David Eby

In an unprecedented step, B.C. Premier David Eby has sent a letter to the Bank of Canada asking for the regulator to avoid an interest rate hike next month. In writing directly to Governor Tiff Macklen, Eby said another rate hike would hurt mortgage holders with expired or soon-to-expire policies. “People in B.C. are already hurting. In your role as Governor, I urge you to consider the full human impact of rate increases and not further increase rates at this time,” Eby writes. …The current key lending rate of 5.0 per cent is the highest it has been in Canada in 22 years. …In his letter, Eby also raised concerns about the impact the rates will have on home building and current housing prices. …“This quiet but devastating impact of rate increases will result in even higher housing costs, feeding inflation further,” Eby writes.