BC Conservative Leader Confirms He Won’t Moderate His Anti-Scientific Views on Climate Change

The leader of the BC Conservatives is standing behind his controversial views on climate science, even though that claim is what got him kicked out of the party he’s planning to merge with.

On Wednesday, British Columbia voters received surprise news that the province’s official opposition party, BC United (formerly known as the BC Liberals), was folding and effectively merging with the five-seat BC Conservatives — a party that received 1% of the vote during the last election.

Although the BC Liberals won 28 seats in 2020, the party’s poll numbers plummeted after party leader Kevin Falcon changed the party’s name to BC United, causing confusion among voters and a surge in support for the now five-seat BC Conservatives.

BC Conservative leader John Rustad, a former BC Liberal MLA, had been kicked out of his former party in 2022 after tweeting a statement casting doubt on the science behind climate change.

At Falcon and Rustad’s joint press conference Wednesday announcing a new alliance between their rival parties, Rustad was asked if he stood behind his statements on climate change that caused their rift in the first place:

“Your relationship broke down a couple years ago over party discipline and climate change, so Mr. Rustad, are you moderating your views on climate change? Do you still believe it’s not a crisis and the science suggesting we’re causing it is false?”

The BC Conservative party’s official “climate policy” explicitly rejects the idea that climate change is a “crisis.”

Rustad did not directly answer the question, but reiterated the BC Conservatives are “not changing” what they “stand for”:

“As the Conservative Party of British Columbia, we are welcoming this opportunity to be able to work with the United Party.  As I have said all along, we are not changing our principles and the values that we stand for, we’re going to fight for what we think is right for the people in British Columbia.”

In August 2022, Rustad retweeted a tweet from prominent climate science denier Patrick Moore casting doubt on climate science.

“The case for CO2 being the control knob of global temperature gets weaker every day,” said the tweet amplified by Rustad, adding that people should “celebrate C02.”

Twitter

In response to Rustad’s tweet, Falcon put out a statement reiterating that “climate change is one of the most critical threats facing our future.”

“The BC Liberals are strongly committed to substantive climate action and restoring BC’s place as a world leader in climate policy,” Falcon added. “John Rustad does not speak on behalf of caucus on this issue.”

Let me be clear, #ClimateChange is one of the most critical threats facing our future. The @bcliberals are strongly committed to substantive climate action & restoring BC’s place as a world leader in climate policy. @JohnRustad4BC does not speak on behalf of caucus on this issue.

— Kevin Falcon (@KevinFalcon) August 17, 2022

In an interview with CBC News, Rustad argued that role of carbon emissions in climate change is a “theory” and “should be open to debate.”

Rustad added he believes policies to reduce carbon emissions are doing “real harm.”

British Columbia first introduced a carbon tax in 2008 under the former BC Liberal government while Rustad was still a BC Liberal MLA.

A day after reiterating the BC Liberal belief in climate change, Falcon announced that he was removing Rustad from caucus.

Following a pattern of behaviour that was not supportive of our caucus team and the principles of mutual respect and trust, I have removed MLA John Rustad from the BC Liberal Caucus effective immediately. #BCpoli

My full statement below: pic.twitter.com/Dblw0Q2JFD

— Kevin Falcon (@KevinFalcon) August 18, 2022

In a public statement outlining the BC Conservatives’ official “climate policy” last year, Rustad wrote that the party does not believe climate change is a “crisis” or poses an “existential threat”:

“British Columbians are NOT facing an existential threat from our changing climate. It isn’t a crisis. In fact, our changing climate is not the most pressing issue facing us in BC or around the world.”

At a press conference last year, the BC Conservative leader reiterated that he believes the BC government’s current climate policies will not do anything to “change the weather.”

Falcon says BC United candidates will run under the BC Conservative banner in this fall’s election after approved candidates from both parties are reevaluated under an “improved vetting process.”