A decade of decline and disaster
VICTORIA, B.C.: After nearly a decade in government, the NDP has delivered record deficits, a debt load on track to nearly double, and worse outcomes in every service British Columbians depend on, Conservative Interim Leader Trevor Halford said today.
The remarks come as the province confronts a $13.3-billion deficit, the largest in B.C. history, and a fiscal plan that locks in deficits through at least 2028-29.
“Nine years. Nine budgets. Nine throne speeches. And what do British Columbians have to show for it?” said Halford. “Record spending. Record debt. Record deficits. Emergency rooms closing. Family doctors disappearing. Crime rising. Housing starts collapsing. Drugs on the streets. The NDP has more than doubled the size of government, and almost nothing in this province works better than it did when they took office.”
Spending has more than doubled. Outcomes have not.
Under the NDP, provincial government spending has climbed year after year, reaching $94.7 billion in 2025-26 and projected at $98.8 billion in 2026-27, more than double the budget the NDP inherited in 2017. Despite that increase:
- Emergency departments across the province have closed or operated on reduced hours;
- Tens of thousands of British Columbians remain without a family doctor;
- Maternity wards are being closed in communities throughout the province
Record deficit. Record debt.
Budget 2026 projects a $13.3-billion deficit for 2026-27, followed by deficits of $12.2 billion and $11.4 billion in the two years that follow. Total provincial debt is forecast to rise from $154 billion to $234 billion over the fiscal plan period.
The cost of servicing that debt is climbing with it. Interest payments will consume 6.2 cents of every dollar of government revenue in 2026-27, rising to 8.2 cents by 2028-29, money that does not build a hospital, hire a nurse, or house a family.
“Every dollar borrowed is a dollar British Columbians’ children will pay back,” Halford said. “This government has no plan to balance the books. They have a plan to keep borrowing, and a plan to keep blaming someone else when the bill comes due.”
A pattern of deflection.
Halford said the defining feature of the Eby government is its refusal to take responsibility for outcomes under its own watch.
“When the deficit hits a record, they blame the economy. When housing collapses, they blame Ottawa. When emergency rooms close, they blame the doctors. When their own laws get struck down by the courts, they blame the lawyers,” Halford said. “There is one thing missing from every NDP press conference: accountability. A premier who can look British Columbians in the eye and say, ‘This is my budget. This is my record. This is my responsibility.’ That premier does not currently sit in the West Annex.”
Sixty per cent of British Columbians say it is time for a change in government, according to recent public polling.
“British Columbians did not vote for decline. They did not vote for record debt. They did not vote for excuses,” Halford said. “The B.C. Conservatives will keep holding this government to account for the choices it has made, and the choices it refuses to own.”
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Media Contact:
Francesca Guetchev, Press Secretary
Francesca.Guetchev@leg.bc.ca
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