We're gearing up for a provincial election here in B.C. this year, and a federal election next year, so the weather forecast is calling for blustery winds, sudden squalls, thunder and lightning, and a good deal of hot air for the foreseeable future. Those "sunny ways" of 2015? Gone with the wind.
A good barometer of what we can expect here can already be seen in the British election, which will come to a head on July 4. Since the British electoral and party system is fairly similar to what we have here, a look at what's going on there could be instructive.
One of the reasons for that is that even a cursory glance at the issues weighing most heavily on British voters — immigration, high inflation and the cost of living, rising levels of crime, lower living standards, a deteriorating health care system, housing unaffordability, and the cost of initiatives to combat climate change — are remarkably similar to what's on the minds of Canadian voters right now.
What's one of the takeaways from this? That politicians here in Canada who try to paint their town/region/province/country as a dystopian hellscape which is unique in the world in terms of the problems it is facing are out to scare you. While these issues (and others) are obvious to many people as applying to the place they live, many fail to realize that they are in many cases a global issue, which people everywhere are grappling with.
Which leads us to politicians who promise that they know how to solve some or all of these issues. Word to the wise: if any politician, anywhere, tells you that they have the solution for a complex issue that has confounded people all over the world for years or decades, they're lying to you. If there was a simple solution, it would have been found and implemented by now.
Homelessness is a (sadly) good example. The vast majority of people who are homeless did not decide, when they were young, to be homeless and then work towards that goal; they are there due to any number of factors, which can include some or all of job loss, bankruptcy, divorce, abandonment, addiction, abuse, physical and/or mental health issues, lack of education and/or learning issues, and more. It's a huge, complex, multi-faceted issue, and anyone who tries to tell you it isn't, and that they can solve it, is selling you a bill of goods.
And let's talk about tax cuts, which politicians (especially those currently in opposition) love to trot out as something of a sure-fire vote-getter. After all, no one likes paying taxes, amiright?
The trouble is, people tend to like the things that taxes pay for: unsexy stuff like roads, schools, hospitals, potable water, and fire and police protection, and fun stuff like parks, pools, arenas, and libraries. A good rule of thumb is to ask politicians what you won't be getting for those taxes you won't be paying, and follow it up by asking how, exactly, those tax cuts will be paid for. Taxes are any government's main source of income, so if a politician promises to cut taxes, they need to be able to say where the money will come from to replace that income.
Remember British prime minister Liz Truss's short-lived tenure at No. 10 Downing Street in 2022? (Don't worry if the answer is no; she was only in there for 49 days.) What torpedoed her premiership was a mini-budget that (amongst other things) promised £42 billion in unfunded tax cuts. Overnight (literally) the pound hit an all-time low against the US dollar, and within days mortgage rates had increased, house prices had fallen, and many real estate deals collapsed amid the uncertainty. The whole debacle is estimated to have cost the British economy £30 billion, give or take.
So as you keep an eye on the (political) weather forecast over the next few months, don't just look at what's happening in your town or region. And if someone is promising you sunshine on a cloudy day, or vice versa, take a look out the window and decide for yourself.
