Balanced Budget and Ministerial Accountability Act

Sent: February 24, 2022 2:35 PM To: premier@gov.bc.ca Cc: dan.ashton.MLA@leg.bc.ca; harry.bains.MLA@leg.bc.ca; donna.barnett.MLA@leg.bc.ca; lisa.beare.MLA@leg.bc.ca; garry.begg.MLA@leg.bc.ca; mike.bernier.MLA@leg.bc.ca; shirley.bond.MLA@leg.bc.ca; jagrup.brar.MLA@leg.bc.ca; stephanie.cadieux.MLA@leg.bc.ca; s.chandraherbert.MLA@leg.bc.ca; katrina.chen.MLA@leg.bc.ca; raj.chouhan.MLA@leg.bc.ca; george.chow.MLA@leg.bc.ca; doug.clovechok.MLA@leg.bc.ca; rich.coleman.MLA@leg.bc.ca; katrine.conroy.MLA@leg.bc.ca; judy.darcy.MLA@leg.bc.ca; dan.davies.MLA@leg.bc.ca; mike.dejong.MLA@leg.bc.ca; mitzi.dean.MLA@leg.bc.ca; bob.deith.MLA@leg.bc.ca; adrian.dix.MLA@leg.bc.ca; doug.donaldson.MLA@leg.bc.ca; david.eby.MLA@leg.bc.ca; mable.elmore.MLA@leg.bc.ca; mike.farnworth.MLA@leg.bc.ca; rob.fleming.MLA@leg.bc.ca; eric.foster.MLA@leg.bc.ca; scott.fraser.MLA@leg.bc.ca; sonia.furstenau.MLA@leg.bc.ca; simon.gibson.MLA@leg.bc.ca; rick.glumac.MLA@leg.bc.ca; george.heyman.MLA@leg.bc.ca; john.horgan.MLA@leg.bc.ca; marvin.hunt.MLA@leg.bc.ca; joan.isaacs.MLA@leg.bc.ca; carole.james.MLA@leg.bc.ca; jas.johal.MLA@leg.bc.ca; ravi.kahlon.MLA@leg.bc.ca; anne.kang.MLA@leg.bc.ca; greg.kyllo.MLA@leg.bc.ca; premier@gov.bc.ca; linda.larson.MLA@leg.bc.ca; michael.lee.MLA@leg.bc.ca; ronna-rae.leonard.MLA@leg.bc.ca; norm.letnick.MLA@leg.bc.ca; bowinn.ma.MLA@leg.bc.ca; sheila.malcolmson.MLA@leg.bc.ca; melanie.mark.MLA@leg.bc.ca; john.martin.MLA@leg.bc.ca; peter.milobar.MLA@leg.bc.ca; mike.morris.MLA@leg.bc.ca; michelle.mungall.MLA@leg.bc.ca; coralee.oakes.MLA@leg.bc.ca; adam.olsen.MLA@leg.bc.ca; ian.paton.MLA@leg.bc.ca; ag.minister@gov.bc.ca; darryl.plecas.MLA@leg.bc.ca; mary.polak.MLA@leg.bc.ca; lana.popham.MLA@leg.bc.ca; bruce.ralston.MLA@leg.bc.ca; tracy.redies.MLA@leg.bc.ca; linda.reid.MLA@leg.bc.ca; jennifer.rice.MLA@leg.bc.ca; selina.robinson.MLA@leg.bc.ca; ellis.ross.MLA@leg.bc.ca; janet.routledge.MLA@leg.bc.ca; douglas.routley.MLA@leg.bc.ca; john.rustad.MLA@leg.bc.ca; tom.shypitka.MLA@leg.bc.ca; nicholas.simons.MLA@leg.bc.ca; shane.simpson.MLA@leg.bc.ca; jinny.sims.MLA@leg.bc.ca; rachna.singh.MLA@leg.bc.ca; ben.stewart.MLA@leg.bc.ca; michelle.stilwell.MLA@leg.bc.ca; todd.stone.MLA@leg.bc.ca; jordan.sturdy.MLA@leg.bc.ca; sam.sullivan.MLA@leg.bc.ca; ralph.sultan.MLA@leg.bc.ca; jackie.tegart.MLA@leg.bc.ca; steve.thomson.MLA@leg.bc.ca; jane.thornthwaite.MLA@leg.bc.ca; laurie.throness.MLA@leg.bc.ca; claire.trevena.MLA@leg.bc.ca; teresa.wat.MLA@leg.bc.ca; andrew.weaver.MLA@leg.bc.ca; andrew.wilkinson.MLA@leg.bc.ca; john.yap.MLA@leg.bc.ca Subject: Balanced Budget and Ministerial Accountability Act - Proposed Amendment for MLA Payraise

Mr. Horgan,

I understand that, notwithstanding that the people of British Columbia are falling further and further behind financially, and notwithstanding this province’s implementation of disastrous and economically harmful COVID-19 restrictions for the past two years, you and your buddies want to reward yourselves with a 10% pay raise for 2022.

I own a company, and therefore am in the same position as you when deciding how much to pay myself. However, because I am accountable to private customers, I don’t have the luxury of raising rates more than the market can bear, which is why I haven’t raised my client rates in over 10 years. The internet tells me that, due solely to government mismanagement, the average family of four in Canada will spend $1000 more on food in 2022 then it did in 2021, with food prices increasing by 5-7% over the course of this year. Of course, this price increase is a drop in that bucket, as we also have to factor in increased gasoline prices due to the federal government’s determination to kill Canada’s oil and gas industry (in order to better support Russia and the OPEC nations), and of course increased transportation pricing on every commodity due to the systematic assault by the federal government on cross-border traveling.

Along with the increased cost of living in BC, your government’s draconian measures have increased overdose rates, suicide rates, domestic violence rates and, of course, vaccination death rates. The citizens of BC are fed up with ridiculous COVID-19 restrictions while the rest of Canada is wide open, they are fed up with a public health official who admits she doesn’t follow science, but still wants to determine with impunity what you put in your body, and we are fed up with governmental overreach on every level. Your bloated and dysfunctional government is not helping anyone in this province – certainly not the hardworking taxpayers who you are about to penalize further so that you may “eat cake”.

Pray tell, why exactly do you think you are deserving of a raise? In the private sector, you and the rest of your ilk would have been fired years ago. May I suggest a different amendment to the Balanced Budge Act: how about you add in a clause that allows taxpayers to assess the government’s utility to the province, and award pay raises based on that measure? Or have we given up on any pretext of democracy in this communist state?

Thanks for yet again reminding me that my government hates me. This knowledge is how I frame all of my business and personal decisions.