Tomorrow BC votes. A $14-billion deficit. Zero growth in new homes. A PST hike that's "paused." So Jordan brought in the boss — ICBA president Chris Gardner — for one story and one story only: what Saturday's vote means for the people who build this province. Episode 45 of ICBA Coffee & Construction — the news that matters to the people who build British Columbia and Alberta, with ICBA's Jordan Bateman and special guest Chris Gardner.
On today's show:
☕ THE STAKES: Construction and its supply chain are about 30 PER CENT of BC's economy, and Chris says it's flipped — companies that were turning down work a few years ago are now laying people off. His count: 60,000 jobs lost in BC since January, and ICBA's phones ringing with laid-off apprentices asking what to do.
💸 THE TAX RECORD: Chris on David Eby and the NDP — every problem answered with a new tax, a bigger tax or a higher tax, until BC's top earners sit in the highest-taxed group of all 60 Canadian provinces and U.S. states. Jock Finlayson's verdict, as Chris puts it: the worst fiscal record of any premier in Canadian history.
🛣️ THE ALBERTA STORY: Two years ago, three young workers at an ICBA member company left for Alberta. The company went with them. Today it has 100 EMPLOYEES in Calgary and Edmonton. Chris on why — faster approvals, lower taxes, optimism.
👷 FAIR TENDERING: Only 15 per cent of BC construction workers can work on the province's biggest public projects under union-only deals — projects that are over budget by hundreds of millions, some by billions. Chris: every contractor and every worker should have an equal shot to bid and win. No special deals, no special favours.
🗳️ ELECTION NIGHT: The ridings to watch — Surrey, the Tri-Cities and Burnaby, including the NDP seat won by 22 votes in 2024. Plus Chris on Lorne Doerkson, and on last Saturday's municipal results: new pro-growth mayors in Surrey, Langley Township, Richmond, New Westminster and West Vancouver — and a Vancouver council that just took a hard turn left.