Delta mayor pledges review of Metro Vancouver services if re-elected

Delta Mayor George Harvie says he would seek to remove the City of Delta from some Metro Vancouver Regional District programs if he wins re-election in October 2026, while keeping the city in the region’s major utility systems.

Harvie’s Achieving For Delta campaign says Delta would remain in regional drinking-water, sewage-treatment and solid-waste-disposal services. It would examine leaving programs he considers outside the regional government’s core responsibilities.

The proposal would require Delta council approval before staff could assess its legal, financial and operational implications. Harvie argues Metro Vancouver should focus on water, wastewater treatment and garbage management rather than areas such as climate action, air-quality initiatives and social housing.

He said a recently approved plan to reduce the regional district board’s size would not resolve his concerns about spending, accountability and responsibilities. The board change still requires provincial approval. Harvie has called for a structure more like a regulated utility, citing the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant project as an example of the need for stronger oversight.

Harvie chaired the regional district board after his appointment in November 2022, but Delta council unanimously rescinded that appointment in May 2024. Former Surrey mayor Doug McCallum has made a similar campaign pledge to withdraw from non-essential regional services if re-elected.