Thoughts on BC Politics and More

By Sylvain Charlebois — June 22, 2026 Under Carney, food prices have risen faster than inflation for 15 straight months -- and that is leaving Canadians facing some of the fastest-rising food prices in the G7 The latest inflation numbers from Statistics Canada should make policymakers uncomfortable. In May, overall inflation reached 3.2 per cent, while food inflation climbed to 3.8 per cent. At first glance, the difference may seem modest. But beneath the headline lies a trend that should concern anyone paying attention to Canada’s economy: food inflation has exceeded overall inflation every single month since Mark Carney became prime minister in March 2025. Not once during his tenure has food inflation fallen below the national inflation rate. That streak has now reached 15 consecutive months. For Canadians, this matters far more than many economists realize. While inflation is often discussed as a broad economic concept, consumers experience inflation through everyday purchases. They...

Public Safety Deteriorates While Chronic Property Crime Continues to Hurt Communities and Businesses BC Conservative MLAs say British Columbians are still waiting for results from an NDP government that has spent a decade promising action on repeat offenders wreaking havoc on our communities. “British Columbians are paying the price for a justice system that too often gives repeat offenders chance after chance while law abiding citizens are left to deal with the consequences,” said Macklin McCall, Conservative Critic for Public Safety and Solicitor General.  “People deserve to feel safe in their communities, and that requires a justice system that prioritizes public safety, supports victims, and holds prolific offenders accountable.” A recent report out of Dawson Creek has once again raised concerns about repeat violent offenders with extensive criminal histories who repeatedly breach court-ordered conditions, fail to comply with probation orders, and continue cycling through the j...

Dr. Anna Kindy, Conservative Critic for Health, is calling on the government to take action as a Vancouver woman with a rare disease faces starvation unless she is given a crucial formula.   Lauren Paulsen, whose diet was already severely limited by a rare blood disorder called hyper eosinophilic syndrome, hasn’t been able to eat solid food for months after her jaw was broken during a dental surgery. Doctors have been petitioning the province to provide a specialized liquid formula that would meet her needs, but the government has ignored these requests. Lauren previously spent years fighting to get a prescription for Dupixent, which would have helped keep her disease in check, but was denied by the government, resulting in permanent damage.   “Lauren Paulsen is being failed by the government,” said Kindy. “Her family is advocating for her, her doctors are advocating for her, but the government is ignoring her. A healthcare system that will not provide life-savi...

The BC NDP Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, Christine Boyle, has claimed that it is becoming more affordable to rent in BC, and is celebrating NDP accomplishments in building affordable housing. But the reality of rental prices in B.C. remains quite troubling. “Despite Minister Boyle’s rosy statement, rental prices have actually increased in BC since the NDP came into power in 2017, and the factors that are causing a short-term decrease in some rental prices should be warning signs for BC’s economy,” said Linda Hepner, Conservative Critic for Housing . Since 2017, when the NDP formed government, average rents have more than doubled. The average rent for a one-bedroom unit has increased by: 236% in Kelowna 235% in Surrey 228% in Victoria 228% in Kamloops 221% in Vancouver 171% in Prince George 147% in Abbotsford “The short-term decreases in rental prices, which still remain too high, come not from responsible housing policy from the NDP, but from policy failures t...

Gavin Dew, BC Conservative Critic for Jobs, Economic Development, Innovation, and AI is asking " Why doesn't British Columbia have its own AI strategy ? " British Columbians have now heard two very different stories from this NDP government. In April, Minister of State for AI Rick Glumac told the Legislature that BC was working closely with Ottawa and pushing for a national framework on artificial intelligence.  In May, Minister Ravi Kahlon claimed British Columbia was actively shaping the federal government's AI strategy and helping lead the conversation. Now that the federal strategy has finally been released, Minister Glumac is suddenly criticizing it and suggesting British Columbia's concerns were not addressed, according to a statement given to BC Today. So, which is it? Either Minister Kahlon was wrong when he said British Columbia was helping shape the strategy, or Minister Glumac is admitting that despite all the government's talk, BC wasn't even a...

While British Columbians wait years for basic medical care, the NDP government has allowed non-residents to rack up $200.6 million in unpaid health bills since 2020-2021. New research from SecondStreet.org, obtained through a freedom of information request, revealed that people from outside Canada are coming to BC, receiving health services, and leaving without paying their bills.  The losses span every health region in the province. "British Columbians are not guaranteed timely access to healthcare, be it treatment or diagnostics, and this situation continues to deteriorate under the NDP," said Anna Kindy, MLA for North Island and Critic for Health. "Taxpayers are footing the bill for tourists' health treatments to the tune of over $200 million, enough to cover over 21,000 hip replacements in this province while British Columbians wait months to years for that surgery.” The research found BC has the worst record of any province in Canada examined so far. Under a dec...

Gavin Dew, MLA for Kelowna-Mission and Critic for Jobs, Economic Development, Innovation and Artificial Intelligence, is sounding the alarm on BC’s youth job crisis following the latest Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey, which shows rising youth unemployment, increasing unemployment overall, and continued losses in private sector employment across British Columbia. Youth unemployment increased from 14.4 per cent to 15.3 per cent in May, while more than 7,300 young people left British Columbia over the past year. BC's unemployment rate remained at 6.8 per cent, but total unemployment increased from 210,700 to 212,200 people while the province's population declined. "We are facing a youth jobs crisis. You see it in the stats and you hear it from youth and their worried parents," said Dew. "I'm getting more calls than ever from people desperately looking for summer jobs for their kids. More than 7,000 young people have left B.C. in the last year in search of...

Peter Milobar, MLA for Kamloops Centres and Official Opposition Finance Critic, released the following statement in response to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation's 2026 Finance Minister Report Card, which ranked BC Finance Minister Brenda Bailey dead last among provincial finance ministers in Canada with an overall grade of "F":  "British Columbians didn't need a report card to know things are headed in the wrong direction. They see it every time they pay their bills, try to buy a home, or watch another government deficit pile up. But now an independent national organization has confirmed that NDP Brenda Bailey is the worst-rated finance minister in Canada. "After nearly a decade of decline under this NDP government, British Columbia has become a province where people pay more, government borrows more, and families get less in return. We have some of the highest debt in the country, repeated credit downgrades, and no credible plan to get our finances back on...

The federal government has announced new measures to support British Columbia's forestry sector, including $65 million in funding for projects across the province. While any support is welcome, it falls far short of the level of assistance other provinces have secured for key industries. Conservative Forests Critic Ward Stamer says the NDP government needs to take responsibility for its mismanagement of B.C.’s forest industry instead of trying to pass on the blame. Despite promising to create more jobs in the forest sector, the NDP government has overseen the loss of thousands of forestry jobs and 21 mill closures which have devastated communities. “If Premier Eby spent more time addressing the regulatory issues impacting the forestry sector than he did complaining about the federal government, we would not be in the position we are now,” said Stamer. “And instead of trying to place the blame for mill closures on Donald Trump, Minister of Forests Ravi Parmar should t...