BC Finance Minister Katrine Conroy answers questions from reporters after serving up a hot lunch for students at Ruth King Elementary during a photo-op ahead of the budget while in Langford, B.C., on Feb. 27, 2023. An audited public accounting of British Columbia's financial records shows the province posted a budget surplus of $704 million in the 2022-2023 budget year. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chad Hipolito
VICTORIA – An audited public accounting of British Columbia’s financial records shows the province posted a surplus of more than $700 million in the 2022-2023 budget year.
Finance Minister Katrine Conroy outlined the province’s financial performance in the government’s public accounts for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023.
The government’s budget forecasts have been on an up-and-down ride for the past two years, with the 2022-2023 budget originally forecast in February last year to show a $5.5 billion deficit, before that was revised to a surplus of almost $6 billion, then downgraded to a $3.6 billion surplus.
The final numbers now show a surplus of $704 million.
Conroy forecast three years of consecutive budget deficits last March, with the current 2023-2024 budget projected to bring a deficit of $4.2 billion.
She says the audited public accounts show B.C.’s economy grew by 3.6 per cent, tied for fourth highest among the provinces and equal to Canada’s national growth.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 30, 2023.
