BC NDP, Greens finalize 4-year agreement to work together

The B.C. NDP and Green Party have officially signed an agreement to collaborate on the issues most important to British Columbians.

The agreement, first announced in December 2024, would see the Green Party supporting the government on five priorities:  health care, affordable housing, creating livable communities, and the economy. In exchange, the NDP agrees to work on some key issues from the Green’s platform including removing barriers to the establishment of community health centres, expanding key transit routes, and ending spousal clawbacks on disability payments.

“This agreement will strengthen the stability of the government and help deliver on the priorities of British Columbians. We will continue to work with all MLAs who want to make the legislature work for people,” B.C. Premier David Eby said in a statement in December.

The agreement also provides some relief for the NDP, who took the premiership by a razor thin margin.

Last week, the Conservatives expelled one MLA and another two defected, meaning the upstart party now has 41 seats to the NDP’s 47, giving the ruling party a much more comfortable position.

A similar agreement was struck between the two parties in 2017, forming a minority government. With a few hiccups in the beginning, UBC political science lecturer Stewart Prest told 1130 NewsRadio is was an agreement that “worked quite well until it didn’t.”

Ultimately the deal was cut short when then Premier John Horgan called a snap election in 2020.

Premier Eby provided confidence the current deal would benefit both parties.

“We are two distinct parties with two distinct identities, and we won’t always agree,” he said. “We also have many shared values. The agreement lays out specific areas of action we will work together to achieve.”

Editor’s note: A previous version of this story stated the NDP had one more seat than the Conservatives. Presently the Conservatives hold 41 seats and the NDP have 47.