MLA for Delta South since 2017, running as the Conservative Party of BC candidate.
Ian Paton is the sitting MLA for Delta South, first elected in 2017, and the Conservative Party of BC candidate on Elections BC's list printed October 3, 2026. The legislature's member record lists his party as Independent. News reports say he left the Conservative caucus on August 24, joined CentreBC on September 18 and returned to the Conservatives on September 22. In the 2026 sittings he spoke most on farming, the cancelled Delta long-term-care project and the budget, and the vote index lists him voting no on the budget bills.
A researched record of Ian Paton's 9 commitments, 30 dated actions and 19 public statements, with 7 news items and 1 public dispute. Most come from the legislature record and from news reports of his move between parties.
On dates without a confirmed appearance the public schedule is unknown; the candidate may still have activities that day. This static page changes only when its research is updated.
01 / Introduction
About Ian Paton
Ian Paton is the Conservative Party of BC candidate in Delta South on Elections BC's candidate list, which prints the date October 3, 2026. The Elections BC statement of votes shows that he won Delta South in 2024 with 14,491 votes, 55.07% of the valid vote, ahead of Jason McCormick of the BC NDP with 11,822 votes, 44.93%. The statement marks him as a member of the 42nd Parliament, so he was already the sitting member. The legislature's member record lists him as elected in 2017, 2020 and 2024, and CBC describes him as a former B.C. Liberal and says he was elected in 2017.
The records differ on his party. The Conservative Party of BC's team page lists him as its candidate for Delta South. The legislature's member record lists his party in the 43rd Parliament as Independent. Reporting says that on August 24, 2026 he left the Conservative caucus (the group of Conservative MLAs) to sit as an Independent, that CentreBC announced him on September 18 among eight former Conservative MLAs joining it, and that on September 22, the day Premier David Eby called the election, he returned to the Conservatives with Peter Milobar and others. voche.me found no source that states a reason for the return, so none is given. The reason he gave for leaving is in his own statement, in the dossier below.
The Conservative Party of BC's page for him says he lives on his family farm in Delta, has more than 30 years of experience running a dairy farm and a farm auction business, and was elected a Delta councillor in 2010. Those lines are the party's own account, and voche.me has not checked them with the District of Delta. In the legislature on April 14, 2026 he said he returned to dairy farming in 1985.
He was the Conservative caucus's agriculture critic, the Opposition member who questions the Agriculture minister, until at least August 24, 2026. In 2026 the speech index lists him on the Agricultural Land Commission, production insurance, the review of the Agriculture ministry's budget, the long-term-care project in Delta, Bill 9 on freedom of information, the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, the Westham Island Bridge and the budget.
On August 24, 2026 he said that Conservative leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay's office had offered him a job if he gave up his seat. Findlay disputes this. The claim is his and the denial is hers. Neither is an official finding, and the accountability section gives each side.
Published positions and selected commitments, separated by election cycle. Status labels describe the evidence reviewed, not a numerical score or a complete audit of the platform. Council approval is different from delivery.
9 commitments shown · Checked Oct 3
2026 · Public servicesNot established
Restart the Beedie long-term-care centre in Delta
On April 29, 2026 Paton asked the Minister of Infrastructure in question period when the cancelled Delta long-term-care project will start again. On February 26 he had described the Beedie centre as a 200-bed facility for Delta seniors. On April 30 he told reporters that, from what he understands, the project is cancelled.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
Minister Bowinn Ma answered on April 29 that the project at Delta will continue and that work with Fraser Health to bring down the cost per bed is underway. She called the project re-paced (the government's word for rescheduled) and said re-paced projects had cost estimates of up to $1.8 million per bed. The Surrey Now-Leader reported on April 30 that a Fraser Health memo confirms the construction contract was cancelled. Neither Paton nor the minister gave a restart date in the sources voche.me opened.
What still needs checking
Does the Province publish a restart date and a cost per bed for the Delta project?
In the budget debate on February 19, 2026 Paton said the Agricultural Land Commission's operating budget has stayed at $5.5 million for several years and that the province must increase it to keep pace with inflation and workload. On April 14 and 15 he asked the minister where six staff cuts at the commission would fall.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names the current figure of $5.5 million and asks for an increase. He gives no new amount and no date.
What still needs checking
Does Paton or the Conservative Party state an amount and a date for a larger commission budget?
Delay Bill 9 on freedom of information by six months
On May 6, 2026 Paton spoke for an amendment that would delay second reading of Bill 9, the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Act, 2026, by six months. The debate ran past 1 a.m. on May 7. He said the time would let the House match the bill to the 2022 committee review of the act.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The Speaker put the amendment to a vote when the debate reached its time limit at 3 a.m. The vote ran from 3:05 a.m. to 3:10 a.m. and the amendment failed, 42 to 48. The vote index lists Paton voting yes on the amendment, no at second reading on May 6, and no at third reading on May 28.
What still needs checking
Does Paton or the Conservative Party say what they would change in the act if elected?
On April 20, 2026, in the review of the Emergency Management and Climate Readiness ministry's budget, Paton said the 2026 budget holds no new money for flood prevention. He asked when the flood strategy will be funded.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He says the strategy is ready to be funded. He gives no amount and no date.
What still needs checking
Does Paton or the Conservative Party state an amount and a date for the flood strategy?
Remove interprovincial trade barriers for farm products
On February 26, 2026, speaking on Bill 5, the Trade Recognition Act, Paton said it is time to finish removing interprovincial trade barriers. He listed meat inspection rules, trucking rules, packaging rules and wine and beer sales between provinces. On March 5 he asked the minister whether the bill would let B.C. wine and beer move freely to other provinces.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He gives no measure of his own beyond support for the bill. He cites an estimated cost of $1.7 billion a year to the agriculture sector. The speeches give no source for the estimate.
What still needs checking
What trade rule would Paton change first, and by what date?
A plan to end the deficit and tie spending growth to economic growth
In the budget debate on February 19, 2026 Paton criticized the projected deficit and the growth of provincial debt. He said the path forward needs a credible plan to eliminate structural deficits (a gap between spending and revenue that continues year after year) and spending growth tied to economic growth.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names no deficit target, no tax change and no spending cut of his own in this speech. The Conservative platform page read on 2026-10-03 lists 17 headings with one-line descriptions and no budget figures.
What still needs checking
Does the Conservative Party publish a costed budget plan before October 24, 2026?
Change the 50 percent rule for food processing on farmland
In the Agriculture ministry's budget review on April 14, 2026 Paton asked the minister whether she sees a future for food processing on the Agricultural Land Reserve and for removing the 50-50 rule. He said the rule discourages farmers from starting processing plants. He said he does not want processing plants on good farmland and that poor-quality parts of the reserve could be used.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He asks the minister and states no bill or date of his own. He names no sites.
What still needs checking
What share of home-grown product, if any, would Paton set in place of the current rule?
In the budget debate on February 19, 2026 Paton said the provincial directory lists one $10-a-day child care location for all of Delta South and that parents need a space for their child now.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He states no number of spaces to be added and no date.
What still needs checking
Does Paton or the Conservative Party state how many child care spaces they would add in Delta South?
The Conservative Party of BC platform page lists a heading, Grown in BC, described as a plan to double food production, strengthen the economic base and establish food security for B.C.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
This is the party's text. The page gives no detail under the heading and names no candidate. voche.me found no statement by Paton in 2026 that repeats the plan to double food production.
What still needs checking
Does the party publish the full Grown in BC plan, and does Paton repeat it?
Recorded votes and actions in the legislature where an official source names him. A government program is the government's; it is listed here only where the record names him or he asked about it. voche.me read no bill text. Each vote entry says what was opened.
Recorded vote, no
Voted no on the motion that sends the budget to the review of ministry spending
The 2026 vote index lists Paton voting nay on the budget motion. The transcript records a tie of 46 to 46, and the Speaker voted in favour, so the motion passed.
Scope, limits and sources
The Speaker said the motion was a confidence matter, which is a vote that tests whether the government still has the support of the House, and that the Chair's vote should not decide that alone. The motion was that the Speaker leave the Chair for the House to go into Committee of Supply, where each ministry's spending is reviewed.
Voted no on second reading of the Budget Measures Implementation Act (No. 2), 2026 (Bill 3)
The vote index lists Paton voting nay at second reading, which is the vote on the main idea of the bill. The transcript records the result as 48 to 43.
Scope, limits and sources
By its title the bill carries out measures in the 2026 budget. voche.me did not open the text of the bill.
Voted yes on the amendment to delay second reading of Bill 9 by six months
The vote index lists Paton voting yea on the amendment, and the transcript records that it failed, 42 to 48. The vote came at 3:10 a.m. on May 7, during the sitting that began on May 6.
Scope, limits and sources
Earlier in the same sitting the vote index lists Paton voting nay on the government motion that set 3 a.m. as the time to end debate on Bill 9. That motion passed 48 to 41.
Voted no on second reading of Bill 9, the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Act, 2026
The vote index lists Paton voting nay at second reading, which passed 48 to 42. The vote index also lists nay votes on the motion to send the bill to the Committee of the Whole House (the stage where the House goes through a bill clause by clause) on May 6, and on clause 7 on May 21.
Scope, limits and sources
The index also lists nay votes on an amendment to clause 2 moved by Diana Gibson on May 21 and on an amendment to clause 13 moved by Gibson on May 26.
Voted yes at first reading of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Repeal Act
The vote index lists Paton voting yea at first reading, which is the vote to bring a bill into the House. The transcript records that the motion failed, 44 to 47.
Scope, limits and sources
Trevor Halford, who introduced the bill, said its purpose was to repeal the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.
Votes on Motion M205, a mandatory orientation course for MLAs
The vote index lists Paton voting yea on a subamendment moved by Giddens on April 27, nay on an amendment moved by Blatherwick on May 4, and nay on the motion on May 25.
Scope, limits and sources
voche.me did not open the wording of the motion or the transcripts.
Presented a petition against aerial spraying for spongy moth
Paton presented a petition of 158 signatures from residents of Delta South and Tsawwassen. It asks the House to call on the Ministries of Forests and of Agriculture and Food to cancel the 2026 plans to spray from the air in Tsawwassen, Beach Grove and Squamish for spongy moth, and to end aerial spraying over B.C. communities permanently.
Scope, limits and sources
A petition passes on the request of residents. The transcript of the item records no position of his own on spraying.
Questioned the Agriculture minister in the review of her ministry's budget
On April 14 and 15, 2026 Paton questioned the minister on production insurance, the Agricultural Land Commission, the 50-50 processing rule, a $27.8 million land purchase for a plant and animal health centre in Abbotsford, wildlife damage payments and the closure of Hastings Racecourse.
Scope, limits and sources
The ministry budget review is the part of the session where members question a minister on that ministry's spending. His questions are his own words. The answers are the minister's.
Construction contract for the Beedie Long-Term Care Centre in Delta cancelled
The Surrey Now-Leader reported on April 30 that a Fraser Health memo confirms the Province cancelled the construction contract for the 200-bed Beedie Long-Term Care Centre and says the government remains committed to the project. In the House on April 29 Minister Bowinn Ma said the project at Delta will continue and that work with Fraser Health to bring down the cost per bed is underway.
Scope, limits and sources
A government and Fraser Health decision. Paton asked about it in question period on February 26, April 29 and May 4.
Read original statements and reporting, or open the publisher’s video. A summary of a speech is labelled separately from a full recording.
Speech
Budget debate speech
Paton criticized spending and debt in the 2026 budget, said Delta's long-term-care project had been rescheduled, criticized the delay of the George Massey Tunnel replacement, said Delta South has one $10-a-day child care location, and said the Agricultural Land Commission's budget has stayed at $5.5 million for several years.
Members' statement on Westham Island and its bridge
Paton described Westham Island as farmland that grows more than 25 percent of B.C.'s seed potatoes and said the 1909 bridge, hit by a barge, left residents relying on water taxis and barges while TransLink repaired it.
Paton said the Conservative caucus supports removing interprovincial trade barriers and criticized the government for issuing no trade order in the 12 months after Bill 7 of 2025.
Paton asked what consultation the Province had held with other provinces on milk quotas, meat inspection, trucking rules and packaging, and whether B.C. wine and beer would move freely across provinces after the bill passes.
Speech on Bill 10, the Labour Statutes Amendment Act
Paton said temporary foreign workers are essential to B.C. farms, including greenhouses in Delta, and warned against a sudden cut in their number. He said farms must follow the Temporary Foreign Worker Protection Act.
Paton said he supports Motion 201 on affordable, equitable and accessible clean water. He said farms need dependable water supplies and urged investment in irrigation, storage and water treatment.
Paton told the House he still lives on the farm where he was raised, said he returned to dairy farming in 1985, and asked about the Agricultural Land Commission's staffing, production insurance and the provincial sales tax on professional services used on farms.
Paton said the December atmospheric river caused at least $74 million in insured losses and that the budget holds no new money for flood prevention. He asked when the flood strategy will be funded.
Paton said B.C. needs to secure its food supply and said staffing cuts and a lack of investment have slowed decisions at the Agricultural Land Commission.
Question period on the cancelled Delta long-term-care project
Paton asked when the cancelled project will start again and said the community raised nearly $20 million for it. He said he considers the project cancelled. Minister Bowinn Ma called it re-paced and said the project at Delta will continue while work to bring down the cost per bed is underway.
At the legislature Paton told reporters that transparency was the main issue and that, from what he understands, the Delta project is cancelled. He asked what the penalties for cancelling would be.
Paton spoke for a six-month delay of Bill 9. He said the bill gives officials wider discretion and makes information harder to get, and that it does not clearly follow the 2022 committee review of the act.
Question on the Cattlemen's lawsuit over the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act
Paton said that on May 6 the B.C. Cattlemen's Association filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, and asked why the government attended Beef Day yet left the ranchers without support in court. He raised concerns about private property rights.
In the Transportation ministry budget review Paton asked how a future bridge operator could avoid a repeat of the barge strike and whether there is a date for a new bridge to Westham Island.
Paton described a dairy farmer's working day, said he lived that routine for many years, and named rising costs of feed, fuel, equipment, transportation and labour.
In a written statement Paton said the new direction of the Conservative Party of BC under Kerry-Lynne Findlay is no longer aligned with his beliefs, that he would sit as an Independent, and that he intended to form a new party in the legislature with Peter Milobar. He wrote that his first responsibility as an MLA is to the people of Delta South.
News conference on the legislature steps with Peter Milobar
Paton said he told Findlay of his decision by text message that morning and that they had barely spoken since she became leader on May 30. He said she removed competent people from key caucus leadership roles and that some MLAs were kept from speaking to the media. He said he disliked an AI-generated video that showed Premier David Eby as a Soviet general.
Interview with The Globe and Mail on the RCMP interview
Paton told The Globe and Mail that two RCMP officers interviewed him for one hour at Surrey headquarters on September 2, and repeated his account of a June 30 call asking whether he would resign his seat for Findlay.
Records are labelled by type, including official findings, civil proceedings and political disputes where applicable. Each entry identifies the response found in the sources and the latest status verified for this page.
Campaign dispute
Allegation that the Conservative leader's office offered a job for his seat
Paton says that on June 30, 2026 the chief of staff of Conservative leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Chris Delaney, phoned him and asked whether he would resign his seat so that Findlay could run in a by-election (a vote to fill one empty seat). He says the offer was an advisory job on agriculture for the party with pay equal to his MLA salary, and he told The Globe and Mail this on September 2. The CBC reported on August 24 that he said there was no financial offer, and Black Press Media and The Globe and Mail report him saying the pay would equal his MLA salary. voche.me did not find an explanation of how those two statements fit together. Global News lists that on July 29 he said he had rejected requests to resign. Black Press Media reports that he declined and resigned as Lower Mainland lieutenant in Findlay's leadership team.
Candidate or party response
Findlay told CBC News on August 24: "At no point did we discuss MLA Ian Paton stepping down in exchange for a job of any description." She said Paton had said he wanted to stay involved in agriculture if he left office and that the party would be open to discussing an unspecified advisory role if he was no longer a sitting MLA or caucus member. In a statement to The Globe and Mail on September 2 she said: "I categorically reject any suggestion that I engaged in illegal or unethical conduct." She called the accusations a co-ordinated political attack.
Verified status and limits
Paton says two RCMP officers interviewed him for one hour on September 2. The RCMP, Canada's federal police, told Black Press Media that it generally does not confirm or deny an investigation until charges are laid. voche.me found no charge, court ruling or police finding by 2026-10-03. Findlay resigned as Conservative leader on September 20, 2026. The sources opened do not link her resignation to this allegation.
A dated reading list from independent publishers. The headings below are voche.me summaries; follow each link for the original article, context and any corrections.
Reporting
CBC News
Ian Paton leaves B.C. Conservative caucus, says he plans to form a new political party with Peter Milobar
Reports that Paton left the caucus to sit as an Independent, that he and Milobar planned a new party with Milobar as interim leader, and Findlay's reply to his job-offer account.
B.C. MLA says RCMP to interview him over Conservative leader allegations
Reports that the RCMP was to interview Paton at 9:30 a.m. on September 2, Findlay's response and the RCMP's statement that it does not generally confirm investigations.
Sturko becomes leader of CentreBC after Milobar, other MLAs leave to rejoin BC Conservatives
Reports that Paton and five other MLAs returned to the Conservatives with Milobar on the day Premier Eby called the election, and that Elenore Sturko stayed with CentreBC.
Sources checked October 3, 2026. Official records establish decisions; campaign material establishes stated positions; reporting adds investigation and context. None alone establishes every claim.
Surrey Now-Leader (Black Press Media) · April 30, 2026
No campaign website was found. The address ianpatonmla.ca, which a search listed as his website, did not answer a direct request on 2026-10-03, and the party's page for him holds a biography and a donation form with no news items. His Facebook and Instagram pages returned no readable text. His X profile shows recent posts with a month and day and no year, so those posts are not used. The post of April 29, 2026 was opened by its own address, which shows the full date. The Conservative platform page shows 17 headings with one-line descriptions, carries the words "coming soon" and names no candidate. The legislature's data service gives three different party labels for him: Independent in its 43rd Parliament entry, British Columbia United in the party field of the member entry itself, and Conservative Party of British Columbia for the 2024 election. voche.me did not find a legislature statement of the date of each change. The public member pages on leg.bc.ca load their data by script and were not read. voche.me found no statement by Paton or the party that gives a reason for his return to the Conservatives on September 22, 2026, so none is given. It also found no source on whether he holds a critic role since that date. The vote index lists recorded votes that voche.me opened only as index lines: Bill 2, Bill 9 third reading, the Supply Act, Bill 14, the K'ómoks Treaty Act, the Defunding Aboriginal Title Claims Affecting Private Property Act, Motion 13, the Gender Ideology and Child Protection Act, Bills M235, M233, M217, M226 and M241, Bills 6 and 12, Motions M205, M203 and 15. The text of those bills and motions was not read. Introductions of guests were read and not used. His Labour ministry budget questions of May 4 and the end of his Bill 10 speech were not used. The Delta Optimist and Business in Vancouver pages answered HTTP 403 and were not read, so the Delta Optimist candidate updates and the June 2026 report on his role in the Conservative leader's team are not used. His claims about his councillor years, farm and committees come from the party's page and have not been checked with the District of Delta or the legislature. No outcome of the RCMP interview was found. No 2026 all-candidates meeting for Delta South was found. Campaign finances for 2026 and endorsements were not reviewed. The questionnaire has not been sent.
Research status
What voche.me has checked
Evidence reviewed on 2026-10-03: the Elections BC candidate list printed October 3, 2026 and the 2024 statement of votes, the legislature's member record for him, its 2026 speech index and vote index, 20 transcripts, the Conservative Party of BC's page for him, team page and platform page, his X profile and one X post, and news reports from April to September 2026.
The records differ on his party. Elections BC's list gives the affiliation Conservative Party. The legislature's member record lists his party in the 43rd Parliament as Independent. News reports say he left the Conservative caucus on August 24, 2026, that CentreBC announced him as a member on September 18, and that he returned to the Conservatives on September 22. voche.me found no source that states a reason for the return, so this page gives none.
His commitments on this page come from what he said in the legislature in 2026 and from one party platform heading. The accountability section holds one public dispute, his own allegation about a job offer and the reply of the Conservative leader at the time. voche.me found no official finding. His 2026 recorded votes are listed from the vote index.
The legislature's member record lists him as elected in 2017, 2020 and 2024. In 2024 he won with 14,491 votes, 55.07% of the valid vote, as the Conservative Party candidate.
CBC wrote on August 24, 2026 that Paton was the party's agriculture critic. The party's page calls him the Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Food. voche.me found no source on whether he holds the role since September 22.
Lower Mainland lieutenant in the Conservative leader's team (resigned)
Black Press Media reported on August 24, 2026 that he resigned from this role, which he had only recently been given, after declining the leader's request that he resign his seat. voche.me found no announcement of the appointment that it could open.
The Conservative Party of BC's page says he was elected a Delta councillor in 2010 and chaired the Agricultural Advisory Committee and the Dikes and Drainage Committee. This is the party's claim and voche.me has not checked it with the District of Delta.
The party's page says he has more than 30 years of experience running and owning a dairy farm and a farm auction business. In the legislature on April 14, 2026 he said he returned to dairy farming in 1985.
Proposed questions for a future interview. They have not been sent to the candidate, and no answers have been supplied.
No questions and answers have been supplied.
Have your own question?
Ask Ian Paton directly. We send it to the campaign, and publish the reply here if we get one.
05 / About this page
Questions about this page
Facts voche.me can state about Ian Paton's page itself, answered directly rather than left blank.
Is this an official page for Ian Paton?
No. This page is researched by voche.me from public sources, listed below, and is separate from Ian Paton's own campaign.
What party is Ian Paton running with?
Ian Paton is running for MLA with Conservative Party of BC.
Does Ian Paton currently hold public office?
Yes. Ian Paton currently serves as MLA for Delta South.
How many sources does this Ian Paton profile cite?
This profile lists 3 sourced references, each with the date voche.me checked it, in the Sources section below.
Why do some questions on Ian Paton's page show no answer?
The "Questions & answers" section on this page lists questions voche.me would put to Ian Paton in a future interview. They have not been sent yet, so the page says plainly that no answer has been supplied instead of leaving the section blank.
When is the election Ian Paton is running in?
The 2026 British Columbia election, including the MLA race, is decided on October 24, 2026.
06 / Candidate contributions
Space for campaign updates
Party label differs between the Elections BC list and the legislature record
The Elections BC list printed October 3, 2026 gives his affiliation as Conservative Party. The legislature's member record lists his party in the 43rd Parliament as Independent. News reports date his moves between the Conservative caucus, Independent status and CentreBC from August 24 to September 22, 2026. This page keeps the party the candidate list gives and states the legislature's label beside it.
