“* What measures can government take to increase government revenues to support your priorities as a citizen?”

That is one aspect and it can be improved by government getting more from exploration and extraction of non-renewable resources, for instance. Once they are gone, they are gone for good.

However, how about governments running leaner and more efficiently to spare taxpayers the pain of higher taxes and fees and thereby staying within present revenues?

Perhaps the provincial government can set an example and bring in legislation to audit and restrict municipal governments from relentlessly increasing taxes (home owners) and fees (utility etc) when having promised austerity and savings of 10% in each and every department?

Take PG as a prime example, please.

Change the way the books are kept. So the numerical ‘figures’ accurately REFLECT the physical ‘facts’. Right now all we’re seeing in the government’s books are the Liabilities. The increase in the Provincial Debt, which our taxes are supposed to be servicing, i.e. paying the interest on.

Where is the corresponding account for the Assets? Which, in any private business, (and we have a so-called ‘business-oriented’ government who often compares itself to a private enterprise in many ways ~ “We have to live within our means…”, We can’t spend more than we take in…”, etc., etc.), ~ would be growing at a FASTER rate than the increase in Liabilities, and there would be a positive accretion to Capital to balance the difference.

The notion most people have, or have been sold by our politicians, is that a ‘balanced Budget’ means the government is funding itself from the taxation it collects. On as a ‘pay as you go’ basis, with no increase in the Provincial debt. This is most certainly NOT what is happening. For it to happen, the government would have to recover ALL its costs in taxation in the same fiscal year they were incurred. Including the cost of ALL ‘capital expenditures’, for items that are going to last years, possibly even decades, into the future.

Why don’t they do the right thing, for once. And switch to a bookkeeping system which gives an accurate representation of the Province’s real growth, in which we should all be sharing. Instead of accounting our Assets as Liabilities, and making us pay over and over again for that which we already own.

Get rid of the senate they are too extravagant and don’t reflect the needs of citizens of Canada.

I would like to see him stay in Vanderhoof for the night rather than PG. Please leave town around 5pm and note the high volume of traffic on the highway between PG and Vanderhoof around that time… then maybe this highway could become a provincial priority and we can see action match the talk when it comes to resource based infrastructure upgrades.

If he stays the night in PG then please go for a walk along George Street and Queensway and note the need for better mental health services… especially if the Lower Mainland thinks they can download these issues to regional centers like PG.

To pay for it we should consider a provincial export tax on energy sales overseas. Call it a carbon tax if you need to sell it.