Delta mayor vows to pull City from some Metro Vancouver Regional District services | Daily Hive

Delta mayor proposes withdrawing City from non-essential services of Metro Vancouver Regional District

George Harvie. (George Harvie)

Another candidate running for mayor in the October 2026 civic election is making Metro Vancouver Regional District reform a key campaign promise.

Delta Mayor George Harvie announced today he will pursue withdrawing the City of Delta from some programs and services of the regional district — the regional government of the Metro Vancouver region — if he wins re-election this fall, while maintaining its participation in essential regional bulk utilities.

Under the proposal announced by Harvie’s re-election campaign under the Achieving For Delta party, Delta’s municipal government would remain part of the regional district’s drinking water, sewage treatment, and solid waste disposal services and systems. However, the City would examine leaving other programs that Harvie considers outside the regional government’s core responsibilities.

You might also like:

Harvie’s plan would require the approval of Delta City Council before City staff could begin studying the legal, financial, and operational implications of such a move.

Harvie’s announcement follows the recent approval by the regional district’s board of directors of a plan to reduce the number of directors serving on the board, which is comprised of select mayors and city councillors from across Metro Vancouver. That change still requires approval from the provincial government.

However, Harvie argued that a smaller board would not address his broader concerns about the regional government’s spending, responsibilities, and accountability.

“Reducing the number of directors around the boardroom table will not solve the real problem,” said Mayor Harvie in a statement today.

“Metro Vancouver has moved far beyond the essential regional services it was created to provide.”

Harvie asserts the regional government should concentrate on supplying drinking water, treating sewage water, and managing the region’s garbage. He criticized its involvement in other areas, including climate action programs, air quality initiatives, and building and operating social housing.

According to Harvie, the regional government’s expansion over the past three decades has created a larger bureaucracy and contributed to rising costs for municipal governments and property taxpayers.

“Families are being asked to pay more and more for a regional government they do not directly elect and where accountability is limited,”said Harvie.

“Delta residents should not be required to fund an expanding regional bureaucracy that has moved beyond the essential services our communities depend on.”

Harvie is also calling for the regional government to be restructured to operate more like a regulated public utility, with tighter financial controls and clearer responsibility for spending decisions.

He cited the troubled North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant project as an example of why he believes stronger oversight is needed.

Doug McCallum, the former Surrey mayor, is also similarly promising to withdraw from the regional government’s non-essential services, if he is re-elected.

Harvie was previously the chair of the regional district’s board of directors, beginning in November 2022 when he was first appointed. However, in May 2024, Delta City Council unanimously rescinded his appointment to the regional board, thereby ending his leadership role on the board. Four city councillors behind the move cited a loss of confidence in Harvie’s ability to represent the interests of Delta’s municipal government, but did not publicly provide detailed reasons at the time. The removal came amid growing scrutiny of the regional district’s spending and Harvie’s work-related travel expenses as the board chair.

You might also like: