Beetle Bucks Still Available

By 250 News

Cariboo-Prince George M.P.  DIck Harris wants to clarify the program funding  issue surrounding the  mountain pine beetle funds.    

Harris says the $11.2 million dollars that had been pulled from the program ( see "Funds Cut") were dollars that had not been used by the end of the fiscal year on March 31st of 2006.  "The previous government used to spend dollars that hadn’t been used by the programs they had been alloted to" says Harris.  He says his government has a policy of using unused portions to pay down the debt.

Will there still be dollars for the Beetle plan?   "Yes" says Harris.  "There was another $100 million dedicated to the Beetle Plan for the current fiscal year, and that money will be available until March 31st of 2007."

During his pre-election campaign, Prime Minister Stephen Harper had toured the Prince George Region and promised  that if elected his government would dedicate 100 million per year  for ten years to programs dealing with the mountain pine beetle epidemic.

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