1. Family Services of Greater Vancouver have lost 5 addictions counsellors for their Day and DEW adult addictions programs, with repercussions for other Family Services counselling programs who will no longer be able to refer people to these services. 
2. Mt. Pleasant Neighbourhood House in Vancouver is losing funding for a unique social-recreational program they’ve run for people with disabilities, including young adults, for 25 years.  They have nowhere to transition these program participants for social-emotional support and community The program will have to close as of October 31.  The dollar amount of the cut is around $98,000.  integration.

The Injustice in Spending Cuts

Spending cuts aren’t always prudent. Cuts that simply increase costs in other areas represent false economy. Increasingly, the provincial government is running that risk. Short-term measures to reduce spending are raising fears about their long-term costs.

A case in point: cutbacks in the criminal justice system, which have resulted in a lack of judges and access to courtrooms.

Without judges, some cases have been tossed out because of the lengthy delays in bringing the accused individuals to trial. Police work and court time have been wasted; people who could be guilty of serious offences wrongfully go free.

The slow process of justice also means those who have committed serious offences could still be on the streets, committing more offences undeterred.

Justice delayed really can be justice denied — and can bring higher costs as well.

Leonard Krog, the New Democrat justice critic, says cuts are putting public safety at risk and threatening citizens’ right to timely access to courts.

Impaired driving and drug trafficking charges have been thrown out in the Kootenays because no judge was available to hear the cases, he noted this week.

Concerns about misguided cuts are being expressed in other ministries. Social services are being trimmed, which we are told will put more children at risk. Health-care cuts could result in higher costs and more expensive treatments in the future. Education funding shortfalls will hurt us later as well. The list goes on.

To be fair, it would be next to impossible to cut a service, position or grant without someone declaring that the sky is falling.

And it’s not easy running a government in tough times. The decisions are often difficult and usually come down to a call between two distasteful options.

Deficit budgets rely on borrowed money — and that money will need to be paid back someday. It’s better to make some tough decisions now than to force our children to pay off our debts.

But cutting spending in ways that increase future costs is just as unfair to future generations.

We need to know that the long-term consequences of spending cuts have been considered. Some expenditures would not be missed; some are vital. It would be nice to have the government recognize that it has responsibilities to all British Columbians and that it takes money to fulfil those responsibilities.

Getting the bad guys off the street is one example. It’s reasonable to expect that the criminal justice system will carry on through good times and bad, and not stop working just because government revenues have fallen.

From the Victoria Times Colonist, May 13, 2010

1)  The Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) cut $88,000 of funding to Options Surrey Community Services Society for their Mobile Child Care Service resulting in the closure of the service effective May 31, 2010 and a loss of 350 hours of childminding per week for the communities of Surrey, Delta and White Rock. This was an award-winning program, stitched together, like many, with dollars from various sources, but the loss of the MCFD funding makes it impossible to continue running it.  In 2009-10 it enabled over 3000 parents to attend 771 workshops and support sessions while over 4000 children were cared for.

2)  Coquitlam’s Family Education Support Services program, run by Simon Fraser Society for Community Living, cut as of June 30/10; decision by Tri-Cities ECD Funding Committee.  Amount cut:  $43,493. 

3) Special needs assessment staff in Fraser Health cut.  Assessments of children will have to be done at Sunnyhill Hospital in Vancouver. 

4) March 18, 2010 — MCFD announced $2.5M cut in funding, half of the previous annual commitment, to Success By 6 for this fiscal year, and that they will no longer continue funding this initiative beyond 2011.  Success By 6 is a partnership between MCFD, United Ways and Credit Unions throughout the province that funds and mobilizes support for young children and their families. After vigorous protests, the Minister has said her ministry will try to find some funding to continue this program, but the amount is unknown.

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