CRANBROOK, B.C. — B.C. Liberal leader Gordon Campbell vowed yesterday that if elected, he would bring and end to the Insurance Corp. of British Columbia’s (ICBC) monopoly on auto insurance.

The corporation claims such a move could spell the end for ICBC.

"We’ll invite others to come and provide automobile insurance across the province," Campbell told local media at a rally. "We’ll sit down with the ICBC board and look at all the options available. When you have some competition, rates go down."

Eric Hartley, whose father was instrumental in forming ICBC, is worried that competition could eliminate the corporation altogether.

"If they’re just going to write [policies for] family sedans with 10-years’ plus accident-free driving, then ICBC is going to disappear," said Hartley, noting that ICBC offers fair rates to drivers of any age and gender.

Campbell contended that ICBC will probably continue to operate, but the corporation will fill a lesser role than it has in the past. Although he didn’t reveal how the proposal would affect trucking operations, it is expected that they could receive more insurance options as well.

There is still no word on how the move could affect ICBC’s proposed Class 1 driver licensing changes.