Surrey residents heard a clear fiscal message on Sunday when B.C. Conservative leader Lorne Doerkson set out a pledge to avoid any new taxes if he becomes premier. Speaking at Bridgeview Park, a neighbourhood he described as formative to his upbringing, Doerkson framed the commitment as central to tackling what he called an affordability crisis.
Local backdrop, provincial promise
Doerkson campaigned alongside Surrey candidates Trevor Haldford, Mandeep Dhaliwal, Zeeshan Wahla and Megan Knight. He told the audience he grew up in the area, attended Bridgeview Elementary and was born at St. Mary’s Hospital across the river, portraying the visit as a return to familiar ground.
Drawing on his business background, Doerkson said his experience running payrolls and balancing books informed the party’s platform, arguing that sound fiscal management requires restraint on taxation. "I’m announcing that if I am Premier, I will make the affordability crisis a top priority for our new government," he said.
"When you don’t balance books, you cannot move ahead. In fact when you can’t balance books year after year, the problem is serious and the end is near."
Targets and context
The Conservative campaign release distributed at the event criticised recent moves by the governing New Democratic Party that the party says have increased costs for "working British Columbians." It singled out changes to provincial income tax and the provincial sales tax.
- Income tax: the release noted the lowest income tax bracket was raised from 5.06% to 5.60%.
- PST changes: it referenced an announced expansion of the 7% provincial sales tax (PST) and the elimination of several PST exemptions — a move the NDP later paused before calling an election.
- Bracket freeze: the party also pointed to tax brackets being frozen through 2030, which it described as a quiet tax increase as wages rise with inflation.
Doerkson characterised those decisions as evidence the current government has not done enough to address rising costs and pressured voters to consider fiscal restraint as the remedy. He also said the province is "blessed with talent and resources, and the most beautiful geography in the world," yet he warned that the economy was struggling and industries were under pressure.
What the pledge means locally
For Surrey households, the Conservatives' promise of no new taxes is intended to offer relief from further direct provincial levies. But fiscal commitments at the doorstep raise immediate questions about how the party would balance program spending, services and capital commitments in a fast-growing Lower Mainland municipality that faces pressures on housing, transit and social services.
Surrey has been among the region's fastest-growing cities, and residents have repeatedly cited housing affordability, transit capacity and municipal infrastructure among their priorities. The Conservative pledge directly speaks to the cost-of-living concern, but it does not, at this event, offer detailed plans on how existing commitments would be funded without new revenue measures.
Numbers outlined by the Conservatives
| Measure | Detail cited |
|---|---|
| Lowest income tax rate | Raised from 5.06% to 5.60% |
| PST | 7% PST expansion announced, then paused |
| Tax brackets | Frozen through 2030 |
The campaign visit in Bridgeview was positioned as both a personal return and a policy pitch. For many Surrey voters, the coming weeks will be a time to weigh such fiscal promises against competing proposals from other parties on housing, health care and public services.
Local candidates accompanying Doerkson used the stop to underline their own ties to Surrey neighbourhoods while amplifying the party's message. The Conservative pledge of "no new taxes" now joins a wider provincial debate that will probably shape conversations at kitchen tables across Surrey as the election approaches.
