Finance Minister Colin Hansen upstaged other announcements during the January 26th staged cabinet meeting by hinting about his February 15th budget. He said: "The budget, when it comes down on February 15, will be a balance of three things. It will be tax reduction to make sure that we stay competitive but tax reduction, as well, to make sure that those with low incomes have a better chance of keeping more money in their pockets. We are looking at program spending that will make a difference in people's lives …"

In BC the law requires that the budget be balanced. Since hitting a precisely balanced budget is like tossing a coin and having it land on its edge, finance ministers budget for a surplus. Any surplus automatically pays down the debt so there's nothing surprising about Hansen's claim that his budget will include some provision for debt reduction.

The sudden sympathy of the minister of finance for tax reductions that "make sure that those with low incomes have a better chance of keeping more money in their pockets" is surprising. In June 2001 the Campbell government implemented tax cuts that saw those with incomes over $250,000 per year receive an average tax cut of over $20,000. Taxation statistics from Revenue Canada for the years 2000 and 2002 show that total income taxes paid by those with over $250,000 in income dropped by over $200 million. That is more that the total 2002 provincial income tax bill for everyone who reported income under $25,000. One third of BC taxpayers reported income under $25,000; 11,000 reported income over $250,000 yet their reduction exceed the total amount paid by the one third. Just think of what the government could have done four years ago if the highest income category had received a 10% tax cut and the remaining $120 million had been applied to those with low incomes that Hansen now claims deserve help. A few crumbs may spill off the table on the eve of the election, but everyone knows who ate the loaf over the past four years.

The Campbell government has a credibility problem with its announcements about "program spending that will make a difference in people's lives". Since Black Thursday, January 17, 2002, most government programs have been cut by 30-40%. After creating chaos in the Ministry of Children and Family Development, its cuts were reduced to 11%. The government that wants to make a difference should explain why it cut too deeply and ended up with a $2 billion surplus. The Attorney General said on Voice of BC that he wants more money for legal aid, but he oversaw cuts to legal aid. Any budget announcements will become "talking points" during the election campaign, but delays in program implementation will mean that money will not flow and services will not be seen until government reconsiders its promises after the election. Before the last election Campbell said he would not tear up contracts; he changed his mind after the election. He also changed his mind on the sale of BC Rail, on expanding gambling, and on providing more money for child protection. Will he change his mind again?

During his staged cabinet update Hansen presented graphs showing how BC compares to Canada on several economic indicators. The Premier chimed in that BC would look even better if it were compared to the rest of Canada minus BC. When he was in opposition, Campbell wasn't interested in comparing BC with the Maritimes; he frequently used Alberta as his standard of comparison. We can do that too.

In December 2004 when BC recorded unemployment of 6.1%; Alberta's rate was 4.5%. In November 2004 when BC recorded average weekly wages of $698.12 (2.1% higher than Nov 2003), Alberta had average weekly wages of $748.40 (4.6% higher than Nov 2003). In November 2004 when retail trade in BC increased by 6.9% relative to November 2003, the increase in Alberta was 12.9%. Don't be surprised if BC's Finance Minister neglects to mention those comparisons when he presents his campaign document on February 15th.