Surrey, B.C. (September 24, 2025): Surrey First Councillor Linda Annis says two cases of multi-million dollar fraud against the city reinforces her frequent calls for an independent auditor general for Surrey.

 

“Not having an independent auditor general at city hall is irresponsible, and these two cases of fraud are two more reasons to create and fill the position as quickly as possible,” said Annis, Surrey First candidate for mayor. “If this mayor and council will not do it in what’s left of this term, I will do it in the first 100 days of the next term.”

 

Annis said that in 2019, the City of Surrey was tricked into sending money to the wrong account from a fake email, and earlier this year it was revealed that a former employee was under investigation for more than $2.5 million that went missing between 2017 and 2024.

 

“Every big city in the country has an independent auditor general who helps review best practices that ensure taxpayer dollars are spent properly and completely accounted for,” noted Annis. “Last term and this term, I have pushed for this position, but both Doug McCallum and Brenda Locke said no. There’s nothing political about an independent auditor general, it just makes good sense. Provinces, the federal government and large cities all have auditor generals, except Surrey. Our city budget is nearing $2 billion annually, and we need to show more respect for taxpayers.”

 

Annis said the most recent story about the $2.1 million fraud came to light when the Ontario Law Society found a lawyer had committed professional misconduct that allowed the fraudsters to launder some $1.7 million through a trust account.

 

“There’s always a shortage of tax dollars, but when I see stories like this, involving millions of dollars, I know it’s time to take a closer look at how we do business, and how we safeguard those taxpayer dollars,” added Annis. ”If we decide as council to move on an auditor general, we could get this done quickly, and give some assurance to our residents and taxpayers that we are doing everything possible to keep their tax dollars safe.”