B.C. campaign trail: Conservatives promise $1,000 tax cut by boosting exemption level
The plan would raise the basic personal exemption to $32,000, which the party says would save an average couple $2,000 a year.
- On Thursday, Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson announced a plan to raise British Columbia's basic personal exemption to $32,000, cutting provincial income taxes by $1,000 annually for most working British Columbians if elected October 24.
- Citing the province's ongoing cost-of-living crisis, Doerkson characterized the move as essential relief, alleging that British Columbia New Democrat Leader David Eby has raised taxes more than 40 times during his tenure.
- For a typical two-income family, the proposal would provide roughly $167 monthly, totaling about $2,000 annually, while full-time minimum wage workers would pay no provincial income tax under the exemption.
- NDP candidate Spencer Chandra Herbert alleged the proposal would "blow a $2.5 billion hole into the B.C. budget," while University of B.C. law professor David Duff estimated the annual cost between $3 billion and $4 billion.
- To offset lost revenue, Doerkson argued he would "supercharge the economy" through measures like tripling LNG production and removing regulatory restrictions, insisting a Conservative government would keep frontline services intact without raising taxes.
51 Articles
51 Articles
B.C. Conservatives promise tax cut that could blow $4-billion hole in provincial budget, tax expert says
The B.C. Conservatives are promising to put more money back into British Columbians' pockets with a major increase to the provincial basic personal exemption, but at least one tax expert says the promise could cost the province up to $4 billion a year.
BC Campaign Trail: Conservatives Promise $1,000 Tax Cut by Boosting Exemption Level
This composite image shows (L—R) B.C. NDP Leader David Eby in Vancouver, on April 13, 2026; B.C. Conservative interim Leader Lorne Doerkson, in Vancouver, on Sept. 22, 2026; B.C. Green Party Leader Emily Lowan in Victoria, on Sept. 23, 2026. (The Canadian Press/Darryl Dyck, Rich Lam, Kevin Light)
Conservatives promise $1K tax cut, Doerkson says in Surrey - Fort St. James Caledonia Courier
The Conservative Party of BC is promising to cut taxes by $1,000 if elected into government on October 24. Campaigning in Surrey for the second day in a row, on Thursday, October 8, party leader Lorne Doerkson said B.C.’s basic personal tax exemption would be raised to $32,000 from $13,216, the “most generous in Canada.” This, he said, would put $1,000 per year “back in the pockets of working British Columbians, and $2,000 for the average couple…
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