VANCOUVER - B.C. NDP Leader Adrian Dix refused to be dragged into a mud-slinging match with the B.C. Liberals as he closed his party's 50th anniversary convention on a high note.

Dix, predicting the run-up to the May 2013 provincial elections will be a "battle," swore off negative tactics even as the Liberals threw dirt at him on the weekend, refreshing media memories about an anti-Dix website they've set up.

"The Liberal party has lots of money, they're out of ideas and they're going to run a negative campaign," Dix said Sunday, a day after a resounding 98% support from convention delegates in a leadership vote.

The Liberals are already in attack mode, accusing Dix of making "false allegations" in a speech Saturday and warning voters to pay attention to what "Dix will gloss over and not address."

Dix wouldn't be goaded into responding, but still slipped in a few jabs.

"I have strong differences with the premier (Christy Clark). Of course, I'll criticize her from time to time, and praise her when she does good things, but I don't believe in the personalization of politics in that way," he said. "Right now, in my view, she's serving out the term of premier Campbell, but I respect her and I'm not going to be making personal attacks."

Though he didn't offer details, Dix outlined the NDP's "modest" agenda - 17 months before the campaign - including inequality, job creation, public transit, seniors' issues, more spending on health care, access to education and training more skilled workers.

Liberal cabinet minister Mary McNeil, attending as an observer, questioned where the money would come from.

"We haven't yet gotten down deep enough with them to find out what is it exactly they're going to be doing," McNeil said. "Let's get down and figure out what exactly they want to do, what it's going to cost and where the dollars are going to come from."

October poll figures showed the B.C. Liberals trailing the NDP by 7% among decided voters.