Heading into Saturday’s general election the Conservative Party of BC finds itself with only one candidate with experience in government cabinet, outside of leader John Rustad — and it’s the same person who has forged unique and close ties with the Chinese government.
Teresa Wat is the former international trade minister for the BC Liberal government and incumbent MLA for Richmond-Bridgeport who became one of a handful of BC United (formerly BC Liberal) candidates to join the BC Conservatives this year.
Wat has won the past three elections in her Richmond riding by double-digit points and is competing against rookie BC NDP candidate Linda Li.
Wat’s public record in government and as an opposition critic for anti-racism strategies shows numerous engagements with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the Consulate General of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), as well as business and cultural groups.
Her switch to the BC Conservatives raises questions about the party’s intentions on international trade policy and combating foreign interference from the PRC, as questions arise at the Foreign Interference Commission over alleged acts of interference emanating from the consulate general in Vancouver.
“If she is elected and becomes minister, I think she will have to clarify her policy. There is a lot more scrutiny in terms of Chinese interference in our electoral processes and on campuses and everywhere,” said Guy Saint-Jacques, Canada's former ambassador to China, from 2012 to 2016, in an interview.
"In this case, she has been associated with high-level Chinese leaders," said Saint-Jacques.
"In her past position, I could not say she was under any influence but clearly took positions that was to their liking," said Saint-Jacques.
Glacier Media requested an interview with Wat multiple times but was denied.
Wat’s time in cabinet produced her fair share of critics, who continue to question her positions vis-à-vis the PRC.
“For the past experiences she [has], a person with such a history should not represent us in government,” said Mabel Tung, past chair of the Vancouver Society in Support of Democratic Movement [VSSDM], a local human rights advocacy group that participated in a campaign last election to canvass candidates on their views of the CCP.
Wat happens to be one of five BC Conservative candidates mentioned on a website launched anonymously calling for Rustad’s firing.
The now-removed FireJohnRustad.ca stated “we cannot allow NDP activists, Green Party supporters or Pro-China Liberals into our party,” noting, factually, Wat has attended consulate events and sung the Chinese national anthem on PRC national day celebrations.
Ahead of the election, on Sept. 29, VSSDM staged a rally outside the consulate to oppose national day celebrations.
Wat is a trailblazer for Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative
Chief among the engagements was the key role Wat played in bringing top CCP officials to B.C. in 2016, to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) of the PRC — an international infrastructure and communications development plan forged by PRC President Xi Jinping and guided by “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism,” according to a Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) report titled China and the Age of Strategic Rivalry.
In 2016, following multiple trade trips to the PRC, Wat brought Hu Chunhua, CCP secretary for Guangdong province and one of 24 members of the CCP Politburo, to Vancouver. Hu became vice-premier of the PRC in 2018 and is now vice-chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.
Wat told the B.C. legislature in April 2018, “This memorandum meant much more than just another agreement between the two provincial governments. It was a pivotal step in extending the Belt and Road Initiative to North America, which was not originally covered.”
This was the first MOU a senior government in a Western country had signed. Since 2016, a few others have been signed but later expired, such as the Australian state of Victoria, and a federal agreement in Italy. The federal government did not object to the B.C. MOU, which expired in 2021 with no announcement from the BC NDP government.
The BRI MOU is said by government to have brought 11 agreements between B.C. and Guangdong companies, worth $2.3 billion.
Wat’s plan supported BRI
Wat liaised to bring other MOUs between Chinese firms and entities such as airport authorities, universities and natural resource companies.
A list of MOUs signed in 2015 shows 59 MOUs with China and just three connected to the United States.
Notable ones include Wat bringing communications company Telus together with Huawei to sign an MOU on 5G labs in B.C. Huawei has since been banned from Canada’s systems due to national security risks.
Wat also invited Poly Culture Group, a subsidiary Chinese state firm associated with the People’s Liberation Army, to B.C.
Preceding the BRI MOU, the B.C. government issued bonds in Chinese renminbi, bypassing the U.S. dollar.
“Issuing RMB-denominated bonds is a statement of confidence by British Columbia in the importance and global emergence of China's Renminbi,” stated the provincial government on Nov. 4, 2013, adding “internationalization of the RMB also opens new business opportunities for financial institutions in B.C. in trade finance and wealth management.”
Another chief goal of the BRI is to direct food exports to China, which is why Wat participated in a number of BRI food exports while sitting in the legislature.
Among Wat’s supporters is the North America Investment Association whose president Amy Huang once stated that “Canada should reduce dependence on the U.S. economy, vigorously develop economic and trade relations with Asia, and actively engage China’s Belt and Road Initiative.”
Simultaneously, Wat was also instrumental in having Premier Christy Clark issue an apology for the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1923 which prohibited immigrants from China until 1947. She continued her anti-racism work while in opposition, after the BC Liberals lost in 2017.
On Dec. 15, 2018, Wat appeared on a Chinese state television show titled The World Listens to Me (translated), a program that showcases former PRC residents living abroad who promote the interests of ethnic Chinese people. Wat touted the apology as a benefit for the Chinese people.
Wat and BC Conservatives avoid questions
Given Wat’s past positions Glacier Media reached out to the BC Conservative Party to understand what its international trade policy could be (within the framework of federal policy) should it form government and Wat be in cabinet.
In 2023, BC United leader Kevin Falcon signalled to the business community he would restore provincial trade offices in mainland China that had been closed in 2019, coinciding with a diplomatic crisis between the nations.
The BC Conservative Party did not respond to an invitation via email to comment on their policy intentions.
A reporter sought answers on Tuesday when the party platform was announced at a news conference but was not selected by party staff to ask any questions. After the news conference, Wat, a former broadcaster and former board member of the UBC school of journalism, was asked if she still supports the BRI; however, Wat walked away from a reporter saying, “I have no time.”
The party was also unresponsive in a follow-up email. (As an aside, it also did not respond to whether it determined who was behind FireJohnRustad.ca.)
Much of the BC Conservative’s plan to balance the budget, said Rustad, hinges on increasing mid- and long-term GDP growth far above expectations from the B.C. Ministry of Finance and Canadian bank analysts.
Rustad said increasing GDP will depend on permitting more mines and getting forestry “back on its feet.”
Glacier Media wanted to ask the following questions of the Conservative Party of BC but was denied an interview: Will exports be oriented toward China? How will it advocate its trade policy to the federal government? Will it advocate the export of critical minerals to China, such as for electric vehicle production? Will the party aim to onshore production of value-added products, or continue to ship raw resources across borders at the current pace?
And, how would a BRI advocate align with Conservative Party of Canada policies, including commitments to defund the Asian Infrastructure Bank, denying China’s participation at sensitive Canadian research facilities and advocating for China’s removal from the World Trade Organization until reforms are made?
"I think your questions are totally legitimate," Saint-Jacques told Glacier Media.
Saint-Jacques said Wat would encounter a different environment — one more hostile from the CCP toward Canada.
"In her case, because I assume she is well-liked by members of the Communist Party, I think she may have access but at the same time she can not be too out of step with the federal government," added Saint-Jacques.
But while government-to-government relations have differed, Saint-Jacques said Wat could see opportunities for maintaining private business relations.
"In terms of companies that sell directly to consumers, there is still good business to do. But clearly you can't rely on China; you must diversify," said Saint-Jacques.
The BC Conservative platform only twice mentions international trade.
It states the party will “attract international investment to capital-intensive industries like manufacturing. B.C. has developed a reputation for hostility to investment, and it’s harming our future.”
And, it will “open up new international markets where opportunities exist to help farmers get ahead, while food security for British Columbians remains our #1 priority.”
What is the BC NDP position on international trade?
Meanwhile, the BC NDP is likewise mostly quiet on the subject of international trade policy, only mentioning it will review the stumpage system in light of punishing tariffs and recent trade decisions from the U.S.
