BC’s backflip

Aren’t voters a spicy bunch?

BC’s lefty government rolled the dice on an early election and was creamed as a result. So now some guy named Lorne Doerkson, a career small-town newspaper operator, is the boss. BC therefore goes from being dominated by the NDP for a decade to turning a bright Tory blue.

Huh? What happened? How did left flip overnight to right?

Well, outgoing Dipper leader David Eby was often seen as an autocrat and ideologue. That was okay until he also became an opportunist. The election was called only for one reason – so he could capitalize on the self-destruction of the BC Cons under their former rabid, racist, weird leader. She was so bad half the caucus quit, forcing her departure. Eby swooped in to grab more seats and power. And the voters spanked him for forcing them to vote two years early.

Second, Eby was formerly the housing minister. Today the province remans in the grip of a real estate affordability crisis. Prices have dipped some, but so has buyer confidence – which has brought the worst sales levels in a quarter century.

Meanwhile Eby went totally rogue and commie during the campaign, promising to tax builders on the value of condo units they erected, financed, marketed but have not yet sold. If successful, it would have been a powerful reason for every sane contractor and developer to move east. Then BC house prices could truly explode.

And, finally, every sitting government anywhere is being blamed for unaffordable everyday lives. Inflation is above target. Energy costs have soared. Wages gains have shrunk. So have payroll levels. Imports cost more thanks to tariffs. Mortgage rates have been stiffening. Food, insurance premiums, property taxes and two-by-fours cost far more. The last 12-pound bag of Cody’s kibble that I bought was $74, for Dog’s sake.

Trump is about to feel the same sting. As will every other leader foolish enough to call for balloting.

So what does a Con admin mean for BC and its house-ravaged residents?

Doerkson says his crew will slash construction costs, cut red tape holding up new developments, change the code to be more builder-friendly, reduce fees and pull back on the province’s role in the whole sector. The Cons will, he adds, stop telling municipalities where and how new housing should be built or set density targets. Locals should make those decisions, they say. Correctly.

Of course, every party does a few dumb things. For the Conservatives, that will include slashing the interest rate on unpaid property taxes. BC has a crazy exemption for wrinklies who may be living in multi-million dollar homes but don’t (or are unable to) pay their tax bill. The rate on those deferrals will be slashed from 3% above the prime to 2% below – essentially zero, after inflation. And Doerkson will bring in a tax credit to help finance renovations of ‘multigenerational’ homes.

More broadly, the Cons want less woke and more digging. Ports, roads, mines, power lines, forestry, LNG facilities – all will be encouraged with fewer regs, more permit-issuing and a promise to tripe liquified natural gas production by 2035.

But all those are promises. Reality awaits.

BC’s budget deficit, at almost $14 billion, is off the charts. Only Ontario – with a whack more people and a massively larger economy – rivals that budget shortfall. In fact, BC’s river of red ink now equals 3% of its entire economy, greater than when the province (and the rest of us) faced an economic crisis during the pandemic.

Covid is half a decade gone, yet the Eby government has been wholly unable to manage public finances, even while raking in windfall amounts taxing residential real estate.

Can Doerkson turn this around? Or did voters just throw the old bums out because, well, they’re pissed and in a mood?

To be continued.

Meanwhile get set for an interest rate hike on Wednesday. The Bank of Canada, economists say, will add a quarter point to its benchmark rate, ending a full year of sitting on its hands watching Trump, tariffs, war, oil prices and inflation creep back.

In fact we’re being told there’s a full 1% of rate hikes coming in the next twelve months (or less). That will take five-year mortgages well above the 5% level, surprising the 91% of new borrowers who opted for cheaper, variable-rate home loans.

“The BoC waited until it felt it had all the answers while denying there was an inflation problem for far too long. The result is in the history books,” says our economist pal Derek Holt.

“People may not like higher rates now. Yet repeating the same mistake would raise the odds of far bigger rate hikes later to counter far higher inflation after letting the problem fester and build upon itself. So, if you don’t want a hike this week or if the Bank of Canada whiffs, then frankly, don’t complain when you face the higher probability of getting a bigger bill than necessary in future.”

Oil is staying high. The Iran war will get worse after the midterms. AI-driven inflation is just dawning in Canada. Even a trade deal with America won’t change much – since it will probably be, as Mark Carney said, ‘written in pencil’.

It’s getting colder. Maybe we should all hibernate. Until 2029.

About the picture: “Greetings Garth… All is well with me, in spite of the turmoil across the continent,” writes Andre in Europe. “I continue to remain balanced and diversified, and cannot help but continue to “Live the Dream!” Bijou’s dream is to discover the source of whatever scent she detects… Cheers to You and Your Crew.”

To be in touch or send a picture of your neast, email to ‘garth@garth.ca’.

Source: https://www.greaterfool.ca/2026/10/25/bcs-backflip/