GOLDEN – British Columbians should be getting more jobs from our natural resources, but the B.C. Liberals are on pace to set another record for raw log exports, say the New Democrats.

“Liberal government decisions have resulted in raw log exports dramatically rising, topping six million cubic metres for the first time in 2012 and heading towards seven million cubic metres in 2014,” said forests critic Norm Macdonald.

“Meanwhile, more than 30,000 jobs have vanished from the forest industry under the B.C. Liberals. Companies are closing mills here and building new ones in China to process B.C. logs. The Independent Wood Processers Association – comprised of mills which end up competing for logs bound for export – say that 50 per cent of its members have closed since 2002, putting thousands of people out of work.”

Macdonald said this is another example of a government focused on one industry – liquefied natural gas – to the exclusion of all others.

“The Liberals are content to sell our raw logs offshore without getting the highest possible value – both in dollar terms and in terms of jobs.

“We should be ensuring that B.C. mills and B.C. workers have first access to those logs and be working toward developing our value-added sector before simply shipping them offshore.”

The Fraser Institute released an opinion Tuesday calling for streamlining processes to make it easier to export raw logs.

“British Columbians understand that our natural resources are a valuable commodity, one that we should be getting the best value from,” said Macdonald. “The Liberals and their friends in the Fraser Institute seem to be content to ship raw logs out of B.C., losing jobs in the process.”