Metro Vancouver responds to Surrey candidate's withdrawal pledge

Surrey mayoral candidate Doug McCallum says he would pull the city out of the Metro Vancouver Regional District if elected, while retaining water, sewer and waste services through service agreements.

Metro Vancouver said households will pay an average of $897 in 2026 for regional services. It said about $816, or roughly 90 per cent, is for drinking water, liquid-waste treatment and solid-waste management; the remaining average $81 supports services including regional planning, air-quality management, regional parks and Invest Vancouver.

McCallum's Safe Surrey Coalition said its concern includes the utility charges, arguing that regional cost overruns are passed to Surrey households. It cited the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant, whose projected cost rose from $700 million to $3.86 billion, and said a withdrawal would retain the regional requisition locally, limit exposure to Metro Vancouver cost increases and examine development cost charges.

Other Surrey candidates have also criticized aspects of Metro Vancouver. Mayor Brenda Locke and council said in 2025 they would remove Surrey's municipal jurisdiction from the regional growth plan, and the city filed a B.C. Supreme Court petition in April seeking to invalidate Invest Vancouver. The municipal election is Oct. 17.