Election 2026: Campaign Roundup - Day 8

Welcome to Day 8 of our British Columbia 2026 Campaign Roundup!

We're bringing you daily updates on all the policy proclamations, platform promises, and political point-scoring from the campaign trail.

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Campaign Roundup - Day 8:

• The BC Conservative Party released their “BC Energy Superpower Plan,” pledging to double British Columbia’s LNG production by 2032 and triple it by 2035. The plan proposes faster project approvals, reduced red tape, a competitive royalty framework and expanded First Nations ownership, with the party saying the goal is to attract investment, create jobs and make BC a major energy supplier to international allies.
  
  
• Speaking of which, both the BC NDP and Conservatives are taking credit for the province’s growing LNG sector after Shell confirmed today that its LNG Canada project's Phase 2 will be going ahead. NDP Leader David Eby said his government’s work helped advance the project, but Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson argued that more than 20 LNG projects were proposed under the previous government, and under the NDP many have been cancelled. Premier Eby's support for LNG represents a reversal from his position in 2022, when, upon becoming Premier, he declared: "We cannot continue to expand fossil-fuel infrastructure and hit our climate goals.”
  
  
• The BC Green Party announced a plan to expand $10-a-day childcare and move toward universal free childcare by 2031. The Greens say they would lift the current freeze on new $10-a-day spaces, create a province-wide registration system, reduce administrative requirements for childcare operators, and introduce a wage grid for early childhood educators reaching $35-$45 per hour by 2028.
  
  
• Amelia Boultbee announced she will not seek re-election in Penticton-Summerland. Boultbee, who was first elected as a BC Conservative in 2024 before sitting as an Independent and later joining the BC NDP in July, said she could not marshal the resources needed to give the NDP a “fair shot” and was stepping aside for another candidate. She is the sixth NDP MLA to announce they will not run in the October 24th election.
  
  
• Surrey is shaping up as a key battleground. Several Surrey ridings that were long-held by the NDP switched to the Conservatives in 2024, including Surrey-North and Surrey-Panorama, while Surrey Centre and Guildford are also expected to see close races. Political scientist Stewart Prest said the Conservatives remain competitive across Surrey and South Fraser, with several ridings potentially decided by narrow margins.

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