Finance committee wants B.C. back in the black ahead of schedule
The Daily News (Kamloops)
Nov 13 2010

The B.C. government is being urged to work faster to get its books back in the black, spend more on health and education and increase the minimum wage.

The ideas were among 59 recommendations released Friday by the legislature's finance committee following public hearings around the province.

Only Liberal members of the committee produced the report after the New Democrats pulled out, saying Premier Gordon Campbell's announcement last week of a 15-per cent tax cut left the government with little room to make new spending decisions…

It also called for more funds for early learning programs, special needs programs and an expansion of child care spaces. The committee said the minimum wage, which is the lowest in Canada and has been frozen for a decade, should be increased….