“When Lorne Doerkson learned about his candidate Joachim Agou’s racist social media posts, he acted quickly. He said “‘There is no excuse for this. I will not tolerate it.’ But he has now been silent for more than 48 hours since Katy Merrifield’s anti-Islam social media posts came to light.

“This is a clear double standard from Lorne Doerkson. It was easy to remove his candidate in a seat where the Conservatives never win, but now he is unwilling or unable to remove his top advisor.

“Leadership means doing the right thing all the time – not just when it’s the easy thing to do..

“I am deeply disappointed that my Conservative opponent, Zeeshan Wahla, has chosen to defend Katy Merrifield rather than call for her to be removed. People in Surrey deserve representatives who fight for us – not defend their party’s hate.

“This isn’t just about the Muslim community. If Lorne Doerkson is unwilling or unable to act decisively on hate against one group of British Columbians, then he can’t be counted on to defend any community.”