B.C. Conservative leadership candidate Caroline Elliot says she wants to improve quality of life in the province as she campaigns to lead the party.
Elliot has a PhD in political science from Simon Fraser University and spent several years with BC Hydro to advance the Site C Dam, which is one of B.C.’s largest infrastructure projects. Elliot has also worked at the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in Victoria as an advisor to the Minister of Transportation and later the Minister of Environment.
Elliot said she wants to be the leader of the BC Conservative Party to improve the quality of life in the province.
“I’m a lifelong British Columbian, born and raised here, and there’s nowhere else I’d rather be. And when I look at my kids, who are six and eight years old, I want them to reach my age and be able to say the exact same thing. And my concern is that they’re going to grow up and look at the opportunities, or lack thereof under the NDP, and they’re going to say the opportunities are not here in B.C., they’re elsewhere. And they’ll be like the 70,000 people who left British Columbia last year for other jurisdictions for better paychecks, lower taxes, more affordable housing. And so I want to play a role in making a better province for them and their whole generation.”
Elliot also said if British Columbians want things to improve they can’t vote for the BC New Democratic Party.
“There are so many major issues facing this province. And the question is for people in this region, why would you vote for more of the same when you can vote for a very different approach that actually focuses on outcomes for people rather than the ideologically driven agenda that the NDP has been pursuing for the past eight and a half years.”
Elliot referred to former Conservative leader John Rustad’s departure after he lost the confidence of the party, saying the Conservatives need a leader who can restore confidence and promote Conservative values.
“We have to elect a leader who can win. And that means electing leaders who can keep the party together and attract new people to the party. And the way we do that is by demonstrating to British Columbians all over the province, that our conservative values are everyday British Columbia values. everyday British Columbians understand that you can’t shovel money off the back of a truck as David Eby’s government has been doing, spending taxpayer dollars with no emphasis on outcomes. So it doesn’t matter the issue, things aren’t working.”
With many British Columbians concerned about property and Indigenous rights, Elliot said the province should repeal the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA).
“We need to repeal DRIPA because it’s fundamentally at odds with existing laws and Canada’s constitutional law. Prior to DRIPA, we had one of the most progressive Indigenous rights approaches enshrined into our Constitution. And I think we need to get back to that. That meant that when a project or a permit or an initiative by government affected Indigenous rights, that there had to be meaningful consultation, there had to be accommodation where appropriate. But ultimately the province could proceed with things in the public interest. And I think we need to get back to that circumstance, which is very much undermined by the introduction of DRIPA as the NDP government has done.”
