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Vaughn Palmer: B.C. conservative right wing unites on issues, but two centrists skip debate

Opinion: Debate comes as Elections B.C. reveals website attacking B.C. Conservatives was tied to old B.C. United

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VICTORIA — B.C. Conservative leadership candidate Yuri Fulmer joked Wednesday that he’d told his children not to expect excitement if they tuned into the first debate of the party leadership campaign.

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Fulmer figured he and rival candidates Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Iain Black and Warren Hamm would agree more often than not.

Vaughn Palmer: B.C. conservative right wing unites on issues, but two centrists skip debate Back to video

He was right, as I discovered watching the debate unfold on the YouTube channel of Juno News, the right-of-centre news service hosting the debate.

DRIPA, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act? All four would repeal it.

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Likewise SOGI, the sexual orientation and gender identity program in schools.

DEI hiring, based on principles of diversity, equity and inclusion? Replaced by hiring on merit.

The human rights tribunal that recently imposed a $750,000 (!) fine on former school trustee Barry Neufeld? Three of the four would abolish it, the fourth would curb the ability to impose ruinous fines.

All four would protect private property, build pipelines, get tough on crime (“catch and release is for fishing,” said Findlay) and invoke the notwithstanding clause to charter-proof legislation.

They’d follow Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and ban surgical gender transitioning for children. The statue of Sir John A. Macdonald, hidden away eight years ago by Victoria city council, would be back on display.

No more safe injection sites. More competition for ICBC. A greater private sector presence in health care. And fewer taxes and regulations, especially those that drive up the cost of housing.

Some positions were far removed from those of the B.C. Liberal government of 2001-17.

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Vaughn Palmer: Conspicuous no-shows for B.C. Conservative leadership debate

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Then again, consider how the New Democrats have moved from the days when they opposed LNG and Site C and supported carbon taxes, decriminalization, safer supply and balanced budgets.

Still lurking behind the many points of agreement was a clear division on one thing — resentment of no-show candidates Peter Milobar and Caroline Elliott.

The two gave ample notice of their plan to be elsewhere, yet organizers underscored their absence by planting podiums with their names on either side of the platform.

Aaron Gunn, the Conservative MP who co-moderated the debate, took an early shot at the duo. The format would allow for rebuttals, he said, then added, amid laughter, that candidates would need to be present to claim the time.

Findlay, the former Conservative MP, was more explicit: “If you don’t show up for work, you shouldn’t get the job,” she said.

Fulmer played up the concern that Milobar and Elliott were both recent converts to the Conservative brand: “I don’t want our party to be taken over by B.C. Liberals.”

None of the four mentioned that earlier in the day Elections B.C. had imposed a $4,500 fine on B.C. United, the defunct successor to the B.C. Liberals.

B.C. United was behind a website and internet campaign that called for the firing of Conservative Leader John Rustad on the eve of the 2024 election. This at a time when B.C. United had shut down its own campaign and tacitly endorsed Rustad and the Conservatives as the only hope to beat the NDP.

The finding drew outrage from Rustad.

“They lied and actively worked to elect the NDP by sabotaging us, while pretending to unite,” he wrote on his X account. “This dirty trick suppressed turnout when we were just one seat short of forming government.”

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BC United secretly funded the fake “https://t.co/FlEZPB1maB” website and pamphlets in the final weeks of the 2024 campaign.They lied, pretended it was from “disgruntled Conservatives,” and actively worked to elect the NDP by sabotaging us while pretending to unite.This dirty… https://t.co/6skA5qYkNO— John Rustad (@JohnRustad4BC) April 9, 2026

BC United secretly funded the fake “https://t.co/FlEZPB1maB” website and pamphlets in the final weeks of the 2024 campaign.They lied, pretended it was from “disgruntled Conservatives,” and actively worked to elect the NDP by sabotaging us while pretending to unite.This dirty… https://t.co/6skA5qYkNO

Rustad pointed a disparaging finger at leadership candidates Elliott, a former vice-president of B.C. United, and at Milobar, whose campaign manager Mark Werner held the same role with B.C. United in the run up to the fall 2024 election.

However, Elliott resigned as vice-president in early 2024.

Werner put out a statement Thursday saying that he was “not aware of the website and had no involvement in its creation, authorization or operation on behalf of B.C. United.”

“I have never spoken to Elections B.C. regarding this matter,” he continued. “Following Kevin Falcon’s decision to dissolve B.C. United’s campaign on Aug. 28, 2024, my role as campaign manager ended shortly thereafter.”

Elections B.C. chose not to name names in its report on the case. However, from talking to a party insider, I gather the website was the product of a consultant who was paid a hefty retainer of $10,000 a month.

Also on Thursday, B.C. United put out a statement expressing disappointment at Election’s B.C.’s decision to blame the party for actions by “contractors and staff acting outside the scope of their authorized duties, without the knowledge of the party’s leadership.”

But for now, the competing statements ensured that the Elections B.C. report overshadowed any news from Wednesday’s debate.

For what it is worth, I thought Black did the best, coming across as the strongest speaker with the greater command of the issues. The former cabinet minister and CEO is also the most experienced among the four.

He did take one shot at the absent Elliott for surrounding herself with organizers from Ontario, saying “I am not going to be told what to do by Toronto.”

But in trying to have it both ways on party unity, Black also reminded his fellow candidates that their ultimate opponent was the NDP.

vpalmer@postmedia.com 

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