FORSETH: It’s time for the BC NDP to stop putting roadblocks in the way of growth. It’s time to stop before it’s too late

It’s always interesting what can be done with numbers ... that’s because they can generally be spun to suit whoever wants to them to sound good – or bad.  There’s no denying however what’s happening with building permits in the province of BC lately.

The latest numbers (Stats Can Mar 7^th, 2019) show that the value of building permits decreased 24.3% (seasonally adjusted) in January from the previous month.

There were decreases in permits for commercial (‑54.9%) ... institutional (‑53.1%) ... industrial (‑30.7%) ... as well as residential projects which were down 4.3%.

By comparison, the decrease nationally was just 5.5% -- that's quite a difference when compared with the nearly 25% drop in BC building permits.

While I wait now to see how the BC NDP government will try and spin this into good news, former four term Chilliwack MLA John Les, isn’t expecting to happen anytime soon.  He commented to me just the other day that:

"The NDP solution to expensive home rentals and ownership: reduce supply. Wonderful socialism at its best. Why not double down and apply even more exotic taxes and regulations?"

Meantime, after the Stats Can February Labour Force Survey numbers were released on Monday (March 11^th), Jobs Trade and Technology Minister Bruce Ralston was quick to respond:

“British Columbia maintains the strongest economy in the country, and we’re committed to continue working hard and putting people first.”

“Unemployment remained low at a rate of 4.5%. In fact, B.C. has led the country with the lowest unemployment rate for 19 months in a row. An additional 69,200 jobs were added in the past year — the vast majority being full time and in the private sector.

“Good jobs with good wages mean that British Columbians, their families and communities are benefiting from our strong economy”, Ralston stated.

There are key numbers however, that should be cause for concern.  Specially while the unemployment rate in British Columbia was indeed 4.5% in February, there were 6,000 fewer jobs for those in the all-important 25 to 54 age group.  I say this because that is the age group targeted by retailers due to the fact many are married, with children, and owning or renting where they live.

THEY are the ones with money to spend – or at least they should be as long as they can find work.

According to Stats Can, in February the number of men and women employed in the private sector actually fell by 10,000 ... and even the public sector 1,300 jobs were lost.  One would have to strongly believe that to be a strong reason why those self-employed increased by 15,000 individuals.

Could those very job losses then account for the huge decreases in building permit?  One would have to think so.  After all, without a reasonable paying job (or any job for that matter), its hard to shop for anything more than the most basic of necessities ... it’s hard to rent ... hard to purchase a new home ... and a trip to the grocery store will bring the unemployed to tears!

BC needs jobs ... not just those in the emerging and growing technology and environment sectors, along with eco-tourism.  But more than that, BC still very much needs jobs in forestry ... in mining ... and in oil and gas.

Those are the sectors that build up the trades ... those are the jobs that help families build a home ... those are the jobs that help people to raise a family ... and to save to put their children through higher education.

It’s time for the BC NDP to stop putting roadblocks in the way of growth.  It’s time to stop before it’s too late.

And those are my thoughts for today .... I’m Alan Forseth, in Kamloops.  Care to share your own thoughts?  Just jot them down in the Comments Section below – I’m always interested in hearing what you have to say