Final BC Liberal Leadership Debate Produces Nothing As Leadership Still Anyone’s Game

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VANCOUVER – The final debate in the lack lustre BC Liberal leadership race produced nothing much other than pointed attacks as tempers flared at the Westin Bayshore Hotel in Vancouver as veterans butted heads over the future of the party with newer faces calling for change.

By the looks of it – the leadership is still anyone’s game with former Surrey mayor Dianne Watts mostly a failure and now showing much in terms of any real vision and the rest of the pack also being the same old, same old.

Former cabinet ministers Mike de Jong, Andrew Wilkinson and Todd Stone faced off against backbenchers Sam Sullivan and Michael Lee, as well as Watts, reported Canadian Press.

“We need to bring a fresh perspective, a fresh face. We need to bring a more balanced approach to this party,” said Lee.

But Wilkinson called into question Lee’s lack of experience and his calls to expand the party’s appeal to voters.

“I’ve been out in the trenches for a long time doing this work, and I see you having arrived now claiming that we somehow failed at the job,” he said, adding that Lee was “new at the job.”

The BC Liberal party is not affiliated with the Liberal Party of Canada and describes itself as “a made-in-B.C. free enterprise coalition.” That coalition includes members of the federal Conservative and Liberal parties.

The role of party leader became vacant in August when Christy Clark stepped down after the Liberals were dumped from power in a confidence vote, ending the party’s 16-year stretch in office.

An issue all six candidates did agree on was defeating an upcoming referendum on the province’s voting system.

Party members begin casting their ballots on Feb. 1 and the new leader will be announced Feb. 3.