Over the past few weeks of campaigning, the BC NDP has released a flurry of campaign promises ahead of the snap provincial election, including saving the average driver $20 per tank on gas, a tax on unsold condos, lower grocery bills, and giving the City of Surrey its own municipal charter.
But it was just two years ago that B.C. was gearing up for its most recent provincial election, where the BC NDP would ultimately win a narrow majority government.
In 2024, in the lead-up to that election, the BC NDP released an over 60-page platform, full of promises regarding housing, affordability, health care, safety, and the environment.
Ahead of the 2026 provincial election on Oct. 24, Daily Hive Urbanized examined nine of the BC NDP’s promises from 2024 to see how much they accomplished over the past two years. We chose a sample that reflects the breadth of the promises. Due to capacity reasons, we could not look at every single campaign promise.
We also reached out to the BC NDP for comment.
“We’ve taken strong action to build up British Columbia: in public transit, in healthcare, in education, in housing. We know there’s more to do — but we know that the Conservatives, who have made many promises that they have no plan to pay for, would cut healthcare, housing and transit, and set our province back,” said the BC NDP in an email to Daily Hive Urbanized.
1. A middle-class income tax cut
The promise: “Deliver a middle-class income tax cut that will provide a $1,000 benefit for 90 per cent of B.C. families, with $500 for individuals and $1,000 for households as a rebate in the first year.”
This was one of the BC NDP’s major affordability promises ahead of the 2024 election.
“Our tax cut for the middle class supports people now who are struggling with the high costs of groceries,” said Premier David Eby in a release in September 2024.
The plan was to exempt an additional $10,000 of individual income from tax every year. They said in 2025, it would be provided through a direct rebate, so “people do not have to wait for the help they need now.”
What happened: This promise did not bear fruit. In January 2025, Eby said that the rebate is up in the air, due to the economic impacts posed by then-U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s tariff threats on products from Canada. In February 2025, Brenda Bailey, Minister of Finance at the time, confirmed that the government would cancel it.
What the BC NDP had to say: “Something happened that no one could have predicted: the United States launched a trade attack and upended our economy. As a result, there were some things we couldn’t do, and this is one of them.”
2. Better bus service
The promise: “Provide more affordable transit options in Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley.”
In 2024, the BC NDP announced a number of targets to accomplish this goal, including:
- Completing the SkyTrain Millennium Line extension from Arbutus to the University of British Columbia campus.
- Expanding the West Coast Express’ terminus station from Mission to Chilliwack.
- Working with CP Rail to develop a new rail service in the Fraser Valley.
- Widening Highway 1 to Chilliwack, and using the shoulder lanes for bus service.
- Implementing TransLink’s Bus Rapid Transit strategy, including BRT routes along King George Boulevard between Surrey City Centre and White Rock, along 200 Street and Golden Ears Bridge between Langley City Centre and Maple Ridge, and a new North Shore route between Park Royal in West Vancouver and Metrotown in Burnaby via the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge.
What happened: Almost none of these promises have been fulfilled, except for work on widening Highway 1 to Chilliwack.
- Currently, construction is underway on the SkyTrain extension to Arbutus and Broadway, slated to finish in 2027. But despite the B.C. government confirming in 2025 that extending it to UBC would be a priority, there is still no timeline. The provincial government is deferring to the timeline set by TransLink’s Mayors’ Council — which would mean the SkyTrain extension wouldn’t start until sometime in the 2030s.
- Since 2024, the government has done little to extend the West Coast Express to Chilliwack or develop a new rail service in the Fraser Valley. Mike Farnworth, B.C.’s Minister of Transportation and Transit, told the media that it is not a priority.
- Similarly, the Bus Rapid Transit has yet to receive funding from the provincial or federal governments. However, TransLink has worked on community engagement and has the concept design approved for the BRT line for the King George Boulevard and Langley-Haney Place. (Recently, the BC NDP promised $250 million for the King George Boulevard BRT line).
- However, the BC NDP said that “work is well underway” on the Fraser Valley Highway 1 Corridor Improvement Program, which is widening the highway, as well as improving and replacing key interchanges.
What the BC NDP had to say: They said they are working with the Mayors’ Council, TransLink, UBC, and others to advance the SkyTrain to UBC commitment, that they have “done work to understand what would be required to extend the West Coast Express,” and that “work is underway” for the King George Blvd BRT.
The BC NDP said that their focus is on finishing the SkyTrain extension to Langley and widening Highway 1 to Chilliwack.
3. Banning RoundUp
The promise: “Protecting communities and local watersheds by phasing out the use of the herbicide glyphosate (commonly, Roundup) in B.C. forests.”
Glyphosate, or Roundup, is used in agriculture, landscaping, and forestry. The forestry industry uses it to reduce competition from other plants to grow conifer stands. The Ministry of Forests defended its use in a 2023 briefing note, saying that regulatory agencies have concluded that glyphosate poses a risk to humans and that it’s cheaper than manual brushing.
However, the World Health Organization classified it as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” Further, environmental groups have warned that it “suffocates the complexity of forests.”
What happened: This promise has yet to be fulfilled.
What the BC NDP had to say: “While we haven’t yet implemented this policy, we have seen the use of glyphosate decline substantially in recent years as industry moves away from this chemical. A re-elected BC NDP government will continue to engage in important work to protect the environment and wildlife habitats.”
4. Planting more than 300 million trees every year
The promise: “Strengthening our restoration work by planting more than 300 million trees every year.”
In 2024, NDP said they’d plant the right tree species in the right place to help increase biodiversity and forest resilience to climate change, restore wildlife habitat, and reduce the risk of wildfire and floods.
What happened: The BC NDP has not met this promise.
What the BC NDP had to say: “We have continued to invest in reforestation efforts across the province, and are on track to plant nearly 234 million trees in 2026. A re-elected BC NDP government will continue our commitment to plant more trees, with the right species in the right place, to strengthen ecosystems, habitats, and our forestry sector for years to come.”
5. Committing public land for housing
The promise: “Identify and assemble land, overcoming the biggest hurdle in new construction. David Eby is committing available public land – and our partners are contributing their land at low- or no-cost – so we can bring down the price you pay for the home you need.”
This is under the BC NDP’s overarching promise of “fueling BC builds,” which they said is the future of building attainable housing for middle-class British Columbians.
What happened: Since 2024, the provincial government has connected First Nation and local government partners with public land, awarding 11 projects with three currently under review.
What the BC NDP had to say: “Through BC Builds we have been working with local government and First Nations partners to connect non-profit and private developers with public land to help reduce costs of building homes for people.”
6. Helping B.C. residents with down payments
The promise: “Opening the door for first-time home buyers by reducing the up-front costs of buying a home.”
In 2024, the NDP promised to expand a new program where first-time homebuyers paid 60 per cent of their unit’s price initially, with the remaining 40 per cent due when they sell or after 25 years, and their equity in the home has increased.
This works with the BC NDP financing 40 per cent of the purchase price, so that buyers would need to secure financing for only 60 per cent of the market price.
“This would mean a two-bedroom condo that would normally cost $1 million would be accessible at a price of just $600,000,” reads a BC NDP press release from Sept. 24, 2024.
They said they would use the same model as the Heather Lands partnership with the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations (MST), where they are rolling out this initiative with the 2,600-unit Heather Lands development in Vancouver.
The BC NDP said they would expand this to 25,000 new homes.
What happened: This promise was not fulfilled. The BC NDP said that they are moving forward with the Heather Lands project, which will create 2,600 homes when complete.
What the BC NDP had to say: “The Attainable Housing Initiative is a very exciting program, and we’re taking the time to get it right. The model for this program is the MST development at the Heather Lands, which will create about 2,600 homes on a site that is presently empty,” they wrote. “We are moving forward with this project, and when it is successful, we look forward to using it as a model for affordable home ownership in other places.”
7. Scrapping the “no pet” clause
The promise: “Getting rid of ‘no pet’ clauses for purpose-built rental apartment buildings.”
In 2024, the BC NDP said that they will “end the bias” against pet owners, saying this impacts young people, seniors, and people with disabilities the most. They said it will bring down the number of pets being abandoned.
What happened: Since then, not much movement has been made. Two organizations, First United and the BC SPCA, launched a campaign in April of this year, calling on the province to fulfill this promise. They said that blanket pet bans can contribute to displacement and homelessness, as well as force people to give up their pets if they can’t find a place that allows pets. This can have a particularly negative impact on vulnerable groups like women escaping violence, 2SLGBTQAI+, and seniors.
The two charities want the government to amend the Residential Tenancy Act (RTA). First United submitted recommendations to the government, suggesting it prohibit pet restrictions in rental buildings with five or more units.
What the BC NDP had to say: “We have been doing the work needed to eliminate no-pet clauses in purpose-built rental apartment buildings. We will continue this work to implement this change that is so important for people who have, or want, pets.”
8. 30×30
The promise: “Moving BC closer to its goal of protecting 30 per cent of provincial lands by 2030.”
This started as a United Nations commitment in 2022, with over 190 countries (including Canada) adopting the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which included the target to protect 30 per cent of the world’s terrestrial, inland water, and coastal and marine areas by 2030. B.C. followed with its own commitment shortly after. In 2024, the BC NDP included this commitment in its platform.
What happened: Since the election, B.C. publicly announced three conservation planning projects with First Nations and other partners, encompassing about 127,000 hectares — or 0.13 per cent of the province’s landbase — of ecosystems and wilderness.
What the BC NDP had to say: “We are well on our way to achieving our target of protecting 30 per cent of provincial lands by 2030.” They said that 20 per cent of lands have been protected and they “expect we will reach our goal in the coming years.”
9. 45,000 additional health care workers in the next five years
The promise(s): The BC NDP had a range of promises to meet this target, including:
- Training more doctors in B.C. (including by building B.C.’s second medical school at SFU in Surrey).
- Attracting more family doctors and nurses to B.C. (specifically targeting the UK due to its system compatibility).
- Having out-of-province health care providers work sooner by requiring B.C.’s health regulatory colleges to provide provisional licences immediately to Canadian-trained providers within six weeks from providers from approved jurisdictions.
- Providing recruitment and retention incentives, like loan forgiveness.
“Overall, we will be bringing on board an additional 45,000 health care workers over the next five years, with a shared commitment to improving your access to the services you need, cutting wait times across the province, and bringing an end to emergency room closures,” reads the BC NDP’s 2024 platform.
What happened: The BC NDP made progress towards this promise. They told Daily Hive Urbanized that between 2022 and 2025 they have added 32,000 full-time equivalents to the healthcare sector.
- The first class at SFU Surrey campus began studying this August, with 48 students enrolled. The BC NDP added that they’ve added over 760 new nurse training seats across the province.
- While they didn’t mention the UK recruitment program, they pointed out that their U.S. recruitment program had recruited 800 U.S. doctors, nurses and healthcare workers.
What the BC NDP had to say: “The Conservative Party’s plan to aggressively cut the deficit means deep cuts to health care. They’ve said healthcare would ‘take the brunt’ of their cuts, and they would cancel our U.S. healthcare worker recruitment — they called it ‘irresponsible.’ We can’t afford Conservative healthcare cuts.”
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