The B.C Government will be announcing how it plans to spend $1.5 billion that it set aside for COVID-19 economic recovery measures in September.

Finance Minister Carole James is urging people to have their say online, noting the government’s survey is open until tomorrow.

“It’s really quite extraordinary and rewarding to see the number of people who’ve been taking part,” James said.

“And then in addition for the last number of months the Premier, myself, ministers, and MLAs have been holding town halls, have been holding round tables, sector specific discussions, again to make sure our recovery plan is flexible and responsive.”

This $1.5 billion is part of the $5 billion the government earmarked for COVID-19 relief programs back in March. The province is estimating a deficit of $12.5 billion, in part due to its relief measures but also a drop in revenue. James though noted that the province won’t cut service levels to balance its budget.

“We all know that businesses can only operate successfully if we work to flatten the curve. People can only spend funds at B.C. businesses if they have a stable income and feel confident that they can get out again. We put a number of processes in place to be able to gather information from the sectors and the public,” James said.

“We have also used other tools that we have had in government to be able to add additional dollars to that $5-billion so that includes the tax measures that we have put in place, and those are pieces that we can continue to do outside of the $5-billion.”

When the survey was announced a month ago, the opposition B.C. Liberals called it disappointing, saying the only plan the NDP have is the survey, leaving British Columbians to fend for themselves.

“People are still out of work, businesses are facing bankruptcy, the public health threat from COVID-19 isn’t over, and what does the NDP do? They launch an online survey,” Leader Andrew Wilkinson said in a statement, at that time.