BC Green Party

“B.C. doesn’t have a spending problem. It has a revenue problem. We must tax BC’s 1% and richest corporations to make BC a liveable province for workers.”

Lowan added that B.C.’s fiscal challenges stem not from overspending but from decades of eroded revenue. “As economist Iglika Ivanova pointed out, B.C.’s own-source revenues have fallen by nearly four percentage points of GDP in 25 years, about $16.8 billion a year in lost public capacity,” she said

“Underpaying public workers drives them out of government, and taxpayers end up footing higher bills for external contracts. It’s bad policy and worse economics.”

Both unions have warned that the failure to recruit and retain public professionals is forcing the government to rely on private contractors, who charge significantly more. “This is the vicious cycle of austerity,” said Lowan.

The NDP loves to call itself the party of workers — until those workers ask for a raise. You can’t build a resilient public service by undermining the people who make it work”.

“The BC NDP is abandoning the workers who keep this province running,” said Lowan. “By refusing to keep wages in line with the rising cost of living, this government is effectively cutting workers’ pay in real terms.

“They’re not asking for special treatment. They’re asking for fair wages that keep up with inflation and reflect the value of their expertise.”

“These are the people who ensure our bridges are safe, our forests are sustainably managed, and our communities and infrastructure are protected from floods and landslides,” said BC Green Leader Emily Lowan.

Nearly 25,000 BC Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU) members remain on picket lines province-wide.

The BC Greens stand in full solidarity with PEA and BCGEU members as they escalate job action across the province.

Today, the Professional Employees Association (PEA) announced that all 1,800 of its members are now on full strike after the provincial government refused to increase their wages in line with inflation by offering only 3.5 percent over two years.

BC Greens stand with striking public service workers. Government must value expertise, not outsource it! @emilylowan.bsky.social

bcgreens.ca/stand-with-s...

#BCGEU #PEA #Bcpoli #FairDealNow

Thanks for the great coverage on our housing policy, @jamimakan.bsky.social / BIV! Renters in B.C. have the worst deal in Canada, with 1 in 6 spending over half their income on rent. We need to crack down on greedy landlords with vacancy control and massively scale non-market housing. #bcpoli

Hey @daniellesmithab.bsky.social, let’s find out first if we're part of the same country, before you come knocking w/ bitumen schemes💸 Laughable “national interest” pitch from a province trying to break up the country. Last thing our climate & coffers can afford is another TMX boondoggle #bcpoli

Pete Fry considering a run for mayor of Vancouver — and he could be the candidate to unite the left | CBC News Coun. Pete Fry is considering whether to challenge Vancouver Mayor Kan Sim with a run for mayor in next year's election. If he ran, Fry would be Sim's third major challenger, joining the mayor's forme...

For the past few months, Pete Fry has been very lukewarm about running for Mayor of Vancouver.

But at the UBCM conference, he’s seemed much more open to the idea, and supporters in other municipalities are talking him up to me.

Here’s my story on the speculation, and what comes next.

💚The future of BC will be built by people, not corporations. Let’s get to work!

“This moment belongs to everyone in BC who has felt left behind by politics-as-usual. As Leader, I will fight to reclaim our democracy, resist fossil fuel expansion, and put government back to work for everyday people and future generations.” – Emily Lowan

Her leadership priorities include:
🌱 Fighting for affordability and corporate accountability
🌱 Advancing bold climate action and Indigenous rights
🌱 Building coalitions that reclaim B.C.’s economy for everyday people

👉 Worked with Indigenous Nations on impact assessments and policy research
👉 Successfully fought for fossil fuel divestment as a student leader
👉 Published influential research with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives’ Corporate Mapping Project

Emily’s grassroots energy and fearless leadership will carry this momentum forward.

She has:
👉 Led national coalitions at Climate Action Network Canada, representing over 1.5 million Canadians

This leadership contest saw 8,641 eligible voters, with 61% casting a ballot. In the final count, members delivered a strong mandate:

Emily Lowan: 3,189 votes

Jonathan Kerr: 1,908 votes

Adam Bremner-Akins: 128 votes

None of the options: 14 votes

She brings the experience of building movements, taking on powerful interests, and empowering communities across BC.

Emily Lowan talking to reporters after being announced as the new Leader of the BC Green Party

The BC Greens are proud to announce Emily Lowan as our new Party Leader!

An organizer, advocate, and strategist, Emily has spent over a decade fighting for climate justice, Indigenous solidarity, and democratic renewal.

Confirming it did come officially from the party.

At the end of the day, we can only verify those who choose to complete the process, and we are committed to supporting every member who wants to do so. Janelle, thank you for verifying and for your interest in voting in the leadership contest! Your participation & engagement means a lot to our team!

While no system is perfect, we are proud of the integrity and transparency of ours, and we are encouraged by the strong number of members who have already completed verification.

The reality is that until Elections BC takes over responsibility for party membership lists, parties like ours have to manage verification with our own resources. We designed this process months ago, and all leadership contestants were made aware of it.

We’re sorry you had trouble, and we encourage anyone still having difficulties to reach out directly to id@bcgreens.ca or call us at 1-888-473-3686 ext 6. Our team will do everything possible to make sure you get verified before the September 22 deadline, the day before voting closes.

The fastest and most reliable option right now is the Google Meet (or our Zoom drop-ins), since Vaultie can take longer — you have to wait for their email before you can begin, as you said.

Thank you for taking the time to share your experience, Janelle. It’s not our intention to disregard or diminish the challenges some members have faced in the verification process. We know this is important, and our team has been working around the clock to help people through every step.

Statement from Interim Leader on Membership Verification and Leadership Contest The BC Green Party affirms its ID verification process for new members ahead of the 2025 leadership vote, ensuring election integrity and transparency.

Yesterday, a letter from a leadership contestant’s legal counsel was released to the media, indicating they are considering litigation over the party’s ID verification process. Here's interim Leader Jeremy Valeriote's statement:
bcgreens.ca/statement-fr...