(VICTORIA) Earlier today, Kevin Falcon’s BC Liberals voted against nearly $20 million in funding that Premier David Eby and the BC NDP provided to Vernon-Monashee through the Growing Communities Fund.

“We heard the concerns of local leaders and community members, and we delivered on the support that was needed to invest in local projects and help people. I am extremely disappointed that the Liberals don’t think that our communities are a priority,” said Harwinder Sandhu, MLA for Vernon-Monashee. “Rural communities need investments, and Kevin Falcon is turning his back on them when he had the opportunity to show his support. Investing in people now helps everyone in the long-run, and the Liberals record of harmful cuts causes more problems down the road.”

While the BC NDP government is using BC’s fiscal surplus to support people across B.C., Falcon told Global News that he opposes this investment:

“Instead of using some of that to responsibly pay down debt or deal with other things, what did the NDP do with the surplus they had last year, a one-time surplus? They are trying to spend all of it,” said Falcon.

Last week, the Premier announced that all 188 local governments will share $1 billion in funding for the construction of infrastructure that is needed to support the rapid growth of our communities. Vernon-Monashee’s share is $19,054,000 million.