When the B.C. government announced this month it was cutting off gaming grants for adult sports and arts groups, Housing and Social Development Minister Rich Coleman said it was to save money while maintaining programs for young people and the disabled.
Then schools and daycares began receiving notices that there would no longer receive grants to build playgrounds, and opposition critics were quick to pounce. In the legislature last week, NDP leader Carole James said 800 community groups have lost their grants from lottery and casino revenue.
"At a time when the government is bringing in more gaming money than ever before, the B.C. Liberals are taking away from community grants to groups and organizations around this province, a $36 million cut from 2008 levels," James said. "When did taking money away from kids' playgrounds become a priority for this government?"
Coleman said $4 million in gaming grants was given out between 2007 and 2009, paying for 250 school playgrounds. That program has ended after two years, "as was planned," he said.
School parent advisory councils have had their funding restored to $20 per student for the coming year, and that money can be used to provide playgrounds if the parents wish, Coleman added. District parent advisory councils also see their annual grant go from $1,250 to $2,500, and they can also use that for playgrounds.
With casinos around the province added to lotteries and traditional bingo parlours, the B.C. government now takes in more than $1 billion a year from gambling. Coleman's ministry has capped the share of that to be used for community grants at $120 million, with the rest going to support increased per-pupil education funding, another $2 billion for health care, and social assistance payments that have risen by $120 million due to last year's recession.
NDP housing and social development critic Shane Simpson said the loss of gaming grants is particularly hard on non-profit child care centres.
"We have a government that on one hand said early childhood education is a priority, and on the other hand cuts those grants for organizations with very tight budgets," Simpson said. "Five or six thousand dollars makes the difference on what you get for snacks."
Extending kindergarten to full days over the next two years is one reason the B.C. government expects to run a $1.7 billion deficit in the fiscal year that begins April 1.
"I think the government's making the decision about how embarrassed they are about their mismanagement of the economy as it's reflected in the size of the deficit, and they're prepared to cut pretty much anything to try to manage the size of that deficit," Simpson said.
When the government was running a surplus in 2007, it gave $2.5 million to the Rick Hansen Foundation for a program called Let's Play. The education ministry says the program has funded playgrounds for 22 schools and 25 municipal and community organizations.
Another $1 million was given to the B.C. Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils in 2007. The ministry says it was earmarked for playgrounds and 66 elementary and middle schools received grants for new or refurbished facilities.
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