MLA in Burnaby South-Metrotown · BC provincial 2026
Paul Choi
Parliamentary Secretary for Trade, running again for the BC NDP in Burnaby South-Metrotown.
Paul Choi was elected MLA for Burnaby South-Metrotown in 2024 and became Parliamentary Secretary for Trade in July 2025. He sponsored the Korean Heritage Month Act, which received royal assent on October 30, 2025. In the legislature in 2026 he spoke for the budget, for finding export markets outside the United States and for small business, and as Chair he presented the Finance and Government Services Committee's reports.
A researched record of Paul Choi's 15 commitments, 39 dated actions and 20 public statements from 2025 and 2026, with 1 news item. Most come from the legislature record and government releases.
No campaign event for Paul Choi was confirmed by an organizer on 2026-10-03. His campaign page's event search returned no results. The dates below are voting days.
Checked October 3, 2026 · All event times are Pacific time. Recheck the organizer before travelling.
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 Paul Choi
Paul Choi is the BC NDP candidate in Burnaby South-Metrotown on Elections BC's list for the general election of October 24, 2026. He won the district in 2024 with 7,560 votes, 49.33% of the valid vote, according to the Elections BC statement of votes. Conservative candidate Han Lee had 6,373 votes, 41.59%.
The provincial government's page for his role says he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Trade in July 2025 and before that was Parliamentary Secretary for Asia-Pacific Trade. A government release of July 17, 2025 lists him as parliamentary secretary for trade. A release of May 14, 2025 named him as part of the Premier's trade mission to Japan, Malaysia and South Korea.
In the legislature in 2026 he presented two reports of the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services on the budgets of the province's statutory offices, and in debate he called himself the committee's Chair. He spoke for Budget 2026 on February 23 and made members' statements on small business, trade, immigrant services and Burnaby schools.
The government page says he worked as a first responder, small business owner and lawyer before he was elected. In his first speech on March 11, 2025 he told the legislature he came to Canada at age ten, that his parents opened a small grocery store, and that he became a police officer and later a lawyer. On February 24, 2025 he said he is a former business owner and former president of the North Road Business Improvement Association. Those are his own statements.
On 2026-10-03 his campaign page says he served as Parliamentary Secretary for Trade in the Ministry of Jobs and Economic Growth and as First Vice-President of the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region, and calls him a former police officer who is also a qualified mediator and arbitrator. The campaign page words the two roles in the past tense. The government page for the role, last updated July 21, 2025, and his X profile on 2026-10-03 give him the title Parliamentary Secretary for Trade. The Pacific NorthWest Economic Region lists him as a Vice President, Canada.
His private member's bill, the Korean Heritage Month Act (Bill M210), was introduced on April 10, 2025, passed third reading on October 20, 2025 and received royal assent on October 30, 2025, according to the transcripts and BC Laws. Government releases in 2025 and 2026 quote him as the local MLA on Burnaby Hospital, school additions, rental homes and a supportive housing proposal, and as parliamentary secretary for trade on a manufacturing grant.
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.
15 commitments shown · Checked Oct 3
2026 · EconomyIn progress
Find export markets outside the United States
In the budget debate on February 23, 2026, Choi said B.C. must sell to more markets and help small and medium exporters, and that Budget 2026 puts $283 million of new money into the government's Look West strategy, which aims to double exports to markets other than the United States over ten years.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names the budget amount and the ten-year period. Doubling exports is the goal he states; he gives no export figure to measure it against. The vote index shows he voted for the budget motion.
What still needs checking
Does the government publish yearly figures for exports to markets other than the United States?
Trade Recognition Act for goods and services from other provinces
In a column in Freshet News on March 29, 2026, Choi wrote that the government brought forward the Trade Recognition Act, so a good or service that is lawful for sale in another province or territory is also lawful for sale in B.C.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The column names the law. It gives no cost, number of businesses helped or date. voche.me did not open the bill's record in the legislature.
What still needs checking
Did the Trade Recognition Act pass, and when does it take effect?
Let independent movie theatres apply to serve liquor
In debate on a motion on May 4, 2026, Choi spoke for letting small independent movie theatres apply to serve liquor under the existing rules, and against an amendment to the motion.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
A position in debate. The vote index of 2026-10-03 lists no standing vote by him on the motion, and voche.me did not find how the House decided it. He names no rule change, cost or date.
What still needs checking
Did the motion pass, and has the liquor rule for theatres changed?
In the budget debate on February 23, 2026, Choi said Budget 2026 doubles funding for SkilledTradesBC and will double the amount of skilled-trades training in the province.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He gives no number of training places, cost in dollars or date.
What still needs checking
How many more trades training places are funded, and by when?
In the same speech, Choi said Budget 2026 puts $634 million into K to 12 schools over three years, including $167 million for more teachers and counsellors, and $68 million for an expanded Cameron Elementary with 770 new student spaces.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names the amounts and the number of spaces. He gives no opening date for Cameron Elementary.
In the budget debate on February 23, 2026, Choi said Budget 2026 adds $2.8 billion for health care over three years, including $131 million for mental health and addiction treatment and $185 million for seniors care.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names the amounts and the three-year period. He gives no number of doctors, nurses or beds for the province as a whole.
What still needs checking
How many health workers does the $2.3 billion for capacity pay for?
In the same speech, Choi said the Burnaby Hospital redevelopment and the new B.C. care centre will bring two new patient care towers, a new emergency department, 399 beds and a cancer treatment centre.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names the number of beds. He gives no cost beyond calling it a multi-billion dollar commitment, and no completion date.
What still needs checking
What are the published cost and completion date for the Burnaby Hospital redevelopment?
In the budget debate on February 23, 2026, Choi said Budget 2026 spends $139 million over three years on public safety, including $42 million for programs on repeat violent offenders and chronic property offenders and $73 million for the courts and sheriffs.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names the amounts and the period. He gives no target for crime or court delays.
What still needs checking
Does the government report results for the repeat offender programs?
Lower deficits through spending cuts and slower capital projects
In the budget debate on February 23, 2026, Choi said the budget forecasts falling deficits, to be reached through targeted spending reductions and by spacing out capital projects over a longer time.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names no deficit figure, amount of spending reduction or year.
What still needs checking
What deficit does the government forecast for each year of the plan, and is it met?
In the budget debate, Choi said the Province is building phase 3 of student housing at Simon Fraser University, a $197 million building with 445 beds and 160 child care spaces, and that student housing eases pressure on Burnaby's rental market.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
He names the cost and the number of beds. He gives no opening date.
As Chair, Choi presented the Finance and Government Services Committee report of February 18, 2026, which recommended limited added funding for the statutory offices, with front-line services first, and moved that the House adopt it.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
The transcript shows the House adopted the report the same day. The report itself, with its dollar figures, was not opened by voche.me.
What still needs checking
What budgets did the committee recommend for each statutory office?
On 2026-10-03 the BC NDP platform page lists protection from rising costs, including keeping ICBC rates frozen after a $500 cut, lower child care costs and a lower tax load for families earning under $100,000. The page does not name Choi. On 2026-09-30 the page held a different set of headings, with the same ICBC and child care items.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
Party text. voche.me found no 2026 statement by Choi on a cost of living measure of his own.
What still needs checking
Does Choi speak on daily costs during the campaign?
On 2026-10-03 Choi's campaign page lists nine BC NDP headings, one of them "Protecting our air, land, and water", and the party platform page names the North Coast tanker ban, the goal of protecting 30 percent of B.C. by 2030 and heat pump incentives. On 2026-09-30 the campaign page listed six headings. It states no measure of his own.
Evidence & next checks
Evidence reviewed
Party text. voche.me found no 2026 statement by Choi on climate.
Recorded votes and committee reports where an official source names him. A government program is the government's; his budget speech describes the government's budget.
Report adopted by the House
Presented the Finance committee's report on statutory office budgets
Choi presented the committee's report on the 2026-27 to 2028-29 budgets of the statutory offices and moved that the House adopt it.
Scope, limits and sources
The transcript records his motion and the House's vote to adopt the report. The report's figures were not opened by voche.me.
Presented the Finance committee's interim report on statutory offices
Choi presented the committee's interim report, which includes its recommendation on extra funding asked for by the Representative for Children and Youth, and moved its adoption.
Scope, limits and sources
The transcript records his motion and the House's vote to adopt the report. The report's figures were not opened by voche.me.
Voted yes on third reading of the K'ómoks Treaty Act (Bill 20)
The recorded vote index lists Choi voting yes at second reading on May 20 and at third reading on May 28, 2026, and no on an amendment at second reading.
Scope, limits and sources
The index records his vote. It does not record a speech by him on the bill.
Voted yes on third reading of the freedom of information bill (Bill 9)
The recorded vote index lists Choi voting yes at second and third reading of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Amendment Act, 2026, and on several clauses and amendments.
Scope, limits and sources
The index shows he voted no on an amendment at second reading. It does not describe what each amendment changed.
Sponsored the Korean Heritage Month Act (Bill M210), now law
Choi introduced the private member's bill on April 10, 2025. The House approved second reading on May 26 and third reading on October 20, 2025. BC Laws records royal assent on October 30, 2025. The Act says October is Korean Heritage Month throughout British Columbia.
Scope, limits and sources
The transcripts record each stage as approved, and the vote index lists no standing vote by him on it. In debate he said the Act does not mandate expenditures or create new administrative burdens.
Presented the Finance committee's first report of the session, on statutory offices' extra funding requests
As Chair, Choi presented the report on the supplementary funding requests of the statutory offices for 2025-26 and moved its adoption.
Scope, limits and sources
The transcript records the House adopting the report. In his comments he said the committee limited its recommendations to funding for critical functions of each office. The report's figures were not opened by voche.me.
Presented the Finance committee's report on the Budget 2026 consultation
As Chair, Choi presented the report and moved its adoption. He said the committee visited 11 communities, heard 350 presentations, received 406 written submissions and made 86 recommendations for the 2026 budget.
Scope, limits and sources
The transcript records the House adopting the report. The recommendations themselves were not opened by voche.me.
Burnaby Hospital redevelopment plan renewed, with $210 million for emergency and surgical departments
A Ministry of Infrastructure release says the Province will provide $210 million for an expanded emergency department and surgical unit at Burnaby Hospital, with cancer care and acute-care services to follow. It quotes Choi as MLA for Burnaby South-Metrotown.
Scope, limits and sources
The project belongs to the Ministry of Infrastructure. The release quotes him as the local MLA and names no role of his in the work.
Burnaby Hospital health-care pavilion and support building opened
A government release says the new pavilion and expanded support facilities building opened on March 10, 2026, with 23 new treatment spaces and a mental-health zone in the emergency department. It quotes Choi as MLA.
Scope, limits and sources
The project belongs to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Fraser Health. The release names no role of his in the work.
Construction began on a 100-seat addition at Nelson Elementary, Burnaby
A Ministry of Infrastructure release says construction began on an addition that adds 100 seats and brings the school to 420 seats, with $6 million of provincial investment. It quotes Choi as MLA.
Burnaby school projects open in September 2026, including the Nelson Elementary addition
A Premier's Office release on 250 school capital projects since 2017 lists the Burnaby projects opening this September and quotes Choi on the new seats at Nelson Elementary.
Scope, limits and sources
The release quotes him as the local MLA and names no role of his in the projects.
Construction underway on 116 below-market rental homes near Metrotown
A housing release says construction is underway on 116 below-market rental homes for middle-income households at 6337 Cassie Ave., through BC Builds with the federal and city governments and Waterleaf Housing Society. It quotes Choi as MLA.
Scope, limits and sources
The release says the homes are expected to open in 2028. It names no role of his in the project.
Proposal for 40 supportive homes and 10 complex-care homes in Burnaby
A housing release describes a BC Housing proposal, with the City of Burnaby and Fraser Health, for 40 supportive homes and 10 complex-care homes on a city-owned site. It quotes Choi as MLA.
Scope, limits and sources
The release says the proposal still needs rezoning and community engagement. It names no role of his in the proposal.
Police academy at the Justice Institute of BC expanded to 96 seats per class
A Ministry of Public Safety release says $4 million from Budget 2025 expands the academy's annual training capacity from 192 to 288 officers. It quotes Choi, who says he is a graduate of the academy.
Scope, limits and sources
The release names no role of his in the expansion. The graduate statement is his own.
Up to $400,000 for a Squamish manufacturer from the BC Manufacturing Jobs Fund
A Ministry of Jobs and Economic Growth release says the Province is providing up to $400,000 to Quantum Technology Corp. to double its manufacturing space and create 10 jobs. It quotes Choi as parliamentary secretary for trade.
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
Choi spoke for Budget 2026: health, school and public safety spending, Burnaby projects, trade outside the United States and fewer trade barriers inside Canada.
Speech for the motion on the response to U.S. tariffs
Choi spoke for the motion, said the tariffs threaten Canadian jobs, and said he is a former business owner and former president of the North Road Business Improvement Association.
Choi thanked the voters of Burnaby South-Metrotown and said he came to Canada at age ten, that his parents opened a small grocery store, and that he later became a police officer and then a lawyer. He described the riding and the Budget 2025 spending in it on schools, Simon Fraser University, BCIT, Burnaby Hospital and housing.
Introduced the Korean Heritage Month Act (Bill M210)
Choi introduced the bill, which would make October Korean Heritage Month in B.C., and gave the date of Korea's National Foundation Day, October 3, as the reason for the month.
Choi told the story of his family's corner store and of his work as a police officer who translated for Korean seniors and students. He closed debate on May 26, 2025, when the House approved second reading.
Choi said small businesses employ 41 percent of B.C.'s workforce and described the government's ease of doing business initiative and its community safety and targeted enforcement program.
Post on new supports for businesses facing U.S. tariffs
On X he wrote that the government announced $60 million for manufacturing and innovation, an expanded Buy BC program and rural development investment. His profile shows the post without a year; the page was read on 2026-10-03.
Post on the CANXPORT logistics hub at the Port of Prince Rupert
On X he wrote that the hub lets bulk agricultural products, lumber and plastics be loaded into containers, and called it good news for B.C. and Canada.
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.
No reviewed entries have been added to this section yet. This is a research gap, not a finding about the candidate.
News coverage / Original publishers
Read the reporting
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
Freshet News
Column on red tape and the Trade Recognition Act
A column written by Choi on small business and lowering trade barriers between provinces.
Sources checked October 3, 2026. Official records establish decisions; campaign material establishes stated positions; reporting adds investigation and context. None alone establishes every claim.
Checked on 2026-10-03. His campaign page lists no events and no platform of his own, and its Latest link leads to party pages, and the party releases page names him in none of its releases, including the release of October 3, 2026 on its candidate team. His Instagram and Facebook pages showed no readable posts, so nothing from them is used; his X page showed his bio and five posts, dated August 3 to September 18 with no year shown. The BC NDP caucus page for him answered HTTP 503 again and was not read. Votes are taken from the vote index only; the transcripts of those votes and the text of each bill and motion were not opened, except Bill M210. The vote index lists no standing vote by him on the May 4, 2026 motion on liquor in movie theatres, and voche.me did not find how the House decided it. The 2025 and 2026 Finance committee reports themselves were not opened, so their recommendations and dollar figures are not recorded. Three 2025 transcripts that the index lists (a debate on the Dashboard Cameras in Commercial Vehicles Act, the Acting Conflict of Interest Commissioner Continuation Act, and the Indo-Pacific Foundation statement) were not opened. His roles before 2024 rest on his own statements in the legislature and on the government page for his role. The first speech and the February 24, 2025 speech support the police officer, lawyer and North Road Business Improvement Association roles as his statements. His education, mediator and arbitrator licence, Canadian Bar Association section, Kwantlen Polytechnic University board seat, College of Health and Care Professionals committee seat, 2020 award and any 2024 or 2025 role before July 2025 were not checked with the bodies that would know. No roster naming him was found for the Kwantlen board or the business association. The Pacific NorthWest Economic Region page lists him as Vice President, Canada; his campaign page says First Vice-President, and the page gives no date for his term. The 2024 appointment as Parliamentary Secretary for Asia-Pacific Trade has no dated official record on file; the transcript of April 10, 2025 shows him using the title. No 2026 all-candidates meeting for Burnaby South-Metrotown was found, and the Elections BC list of 2026-10-03 shows him as the only candidate filed in the district on that date, with nominations open until 1 p.m. that day. A Daily Hive opinion piece on the Look West plan dated January 26, 2026 appeared in a news feed, but its address could not be resolved, so voche.me does not know its author and used nothing from it. Campaign finances and endorsements were not reviewed. The questionnaire has not been sent.
Research status
What voche.me has checked
First pass on 2026-09-30: the Elections BC candidate list and 2024 statement of votes, the legislature's 2026 speech and vote indexes, eleven 2026 transcripts where he spoke, the government page for his role and two government releases from 2025, his campaign page, the BC NDP platform and releases pages, and a newspaper column he wrote in March 2026.
Second pass on 2026-10-03: the Elections BC list again (Paul Choi, BC NDP, Burnaby South-Metrotown, unchanged), his campaign page, the BC NDP platform and releases pages, the 2026 speech and vote indexes (no entries added since 2026-09-30), the 2025 speech and vote indexes, ten 2025 transcripts, the Korean Heritage Month Act on BC Laws, the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region governance page, eight government releases that quote him and his X profile. The web search tool had reached its usage limit, so the name search used news feeds, the government news search and direct page reads.
Changes found since the first pass, with the earlier facts kept as dated entries: his campaign page now lists nine BC NDP headings instead of six and words his trade and regional roles in the past tense, and the BC NDP platform page now has a different set of headings. His X profile, which showed no readable posts on 2026-09-30, shows his bio and five posts on 2026-10-03.
His commitments on this page come from his budget speech and other statements in the legislature, and from his column. His campaign page states no measures of his own. Sections with no entry record that voche.me found nothing on this date.
Vice President, Canada, Pacific NorthWest Economic Region (PNWER)
PNWER's governance page, read on 2026-10-03, lists "PS Paul Choi, British Columbia" as Vice President, Canada on its officers list and executive committee, and as B.C.'s state and provincial lead, with no dates. His campaign page calls the role First Vice-President.
Chair, Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services
Presented the committee's first report on May 28, 2025 and its second report, on the Budget 2026 consultation, on October 8, 2025. He spoke as Chair on both days.
In his first speech he said he became a police officer and later went back to law school and became a lawyer. In a 2025 release he said he is a graduate of the police academy at the Justice Institute of BC. These are his own statements.
Former president, North Road Business Improvement Association
He said in the House on February 24, 2025 that he is a former business owner and a former president of the North Road Business Improvement Association. The association's own records were not found.
The government page says he is a qualified mediator and arbitrator licensed by the Alternative Dispute Resolution Institute of Canada, an executive member of the Criminal Justice Section of the Canadian Bar Association, a former member of the board of governors at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, a former vice-chair of the Registration Committee of the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC, and winner of a 2020 Young Professional of the Year Award. These are the government page's statements and voche.me has not checked them with those bodies.
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 Paul Choi 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 Paul Choi's page itself, answered directly rather than left blank.
Is this an official page for Paul Choi?
No. This page is researched by voche.me from public sources, listed below, and is separate from Paul Choi's own campaign.
What party is Paul Choi running with?
Paul Choi is running for MLA with BC NDP.
Does Paul Choi currently hold public office?
Yes. Paul Choi currently serves as Parliamentary Secretary for Trade; MLA for Burnaby South-Metrotown.
How many sources does this Paul Choi profile cite?
This profile lists 5 sourced references, each with the date voche.me checked it, in the Sources section below.
Why do some questions on Paul Choi's page show no answer?
The "Questions & answers" section on this page lists questions voche.me would put to Paul Choi 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 Paul Choi 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
No campaign updates yet
Announcements, event details and messages can be added here, with their source and publication date. No campaign submission has been added.
