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BC Chamber of Commerce
#1201, 750 West Pender Street
Vancouver, BC V6C 2T8
T 604.683.0700
F 604.683.0416
E bccc@bcchamber.org
Advocacy & Policy
2010 - 2011 Policy & Positions Manual
<< back to Statements of Policy
Fiscal Responsibility
The Chamber supports the concept and process of the Provincial Government’s extensive Core Services Review. This review examined every program and service and re-evaluated their purpose according to the following criteria:
- Public interest test;
- Affordability test;
- Effectiveness and role of government test;
- Efficiency test; and
- Accountability
The Government has made difficult and painful decisions to create a competitive business climate, and promote customer service and sound fiscal management. It is our belief that these measures will make BC better able to take full advantage of economic renewal as it unfolds.
Therefore, the Chamber believes that any new program spending should meet the same tests listed above to ensure open and accountable decision making and to avoid future difficulty with unsustainable program spending.
Additionally, since these tests may be subject to arbitrary redefinition over time, we would encourage the Government to create explicit links between ministry’s three and five year strategic plans and core service definitions. As a part of the explicit links, we encourage the government to require that programs be evaluated on measurable and pre-determined outcome-based criteria. Whenever a program misses its targets, there should be an automatic review of the program, its objectives and goals.
To ensure that fiscal responsibility becomes the foundation of government policy, the Chamber recommends that the Provincial Government create explicit links between each ministry’s three and five year strategic plans and core service definitions, particularly for any new spending and that any new program or service spending be held to the core services standard.