By Apna News
SURREY, B.C. - Surrey’s new city council has taken office and will move on every one of its 15 election commitments at its first regular meeting, Mayor Doug McCallum announced in a City of Surrey media release dated November 3, 2026.
Mayor McCallum and the members of council officially took the Oath of Office at an inauguration ceremony held Monday evening at City Hall, beginning the 2026 to 2030 term. The first regular meeting of the new council will take place on November 9 at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers at Surrey City Hall. Council meetings are open to the public and livestreamed.
“The people of Surrey did not elect this Council to study things. They elected us to get things done, and that work starts at our first meeting,” said Mayor McCallum. “Surrey is about to become the largest city in British Columbia. A city of that size needs a new women and children’s hospital, it needs SkyTrain to Newton, it needs safe neighbourhoods and recreation facilities in every community, and it needs City Hall to keep life affordable for families while we build them. That is what this Council is going to deliver.”
The first motions include freezing property taxes at zero per cent for the four-year term, moving forward with a new women and children’s hospital in Newton on City-owned land with City approvals fast-tracked, and moving forward with the extension of SkyTrain down King George Boulevard to Newton. Council will also move at that meeting to establish a Commission on Government Efficiency, reporting within 100 days, and to introduce zero tolerance for illegal dumping with stronger penalties.
The full list of 15 commitments council will move on covers: the Newton hospital; a four-year property tax freeze; zero tolerance on crime and extortion, with more officers on the street; SkyTrain down King George Boulevard to Newton; Surrey as a global city attracting investment, business and tourism; a Surrey Police Service helicopter and drone fleet within 90 days; new pools for Clayton Heights, City Centre, Newton and Cloverdale; heritage designation for Crescent Beach and Ocean Park, from 140 Street west to the ocean, with zoning frozen as single-family and a no-tree-cut bylaw; Surrey Recreation for All, including free recreation fees for seniors, free swim lessons for ages 3 to 16, a four-year freeze on recreation fees, and public pools returned to the public; a Farm Local Plan to protect farmland and increase local food production; an independent forensic audit of land dealings at City Hall; withdrawal from the Metro Vancouver Regional Board, maintaining core services only; a 60-day residential building permit guarantee; free business licences for the first two years for every new business; and purchase of the Rosemary Heights Retreat Centre Lands, stopping the proposed residential development and protecting the lands permanently as a park.
For Surrey residents, the November 9 meeting is the first test of how quickly campaign promises become council decisions. The hospital and SkyTrain items matter most in Newton and along King George Boulevard, where families have waited years for both, while the tax freeze, recreation fees and building permit guarantee touch household budgets and housing timelines across the city. The City says it will work with the Province of British Columbia and the Government of Canada to advance the hospital and the SkyTrain extension.
Mayor McCallum, who previously served as Mayor of Surrey for 13 years, was sworn in alongside Deputy Mayor and Councillor Mandeep Nagra and Councillors Doug Elford, Laurie Guerra, Allison Patton, Meera Gill, Suhana Gill, Cheney Cloke and Harry Bains.
(Source: City of Surrey, November 3, 2026)
