With his party sliding in the polls, British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell has admitted for the first time that his government did a poor job of telling the public about the huge pay hikes that are being offered to provincial bureaucrats

Speaking to CTV's Jim Beatty in Vancouver Wednesday, Campbell took full responsibility for the public relations blunder.

"I can tell you this Jim, I did not do a good job with you or with the public. I certainly understand the challenge that this presents to people. They look at that and they say, boy that's an awful lot of money."

He was referring to the double-digit pay increases that are being offered to about 150 top government bureaucrats.

Campbell's deputy Jessica McDonald, for example, is eligible for a 43 per cent pay hike, potentially bringing her salary to nearly $350,000. In all, the raises could cost taxpayers about $4 million a year.

"There will be some pay increases but I don't anticipate any of them will go to the top of the range which has been reported," he said.

However, Campbell said there is no way that the pay increases will be withdrawn.

"We're not backing away from a policy of being number three in Canada and we're not backing away from a policy of valuing our public servants," he said

When he talked about poor communication and bad timing, Campbell was referring to the fact that word of the pay hikes slipped  quietly out on a Friday afternoon, while the world was distracted by the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics.

The opposition says the Premier still fails to recognize that the raises were a mistake.

"It's unbelievable to me. It shows how completely out of touch Gordon Campbell is if he thinks the problem is simply public relations," said B.C. New Democratic Party leader Carole James.

And the public relations exercise continues as Campbell lets slip an initiative that may ease some of the public anger.

"I think there's going to be room for additional tax reductions," he said.

With eight months to go before the next provincial election, it seems the bureaucrats may not be the only ones being offered some extra cash from the Campbell's Liberals.

With a report by CTV British Columbia's Jim Beatty.