Two B.C. MLAs Leave Conservatives to Launch New Party

B.C. MLAs Ian Paton and Peter Milobar say they are forming a new provincial political party, with Milobar serving as interim leader, after both departed the B.C. Conservative caucus earlier in August The Globe and Mail.

Milobar, the MLA for Kamloops-Centre and the party's former Opposition finance critic, left the Conservative caucus on August 14. Paton, the MLA for Delta South, followed more than a week later, becoming the second MLA to leave the caucus and sitting briefly as an Independent before the two announced their joint venture CBC News.

The move comes three months after Kerry-Lynne Findlay won the B.C. Conservative leadership. Paton said in a statement that the party's direction under Findlay no longer aligns with his beliefs. Milobar, who placed last in the May leadership contest with 10.5 per cent of the vote and did not advance to the second ballot, said many voters are dissatisfied with the governing New Democrats but do not see a path forward with the Conservatives under Findlay's leadership The Globe and Mail.

Paton and Milobar said they intend to give a home to those who feel politically homeless in B.C. They plan to register their new party as an official entity with Elections BC before the fall legislative session The Globe and Mail.

The B.C. Conservative Party has also seen turnover at the executive level in recent weeks. Executive director Angelo Isidorou, president Aisha Estey and vice-president Sharon White have all left their posts The Globe and Mail.

Findlay, who does not currently hold a seat in the legislature, is expected to enter the House through a byelection in Abbotsford-Mission. MLA Reann Gasper resigned that seat to allow Findlay to run for it The Globe and Mail. Findlay had previously announced her Official Opposition critic roster in July, with Milobar assigned the finance portfolio at that time X/KerryLynneFindlay.

Paton and Milobar both served as caucus fixtures. The B.C. Conservative Party's official X account had welcomed the two MLAs, alongside Trevor Halford, as recently as August 2025 X/Conservative_BC. Paton had publicly endorsed Milobar for the leadership, posting on X that he had worked with Milobar day in and day out since 2017 and had seen his steady, practical leadership up close X/IanPatonDelta. Paton had also stepped down from his role as Lower Mainland lieutenant for the party in July, notifying Findlay directly Facebook/IanPatonDelta.

Milobar indicated the new party may not stop at two sitting members. He said he has been hearing from B.C. Conservative caucus members that some may still come to the new party and some may not The Globe and Mail.

The broader context here is a Conservative caucus navigating the aftermath of a leadership race that appears to have produced internal fractures rather than consolidation. Findlay inherited a party that had gained momentum by absorbing sitting MLAs and building Official Opposition infrastructure, but the departures of two caucus members, a defeated leadership contender among them, alongside a wholesale turnover of the party executive, point to operational and ideological strain. With Findlay not yet in the legislature and dependent on a byelection to gain entry, the Conservatives will enter the fall session without their finance critic and without one of their Lower Mainland members, while a newly registered competitor attempts to position itself as an alternative for disaffected centre-right voters. Whether that new entity can achieve official party status in the legislature, attract additional caucus defectors, or mount a credible electoral challenge will depend in part on how quickly Elections BC processes the registration and whether the policy distinctions Milobar and Paton draw are sufficient to separate them from the party they just left.

A few terms worth clarifying: a caucus is the group of elected members from the same party who meet privately to co-ordinate strategy. An Official Opposition critic is a legislature member designated to shadow a government minister's portfolio and hold the government to account. Elections BC is the independent agency that oversees voter registration, party registration, and election administration in the province.