COFI Statement on BC Budget 2025
(Vancouver, BC) – Kim Haakstad, President & CEO of the BC Council of Forest Industries (COFI) issued the following statement:
“COFI welcomes the BC Government’s focus on responding to the threat of new US tariffs in Budget 2025. We are disappointed by the absence of dedicated support for the forest sector. As Premier Eby and Minister Parmar have acknowledged, the forest sector will be particularly hard hit by the new tariffs at a time when the industry is already facing significant challenges. These broad-based tariffs apply to all forest product exports—including pulp, paper, packaging, engineered wood, and mass timber—adding further pressure on workers, companies and communities already affected by softwood lumber duties.
There is no one simple fix for the challenges facing BC’s forest sector, but ensuring predictable access to sustainable and economic fibre is critical to maintaining jobs and supporting operations across the province. COFI is concerned that Budget 2025 doesn’t plan to meet the government’s commitment to harvest 45 million cubic metres, as outlined in the government’s election platform and Forest Minister’s Mandate Letter. Despite this commitment to increase the harvest, Budget 2025 projects a decline each year to 29 million in 2027/28, well below the Allowable Annual Cut of 60 million cubic metres. Increasing the actual harvest to 45 million cubic metres would not only stop further job losses, but create the conditions to add jobs and generate hundreds of millions in additional tax revenue and stumpage fees.
COFI supports the government’s initiative to streamline permit and regulatory processes for major projects and other sectors like housing and mining. A similar approach needs to be applied urgently to the primary forest sector and include metrics to allow industry and government to measure success. This should include an accounting of the time it takes from the moment a permit process is started until a decision is made.
COFI remains committed to working with the government to advance practical solutions that strengthen BC’s forest sector, improve the provincial economy and diversify markets. Timely action on these priorities is essential to safeguard BC’s forest sector, maintain good-paying jobs, and secure the industry’s long-term future in the face of mounting global challenges.”
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Media Contact:
Travis Joern, Director of Communications, COFI
778-846-3465, Joern@cofi.org
www.cofi.org