FORSETH – Does Kerry-Lynne Findlay ever read actual news reports?

I CONTINUE to be puzzled by things that BC Conservative leadership candidate Kerry-Lynne Findlay says, or maybe the better term would be ‘implies’.

Today was a perfect example, as I received the following message from her campaign team:

The NDP government has neglected critical transportation routes like the Rogers Pass, putting vital trade corridors and BC’s economy at risk.

The Rogers Pass is one of British Columbia’s most important trade and transportation routes. But today, there is growing uncertainty about its long-term safety.

More than 4,000 vehicles and 40 trains move through Rogers Pass every day. It is a vital route for jobs, trade, tourism, and resource development.

My Western Alliance plan will connect Alberta and Saskatchewan by responsibly unlocking our natural resources and investing in the needed infrastructure to grow our economy.

British Columbians deserve leadership that will fight for world-class transportation infrastructure that supports economic growth.

I am guessing that she has brought up the issue of the Rogers Pass due to a recent announcement from the federal government that it will no longer provide Canadian Armed Forces personnel for avalanche control, beginning next year.

Now for supporters, or prospective supporters of Findlay, who may not pay close attention to the news, this is the ideal type of communication.

She has taken an event, and turned it to what will hopefully be her advantage. Was this deliberate? That’s up to you to decide, but I believe it was.

First of all, I do not recall seeing or hearing anything about the NDP, as Findlay stated, “neglecting” critical routes like the Rogers Pass.

With the federal government saying it will no longer provide avalanche control, that could indeed become a serious issue when (not if) major slides occur, but this is something out of the hands of the provincial government. That said the NDP government of David Eby should be doing everything in their power to have the fed’s reverse this decision.

From there, Findlay then goes into her pitch for ‘investing in the needed infrastructure’ and that she’ll fight for ‘world-class transportation infrastructure’.

I’m not sure what the federal government abandoning a highway and rail safety program in the Rogers Pass has to do with Kerry-Lynne’s assertion that the NDP has neglected this transportation corridor, but hopefully someone in the mainstream media will pose that question to her.

At a meet and greet held in Kamloops on April 1st, she had this to say about hospital care for an expectant mother:

“At a get-together in Abbotsford there was a lady there. Her daughter was in labour and went to Langley Memorial Hospital and they said, ‘You didn’t have the two COVID shots. We will not help you because you don’t have the two COVID shots.’

She’s in active labour. She went home. There was nowhere to go. She had the baby at home on the floor.”

FACT: There are no vaccine mandates; they were rescinded on July 26^th, 2024. According to the provincial government, no individual will be turned away from receiving hospital care, prenatal care, or delivery if they are unvaccinated.

ANYONE that follows the news will know this, so why did Findlay make such a claim? I’ll hazard a guess it’s because she was making her pitch to those who get their so-called news(?) from independent sources that make wild claims and promote conspiracy theories.

Here’s another.

In an email communication Findlay’s team sent out on May 9, she spoke about the Taylor Bridge, which was built in 1960. She stated that the bridge has ‘required constant repairs and resurfacing’. That is indeed true.

Her next words — “it even collapsed a few decades ago” — were wrong.

FACT: It was the OLD Taylor suspension bridge, built during the Second World War which in 1957 collapsed — NOT the 1960’s replacement.

It’s bad enough that there is still no timeline to replace this over 60 year old structure, but it’s worth asking why she would confuse people, living outside the Peace River region, with an entirely different bridge.

I have concerns that Kerry-Lynne Findlay has made statements that are questionable. With that in mind, and given she wishes to lead the Conservative Party of BC, it should be of utmost importance that information she presents to members is thoroughly fact-checked for accuracy.

For those who will be voting shortly, these things might be worth considering.

Alan Forseth is a Kamloops resident. For 40+ years he has been active, in a number of capacities, in local, provincial and federal politics, including running as a candidate for the BC Reform Party in the 1996 provincial election, and as a four-time provincial campaign manager.