Eby says B.C. is at a ‘pivot point’ as he promises future based on natural resources

B.C. Premier David Eby makes his way to greet Prime Minister Mark Carney, not shown, before a working dinner at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, on Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (Justin Tang / The Canadian Press)

VICTORIA — British Columbia Premier David Eby used his appearance at the convention of New Democrats in Victoria to highlight several resource projects, while saying that the federal ban on tankers off B.C.’s northern coast is here to stay.

Eby promised about 800 delegates that B.C. will turn its natural resources into the wealth needed to “sustain strong public services for generations to come,” citing several natural resource projects which his government is pursuing.

They include the North Coast Transmission Line set to power mining and LNG projects in northwestern B.C., with Eby calling the line “one of the biggest, most transformational opportunities” in a century.

He said this nation-building project, which Prime Minister Mark Carney this week listed for consideration for fast-tracking by Ottawa, will support new industries while “creating 10,000 good jobs with less pollution.”

Eby said Conservatives opposed to the transmission line would rather support what he calls “Alberta’s imaginary pipeline,” adding that the current federal ban on oil tankers off B.C.’s northern coast is staying put.

Eby said earlier this year he would call an early election if the provincial legislation behind the transmission line was stopped or delayed, and he repeated the commitment when he spoke with reporters after the speech.

Eby said the last thing British Columbians want right now is an election, but added the party is ready to fight one, if Conservatives try to bring down the government over the transmission line.

“This is a matter of confidence in the government’s direction,” he said.

Eby added that lifting the tanker ban would threaten the “coalition of support” among First Nations and northern communities for various resources projects in the area.

“It’s the basis of a massive amount of economic opportunity in this country, and this province right now,” Eby said.

Conservative MLA Trevor Halford, who is attending the convention as an observer, questioned the NDP’s direction.

“I think it is great that this is an NDP government that is claiming to have found religion on resource development in our province,” he said. While Halford said he fully supports this direction, the current government is “late to the game.”

“Part of the problem is that investors outside of British Columbia, outside of Canada, don’t find us a credible regulator,” Halford said.

Eby said during his speech that B.C. finds itself in a “perilous moment in history” with authoritarianism on rise and Canada’s sovereignty and economy under direct attack from U.S. President Donald Trump.

But if B.C. finds itself at a “pivot point” between an “old order that is fading and a new one that has yet to be defined,” he said it also has everything it needs to build a stronger, more secure future for everyone.

Eby spoke for about 30 minutes, having entered the main convention hall to the song “Golden” from the South Korean hit movie “KPop Demon Hunters.”

He received several standing ovations, peppering his speech with references to the importance of unions and measures his government has taken to strengthen them.

“I don’t need to tell our friends in the labour movement that we won’t always see eye to eye on everything,” Eby said. “But I can promise you this: Even when things get tough, we will always stay true to our values. We will never, ever deny you your basic charter rights to organize and strike by using the notwithstanding clause.”

Halford said conventions are meant to be high-energy events. “But the problem is that, when you step out of this convention, when you step onto the streets, whether it’s Victoria, Surrey, Prince George or Vancouver, you can see very clearly that nothing has gotten better.”

Halford added that Eby’s speech did not address the Cowichan Tribes case, public safety and extortion, long waiting times at hospitals and cuts to senior care.

This report by Wolfgang Depner of The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 15, 2025.