B.C. Conservative leader pledges to double LNG production by 2032, triple by 2035

Interim B.C. Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson unveiled a resource-expansion platform Monday, pledging to double liquefied natural gas production by 2032 and triple it by 2035 under what he calls B.C.'s "superpower plan."

"If a project is good for British Columbia, it is going to get a yes. In fact, it's going to get a very quick yes," Doerkson said while pitching the plan in Vancouver.

The announcement comes as the B.C. election campaign intensifies two weeks before the October 24 vote. NDP Leader David Eby was in Prince Rupert to make his party's case on resource extraction, while Doerkson's focus on rapid project approval signals a sharp contrast in regulatory philosophy.

NDP candidate Ravi Parmar, the incumbent Forests minister, dismissed Doerkson's pledge as a "ChatGPT plan," arguing the NDP government would exceed the Conservative targets on its current trajectory. "When you look at our plan — a real plan — we are going to be not only tripling but more than tripling LNG production by 2035," Parmar said.

The Conservatives are leaning into a "no new taxes" message as a core campaign plank. The NDP has warned that such pledges would require deep spending cuts to health and education, the province's largest budget lines.

When asked about comments made by B.C. Conservative MLA Tony Luck in February — in which Luck said health and education would need cuts because they represent the biggest budgetary line items — Doerkson flatly denied the implication. "Categorically, that is false. I do not intend to cut the health-care budget," he said, adding that Luck's remarks were taken out of context.

Doerkson also criticized the NDP's regulatory approach. "The shocking reality is that [the NDP] has created such an absolute nightmare of red tape in this province," he said.

The campaign began with back-and-forths about U.S. President Donald Trump and former Conservative leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay. Longtime chief of staff to former premier John Horgan, Geoff Meggs, offered cautious optimism about the NDP's direction. "The premier had difficulties coming out of the gate, but I think he's been finding his feet. The housing announcement was a clear step in a new direction which we hadn't heard before," Meggs said.

Eby announced Friday a plan to tax condo developers who hold vacant units and refuse to sell, an effort to pressure more housing stock onto the market. The NDP is also attempting to sow doubt about Doerkson's ability to transition from interim to permanent leader after an election win. Doerkson told CKNW's Mike Smyth Show earlier Monday that the Conservative Party board could alter bylaws to make him permanent leader and avoid a membership vote — a claim NDP candidate Parmar disputed sharply. "I doubt that is going to happen because clearly, I'm not a lawyer, but I've read their constitution. Clearly, that is not what the rules are. I think British Colombians should be very worried," Parmar said.