BC Greens won’t renew accord with NDP, citing ‘undelivered or stalled’ commitments

VICTORIA — The BC Green Party announced Monday that it will not renew an accord with the Premier David Eby’s NDP when the deal expires next month, potentially undermining the stability of the provincial government with its one-seat majority.

The Greens issued a statement saying there were “undelivered or stalled” commitments from the governing New Democrats, with about two-thirds of the goals going unaccomplished in the first year of the agreement.

Jeremy Valeriote, the MLA for West Vancouver Sea-to-Sky, said the accord contained clear targets, including those related to health care, transit and electoral reform, and too many had been “stalled or sidelined” by the NDP.

“I’ll note there’s not even yet a plan to have public buses rolling on Highway 99,” he told reporters at the legislature on Monday. “(Green Leader Emily Lowan) mentioned $50 million that was supposed to be sent bringing psychologists into the health-care system, $15 million on community health centres.”

“This is what accountability looks like. It’s calling out lack of action,” he said of the Greens’ decision against renewing the deal known as the Co-operation and Responsible Government Accord.

Valeriote said he the other Green MLA, Rob Botterell, from Saanich North and the Islands, would continue working in the legislature on a vote-by-vote basis.

The accord was intended to stabilize the government while the two parties worked on shared goals.

But Lowan said Monday the government’s failure to complete two thirds of its first-year commitments was “not a strong foundation of trust to build on into year two.”

She said the Greens wanted to work co-operatively with the NDP on “select confidence matters,” but the government was “unwilling to budge.”

Still, Lowan said any decision to call an election rested solely with Eby and his government.

“The BC NDP has a majority. They can govern, pass budgets, and call an election whenever they choose. If the premier decides to trigger an election, that is his decision — not ours,” her statement said.

Speaking to reporters, Lowan said the Greens have “no interest” in an early election.

The New Democrats have 47 members in the 93-seat legislature, while the Greens have two. The Opposition B.C. Conservatives have 39 seats, having lost five members from their caucus who are now sitting as Independents.

B.C. deputy premier Niki Sharma said in a statement that the two parties were unable to find common ground as the Greens wouldn’t rule out voting with the B.C. Conservatives on confidence measures to trigger an election.

“British Columbians don’t want an election, they want us to take action on the things that matter to them,” she said.

Later Monday, Sharma told reporters in Vancouver that while the NDP had been able to manage with a one-seat majority, the Greens “walking away this morning does leave it more uncertain in the house.”

She added that British Columbians do not want uncertainty right now. “They want us to work together, across parties,” she said. “They want us to find solutions together.”

She said the only party that benefits are the B.C. Conservatives.

Asked if the change in the Greens’ leadership played a role the end of the deal, she said that “with Rob and Jeremy,” the parties had come to the table focused on the concerns of B.C. residents, and some of the Greens’ priorities had been delivered upon.

“Some of those things will take longer than a year and we were hoping that would be the subject of a renewed agreement,” Sharma said.

“I’m not sure why they decided to walk away.”

Botterell told reporters the Greens would “not be swayed by the declaration of a vote as a confidence matter.”

“We will look at each vote on its own and look at the merits and make a decision about whether we’re going to vote in favour or against.”

While there were signs of austerity for the upcoming provincial budget, Botterell said the government’s fiscal situation was “not an excuse to walk away from their duty to take care of British Columbians.”

Lowan said the agreement had produced some results, including ending spousal claw backs for disability assistance. However, she said “the government has shown a troubling pattern of commissioning reviews and then letting them gather dust, rather than translating evidence into action for working people.”

She said it had become clear the government was “ceding (its) values to corporate interests,” as wealth inequality rises and B.C.’s working families struggle with the cost-of-living crisis.

Lowan also criticized Eby’s plans to rework the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, which was intended to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in the province.

“Reconciliation is not a political convenience,” Lowan said in her statement.

“A government that is willing to weaken Indigenous rights for political expediency cannot expect our support.”

— With files by Brenna Owen in Vancouver

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 9, 2026.

Wolfgang Depner, The Canadian Press