According to Statistics Canada, the total number of building permits between January and March is up by 30 per cent over the same period in 2004 – nearly double the national average.
May 5, 2005
VANCOUVER – The latest reports on building permits show that the BC Liberals’ economic plan is working, said Finance Minister Colin Hansen.
“Over the last two years, we’ve seen both residential and non-residential building permits soar in this province,” said Hansen, the BC Liberal candidate for Vancouver-Quilchena. “Our construction industry is booming and the momentum is showing no signs of letting up.”
According to Statistics Canada, the total number of building permits between January and March is up by 30 per cent over the same period in 2004 – nearly double the national average. Of that total, residential building permits were up 10.2 per cent while non-residential permits were up 93.2 per cent – nearly three times the national average.
“The NDP continues to argue that our surging economy has more to do with commodities and interest rates than strong government policy, but these numbers tell a different story,” said Hansen. “With rates that are upwards of three times the national average, we are once again seeing that our economic policies are giving B.C. a real leg up on many of the other provinces.”
These positive numbers come on the heels of earlier news from Statistics Canada that the value of building permits for 2004 increased by 23.9 per cent over 2003, representing $7.9 billion in new investment and the largest increase since 1991.
“A couple days ago we heard stories that the Alberta Homebuilders’ Association had created a website specifically to draw Alberta’s construction workers back from B.C. – a stark contrast from the 1990s when tens of thousands of trained workers were lost to other provinces,” said Hansen. “Confidence has returned to British Columbia, and that means real progress for workers and families across the province."
