With days to go in the election and countless unanswered questions about his plan for British Columbians, Interim Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson is dodging media questions for the second straight day. 

But Elections BC filings reveal that he’s scheduled for two private maximum donor fundraisers in swanky downtown Vancouver hotels - marking five private fundraisers since he last held a media availability.

Today’s $1,485-per-ticket double header includes a 4:30 event at the Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre before scooting over to the Paradox Hotel at 7:00.

The fundraisers are posted on Elections BC as legally required but have not been advertised on the party’s events page or social media. 

At one of yesterday’s Victoria events, Doerkson stood alongside Conservative Oak Bay-Gordon Head candidate and developer Stan Sipos and committed to repealing Bill 44, one of the core elements of Eby’s housing plan that removed zoning restrictions on small multi-unit housing developments like duplexes. This measure has been projected to create almost 300,000 middle-class homes over 10 years. Repealing Bill 44 is nowhere to be found in Doerkson’s 71-page platform.

This approach follows Doerkson’s secret letter to personal injury lawyers promising to let them cash in again and that “everything is on the table.” Doerkson has refused to answer basic questions about how much car insurance will cost under his plan.

Every day, British Columbians are learning more about what a Conservative government would look like: selling them out to private interests and making everyone else pay the price. 

Hey, I’m a developer in Victoria and I’ve been making an app called Slackwater for checking tides and currents around here. I couldn’t quite find one I liked, so I built my own.

I shared it in r/Victoria and Reddit suggested posting here too. I’m working on the second release and would love some feedback from people elsewhere on the Island who spend time on the water or along the coast.

At one point in my life I worked as a designer so I tried to make something beautiful and useful at the same time. But I'm curious whether it’s useful for what you do, and what’s confusing or missing.

https://slackwater.xyz/

It’s open source and mostly free; premium is there to offset my costs. iPhone only for now, but I’m aiming to have Android out before the end of the year; there's a google group signup link for that.

One annoying bit: you have to download the Canadian tide stations separately because of the licensing.

If you try it, I’d love to hear how it goes.

There is potential for the NDP to narrow the gap with Green voters. 

Overall, 37% of voters who have a second choice say they have not fully made up their mind. This number is highest for Green voters at 54%, who are the least certain of any party’s supporters and also strongly favour the NDP as their second choice. However, potential gains from Green switchers alone would not be enough to close the current 5-point gap completely.

This could tilt the election.

I was a bit surprised to find a couple inches of fresh snow on the north aspect, but I guess winter is coming. The ptarmigans are out in full white regalia. Time to wax the skis.

Document I'm referencing: https://conservativebc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/20261016_BCC_Platform2026_8-5x11-Draft-17_compressed.pdf

I’ve been waiting to see the actual math behind the Cons campaign promises. Now that they have officially published their full platform document there are clear numbers to look at here. Several key takeaways that directly affect those of us on Vancouver Island.. and please y'all let me know if I'm reading this wrong:

1. No balanced budget or debt repayment on the horizon? The common belief seems to always be that voting Conservative means an immediate return to balanced books and debt reduction. The platform’s own tables show that isn't the plan: 2026/27 deficit: $13.7 billion 2027/28 deficit: $13.5 billion 2028/29 deficit: $12.3 billion 2029/30 deficit: $10.8 billion

That adds up to over $50 billion in cumulative new deficits over a four-year term, with no specific target year set for returning to balance. The argument presented isn't austerity; it’s running slightly smaller deficits than the NDP forecast while holding operating spending flat.

1. How the tax cuts are paid for: they're promising roughly $3.4B to $3.5B annually in broad tax relief (a $1,000 personal income tax cut and a 3-year PST pause on machinery/software). To balance those revenue losses against ongoing spending, the plan relies heavily on the following:

- Banking on $2.62B in new revenue over three years by assuming faster growth, a doubled natural gas sector, and a sharp increase in Crown timber harvests.

• Reducing the province’s contingency reserve fund from $5 billion down to $3 billion (saving $2 billion/year). Given our annual summer wildfire seasons and climate emergencies, reducing emergency reserves poses a notable risk.
• A hiring freeze and natural attrition on non-frontline public sector staff to save $1B annually by 2029/30.

1. Direct Vancouver Island & Rural Impacts

• The platform specifically flags the rising cost of the new Cowichan District Hospital ($887M to $1.45B) and pledges a mandatory 6-month audit of the entire provincial capital plan. While auditing cost overruns is understandable, holding up or reviewing regional healthcare projects creates local uncertainty.
• Promises a $50M Rural Health Emergency Fund to keep rural ERs and maternity wards open, plus a "Universal Health-Care Guarantee" (funding private clinic delivery if public wait times exceed benchmarks).
• BC FERRIES!! Pledges to establish a Passenger Charter of Rights, push Ottawa for Atlantic-level ferry funding formulas, and review fleet contracts to halt building vessels overseas.
• Commits to establishing a floor of 45 million cubic meters for Crown timber harvests to revitalize forestry jobs, while resolving remaining old-growth deferrals by returning non-rare tracts to the working forest.

If your main reason for voting Cons was an immediate return to balanced budgets and paying off the provincial debt, their own published costing shows that isn't happening.

The real choice on the ballot is between two very different philosophies: higher public spending funded by higher top-tier taxes, versus significant broad-based tax cuts funded by cutting contingency reserves and betting on rapid natural resource growth. Curious to hear how other Islanders are viewing these tradeoffs, especially regarding rural healthcare and local infrastructure.

edit: sorry I suck at formatting on mobile

As the title says, I have an employee who has stated that her boyfriend is abusing her, and regularly shows up with new bruises. She hasn’t directly said as much to me, but I’ve heard through the grapevine of other employees.

She recently signed a new lease with her abuser, but is wanting to leave, but doesnt think she can break the lease.

What can I do, or who can I contact to get the wheels moving on this for her? Mid island area. Would be happy to contribute some money/rent, just don’t want to overstep any legal boundaries as a third party.

Thanks in advance.

I encountered this mola mola (ocean sunfish) while diving off Port Hardy, earlier this week. Such a bizarre and fascinating fish to see underwater!

I managed to get some close-up footage of it swimming, including a good look at some of the parasites attached to its body. Ocean sunfish are known for hosting an incredible variety of parasites, and seeing them up close was almost as interesting as the fish itself.

And despite their awkward-looking swimming style, they're surprisingly fast when they want to be!

More of my original underwater footage: https://www.youtube.com/@scubabc6701

I've lived on southern Vancouver Island for four years now. Not going anywhere. My sourdough starter is is named The Dough'ed. I think it's time.

Any recommendations for who I can contract to have a Cowichan sweater knitted? Money and time aren't obstacles. I am a lonely lady scientist approaching middle-age. 😭