B.C. Premier David Eby kicked off his party's bid to stay in power in the area likely to decide the election: the suburbs of Metro Vancouver.
Specifically, his focus is on the fast-growing Surrey, which he described as the "epicentre" of challenges caused by population growth and other factors.
"There is a very specific reason that we launched this campaign in Surrey," he said Friday (Sept. 20). "When you think about the challenges that are faced, not just in British Columbia, across Canada, many parts of North America, you'll find every single one of those challenges here in spades."
Eby made these comments on a rural property off Highway 10 in the riding of Surrey-Serpentine River, one of five new ridings in the municipality.
But physical evidence of Surrey's growth in the form of traffic and new construction was visible all around the property. It was also obvious on the way to it, as Eby's campaign bus traversed the region after leaving downtown Vancouver, where he and other members of his cabinet had participated in the 2024 Union of British Columbia Municipalities Convention.
That event also touched on Eby's appearance in Surrey, when he was asked about an emergency resolution from delegates that warned against the elimination of the carbon tax. Conservative Party of B.C. Leader John Rustad has promised to eliminate the tax completely and Eby has promised to eliminate the consumer portion of the tax if Ottawa were to cut the requirement for it.
"If the federal government removes the backstop, we will remove the carbon tax for everyday British Columbians," Eby said. "They can't afford it right now. We are going to get rid of it, but what we won't do is what John Rustad is proposing, which is to abandon the fight against climate change, to give a huge tax cut to the giant oil and gas companies that are making record profits and to make ordinary people pay for that."
This reversal has earned Eby charges of flip-flopping. He dismissed those suggestions in saying his focus lies on helping British Columbians and making sure they "feel they have got someone in their corner" on issues around as affordability.
Eby used the occasion to link Rustad with several policies when he was part of the B.C. Liberals.
"He's got a record we can look and say, 'well, what happened last time people voted for John Rustad on the cost of daily life?'"
This line of attack has not gone unnoticed by the Conservatives. Speaking at UBCM, Rustad said Conservatives have no plans to re-introduce measures like bridge tolls or Medical Service Premiums.
He also talked about this aspect in a recent interview organized by the Vancouver Sun.
"I'm more prominent in their platform than they are," he said. "They can't defend their own policy."
Eby Friday acknowledged that New Democrats have been governing for seven years, but argued that recent changes — —such as the housing legislation that Rustad is promising to repeal — are starting to show results. He said this is not the time to turn back on other investments such as new schools and hospitals for Surrey.
He also questioned Rustad's promise to deliver at least $10 billion in provincial infrastructure funding.
"John had no interest in funding infrastructure when he was in government," Eby said.
The campaign gets officially underway tomorrow with the dropping of the writ with general election day scheduled for Oct. 19.
