The new Rural BC’s party is focused on providing a voice for British Columbia’s smaller communities.
Jonathan Van Barneveld, interim party leader for the Rural BC Party and city councilor for the town of Houston, said that “It is time for a provincial party that strictly focuses on rural BC issues. ”
He also said that a lot of small towns are basically living paycheck to paycheck and being dependant on that annual grant cycle to fund desperately needed infrastructure.”
Van Barneveld said if the province were to follow some of the ideas of the Rural BC Party that communities would be more sustainable in the long term.
The party is planning on running candidates in 23 of BC’s rural ridings.
In the launch, Van Barneveld says the party targeted resource revenue sharing community stability, and economic diversification.
As the parties platform develops, he says there will be many more topics that come out.