News

Pete Davis

Conservative Party of BC

Kootenay-Rockies

Critic For Mining, Critical Minerals and Columbia Treaty

Office:

Parliament Buildings
Victoria, BC V8V 1X4

Phone: (250) 387-3507

Constituency:

#302-535 Victoria Avenue N
Cranbrook, BC V1C 6S3

Pete.Davis.MLA@leg.bc.ca

Phone: (250) 417-6022

Fax: (250) 417-6026

Biography

Pete Davis was elected MLA for Kootenay-Rockies (formerly Kootenay East) in 2024. He currently serves as Critic For Mining, Critical Minerals and Columbia Treaty.

Pete hails from Revelstoke and was raised in Cranbrook, instilled with conservative values rooted in responsibility, tradition, individual freedom, and service. Married to Heather since 2002, they are proud parents to four children and are dedicated to their life in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. Pete is an avid outdoorsman with strong ties to the motorcycle, boating and camping communities.

Balancing the responsibilities of work and raising a family, while being a dedicated husband, has instilled in him a strong sense of empathy, compassion, and commitment to serving others. During his childhood years Pete’s family faced significant economic hardships. Raised by a loving and hard-working single mother, he remembers what it feels like to wonder where the next meal would come from and if rent would be made. These early experiences have prepared him to represent constituents with compassion, integrity, diligence, and a deep-seated commitment to positive change.

Pete’s extensive experience as a business professional has allowed him to cultivate strong and enduring relationships with key stakeholders across various sectors critical to the economy of the Elk Valley and East Kootenays. These sectors include logging, forestry, automotive, heavy equipment, and mining, each playing a vital role in the region’s economic vitality and the livelihoods of countless working families.

Through his interactions and collaborations with industry leaders, workers, and community representatives, Pete has gained a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities faced by these sectors. He is acutely aware of the regulatory, economic, and environmental factors that impact businesses and workers alike.

Pete’s belief in the hard-working families of Kootenay-Rockies is unwavering. He recognizes the resilience and dedication of these families who rely on these industries for their employment and economic stability. As a consistent voice in Victoria, Pete is committed to advocating for policies and initiatives that support the growth and sustainability of these sectors, ensuring that working families have the opportunities and resources they need to thrive.

Pete is committed to challenging failed policies and advocating for change in Victoria. His love for Canada and British Columbia fuels his dedication to serving the people and ensuring their voices are heard in government.

Where They Stand on Modernizing BC's Wrongful Death Laws

To date, MLA Davis has been silent regarding modernization of BC’s wrongful death laws, as a relationship has yet to be established.

How Can This MLA Improve Their Grade?

Meet with constituents on this issue.

Meet with The BC Wrongful Death Law Reform Society on this issue.

Write a letter of endorsement for modernization to the Attorney General and Premier.

Please petition MLA Pete Davis now »

The BC Wrongful Death Law Reform Society’s goal is to modernize BC’s wrongful death laws, which unlike other provinces, currently denies justice to the surviving family members of children, seniors, the disabled, or anyone who wasn’t considered a breadwinner with dependents, when killed by the careless or intentional acts of another.

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As Seen In

The following news outlets have featured the issue of BC's antiquated wrongful death laws alongside stories of tragedy countless times for decades, although the provincial government still fails to right this legislative wrong.

What British Columbians Are Saying

The public is unanimously outraged and expressing their views through many channels.

Organizations That Have Endorsed Modernization

The following organizations have endorsed repealing and replacing the 'Family Compensation Act' and replacing it with our Society's drafted 'Wrongful Death Accountability Act' to ensure the full measure of value to British Columbians lives and access to justice with no loopholes for wrongdoers to escape accountability.

Vancouver City Council
Union of BC Municipalities
Lower Mainland Local Government Association

Prominent Figures Who've Endorsed Modernization

The following prominent figures and elected officials have written letters endorsing legislative modernization of BC's wrongful death laws.

Vancouver City Councillor Pete Fry (Green)
MLA John Rustad (Conservative)
MLA Michael DeJong (BC United)
MLA Douglas Routley (NDP)
MLA Andrew Mercier (NDP)

Petition Your MLA Now

Unlike other Canadian provinces, BC has not made any significant amendments to its wrongful death legislation—ever.

The current BC Family Compensation Act only values the lives of income-earners. This neglect must stop.

Petitioning your local MLA, the Attorney General, and Premier with our automated tool can make a lasting difference to the lives of British Columbians for generations to come.

Dear Local MLA, Attorney General Niki Sharma, Premier David Eby, Minister of Health Josie Osborne, Minister of Public Safety & Solicitor General Garry Begg;

I am writing to you about British Columbia’s woefully outdated wrongful death laws; which are still based on colonial-era legislation from 1846.

BC’s current “Family Compensation Act” only takes into account the direct financial losses resulting from the wrongful death of a loved one. As a result, only the families of deceased breadwinners see the inside of a courtroom in cases of wrongful death.

Children, seniors, people with disabilities, or anyone who does not meet the discriminatory criteria of having both an income and dependents are classes of people whose lives are not valued or respected when they are killed in BC.

This is a human rights issue.

Investigations into the wrongful death of these classes of citizens most often do not occur because there is no ‘loss of earnings’ to cover civil trial costs.

Accordingly, families have been denied the ability to right the wrong and ensure that the same preventable actions which resulted in the wrongful death would not happen to another.

Unlike other provinces in Canada, which in most cases have modernized long ago, many of your constituents are considered “worthless” under the discriminatory law in British Columbia.

Their stories are actively being documented and published here – https://intheirname.ca/stories/

The BC Wrongful Death Law Reform Society is comprised of families who have been fighting for over two decades to see our laws modernized. They have drafted legislation that can solve this problem now.

These families, based on each individual personal experience of loss, have demanded that the legislation include the following tenets:

#1 The value of human life must not be based merely on whether the wrongfully killed was a breadwinner with dependants. There must be a legal recognition for the value of each life and the loss of love, guidance, care, companionship, and affection wrongfully taken from surviving family members.

#2 The value of human life must not be arbitrarily capped by legislation. Damages for the loss of life must be assessed individually by constitutionally independent superior courts, in recognition of the distinct relationship that existed between each of the surviving family members and the wrongfully killed loved one.

#3 All forms of non-pecuniary damages, including aggravated and punitive damages must be available under the legislation to be awarded in appropriate cases. Financial penalty assessed by a civil court when a wrongdoer maliciously, or recklessly kills another person is essential when criminal prosecution is not pursued or fails. General deterrence of future wrongdoing is an important objective.

#4 If an individual is not initially killed by a wrongful act, but later dies before the conclusion of litigation, this should not be a windfall for the wrongdoer. There should not be a perverse incentive for the wrongdoer to delay, or prolong litigation. Damages relating to conscious pain, suffering, and disability during the period between the wrong and the decedent’s death, including damages for loss of expectation of life, pain and suffering, physical disfigurement, or loss of amenities must remain available under the legislation.

#5 Families deserve the right to have their day in court with the ability to obtain professional legal representation on a contingency basis. No other piece of legislation in the province should bar the pursuit of an at-fault wrongful death claim against a negligent party. The contingency fee system does not discriminate socioeconomically, and it ensures the family can obtain the best representation necessary to obtain truth, justice, and accountability against a wrongdoer, no matter how big and powerful that wrongdoer might be. Families also deserve the right to have the case decided by a jury of their peers. This fundamental aspect of our democracy must be preserved.

What will you do to create a fair and adequate wrongful death law in BC?

Yours Truly,
Your Full Name
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cc:
Conservative Party Leader John Rustad
Conservative Party Critic for Attorney General Steve Kooner
Conservative Party Critic for Public Safety & Solicitor General Elenore Sturko
BC Greens Interim Leader Jeremy Valeriote

  • Your submission will be sent securely through this form to the elected representatives as outlined. Your address is required for our system to automatically route your letter to your local MLA. The BC Wrongful Death Law Reform Society will not share your personal information with any additional third parties without your prior consent.

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2024 Election – David Eby & the BC NDP have failed to keep their promise to modernize BC’s wrongful death laws within their 2020-2024 mandate of government.

John Rustad and the Conservative Party of BC have committed to modernize if elected.

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