Castlecrag Mountain, Strathcona Park · Photo: Rick McCharles, CC BY 2.0

EDITORIAL · MLA PENSIONS · LANGFORD-HIGHLANDS

Forests Minister Ravi Parmar is 3.3 years into the six years it takes to earn an MLA pension. He gets there only if voters re-elect him on 24 October.

Ravi Parmar, the NDP Minister of Forests and candidate in Langford-Highlands, was first elected in a by-election on 24 June 2023. An MLA needs six years of service for a pension. If he loses, he leaves with about 3.3 years and a refund of his own contributions. If he wins, he reaches six years on 24 June 2029, and on our calculation the pension is worth about $38,444 a year from 65. The government pays in 38.68% of his pay to his 11%.

Backcountry Coalition · 16 October 2026 Email

Ravi Parmar in a light blue shirt, smiling, with his hands clasped, in front of a Tolko banner at a mill in Kelowna on 11 June 2026. — **Ravi Parmar**BC NDP candidate, Langford-Highlands · Minister of Forests
First elected
24 June 2023, by-election, Langford-Juan de Fuca
Service on 24 October 2026
About 3.3 years, on our calculation
Six years, if he wins
24 June 2029
His pay from 1 April 2026
$122,042.91 as an MLA, plus $61,021.46 as a minister
*Photo: Province of British Columbia (Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), Tolko Industries, Kelowna, 11 June 2026*

Ravi Parmar, the NDP Minister of Forests, was first elected to the Legislature in a by-election on 24 June 2023.³⁵ On 24 October he is the NDP candidate in Langford-Highlands, with about 3.3 years of service behind him on our calculation.⁶⁸ An MLA needs six years for a pension. Under six, the plan hands back the member’s own contributions with interest, and nothing more.¹⁹

So the pension is on the ballot for him. If he loses, he walks away with a refund. If he wins and stays in the House, he reaches six years on 24 June 2029, and on our calculation that is worth about $38,444 a year to him from age 65, in today’s dollars.⁹¹² Taxpayers pay 38.68% of his pay into the plan, which is $3.52 for every $1 he puts in.¹⁴ His ministry runs the province’s forest service roads: under the Forest Act, the minister declares which roads on Crown land are forest service roads.⁷

01 The law pays an MLA a pension only after six years of service, and Ravi Parmar will have about 3.3 years on election day

The record

The Act says a person is not entitled to a pension “unless the person has at least 6 years of service.”¹
Ravi Parmar was first elected on 24 June 2023, the final voting day of the Langford-Juan de Fuca by-election.³
He was re-elected in Langford-Highlands on 19 October 2024 and has served without a break.⁴⁵
From 24 June 2023 to 24 October 2026 is 1,218 days, or about 3.33 years. That is our calculation.

Paragraph 5 of the Schedule to the Members' Remuneration and Pensions Act, boxed: A person is not entitled to a pension under the Part 3 pension plan unless the person has at least 6 years of service. — The six-year line, in the Act’s own words. The details sit in Part 15 of the Public Service Pension Plan’s rules.¹ Source: bclaws.gov.bc.ca

The clock starts on election day. The Act pays a member “from the date of the member’s election”, which it defines as final voting day, and pension contributions are taken from that pay.¹ For Ravi Parmar, that day was 24 June 2023, when Langford-Juan de Fuca voted to replace the former premier, John Horgan. The count finished four days later.³

From page 9 of the Elections BC by-election report, under Langford-Juan de Fuca. Two passages are boxed: June 24 (Final Voting Day) there were 52,019 registered voters; and At the conclusion of final count on June 28, BC NDP candidate Ravi Parmar was declared elected as the MLA for Langford-Juan de Fuca. — The report gives final voting day as 24 June 2023, and the declaration after the final count on 28 June.³ Source: elections.bc.ca (PDF)

Time on the Executive Council counts as service too, but it does not help him here: he has been a minister since November 2024, while he was already an MLA.⁹⁵

02 If Ravi Parmar loses on 24 October, the plan refunds his own contributions with interest and pays him no pension

The record

A member who leaves “without completing six years of legislative service” is entitled to a refund of their contributions under section 44.⁹²
Section 44 adds interest, and says the contributions refunded “do not include the employer’s contributions.”¹⁰
A member who is not re-elected is treated as a member up to the date of the general election.⁹
The Assembly reports paying him $409,369 from 2023–24 to 2025–26. At 11%, his own contributions on that pay come to about $45,031 before interest. That is our calculation.¹³

Two boxed passages from the Public Service Pension Plan Rules. Section 112 (2): A plan participant who terminates employment prior to latest retirement age without completing six years of legislative service is entitled to a refund of the plan participant's contributions under this Part calculable and payable in accordance with section 44. Section 44 (4): The contributions referred to in this section do not include the employer's contributions. — Two provisions from different parts of the rules, shown together. The first sends a member under six years to section 44; the second is section 44’s own limit.⁹¹⁰ Source: pensionsbc.ca (PDF)

A defeat would end his service at about 3.3 years. He would get back what came out of his own pay, with interest. The government’s contributions would stay in the plan.⁹¹⁰

The money would not have to leave the plan, either. If a former member who has not taken a refund is elected again, the rules combine the two periods of service. If they took the refund, the earlier service is “ignored” and the clock starts again from zero.⁹

03 If he wins, Ravi Parmar reaches six years on 24 June 2029, and the snap election moved his test forward by two years

The record

The Constitution Act fixes final voting day for the third Saturday in October, four years after the last election, unless the House is dissolved first.¹¹
After the vote of 19 October 2024, the fixed date would have been 21 October 2028. The House was dissolved on 22 September 2026.¹¹⁸⁵
On 21 October 2028 he would have had about 5.33 years. On 24 October 2026 he has about 3.33. Both figures are our calculation.
Either way, he needed one more win to reach six years.¹⁹

Section 23 of the Constitution Act, two passages boxed. (1) The Lieutenant Governor may, by proclamation in Her Majesty's name, prorogue or dissolve the Legislative Assembly when the Lieutenant Governor sees fit. (2) Subject to subsection (1), a final voting day must occur on the third Saturday in October in the fourth calendar year following the final voting day for the most recently held general election. — The fixed date, and the power to dissolve the House before it. Subsection (3), which moves the date when it would overlap a local or federal election, is not shown.¹¹ Source: bclaws.gov.bc.ca

Had the election come on the fixed date, he would have gone to the voters eight months short of six years. It came two years early instead, when he is 2.7 years short. The next fixed date after this election is 19 October 2030, and it can move if the campaign would overlap the local elections due that October.¹¹

What Ravi Parmar’s pension looks like under each outcome
If	Service	What he gets	A year from 65
He loses on 24 October 2026	About 3.33 years	His own contributions back, with interest. No pension.	–
He wins, but leaves the House before 24 June 2029	Under 6 years	The same refund. No pension.	–
He wins and serves to 24 June 2029	6 years	A pension for life from 65, or reduced from 60	$38,444
He wins and serves the full term to 19 October 2030	About 7.32 years	A larger pension, with 3.5% of pay for every year	$46,901
He wins again and serves to 24 June 2033	10 years	A pension worth 35% of his best three-year pay	$64,073

Service runs from 24 June 2023. The yearly figures are our calculation from the Act’s formula, using his 2026 pay as an MLA and a minister, $183,064.37, in today’s dollars. The 2030 date assumes the House runs its full term and the date does not move.¹¹²⁹¹¹

04 On our calculation, six years would pay Ravi Parmar about $38,444 a year from 65, because his minister’s salary counts toward the pension

The record

The formula is P = 3.5% × E × S, where E is the best three-year average pay and S is years of service.¹
The Act counts as earnings both “the basic compensation” and “the salary paid under this Act”, which includes a minister’s salary.¹
From 1 April 2026 an MLA is paid $122,042.91, and a minister $61,021.46 on top of that.¹²
In 2025–26 the Assembly paid him $119,205 as an MLA and $55,836 in executive salary, $175,041 in all.¹³

The Legislative Assembly's MLA Compensation table for April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2026, with the row for Parmar, Ravi boxed: basic MLA compensation $119,205, additional salary nil, executive salary $55,836, total compensation $175,041. — His most recent full year as Minister of Forests. Ministers’ salaries carry a 10% holdback, paid the following year if conditions are met.¹³ Source: lims.leg.bc.ca (PDF)

Ravi Parmar’s pay, as the Assembly reports it
Fiscal year	MLA pay	Executive salary	Total
2023–24	$86,363	$1,560	$87,923
2024–25	$119,118	$27,287	$146,405
2025–26	$119,205	$55,836	$175,041

Paid in each fiscal year, April to March, on a cash basis. 2023–24 runs from his election in June 2023. Executive salary is the Assembly’s heading for a minister’s or parliamentary secretary’s salary.¹³

Paragraphs 3 and 4 of the Schedule to the Members' Remuneration and Pensions Act. The formula P = 3.5% x E x S is boxed, where P is the amount of the annual pension, E is the highest 3-year average annual pensionable earnings and S is the number of years plus any portion of a year of pensionable service. Paragraph 4: the maximum pension is 70% of the highest 3-year average pensionable earnings. — The formula is in the Act. The figures put into it below are ours, from the Assembly’s published pay rates.¹ Source: bclaws.gov.bc.ca

The plan averages the three fiscal years in which a member was paid the most.⁹ If Ravi Parmar wins and stays a minister, his three best years by 2029 would all be paid at least at this year’s rates, so we use a full year at 2026 rates for an MLA who is also a minister.

Our calculationIn 2026 dollars, from age 65

P = 3.5% × E × S

E. A full year at 2026 rates: $122,042.91 + $61,021.46 = $183,064.37¹²
Six years, 24 June 2029. 3.5% × 6 = 21%, so 21% × $183,064.37 = $38,443.52 a year.
The full term, 19 October 2030. 3.5% × 7.32 = 25.62%, so $46,901.09 a year.
Ten years, 24 June 2033, which would need another win: 3.5% × 10 = 35%, so $64,072.53 a year.

If he wins but does not stay in cabinet, the figure is lower. At $175,041, his pay in 2025–26, six years comes to $36,758.61 a year. The figures do not project any raise after 2026. A member who reaches six years and leaves before 60 can also take the pension’s value as a locked-in lump sum instead.¹³⁹

05 For every $1 Ravi Parmar puts into his pension, taxpayers put in $3.52, about $70,809 a year at his 2026 pay

The record

The government’s contribution rate for the MLA plan is 38.68% of pay, effective 1 July 2024.¹⁴
Each MLA pays in 11% of their basic compensation and any additional salary.¹⁴¹
38.68 ÷ 11 = 3.52, so the government puts in $3.52 for each $1 he does. That is our calculation.

From the Legislative Assembly's page on basic compensation, under Section 40 of the Act, boxed: The current government contribution rate is 38.68% (effective July 1, 2024). The sentence continues: In addition, each MLA contributes 11 percent of basic compensation and any additional salary to the pension plan. — The rate the Act requires the Assembly to post.¹⁴ Source: leg.bc.ca

Our calculationOne year at 2026 pay of $183,064.37

The government’s share. 0.3868 × $183,064.37 = $70,809.30
His share. 0.11 × $183,064.37 = $20,137.08

The Act lets the public service board set the government’s share at whatever it takes to fund the promised pensions, and the Assembly posts the rate.¹¹⁴ Each year he serves as a minister, the public puts about $70,809 into a plan that pays him nothing unless he reaches six years.⁹

06 A B.C. public servant on Ravi Parmar’s pay would build a pension at 1.95% a year, against his 3.5%, on an employer share of 9.85%

The record

In the Public Service Pension Plan, an ordinary member pays in 8.35% of salary and the employer 9.85%.¹⁵
An ordinary member’s pension builds at 1.95% of their highest average salary for each year of service since April 2022.¹⁶
An MLA’s builds at 3.5% a year, on a government share almost four times larger.¹¹⁴

Section 54 (1) of the Public Service Pension Plan Rules: a member is entitled to receive a pension that is the sum of. Paragraph (e) is boxed: 1.95% of the member's highest average salary, multiplied by the number of years of pensionable service accrued after March 31, 2022 while the member participated in the Plan other than as a correctional employee or ambulance paramedic. — Paragraphs (a) to (d), for earlier years and other groups, are left out between the opening words and paragraph (e).¹⁶ Source: pensionsbc.ca (PDF)

Our calculationSix years, on 2026 pay of $183,064.37

As an MLA. 3.5% × 6 = 21%, so $38,443.52 a year from 65.
At the public service rate. 1.95% × 6 = 11.7%, so $21,418.53 a year from 65.
Employer money each year. 38.68% is $70,809.30; 9.85% would be $18,031.84.

The comparison is a rough one. A public servant’s pension is figured on the best five years of pay rather than three, and it carries a bridge benefit before 65.¹⁶ But on the same pay, an MLA’s six years are worth about 1.8 times a public servant’s at 65, and the government puts in almost four times as much.¹⁵¹⁴

07 If Ravi Parmar loses, he can also be paid the equivalent of MLA pay for four to fifteen months

The record

Transitional assistance pays a non-returning member the equivalent of basic compensation for at least four months and up to 15, from final voting day.¹⁷¹⁸
The first four months are paid “regardless of whether the Member is receiving other income.” After that, other income reduces it.¹⁷
The full 15 months needs “a full term of a Parliament”. A member elected in a by-election gets four months plus a prorated share.¹⁷
The program is set by Policy 7200 of the Legislative Assembly Management Committee, not by the Act.¹⁷¹⁸

Section 17.03 of the Legislative Assembly's Policy 7200, boxed: To receive the maximum 15 months of transitional assistance, a Member must complete a full term of a Parliament. A Member who was elected in a by-election is eligible for 4 months plus a prorated number of months of assistance based on the percentage of the total number of days in the Parliament that the Member served (e.g., if the Member served 732 days of a Parliament that lasted 1,462 days, they would be eligible for 9.5 months of assistance). — The proration applies to a member who came in at a by-election during the Parliament that is ending.¹⁷ Source: leg.bc.ca (PDF)

Ravi Parmar came in at a by-election in the last Parliament, but he was elected at the general election that opened this one and served it until the House was dissolved.⁴⁵ On our reading of the policy, that puts him in line for the full range if he loses. The Assembly’s administration makes the decision.¹⁷

At this year’s basic compensation, four months comes to $40,680.97 and fifteen months to $152,553.64. The policy sets the payment at $4,681.17 every two weeks. That is our calculation, and the real figure depends on when he finds other work.¹²¹⁷ Transitional assistance is paid on basic compensation only, not on a minister’s salary, and a retraining allowance of up to $9,000 is available on top.¹⁸¹⁷

08 Ravi Parmar is one of nine NDP cabinet members who reach the pension line only if they win

Twenty sitting NDP MLAs on the ballot have less than six years of service, and nine of them sit in the Executive Council.⁵⁶¹⁹ Two of the nine hold backcountry portfolios. Randene Neill, the Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, and Tamara Davidson, the Minister of Environment and Parks, were first elected on 19 October 2024.⁴ They reach six years on 19 October 2030 only if they win and the House runs its full term. Ravi Parmar is the closest of the nine to the line.⁹¹¹

09 Six questions about his pension that Ravi Parmar can answer before British Columbians vote

Questions for Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests and NDP candidate in Langford-Highlands

Will you publish your pension service record from the B.C. Pension Corporation, and confirm the date you reach six years?
If you lose, will you take the refund of your contributions, or leave them in the plan so your service would count again if you return?
If you lose, will you take transitional assistance, and for how long?
Do you support a government contribution of 38.68% of MLA pay, when an ordinary public servant’s employer pays 9.85%?
Should a minister’s salary count toward an MLA pension, as it does now?
Would you back an independent review of the MLA pension rate and formula in the next Parliament?

The pension rules are the Legislature’s, and every MLA who reaches six years gets the same terms. Ravi Parmar’s record as the minister responsible for the forest service roads is in our earlier pieces, a fact check of what he said about Rady Creek and a review of his record at the Ministry of Forests.²⁰²¹

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Forests Minister Ravi Parmar is 3.3 years into the six years it takes to earn an MLA pension. He gets there only if voters re-elect him on 24 October.

Ravi Parmar, the NDP Minister of Forests and candidate in Langford-Highlands, was first elected in a by-election on 24 June 2023. Under the Members’ Remuneration and Pensions Act, an MLA gets no pension without at least six years of service.

If he loses, the plan refunds his own contributions with interest, and the government’s share stays in the plan. If he wins and stays in the House, he reaches six years on 24 June 2029.

On our calculation from the Act’s formula and his 2026 pay as an MLA and a minister, six years is worth about $38,444 a year from age 65.

He pays 11% of his pay into the plan. The government pays 38.68%, about $70,800 a year. An ordinary B.C. public servant’s employer pays 9.85%.

Ask your candidates to commit to an independent review of the MLA pension rate.

backcountry.cx/editorials/ravi-parmar-pension/

#BCpoli #BCElection #LangfordHighlands #MLApensions

Sources

↩ Members’ Remuneration and Pensions Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 257, current to 6 October 2026: section 2 (basic compensation), section 4 and its Table (a minister’s salary as a share of basic compensation), section 9 (a member is paid “from the date of the member’s election”, the date of an election being final voting day), section 35 (“earnings” means both the basic compensation and “the salary paid under this Act”), section 38 (the 11% deduction and the government contribution set by the public service board), and the Schedule, paragraphs 1 to 8, including paragraph 5 (no pension “unless the person has at least 6 years of service”). bclaws.gov.bc.ca
↩ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Members’ Guide to Policy and Resources: Members’ Pension Plan, read 16 October 2026: contributions of 11% of “pensionable earnings (basic compensation and any additional salary earned)”; no pension under six years of service, and a “Refund of contributions with interest” instead. members.leg.bc.ca
↩ Elections BC, Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the 2023 Langford-Juan de Fuca and Vancouver-Mount Pleasant By-elections, page 9 (final voting day 24 June 2023; “At the conclusion of final count on June 28, BC NDP candidate Ravi Parmar was declared elected as the MLA for Langford-Juan de Fuca”) and the statement of votes (Ravi Parmar, BC NDP, 7,279 votes, 53.39%). elections.bc.ca (PDF)
↩ Elections BC, Statement of Votes, 2024 Provincial General Election (final voting day 19 October 2024): Langford-Highlands, Ravi Parmar, BC NDP, 11,444 votes (51.87%), marked as the incumbent; and Randene Neill and Tamara Davidson, BC NDP, first elected that day. elections.bc.ca (PDF)
↩ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Members of the 43rd Parliament, read 16 October 2026 from the Assembly’s own member data service, which supplies its member pages: party, riding, and Executive Council roles with their start dates, including Ravi Parmar as Minister of Forests from 18 November 2024; and the 43rd Parliament’s end date, 22 September 2026. leg.bc.ca
↩ Elections BC, 2026 Provincial General Election: candidate list and its CSV file, read 16 October 2026: Ravi Parmar, BC NDP, Langford-Highlands; and the other NDP candidates named in section 08. elections.bc.ca
↩ Forest Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 157, read 16 October 2026: section 1 (“forest service road” means “a road on Crown land that is declared under this Act or the former Act to be a forest service road”) and section 120.1 (1) (“The minister may declare a road on Crown land to be a forest service road”). bclaws.gov.bc.ca
↩ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, 2026 Transition Guide for Members Seeking Re-election, version 1, 22 September 2026, page 3: dissolution and writs on 22 September 2026, final voting day 24 October 2026. members.leg.bc.ca (PDF)
↩ Public Service Pension Board of Trustees, Public Service Pension Plan Rules, current to 9 June 2026, Part 15, MLA Pensions: section 107 (“legislative service” includes time on the Executive Council; and subsection (3), a member not re-elected is “deemed to cease to be a member … as of the date of the general election”), section 108, section 112 (2) (under six years of legislative service, “a refund of the plan participant’s contributions” under section 44), section 112 (3) to (6) (3.5% of highest average salary per year of pensionable service; reduced pension from 60; commuted value), section 114 (highest average salary) and section 118 (a member re-elected after a break: earlier service is “ignored” if the contributions were refunded, and periods are “combined” if they were not). pensionsbc.ca (PDF)
↩ Public Service Pension Plan Rules, current to 9 June 2026, Part 4, section 44: a refund of a member’s contributions with interest compounded annually at the refund interest rates; subsection (4): “The contributions referred to in this section do not include the employer’s contributions.” pensionsbc.ca (PDF)
↩ Constitution Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 66, section 23: (1) the Lieutenant Governor may “prorogue or dissolve the Legislative Assembly when the Lieutenant Governor sees fit”; (2) final voting day “must occur on the third Saturday in October in the fourth calendar year following” the last general election; (3) a different date if the campaign would overlap a general local election or a federal general election. bclaws.gov.bc.ca
↩ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Remuneration and Allowances, read 16 October 2026 (“Effective April 1, 2026, the annual basic compensation each Member receives is $122,042.91”), and the additional salary grid, April 2026 (Minister, 50%, $61,021.46). members.leg.bc.ca · grid (PDF)
↩ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, MLA Compensation (unaudited), combined disclosures for the fourth quarter of 2023–24, 2024–25 and 2025–26, cash basis: Ravi Parmar’s basic compensation and executive salary for each year. Note 4: ministerial salaries carry a holdback of 10% under the Balanced Budget and Ministerial Accountability Act. 2025–26 (PDF) · 2024–25 (PDF) · 2023–24 (PDF)
↩ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Basic Compensation page, read 16 October 2026, posted under section 40 of the Act: “The current government contribution rate is 38.68% (effective July 1, 2024). In addition, each MLA contributes 11 percent of basic compensation and any additional salary to the pension plan.” leg.bc.ca
↩ Public Service Pension Plan Rules, current to 9 June 2026, Part 2: section 5 (an ordinary member contributes 7.10% plus 1.25% of salary) and section 6 (the employer contributes 7.10% plus 2.75% of salary). pensionsbc.ca (PDF)
↩ Public Service Pension Plan Rules, current to 9 June 2026: section 54 (1) (e) (an ordinary member’s pension is 1.95% of highest average salary for each year of service after 31 March 2022), section 54 (2) (the bridge benefit to 65) and section 97 (highest average salary over the best five years). pensionsbc.ca (PDF)
↩ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Policy 7200 – Member Allowances, version 1, 25 June 2026, approved by the Legislative Assembly Management Committee: section 17 (transitional assistance “for up to 15 months following a provincial general election”; 17.03, “To receive the maximum 15 months of transitional assistance, a Member must complete a full term of a Parliament”, with a prorated amount for a member elected in a by-election; 17.04, none for a member who resigns; 17.05, a minimum of 4 months “regardless of whether the Member is receiving other income”; 17.08, when it ends), section 18 (retraining allowance) and the allowance table (transitional assistance $4,681.17 bi-weekly; retraining $9,000). leg.bc.ca (PDF)
↩ Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Transitional Assistance, read 16 October 2026: members must remain a member “from the time of their election until the end of the Parliament”; an amount equal to basic compensation for a minimum of four months and a maximum of 15 months; and the by-election proration example. members.leg.bc.ca
↩ Province of British Columbia, Cabinet ministers, read 16 October 2026: the ministers and ministers of state. gov.bc.ca
↩ Backcountry Coalition, editorial fact-checking Ravi Parmar’s statements on Rady Creek. backcountry.cx
↩ Backcountry Coalition, editorial on Ravi Parmar’s record at the Ministry of Forests. backcountry.cx

Every source was read on 16 October 2026. The pension figures are our calculation from the Act’s formula and the Assembly’s published pay rates.