The B.C. Liberal Party will be called just that, for awhile at least and definitely through the next provincial election.
That’s just fine for Maple Ridge-Mission MLA Marc Dalton, who favours a name change, of some kind, but not at this time.
“This close to an election, I think it causes more difficulty than anything else because of the confusion,” he said Tuesday.
“We are going to examine it at the next convention in 2013. It’s not a dead matter.”
To do that now is just not the opportune time, he added.
Dalton hasn’t heard of any name in particular, but says other titles are already taken.
“You want to make sure you don’t go for a name that’s already taken.”
He said a new name should reflect the coalition within the party. Many member, including Dalton, “feel the name doesn’t reflect who we really are.”
Dalton federally supports the Conservative party and ran for that party in 2006 in Burnaby-New Westminster.
He also sought the Conservative nomination in Pitt Meadows-Maple Ridge-Mission in 2004, but didn’t win.
He said in the local riding, the federal Liberal vote was “quite marginal,” at about five per cent, about the same level as the Green party.
Provincially, the Liberal name, “It’s confusing for a lot of people who are not engaged in politics, or their interest isn’t there until close to an election.”
The Liberal party convention takes place Oct. 26-27 in Whistler and one day will be allocated to conservative-leaning politicians who want to attend.
Dalton said he expects former Liberal cabinet minister John van Dongen, who left the Liberals earlier this year to join the B.C. Conservative party, to be there.
“I don’t think there’s any indication of [Conservative leader John] Cummins wanting to merge at all,” Dalton said.
