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News

Local NDP says BC Budget = higher costs, fewer services

Thursday, February 23, 2012 - 3:07 PM
By Jennifer Faerber
Courtenay

The local NDP claims Comox Valley families will be hurt by the new BC Budget.

Kassandra Dycke will be the NDP's candidate at the next provincial election. She says she's deeply concerned by the new fiscal plan.

"The thing that I'm hearing the most about in the community is the shock that once again MSP premiums are going to go up," says Dycke. "Being the only province left in Canada that even charges MSP premiums, I think this is a very overwhelming cost for families."

By the NDP's calculations, an average family will be paying $732 more in 2013 than they were in 2001, which is almost double the MSP premiums.

"There's nothing in this budget to offer hope that our hospital situation will be resolved any sooner, but we'll all be paying more for health insurance," Dycke says.

Despite recent demonstrations at North Island College and across the province, Dycke says she's disappointed the 2012 budget does not include any measures to make post-secondary education more affordable.

"Education of our young folks is the future for BC. It's not just a great opportunity for an individual, it's a great opportunity for our province.

"We're depending on the skills and education that our young people acquire today in order to make sure that we have a province that can compete in the economy of tomorrow."