Response to BC Budget 2026
The well-being of our province depends on the well-being of our social safety net.
Sent on February 23, 2026 by Sacia Burton and Chantelle Spicer, BC Poverty Reduction Coalition
To: Premier Eby, Minister Malcolmson, Minister Bailey, and critics for the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction and Finance
The BC Budget is the most important showcase of the provincial government’s values and priorities. Following the release of another belt-tightening budget this year, we are once again sounding the alarm on the urgent need for investments in BC’s public services and the social safety net. Significant investment is long overdue.
If asked what BC Budget 2026 offers residents struggling through a multi-pronged affordability crisis, it would be difficult to point to anything substantial that lifts or keeps people out of poverty.
The Government does not consider this an austerity budget; yet it fails to expand the social safety net at a time when households are facing such uncertainty in all areas of life. From housing to access to food to transportation, costs are rising for people in BC. With neither poverty nor affordability being mentioned in this budget or its strategic plan, it seems that any advancement in the BC Government’s poverty reduction efforts are being “re-paced” along with housing investments. It is alarming to see that the people most affected by the rising costs of living are left with the least support in this budget.
If this government is serious about ensuring a good life for all who call BC home, we must see more than report cards. People living in poverty cannot pay their rent with the empty promises of progress. At these times of increasing poverty, deep poverty, and unaffordability, the people of BC require urgent and meaningful investment in the social safety net. We are calling for immediate action on the following recommendations from our membership:
Create and support public sector employment that ensures a robust public service and supports for those navigating the social safety net, including the hiring of more ministry staff with lived experience related to poverty.
Increase the province-wide stock of non-market housing, including urgently needed transitional housing, shelter-rate housing, and housing that is deeply affordable for low-income families and seniors. This is not the time to “re-pace” vitally needed housing initiatives in the province, when advocates have highlighted the need for 25,000 new non-market units of housing per year. Affordable, non-market housing is a vital public service that must be protected.
Raise the income and disability assistance rates. Recent data from Maytree shows that rates for all household types receiving benefits, ranging from families with two children to individuals with a disability, are living with inadequate benefit incomes that keep households in legislated deep poverty.
Invest in public health to address mental health and addictions. While health is receiving some investment, many of our members point to the government’s unjust prioritization of increasing beds for involuntary care rather than wrap-around, voluntary support. The focus should be on protecting the rights of those who have been involuntarily held, and providing support to these individuals so that they can receive care in community.
Expand the $10/day child care program throughout the province. Although we are happy to see the program maintained in this budget, this is not a celebration. BC has the most expensive child care in Canada. Without increased access to affordable, quality child care, many parents – particularly women and lone-parent households – have no option but to leave the workforce or use unregulated care.
Tax the rich. The last 25 years have seen select families and corporations in BC amass incredible amounts of wealth during a period of financial instability for many thousands more. Wealth inequality is not a coincidence – it is the result of public policy decisions. We need to see an overhaul of BC’s tax system to tax high-end wealth and capital income more effectively. This is exactly the revenue BC needs to fund a strong and meaningful social safety net.
In 2020, we saw all levels of government respond to a crisis with urgent, meaningful programs, cash transfers, and policy change. This precedent demonstrated governments’ clear capacity to stabilize the economy and ensure people’s basic needs were met during a crisis. Life has not gotten easier since 2020, and we know that this work is not done. It is unacceptable to see this government respond to the crises we face in 2026 by turning their backs on those who rely on the social safety net. Amidst narratives of nation-building, the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition and our partners insist that strengthening our social safety nets is critical to a stable, let alone prosperous, economy.
