Adam Walker Removed from the NDP Caucus

What happened

1. November 2020. Walker, then a Qualicum Beach councillor, was confirmed as the NDP MLA for Parksville-Qualicum, winning by 2,072 votes. He was then named Parliamentary Secretary for the New Economy.

   Sources: NDP’s Adam Walker officially elected as new Parksville-Qualicum MLA (Nov 9, 2020) (NanaimoNewsNOW); Parliamentary Secretary for the New Economy: Adam Walker, Parksville-Qualicum (2020) (Province of British Columbia)

2. January and February 2023. His office billed the Legislature a little over $1,800 for two invoices from a Kamloops law firm about an “employment matter”. They mention discipline, grievance and medical documents, a union grievance and possible staff layoffs. Walker wouldn’t say whether they were connected to the later complaint, and no one has said they were.

   Sources: Questions swirl around NDP MLA turfed from caucus (Sep 18, 2023) (Glacier Media, via Pique Newsmagazine); Parksville-Qualicum MLA Adam Walker blames premier for staff being ‘intimidated’ after being booted from NDP caucus (Sep 19, 2023) (CHLY 101.7 FM)

3. Late July 2023. A staff member in his constituency office made a complaint under the collective agreement that covers unionized NDP staff, the Premier said. That started an investigation, which the Premier said was “led by caucus”.

   Sources: Vancouver Island MLA Adam Walker booted from NDP caucus after internal probe (Sep 17, 2023) (The Canadian Press, via CBC News); ‘Employment relationship complaint’ led to ousting of MLA Adam Walker from BC NDP: Eby (Sep 18, 2023) (Global News); Parksville-Qualicum MLA Adam Walker blames premier for staff being ‘intimidated’ after being booted from NDP caucus (Sep 19, 2023) (CHLY 101.7 FM)

4. September 17, 2023. The Premier’s office announced that “this thorough investigation found misconduct on the part of MLA Walker”. He was removed from the NDP caucus and as Parliamentary Secretary for the Sustainable Economy, and sat as an Independent from then on.

   Source: Vancouver Island MLA Adam Walker booted from NDP caucus after internal probe (Sep 17, 2023) (The Canadian Press, via CBC News)

5. September 18, 2023. Premier Eby said it wasn’t sexual harassment and wasn’t a criminal matter, but “a concerning and serious issue”, and that he felt he had “no choice”. Walker said he believed he had done nothing wrong and would take the investigation to arbitration to clear his name.

   Sources: ‘Employment relationship complaint’ led to ousting of MLA Adam Walker from BC NDP: Eby (Sep 18, 2023) (Global News); Questions swirl around NDP MLA turfed from caucus (Sep 18, 2023) (Glacier Media, via Pique Newsmagazine)

6. December 2023. Walker told Vancouver Sun columnist Vaughn Palmer he had given up on arbitration because, in his account, the NDP had moved the staff member to a job in government. Nothing else we found confirms or disputes this.

   Source: Vaughn Palmer: Ousted by NDP, MLA says he’s now free to advocate for his constituents (Dec 14, 2023) (Vancouver Sun)

7. September 2024. Walker told the Vancouver Sun he was removed because he tried to fire a unionized employee at his constituency office. This is his account; the NDP hasn’t confirmed or disputed it.

   Source: Adam Walker, an Independent candidate for Ladysmith-Oceanside (Oct 8, 2024) (Times Colonist)

8. October 19, 2024. He ran as an Independent in the new Ladysmith-Oceanside riding and came third of four, with 5,559 votes (16.3%). The NDP’s Stephanie Higginson won.

   Source: Statement of Votes, 2024 Provincial General Election (Ladysmith-Oceanside) (Elections BC)

What each side has said

The Premier

“This relates to an employment relationship complaint under our collective agreement.” Eby said privacy rules stopped him saying more: “I wish I could share more about this, but I can’t.” He also said the problem couldn’t be fixed with training.

Sources: ‘Employment relationship complaint’ led to ousting of MLA Adam Walker from BC NDP: Eby (Sep 18, 2023) (Global News); Questions swirl around NDP MLA turfed from caucus (Sep 18, 2023) (Glacier Media, via Pique Newsmagazine); Vaughn Palmer: Ousted by NDP, MLA says he’s now free to advocate for his constituents (Dec 14, 2023) (Vancouver Sun)

Walker

In September 2023 he said he would go to arbitration “so that I can clear my name”, and that he believed he had done nothing wrong. He said the Premier’s account had brought news cameras to his office, “intimidating my staff”. He wouldn’t resign to run again in a by-election, saying voters would judge him at the next election. His later accounts, that he tried to fire a unionized employee and that he dropped arbitration once the staff member was moved to a government job, are his alone.

Sources: ‘Employment relationship complaint’ led to ousting of MLA Adam Walker from BC NDP: Eby (Sep 18, 2023) (Global News); Parksville-Qualicum MLA Adam Walker blames premier for staff being ‘intimidated’ after being booted from NDP caucus (Sep 19, 2023) (CHLY 101.7 FM); Vaughn Palmer: Ousted by NDP, MLA says he’s now free to advocate for his constituents (Dec 14, 2023) (Vancouver Sun); Adam Walker, an Independent candidate for Ladysmith-Oceanside (Oct 8, 2024) (Times Colonist)

What isn’t public

• The complaint, and what the investigation found. No report has been released.
• Who carried out the investigation, beyond the Premier’s word that caucus led it.
• Whether Walker filed for arbitration. No decision has been published, and nothing published has cleared him.
• Whether the 2023 legal invoices had anything to do with the complaint.

If you have a public document that answers any of these, send it to facts@LetThemEatGolf.ca and we will add it.

What else we checked

• Conflict of Interest Commissioner: no published opinion about him from 2020 to 2024. Complaints are confidential unless the Commissioner reports on them, so this shows only that there was no published finding.
• Elections BC: he isn’t on its list of campaign finance penalties.
• Courts: we found no lawsuit in which he was a party.

Sources: Publications: opinions and annual reports (Office of the Conflict of Interest Commissioner of BC); Administrative monetary penalties (Elections BC)