British Columbia voted on October 24 and the BC Conservatives won a majority. The preliminary count gives them 64 of 93 seats, with 27 for the NDP and 2 for the Greens, and the final count is scheduled for November 6. Lorne Doerkson, the party's interim leader, is premier-designate. David Eby conceded and resigned as NDP leader. Nothing has been legislated yet, and no cabinet has been sworn in.
I have read the platform so you do not have to. Below I separate what the document actually commits to from how I read it for industrial property in Metro Vancouver. Where I am interpreting, I say so.
What has happened, and what has not
- A majority government, on preliminary results. Seat counts can still move before the final count on November 6.
- An interim leader as premier. The party has not held a leadership vote since Kerry-Lynne Findlay resigned in September.
- No legislation, no budget, no cabinet. Every item below is a campaign commitment until it passes the legislature.
- The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade and the BC Construction Association both said they are ready to work with the new government. Neither commented on industrial property specifically.
Platform commitments that touch industrial property
PST off machinery, equipment and software for three years. The platform says it will "exempt productive capital from PST for three years, including taxable machinery, equipment and business software purchased or leased." For an occupier, that is racking, forklifts, refrigeration plant, packaging lines and warehouse software. My read: this is the single most direct item for industrial tenants and owner-occupiers, and the definitions will matter. Do not delay a purchase on the strength of a promise. Ask your accountant whether timing a large order is worth it once a bill is tabled.
PST expansion to professional services cancelled. The NDP paused this before the election; the platform says it will "permanently cancel" it. The same section promises "no PST on the construction of designated major projects until they are in service." My read: the first item lowers transaction costs on legal and accounting work around a deal. The second is aimed at resource projects, and the word "designated" means a distribution centre will not qualify unless someone designates it.
Red tape and approval timelines. The platform commits to "cut red tape back to 2017 levels by the end of the first term," a "one-in, two-out" law, and to "legislate firm project approval timelines." It also says the province will "trust qualified professionals to do the work they are certified to do, as happened before 2018." My read: most industrial permitting is municipal, so this mostly affects the provincial layer: environmental assessments, Highways access permits, Agricultural Land Commission decisions and water licences. The municipal layer is set by councils, and most Metro Vancouver councils changed on October 17.
A George Massey bridge instead of the tunnel. The platform says it will "build a new George Massey Bridge and abandon the costly tunnel replacement," and it commits to a full audit of the provincial capital plan reporting within six months. My read: this is the item Delta and Richmond owners will ask about first. The Highway 99 crossing serves Tilbury, Annacis via Highway 91 and the south Richmond industrial areas. A change of design means a new procurement, and the audit comes first. Treat it as a direction, not a schedule.
Ports and rail. The platform commits to "increase rail capacity through the Fraser Canyon, advance key rail grade separations in the Lower Mainland in communities such as Maple Ridge and Coquitlam, and support the expansion of Roberts Bank and the Port of Prince Rupert with the road and rail connections they need." My read: Roberts Bank Terminal 2 is federal and already approved, so provincial support is about road and rail connections. Grade separations in Maple Ridge and Coquitlam are the kind of project that changes truck routing for the eastern suburbs if they are funded.
The Agricultural Land Reserve. The platform says it will "use modern soil and mapping technology to remap the ALR and reform the ALR Act to put food security first," and that "governance will also be strengthened to address misuse and non-compliance." My read: this is not a promise to release farmland for industrial use, and the wording points the other way. Anyone pricing land next to the ALR on an assumption of conversion is speculating, not reading the platform.
Local control over density. The platform says where density goes "needs to be a decision of local government and local residents, not bureaucrats in Victoria," and commits to hold municipalities to their own Official Community Plans. CTV's platform tracker reads this as ending provincial housing targets. My read: OCP industrial designations gain weight if the province steps back. That can protect industrial land from residential pressure in some cities and leave it exposed in others, depending on who sits on council. It is not a uniform outcome.
Energy rules for buildings and industry. The platform commits to "overhaul the step code," to repeal CleanBC, and to "end prescriptive power rules and allow industry to choose appropriate supply, including self-generation." My read: for cold storage, food processing and any power-constrained site, the self-generation language is worth watching. Step code changes affect new industrial construction costs at the margin.
What the platform does not say
- Nothing on the property transfer tax, the employer health tax, or the speculation and vacancy tax.
- Nothing on industrial land supply, employment lands or the regional industrial land strategy.
- No repeal of Bill 44 or amendment of Bill 47. Howard Chai notes the party said this earlier in the year, and it is not in the final platform.
- No timelines or cost estimates for the Massey bridge or the grade separations.
The councils changed too
The provincial result landed one week after the municipal elections. On preliminary results, Vancouver, Surrey, Richmond, Delta, Coquitlam, both Langleys, New Westminster and Maple Ridge all have new mayors. Burnaby, Port Coquitlam and Pitt Meadows re-elected their incumbents. Industrial rezonings, development permits and the pace of building approvals sit with those councils, not with Victoria. I will cover the municipal side separately once the inaugural meetings are held.
What I would do this week
- If you are planning a fit-out with significant equipment, keep the schedule and have your accountant watch for the PST bill.
- If you own or occupy in Delta or Richmond, do not change your hold or lease strategy on the Massey announcement until there is a procurement with a date.
- If you are buying land near the ALR boundary, underwrite it as farmland.
- If you have a permit in the municipal queue, the council that decides it may have changed. Check the inaugural meeting date for your city.
The current market figures are in the Metro Vancouver industrial market report, and the city-by-city rules are in the industrial zoning guides. If you want to talk through what any of this means for a specific property, get in touch.
Sources
- Conservative Party of BC: Lorne Doerkson's Plan for a Stronger BC, 2026 platform (PDF, dated October 16, 2026)
- The Hub: B.C. Conservatives win majority as Eby's snap election gamble ends NDP rule (October 26, 2026)
- CTV News Vancouver: Party Platform Tracker, B.C. Election 2026
- REMI Network: B.C. ready to work with elected Conservative Party (October 26, 2026)
- Howard Chai, The Realist: The BC Conservatives Are Forming Government. Here's What They've Promised (October 25, 2026)
- Daily Hive: The ultimate list of 2026 Metro Vancouver mayoral winners (October 18, 2026, preliminary)