---
title: "BC Greens release plan to regulate artificial intelligence and hold technology companies accountable"
description: "The BC Green Party published a platform on October 2 calling for a moratorium on new artificial intelligence data centres in BC and a ban on AI workplace surveillance, among eight specific commitments."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/bc/provincial-2026/news/bc-greens-ai-regulation-platform-2026"
last_updated: "2026-10-10T04:07:01.005Z"
---

The BC Green Party published an eight-point platform on artificial intelligence on October 2, 2026, calling for a moratorium on new AI data centres in BC, a ban on AI-powered workplace surveillance, and legislation banning surveillance-based pricing, according to a post on the party's own website.

The announcement came from [Emily Lowan](/bc/provincial-2026/candidates/emily-lowan), the party's leader and candidate for Saanich North and the Islands. The party says it made the announcement from Lekwungen Territory in Victoria.

The party lists eight commitments in the platform. The BC Green Party says it would halt the construction and operation of new AI data centres in BC pending public-interest reviews and a regulatory framework. The party also says it would work with the federal government to create an independent body for AI safety testing before AI systems are deployed in BC.

On education, the party says it would ban AI tools from K-12 classrooms until the province establishes safety and ethical guidelines. The party does not specify how long such a moratorium would last or who would declare the guidelines sufficient.

Two commitments address how companies use personal data. Under what the party calls "Your Choice, Your Feed", the BC Greens say they would push Ottawa to require social media platforms to give every user an easy way to switch off the system that decides which content to show them. The party also says it would pass legislation within 100 days of forming government to stop retailers from using personal data to show higher prices to specific customers.

The party says AI data centres each consume between 438,000 and 700,800 megawatt-hours of electricity per year, which the party says equals the electricity use of 40,000 to 64,000 Canadian households. These are the party's own figures, and the party has not published a breakdown of how they were calculated.

The BC Green Party says it would also ban AI-powered worker surveillance, require assessments of how automation affects jobs, strengthen BC's privacy laws with mandatory impact assessments, and protect First Nations data rights.

In the announcement, Lowan said: "AI executives themselves have expressed fear at the product they're creating, and we know they won't regulate themselves." Lowan also referenced a shooting incident in Tumbler Ridge and said an AI chatbot had provided instructions relevant to it. The party's page does not include a citation for that claim.

All of the proposals on this page are the BC Green Party's own commitments. The party has not published independent cost estimates or enforcement details for most of them.

Voters can compare party platforms at [/bc/provincial-2026/parties](/bc/provincial-2026/parties). Voting day is October 24, 2026.

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