The premier of Nova Scotia is defending how his government is tackling issues of affordability, amid record-high inflation rates.
Premier Tim Houston says his government is focused on sustainable solutions, rather than short-term fixes.
“I understand the desire for a short-term fix, but there’s no short-term fix in the inflationary environment we’re in right now,” Houston said at a media availability Thursday.
Our province is facing significant costs for healthcare and government services, he said.
Opposition parties have criticized Houston’s move to leave our provincial gas tax untouched. However, Houston says removing the gas tax could have unintended consequences on the ability to provide services such as healthcare.
“It’s always an option; we’re constantly assessing it,” He said. “But the price of gas has proven to be very volatile. Even an amendment to [the gas tax] could be short-term if the price changes dramatically the next week.”
Houston pointed to several initiatives from the party’s budget to help families, including the seniors care grant, property tax rebates, reduced child care rates and an increase to the family benefit on July 1, 2022.
After pushback on how the government would help other struggling groups of Nova Scotians, such as low-income singles, Houston stuck to his guns, saying the party will keep looking for sustainable solutions.
“I would say there are very few government programs that impact every single Nova Scotian,” said Houston. “We’ll continue to look at programs and we’ll make sure we’re helping and supporting those that we can.”
Consumer prices in Nova Scotia increased 8.8 per cent year-over-year. That compares to the national inflation of 7.7 per cent.
