Five legislators who quit the BC Conservatives will be part of a new party that aims to offer a “stable, serious alternative” to the governing NDP, after weeks of upheaval in the official Opposition.
Rosalyn Bird, Bruce Banman and A’a:liya Warbus said Friday in a joint statement that they’re joining the yet-to-be-named party being formed by Peter Milobar and Ian Paton.
They are all among nine legislators to have quit the Conservative caucus over the past three weeks, citing ideological and strategic differences with Leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay.
“The support we’ve seen from across the province has been overwhelming, and people are stepping up to help us bring this party to life in a very short time,” interim leader Milobar said in the statement.
“The appetite for it is undeniable.”
The B.C. Conservatives referred a request for comment to Findlay’s byelection campaign in the Abbotsford-Mission riding, which did not immediately respond.
The legislators’ statement said the new party is to hold a leadership vote before the legislature resumes Oct. 5.
It said the party plans to sit with official third-party status.
In the statement, Warbus said people who oppose the governing New Democrats must focus on defeating Premier David Eby’s government in the next election.
“We have, at most, two years to be election-ready to defeat the NDP, and joining Peter and Ian is a commitment to making sure voters have a strong alternative when that election comes,” she said.
“There’s no time to waste — Peter and Ian have been moving forward at full-steam ahead, and I’m ready to get to work alongside them.”
Banman, meanwhile, said he hopes the new party will provide right-of-centre voters with a choice other than the B.C. Conservatives.
“British Columbians want options, and we intend to give them a strong one,” he said.
Emily Lowan, the leader of the B.C. Green Party that is currently the third party in the legislature with two seats, shrugged off the new party in a statement Friday.
“I’m less concerned about the drama the Conservatives and their offshoots are creating and more concerned that they’re a distraction from the urgent needs British Columbians are facing from an out-of-control affordability and climate crisis,” she said.
There has been a recent exodus of legislators from the Conservative caucus under Findlay, who won the leadership in a narrow vote in May.
Scott McInnis and Donegal Wilson were the latest to depart on Wednesday.
