ICBC -- Head Shakers!

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ICBC Rates Up 11.2%
Management Personnel Up 32%
Management Wages Up 70%
195 Excess Staff Positions
Intended To Be A Non-Profit Corporation
$1.2 Billion From ICBC Into General Revenue

The above are a few highlights come to light this past week on the operation of your insurance corporation. This is just another example of the largesse seemingly practiced by many once they get their nose into the public trough. It also points to a serious abuse of the public trust when the government of any stripe uses insurance premiums as a form of taxation to fund general revenue.

When you pay your ICBC premium or your medical services premium you would be forgiven if you thought this was a premium going directly to the insurance you think you are buying. In fact it seems these are both just another form of taxation foisted on the snoozing public.

This largesse is not restricted to the above examples, but also seems to apply to the out of balance wages and benefits being enjoyed by all levels of the public sector. A close to home example would be the recent 2% increase enjoyed by city staff at a time when most in the private sector are lucky to still simply have a job. This 2% on top of increases over the past few years is hard to justify, however is an example of the performance of those we have elected to watch the public purse.

They say they want to hold the line on taxes but continue to find more and more ways to endorse projects that require more and more spending. Now I predict they will use the Strategic Plan to endorse their grandiose projects which will require ever increasing taxes. Just watch what happens with the budget this fall.