Surrey-Councillors Doug Elford and Mandeep Nagra are slamming Mayor Brenda Locke for what they call “the
most dishonest budget narrative in Surrey’s history” following her announcement of a so-called
“modest” 2.8% property tax increase.
“Let’s be clear: this isn’t a success story—it’s damage control after two years of highway robbery,” said
Councillor Doug Elford. “Brenda Locke raised property taxes by 12.5% in 2023, the highest in Surrey
history, followed by another 6% in 2024, during the worst affordability crisis British Columbians have
faced in decades. Now she’s pretending to be a fiscal hawk while hoping people forget how she gouged
them to fund her lies.”
Councillor Mandeep Nagra pointed to the Mayor’s now-infamous fearmongering claim that Surrey
taxpayers would face a 55% tax hike if the Surrey Police Service became the city’s police of jurisdiction
(POJ). “The SPS is now officially POJ, and what do we have? A 2.8% tax increase—not 55%,” said Nagra.
“So was Mayor Locke lying then, or is she lying now? Either way, Surrey residents were misled and made
to pay the price.”
Mayor Locke’s crusade to stop the police transition came at a massive cost: over $250 million in wasted
taxpayer money, plus two years of stalled progress, political stunts, and fighting the province every step
of the way.
“She used fear tactics to justify jacking up taxes and launched a war against the Surrey Police Service
that failed spectacularly,” said Elford. “Now she wants credit for lowering the very taxes she hiked under
false pretenses. That’s not leadership. That’s deception.”
Elford and Nagra say it was the fiscal groundwork and planning of Doug McCallum and the Safe Surrey
Coalition that made a 2.8% increase possible—not Brenda Locke’s reckless attempts to derail the
transition.
“It’s time for Brenda Locke to admit the truth: her 55% tax hike prediction was a complete fabrication.
Her fear campaign was designed to sabotage Surrey’s new police service, and Surrey residents footed
the bill,” said Nagra.
The Councillors are calling on Mayor Locke to issue a public apology and offer a refund to Surrey
taxpayers for the unnecessary tax hikes in 2022 and 2023 caused by her misleading claims and
manufactured panic.
“Surrey deserves the truth and accountability,” said Elford. “What they got was a mayor who
manufactured a crisis, gouged taxpayers and is now pretending to solve it.”
