Deputy Premier, Minister of Public Safety and thirty-year veteran of the legislature Mike Farnworth today accepted the BC NDP nomination in Port Coquitlam.

Mike Farnworth was first elected as MLA for Port Coquitlam-Burke Mountain in 1991. A seasoned legislative veteran who has served in cabinet under five BC NDP Premiers, he has held the role of Deputy Premier since 2021, and is also the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. Mike was raised in Port Coquitlam, and has lived there for over 50 years with his partner of more than three decades and their dog, Charlotte.

“When we formed government in 2017, it was a mess — with millions in money laundering in our casinos, overstretched and underfunded teams and crime labs unable to keep up with crime,” said Farnworth. “The BC NDP created BC's first witness protection program to help the police tackle gangs and murders, cracked down on money laundering with unexplained wealth orders, made the largest investment in the Province’s history in law enforcement by hiring more than 250 RCMP officers, and has taken on organized crime by taking down Hells Angels clubhouses. We are working every day so that you can feel safe in your community.”

Since forming government in July 2017, the BC NDP has taken action on crucial issues that matter to the people of Port Coquitlam, including:

• Keeping communities safe by hiring 250 more police officers, giving police more power to address public drug use, cracking down on repeat violent offenders, and taking on organized crime — including seizing Hells Angels clubhouses and many other proceeds of crime;
• Connecting people to the care they need by hiring 700 more family doctors, licensing internationally-educated healthcare workers in BC and building a new medical school at SFU Surrey to train even more doctors;
• Helping people with costs by eliminating MSP Premiums, reducing ICBC rates by $500 a year, boosting the BC Family Benefit by $445, cutting childcare fees in half, and making birth control free; and
• Putting people ahead of speculators and investors by bringing in tough new restrictions on short-term rentals and a speculation tax, plus simplified approvals that make it easier and faster to get 300,000 new homes built.

“Mike is a talented veteran, and has handled some of this province’s toughest and most complex files with skill, while always keeping regular people at the front of his mind,” said Premier David Eby. “We’re facing tough challenges in BC, from tackling housing affordability to ensuring safer communities. People in Port Coquitlam and across our province can count on Mike to be in their corner.”

Mike Farnworth will join David Eby and 91 other exceptional BC NDP candidates in this fall’s provincial election, all committed to real action to help people build a good life here in BC.