BC Conservative leadership debate
A front-row seat to see B.C.’s next Premier
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The race to lead the Conservative Party of British Columbia is heating up and Juno News is putting the candidates to the test.
On April 8th, we hosted the first-ever B.C. Conservative leadership debate, bringing the province’s top contenders face-to-face at a critical moment in the race.
Juno News BC Conservative Debate is underway, follow below for live updates or watch the stream above!
In her opening remarks, Kerry Lynn Findlay said she's a conservative by "conviction," not convenience. She said she’d take away high taxes, overspending, and "virtue signalling," and outlined her record of working in both government and the private sector.
Iain Black, a former BC Liberal MLA and cabinet minister, took aim at DRIPA, an international agreement at the root of many concerns over private property rights. He said he would repeal SOGI, the gender ideology and sexuality curriculum in schools and "unsafe supply" of drugs.
Yuri Fulmer, an entrepreneur and Chancellor of Capilano University, said each of the candidates will agree on most things, but said he is the only one who could unite the conservative vote in the province.
Warren Hamm, a former business owner and engineer, said he would freeze property taxes for those over 65 and hold the government accountable for overspending.
On the question of lowering the cost of living for British Columbians, Fulmer said he would let British Columbians keep more of their own money by lowering taxes, and noted that he wanted to keep government small and out of British Columbians’ lives as much as possible.
Black said he would lower the regulatory burden on small businesses and lower the ballooning civil service sector in the province.
Findlay vowed to cut provincial taxes on gas and diesel and remove the PST tax from groceries.
Hamm said the cost of government at the municipal level is too high and should get out of the way of the private sector's efforts to build “affordable housing.”
On the issue of indigenous land claims, all candidates vowed to repeal DRIPA.
Hamm vowed to appeal the decisions all the way up to the Supreme Court. Findlay added that the culture and history of British Columbia have to be respected.
Black suggested adding private property rights to the constitution to ensure British Columbians never have to worry about losing their home. Fulmer also said that private property rights need to be enshrined in legislation.
All candidates said they agreed that gender surgeries for children should be banned, to end DEI hiring practices. Only Fulmer said he’s participated in land acknowledgments that described B.C. as “unceded territory.”
They also said they would end the SOGI curriculum in schools!
All candidates agreed that crime was a massive problem in the province; most of them noted they would end “catch and release policies.” Hamm and Black said they would give police more resources.
Black added that he would tackle mental health and addiction by creating more addiction recovery centres.
All candidates on the stage were against the drug handout programs.
Black blasts candidates Peter Milobar and Caroline Elliott for not attending the debate. He says he "intends to run again" but takes a dig at Elliott's campaign, which is run by the same team behind Doug Ford's victory in Ontario, signalling he might be wary to do so under her leadership.
Fulmer said he’s worried the BC Conservative party might be taken over by Liberals under certain candidates without naming anyone.
Hamm said that, in order to ensure the BC Conservative Party stays true to its grassroots, everyone has to remember that voters wanted change and that they are running under a conservative banner.
Findlay stressed the importance of looking at a candidate’s record, warning against candidates who sound Conservative today but were supporting the opposite in the past.
Hamm focused his closing remarks on the issues facing BC; he said he will tirelessly fight for British Columbians’ affordability.
Fulmer said he wanted to restore British Columbians faith in government and stressed the importance of uniting the centre-right vote. He said if the vote is split, “you get four more years of NDP broken government and the deal with you as taxpayers being broke.”
Black stressed that “experience” in governance matters and hoped constituents would vote for someone who has led anything to “repeated success,” someone who understands the economy, and someone who has experience working in cabinet in the provincial legislature.
Findlay leaned on her experience in government and in fighting for Indigenous people, noting that BC’s “collective history matters” and that partnering with Indigenous groups is important.
I have questions for the contenders:
1. As a Conservative, I am on the side of environmental stewardship, and very much against all of the laws, taxes and regulations that were brought in under the guise of climate change. We've had more forest fires since changes were made to protect the backwoods. What changes would they propose?
2. What are the plans to remove trade barriers both foreign and nationally?
3. Do you have a red tape reduction plan?
4. Do you have a plan to reduce wasteful spending, and can you do it while lowering taxes?
5. Are you going to allow the private sector compete with the government in both insurance and health care?
Those are the things that I had a problem with under the BC Liberals and BC NDP. Everyone is talking about the woke stuff and property protection, but these are core issues!
How will you stop teachers from continuing SOGI under a different name?
Will you remove indian consultation over development? Not require their input at all!