There is more turmoil within the B.C. Conservatives after allegations emerged that a private investigator was hired to snoop on critics of the party.
Members raised concerns over the claims during an emergency caucus meeting held in downtown Vancouver late Wednesday night.
Embattled Leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay confirmed the party is looking into the allegations, but said she had “no knowledge” of any such person being hired.
“I was unaware of it,” she said. “I can’t really respond. They are just allegations.”
Bruce Hallsor, lawyer for the B.C. Conservatives, told CTV News the private investigator was hired by a former executive director from the party, and that there are more than two dozen people on the list of alleged targets, including journalist Rob Shaw.
MLA Brennan Day, who is among nine former Conservatives who have recently defected from the party, was also on the list, Hallsor said.
Day said the news reinforced his decision to join the Conservative exodus.
“It is impossible to point your guns outward at the government when you’re too busy pointing them inward at your own caucus,” Day said Thursday.
Skeena MLA Claire Rattée, who has criticized Findlay but remains a member of the Conservative caucus, has said she was also targeted.
In a statement, Rattée confirmed the party had “formally informed” her of the situation, and that it “may concern violations of (her) privacy, and possibly other harms.”
“Understandably, I will not be commenting further on this matter until I receive advice from counsel and receive additional details surrounding the alleged incident,” she added.
Angelo Isidorou, a different former B.C. Conservative executive director, said both he and his company, Fountainhead Communications, were subject to the snooping as well.
“I spent years building this party. I am deeply disappointed by these inappropriate actions. The privacy and safety of my family is the most important thing in the world to me,” he wrote on social media.
Findlay vows to remain as leader
CTV News has learned that Findlay was also asked to step down by at least two MLAs during Wednesday’s meeting, which wrapped up around 11:30 p.m.
Despite those calls, Findlay said she is “not going anywhere.”
Speaking to reporters at the Union of B.C. Municipalities Convention Thursday morning, Findlay brushed off the defections under her leadership as a symptom of the party’s “growing pains.”
“My team, they’re a fabulous team. They’re a winning team. They know what they’re doing,” she said. “They know that we are probably heading into a provincial election very soon. We’re excited about that.”
Amid the chaos on the political right, Premier David Eby has said his B.C. NDP is “election-ready” and that he hired a campaign manager—but has not given a date for a possible snap election.
Findlay, meanwhile, is still gearing up to seek a seat in the legislature in a byelection in the Abbotsford-Mission riding later this month.
She said Eby calling an early election would be a “cynical move,” but that her team is “ready to go.”
Findlay also said she has been speaking with former caucus members and is open to potentially reconcile with them. Some of the defectors have already joined together to form a yet-unnamed new party.
“Any who have left our party are welcome to have a conversation about coming back, but let’s understand that it has to happen now,” Findlay said.
The Conservatives launched a pre-election fundraising drive Thursday, and Findlay said she has also secured a campaign manager.
“We’re in it to win it,” Findlay said.
With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Rob Buffam and The Canadian Press
