What $15 million could do

MLA Report

By Carole James

Imagine how $15 million could make life better for our community and for citizens and families in our province. Instead of wasting $15 million of public money on partisan, pre-election advertisements, the government could have invested in the services that British Columbians need.

Yet, turn on the TV and it's hard not to see them - a new round of primetime ads touting the government's record. Quite frankly, it's not a record that inspires pride, and the fact that BC taxpayers are paying for all this propaganda makes it even harder to stomach.

The government keeps telling the people of this province that these are tough economic times, and we all need to tighten our belts. But it fails to lead by example.

We deserve better. Spent wisely, $15 million dollars could make a big difference on a long list of issues that need attention.

What could we do with $15 million? Well, here are just a few examples:

Skills training for workers

$15 million would open up access to skills training and higher education for 1,000 workers.

Increase homecare for B.C. seniors

$15 million would provide much-needed home care services for approximately 1,500 seniors a year, providing them with the resources they need to maintain independence.

Improve our forests

Spending $15 million on replanting BC's forests could see a third more seedlings planted on Crown lands, contributing to our forest health.

Extra support for kids at school

$15 million could provide BC schools with about 250 additional much-needed special education teachers.

Protect the environment

$15 million would go a long way towards strengthening BC's environmental assessment process and restoring resources cut from BC parks under the current government.

Add spaces to Community Living BC

At an average cost of $75,000 per space at a group home, the government's ad blitz could have funded 200 group home spaces at CLBC.

Fix the backlog of BC courts

Spending $15 million on legal aid would improve access to justice and begin to restore legal aid cuts made under the current government in 2002.

While we may not all agree on which of these examples of need should be the highest priority, any one of these initiatives would be a better use of limited resources than spending tax dollars on the government's rebranding effort.

These examples of missed opportunities and skewed priorities show a government that is past its best-before date and has lost focus on the things that really matter.

Government can't do everything, but it has to get the fundamentals right, one practical step at a time. That means putting the needs of British Columbians before narrow political interests, and making sure everything we do is aimed at making life better and more affordable for British Columbians.

This government's use of taxpayer money for pre-election advertising is reckless, wasteful and completely inappropriate. I want to see the government stop putting partisan interests ahead of the people of the province, and start investing where it counts.