‘BC Prosperity Fund’: An End To The PST?
Prince George, BC – The BC Liberal Government says it will create a ‘British Columbia Prosperity Fund’ with royalty revenues generated through the up-and-coming liquefied natural gas export industry…and offers the Fund could be used to end the Provincial Sales Tax
In delivering the Speech from the throne, Lieutenant-Governor, Judith Guichon, says the government is moving decisively to seize one of the greatest economic opportunities our province has ever seen by solidifying ties to Asia and developing liquefied natural gas export facilities that will fuel the needs of those dominant economies.
Guichon, says the government will launch a new integrated organization – involving the federal government, business community, and educational institutions – in the coming weeks to ensure Vancouver and Canada’s westcoast becomes the hub for Asian and South Asian corporate offices and investment activity.
She says offering up our surplus natural gas to meet their pressing needs could trigger a possible $1-trillion dollar cumulative GDP benefit to our province over the next 30-years, creating two revenue streams: 1. the revenue from provincial growth in employment and business activity, and 2. BC’s share of resource profits. The Lieutenant Governor says those royalties could exceed $100-billion dollars over three decades and the BC Properity Fund is being established to protect those revenues for future generations.
She says it will be used to make good on BC’s debt, with $2.4-billion being spent on interest to service that debt each year. "Whether it is eliminating the Provincial Sales Tax, or making long term investments in areas like education or vital infrastructure that strengthens communities," says Guichon. "These are the kinds of opportunities the BC Prosperity Fund can provide."
Guichon says it’s estimated that up to $1-billion dollars had already been spent in preparation for the construction of LNG facilities and transportation networks. She says the Liberal’s target is to have three LNG facilities operational by 2020. "Today, work is underway by 10 partnerships to establish liquefied natural gas facilities in our province."
Comments
Gee, I wonder if there is a Provincial election coming soon.
Still, she (Leftenant Governor Guichon)
makes it all sound very attractive indeed.
I hope it actually transpires as suggested.
metalman.
Lies, lies and more lies.
Cheers
Well once all the poor money management problems are cleared up maybe this is a great idea, I think though clearing up the crappy BC Hydro will take longer than any of us will see in our lifetime.
You got that right Cassie44. Hydro is a mess beyond comprehension.
It needs a forensic audit in the worst way.
Ahhhh.Deja Vu Wenner Grenn, the Rocky Mountain Trench, and the Mono Rail to Alaska. Everything is once more coming up roses, just before an election.
Dont count your chickens on this LNG BS. The whole world, China, Russia, etc; etc; are finding much more gas through fracking etc;. In additon many Countries have been exporting gas for many years.
BC is a day late and a dollar short in this business. By the time we get it built will the market still be there.???
Lets see how it goes **AFTER** the election.
Palopu we need a forensic audit in the best way, not the “worst way”.
Cool, that means all the people whose groundwater is destroyed by the fracking required to get all this gas, won’t have to pay PST for all the drinking water they will have to have trucked in.
Holy crap now there’s an election ploy. I hoping there are not too many people out there that believes it. But you never know…..HST
Well I hope they increase the royalties big time, so that they’re not giving it away as everything else.
Should change the name to BC Propaganda Fund, cause it will never amount to anything but rhetoric.
More stupid nonsense from the lamest duck in political history. The mention of the elimination of the Provincial Sales tax is sheer titillation. Don’t be fooled by these morons. One doesn’t have to look too far East to see the dubiousness of unsound Provincial financing games. A ploy like this, assuming they’re actually serious about it and not just blowing smoke (the more likely scenario), it’s a totally unsustainable funding source and another example of the kind of boneheaded ideas that helped the BC Liberals dig us into the gigantic hole that we’re currently in.
Here is to impending, richly deserved, obliteration of the BC Liberal Party. The sooner the better. I’ve gotten to the point where I don’t care who takes their place, as long as they are out on their arses the lot of them.
So what is wrong with Hydro outside government meddling? Where has fracking harmed ground water? Having said that considering the new reserves of natural gas being found all over the world the province maybe should not count to heavly on gas.
Dragon: “Cool, that means all the people whose groundwater is destroyed by the fracking “
Fracking happens thousands of feet below groundwater levels, but don’t let the facts get in the way of a good rant.
Latest poll puts Liberals only 10 points behind the NDP. Don’t count them out yet, Dix lovers!
JB: “Fracking happens thousands of feet below groundwater levels, but don’t let the facts get in the way of a good rant.”
Don’t let your true lack of knowledge prevent you from posting comments that are clueless.
So things looking up, LNG will bring trillions to Government,end of PST, Billions in the Bank…. sounds to good to be true,like they say if its to good to be true then guess what….
This is the same Government that stated 3 years ago that they had to have the HST to promote business and jobs in BC. That without the HST we would not be able to compete with Ontario and Quebec, and other Provinces who had this tax. Hmmmmmmmm.
They now are in the process of getting rid of the HST, and guess what?? They say they might get rid of the PST also. This all to happen by 2020.
Rather interesting. BS at it greatest.
Just how stupid do the Liberals think the residents of BC are???
Sorry Dragon you are the one clueless on this subject of fracking. You should do some research before looking foolish.
seamutt, just in case you haven’t figured it out yet, Dragonmaster is an expert on everything!
The Liberals have hit a new low.
Last election Campbell had a read my lips 500 million deficit that turned out to be 2.5 billion after the election. No HST on the horizon before the last election…….after the election here comes the HST.
Trust what the Liberals say…….never.
Vaughn Palmer is close to the “action” – if there is any in Victoria.
http://www.vancouversun.com/opinion/columnists/Vaughn+Palmer+When+gruel+this+thin+fantasy+looks+like/7955907/story.html
Vaughn Palmer is close to the “action” – if there is any in Victoria.
[url]http://www.vancouversun.com/opinion/columnists/Vaughn+Palmer+When+gruel+this+thin+fantasy+looks+like/7955907/story.html
Hart: “seamutt, just in case you haven’t figured it out yet, Dragonmaster is an expert on everything! “
Yeah, he probably saw a clip from ‘Gasland’ and figures he’s an expert.
Problems with fracking occur where the drill casing fails as it passes through areas of groundwater. Estimates of faulty drill casing run between 5% and 20% of all wells.
“Problems with fracking occur where the drill casing fails as it passes through areas of groundwater. Estimates of faulty drill casing run between 5% and 20% of all wells.”
Source?
The main problem with fracking is the chemical mixture they use to “frack” each company that is fracking will not give up the chemicals they are using to “frack” each saying its a company secret. They use very high pressure.. 2000PSI and then send in a “ball” to each area to cause a chemical reaction which breaks the shale to release the gas. The gas is then removed and the chemicals are left. They are leaving a hole under the earth by this method and in time will result in sink holes.
There have also been numerous times where these chemicals leach into the water used for consumption by families etc. You cant abuse the ground and below like this without repercutions.. but greed over need wins out every time when it comes to oil companies.
I see you rocket scientists still have nothing of use to add to this fracking issue other than childish comments and personal attacks. You have no facts to post on the subject. There are piles of documented cases out there showing groundwater contamination due to fracking. Use your grey matter and learn something for a change instead of falling on your continual personal attacks against people that have different opinions or geater overall knowledge than yourselves.
I really think 250 needs to start booting your type from posting here. You’re trouble makers!
This is a great idea.
However, with this governments track record, it suspect tht they will screw it up royally. They could not even properly estimate the current revenues generate from natural gas for the current fiscal year (their estimates of reveue as far greater then the actual revenue). How reliable is their 30 year forcast?
These are the same people that totally botched the implementation of the HST and now the impementation of the PST.
There was the cost over runs for the Vancouver Convention Centre renovations/expansion. Nearly double the estimated costs.
Don’t forget BC Rail.
There are several other things that they totally botched in the implentation of their ideas. This Prosperity
Fund will be no different if we let them to implement and operate it.
Where’s Mattyc? He should be on here defending his beloved PST.
I think its nap time dragon.
Dragonmaster: “I see you rocket scientists still have nothing of use to add to this fracking issue other than childish comments and personal attacks.”
Dragonmaster: “Don’t let your true lack of knowledge prevent you from posting comments that are clueless.”
Either someone hi-jacked Dragon’s account, or he’s talking out of both sides of his mouth.
Johnnybelt- from
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/story/2011/11/28/nb-f-shale-gas-anthony-ingraffea-122.html
Fluid migration is not rare. For example, industry researchers Watson and Bachu, in a Society of Petroleum Engineers paper in 2009, examined 352,000 Canadian wells and found sustained casing pressure and gas migration.
They found that about 12 per cent of newer wells leaked, considerably more than older wells. Yes, the industryâs own researchers found that a substantial percentage of wells leak initially, an even higher percentage of wells leak eventually, and now more wells are leaking than in the past; the process is getting worse, not better.
Most recently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found benzene, methane and chemicals in water-monitoring wells in Pavilion, Wyoming, and EPA chief Lisa Jackson admitted âIt is possible that fracking in one bearing zone may have impacted nearby areas that may contain some groundwater.â
Initially I was all for the LNG boom… however I now have some serious questions and concerns.
Recently it has been discovered that the fracking process not only unlocks gas that was locked up in rock, but is also unlocking heavy metals such as uranium. They say the vast majority of the Marcellus Shale in studies is permeated with uranium from recent University of Buffalo research. Research indicates Northern BC is another source of shale gas permeated with uranium deposits.
The problem they are just now finding is that the fracking solution unlocks the uranium into the gas and thus makes it mobile. The gas permeated with uranium is then transported to the surface and dispersed through the natural gas distribution system.
Essentially it is a mad hatter situation all over again. Prior to fracking the natural gas was clean of heavy metal contamination, but with fracking that has changed.
A huge concern I have is where our current natural gas is coming from. Is it now coming from the new areas where fracking is taking place, or from traditional sources? Is my house getting heavy metal contamination from these new sources burning in my furnace?
Does it make sense to pollute the planet with heavy metals that will settle into surface water sources if this is nothing more than a method to bring these heavy metals to the surface and expose them to our atmosphere? Is that worth a hypothetical trillion dollars if we pollute our homes, surface and ground water, and the places we live with uranium transported by fracked gas?
If the research proves out than we essentially are killing our planet for profits by allowing the fracking process to continue. Do we have enough natural clean natural gas for future generations in BC if the fracking gas process is exposed and stopped?
If the fracked gas is solely exported to China for profit, that is entirely different than if we are to poison our own homes and back yards.
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