VANCOUVER – A look at some key developments from Day 16 of the B.C. election campaign for each of the parties:
LIBERALS:
— Liberal Leader Christy Clark reacts to new U.S. duties on softwood lumber by calling on Ottawa to ban the shipment of thermal coal through British Columbia, a move that would hurt producers south of the border.
— Clark says she has considered the coal ban before, but as trade relations with the Trump administration sour she is “free” to take action without damaging negotiations on softwood lumber.
— Clark says a ban is in line with her push for a liquefied natural gas industry, arguing if China were to shift from coal to LNG it would have “a massive impact” on greenhouse gas emissions.
NDP:
— NDP Leader John Horgan gave a muted response to Clark’s proposal, saying there are a range of moves that could be taken on softwood lumber.
— Horgan says if the NDP wins the election, he would speak with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about energy, raw log exports, “a whole host of issues that I believe we have to play on this negotiation.”
— Horgan campaigned in Burnaby on soaring housing costs, promising to make housing more affordable by closing loopholes in the rental tenancy act and building 114,000 new units.
GREENS:
— Green Leader Andrew Weaver backed Clark’s lobbying efforts to ban thermal coal, but accused the Liberals of waiting too long to take that position.
— Weaver says he has suggested stopping the expansion of thermal coal exports but couldn’t get support from the other two parties in the legislature.
— Weaver says he hopes Clark’s move “is more than just election politics.”