BC Debt Grows 50 Percent in Two Years to $134B Despite Lower-Than-Expected Deficit

Premier David Eby looks on as Minister of Finance Brenda Bailey tables her first budget in the legislative assembly at legislature in Victoria, B.C., on March 4, 2025. The Canadian Press/Chad Hipolito

British Columbia is weighed down by rapidly growing debt despite a lower-than-forecasted deficit for 2024, something that Finance Minister Brenda Bailey said the government is working hard to address.

But Bailey said the province needs to grow its revenue in addition to finding efficiencies in spending, a challenge in the economic uncertainty driven largely by tariffs imposed by the United States.