VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – BC’s credit rating by Standard & Poor’s remains at the highest level, with the agency optimistic about how the NDP government will handle the province’s finances.

S&P has reaffirmed BC’s creditworthiness at AAA with a stable outlook.

It says the rating “reflects our expectations that BC’s economy will continue expanding modestly through the next two years and that the… government will maintain its fiscal prudence, contributing favorably to the province’s budgetary performance and helping to contain its high debt burden.”

S&P adds that it sees “early signs of broad continuity in financial management” by the NDP after taking over from the BC Liberal Party. The agency also expects those practices “will become more entrenched” in the next two years.

BC Finance Minister Carole James says this latest rating report verifies that the province’s path forward is a fiscally prudent one.

“Our government will continue to take action to make life more affordable, improve the services that British Columbians count on, and ensure strong economic growth that benefits the entire province,” James says in the release.

BC has been rated AAA with Standard and Poor’s since May 2007, when the province was upgraded from a double-A plus rating.