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Surrey mayoral candidate slams rivals’ promises as ‘not believable’

Safe Surrey Coalition promises tax freeze, Surrey Forward says it would stop spending on ‘misguided’ policing transition
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Surrey City Hall. (File photo)

More big election promises came down the pike Wednesday, with Doug McCallum’s Safe Surrey Coalition promising if elected to freeze property taxes for the next four years while Jinny Sim’s Surrey Forward slate vows, if elected, to “act immediately to stop spending money on the misguided effort to change policing from the RCMP to the Surrey Police Service.”

Safe Surrey Coalition press release Wednesday says “Surrey deserves a mayor and council that is willing to listen and respond to the needs of its residents.”

“The Safe Surrey Coalition is hearing that residents cannot afford property tax increases while inflation is skyrocketing. We are committing to freezing property taxes for four years at 2.9%. That is well below the 7% expected rate of inflation,” it reads.

The SSC also lays claim to the “remarkable achievement” of holding taxes at 2.9 per cent during this time, a claim Surrey Connect mayoral candidate Brenda Locke dismisses as “nothing short of silly electioneering.”

READ ALSO: Surrey residents criticize ‘smoke-and-mirrors’ property tax hike

“It is not believable. He (McCallum) has said that for the last four years and he has never held true to that, so it’s just another one of his irresponsible promises.”

In Surrey Forward’s press release, Sims says the “costly boondoggle” must be ended. “Funds have been pulled from the City Corporation to pay for the millions and millions of dollars committed to this folly.

“By creating a safety charter, the residents of Surrey can rest easier knowing that the Surrey Forward team is committing to their personal safety,” Sims said.

READ ALSO: Surrey NDP MLAs frosty about taking cop referendum concept to cabinet

Locke accused Sims of making “no effort in the past” as MLA to address Surrey’s policing transition.

“Again, not believable Jinny Sims. You did nothing, nothing in your whole term when this has been coming up. You could have said something when you were an MLA and you said nothing. As an MLA, she did nothing. She knew this was a problem, I’ve raised it with her before, she has never stuck her head above the waterline on this issue and all of a sudden now, because she couldn’t get into Cabinet, she wants to be the mayor.”



tom.zytaruk@surreynowleader.com

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About the Author: Tom Zytaruk

I write unvarnished opinion columns and unbiased news reports for the Surrey Now-Leader.
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