B.C. minister’s ‘big and shiny’ memo ends up in Opposition’s hands

A British Columbia cabinet minister says a memo she mistakenly dropped contained notes she sent for herself about a “big and shiny” affordability measure for the next budget, but the paper ended up in the hands of the Opposition BC United party.

Energy Minister Josie Osborne admitted she is the author of the memo which the BC United party says shows the New Democrat government “panicking” about growing opposition to the provincial carbon tax.

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Osborne says the memo is a copy of notes she made Wednesday about possible ideas for the government’s February budget following discussions she had with an adviser who she refuses to name.

The minister says she emailed the memo of ideas to herself, but she must have mistakenly dropped a printout of the document.

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The memo suggests that if Premier David Eby was looking for something “big and shiny” for the budget he could announce the use of carbon tax revenues to freeze BC Hydro bills.

The Opposition BC United has been critical of government’s CleanBC plan, calling it economically destructive, and attorney general critic Mike de Jong asked Osborne to explain her memo because the government has consistently refused to give cost relief for residents from the carbon tax.