives are just leftists in denial.
Clark raided ICBC to fake a balanced budget IIRC. Straight up Zimbabwe stuff. Horgan was bad but not that bad and one of the least over-reactive to COVID.
Manitoba cannot be far behind.
Manitoba will always be behind. Behind in every category you can mention.
Forget Nigerian Princes. I’m starting to get emails from the BC government offering me a few $million to help smuggle $mega-millions from BC into the States. All I have to do is give them my bank account number and PIN.
I dunno… ya think it’s legit?
;o)
BC is run by poverty pimps, ENGOs, white collar public employee unions, and the grievance industry. It’s only due to government incompetence that they haven’t completely destroyed the place but Eby has 4 more years to give it his best.
The folks who live and work in the interior of BC, Wash, Oregon,
are entirely aware of the root of the problem.
China isn’t mentioned once in this report.
That’s because China isn’t the problem.
Leftists can run BC into the ground, destroy everything, not pay their government workers, renege on contracts, leave the roads unmaintained, and not pay the province’s bills, and that’s all fine, no one cares.
But then what happens? They’re still a part of this bigger “canada” place? What would happen to one of our thirteen backwaters if they declared bankruptcy? Probably nothing. Alberta would just foot the bill…
BC, to Ab: “We’re bankrupt. Could you loan us 50 billion dollars”?
Ab replies: “We’ll GIVE you 50 billion dollars, if you give us the municipalities of Northern Rockies and Peace River. Not negotiatable”.
While I was growing up in the Peace River Block in NE B. C., there were closer ties to Edmonton than Vancouver. For one thing, a road trip to the former took about half the time than it did for one to Lotusland.
In recent years, a lot of Vancouverites moved there, probably for “the lifestyle”. Unfortunately, they didn’t always leave their idiotic politics behind. In addition, Victoria’s been paying more attention to that region but, I suspect, it’s because of the Indians, particularly after some part of Treaty 8 got sorted out some 30 years ago.
So, NE B. C. joining Alberta might not be as straightforward as it would have been while I was going to school there.
A referendum of all people residing on the East slopes of the Rockies would pass to join Alberta today and Alberta wouldn’t have to give Victoria a dime.
ages ago my eldest sister a t times an RN, prof photographer and lawyer, also hard core ndp. once when l was visiting l called them the party of wishful thinking. it did get a chuckle out of her maybe in that moment something ‘clicked’.
l have NO INCLINATION to move out there and subject myself to that leftoidal nonsense. beautiful scenery be damned.
NDP
Short for Never Done Paying.
Addicts of Other Peoples Money.
Yet voters fall for their naked parasitism.
What was the “average intelligence” thang?
Cause NDP/Liberal voters prove 50% are below average.
But after 6 decades of Welfare spending,one has to wonder..What is the intelligence level of Canadians?
If 50% are such drooling self harming imbeciles?
Organized crime the CCP and the UNWRA Indians rule the corrupt Province of BC… nothing is going to change that.
The most politically corrupt Province in the country… has been for years.
Kristy Klark was the corrupt Premier who imposed “smart meters” that I believe cost the taxpayer 3 billion dollars to impose… you know, for the “smart cities” that the CCP invented.
Cant have a surveillance State without “smart meters”… the CCP know that and so do BC politicians.
Take a walk down Hastings st to witness the carnage the Political class have inflicted on the little people.
Check out the dictatorial powers the NDP are giving themselves in Bill 7… China style government.
BC is a politically corrupt shithole.
BC is a politically corrupt shithole.
I remember seeing posters during the 1972 election in which W. A. C. Bennett was referred to as a fascist. And then Lotusland voted in “Fat Little Dave” Barrett (that was his nickname for himself).
Coulda had a bridge
Giving everything away to the natives.. Who then get paid by the environmentalists to do nothing.. Is not a good plan.. BC is gonna have to bottom out, and then figure it out..
I always saw BC as an irony because it’s where the Chinese go to launder their money. Chinese? Laundry? Get it?