NWP launches Putting Residents First plan to open up City Hall
- 11 minutes ago
- 4 min read
The NWP’s Putting Residents First platform will restore accountability, strengthen public participation and put people ahead of politics.
Metro Vancouver, B.C. (July 20, 2026) – For too many New Westminster residents, City Hall has started to feel farther away.
Decisions are made before people are heard. Public engagement has become thinner. Council debate too often feels shaped by political ideology rather than the priorities residents raise at the door.
The New Westminster Progressives’ (NWP) new Putting Residents First platform is about bringing City Hall back to the people it serves — with stronger accountability, better public participation and a clearer focus on residents, not politics.
The plan would have the city review the City’s Be Heard public engagement system within 100 days of an NWP council taking office, keep citizen delegations as a permanent part of regular Council meetings, require that agendas be published earlier, hold more discussion in public, restore staff liaisons for residents’ associations, and bring back stronger neighbourhood engagement.
“If people are going to trust City Hall, they need to see how decisions are made and know their voices matter before the vote is taken,” says Daniel Fontaine, NWP mayoral candidate and current New Westminster councillor. “This plan is about opening the doors wider, answering questions more clearly and putting residents back at the centre of local government.”
The platform also puts a sharper focus on taxpayers. If elected, an NWP Council would freeze Council salaries in 2027 until annual operating budget increases remain at or below inflation for two consecutive years, end the automatic monthly transportation allowance for elected officials, and restore Council’s final approval authority for City grants.
“People are working hard to keep up with costs, and City Hall has to show it understands that,” says Karima Budhwani, NWP council candidate. “Respecting taxpayers means watching the budget, explaining decisions plainly and making sure residents can see value for the money they are asked to pay.”
The full NWP Putting Residents First plan includes six platform areas:
Respect taxpayers. Residents expect responsible stewardship of public money. The NWP will:
Freeze Council and executive management salaries in 2027 until annual operating budget increases remain at or below inflation for two consecutive years.
Eliminate the automatic monthly transportation allowance for elected officials and replace it with a reimbursement system, while accommodating members who require accessibility supports.
Restore Council’s final approval authority for City grants.
Restore public trust. Good government begins with accountability and transparency. The NWP will:
Guarantee that citizen delegations remain a permanent part of every regular Council meeting and provide public responses to questions raised.
Guarantee Council meeting agendas are published at least seven calendar days before each meeting whenever possible, excluding statutory holidays.
Hold Council debate and discussion in public whenever possible, moving items in camera only when required under the Community Charter.
Release in-camera reports and decisions to the public as soon as confidentiality requirements no longer apply.
Give residents a stronger voice. City Hall should work with residents, not consult them only after decisions have already been made. The NWP will:
Restore dedicated City staff liaisons for each of New Westminster’s twelve residents’ associations.
Hold residents’ association meetings with the mayor at least twice a year.
Allow residents’ associations to submit resolutions for debate or discussion at a special annual meeting of Council.
Maintain semi-annual regular Council meetings in Queensborough and introduce one additional informal town hall meeting each year.
Improve communication on major City projects through in-community plain-language signage, direct mail and neighbourhood outreach.
Conduct an independent review of the City’s Be Heard public engagement system within the first 100 days.
Modernize local democracy. City Hall should reflect today’s expectations for openness and participation. The NWP will:
Review and modernize the City’s Procedures Bylaw to better reflect current best practices and digital technologies.
Remove unnecessary restrictions limiting the number of motions councillors may introduce during Council meetings.
Re-establish subject-matter advisory committees that support Council’s work on core municipal services and discontinue the Community Advisory Assembly model.
Work with New Westminster Secondary School, School District 40 and youth organizations to establish a new Youth Council.
Ensure appointments to City committees and commissions reflect experience, subject-matter expertise and the diversity of the community.
Set a target and implement measures to increase voter turnout by five per cent in the 2030 civic election, with emphasis on underrepresented voter groups.
Build stronger partnerships. New Westminster cannot thrive in isolation. The NWP will:
Immediately establish and publish a four-year schedule of twice-yearly New Westminster Caucus meetings with the MP, MLAs, mayor, Council, school board chair and vice-chair.
If an NWP majority is elected to both city council and school board, reconstitute the City-Schools Joint Committee within 100 days and establish a stronger collaboration framework with School District 40.
Develop a stronger and more collaborative framework for engaging with First Nations and Indigenous communities on shared priorities.
Prepare a public report outlining the financial impacts of senior government downloading onto New Westminster taxpayers.
Strengthen civic leadership. Residents deserve clear leadership and strong representation. The NWP will:
Within the first 100 days, launch a plan to build stronger crisis response capability at City Hall, with clear leadership, faster public communication and better coordination during emergencies.
Recommend the mayor serve as the City’s representative on the Metro Vancouver Board, with the NWP mayor declining additional pay for the role.
Continue advocating for greater accountability, transparency and responsible governance across all regional bodies.
Eliminate the current restriction that City councillors cannot be liaisons for the neighbourhood in which they live.
Encourage and support all City councillors to regularly host neighbourhood forums within their liaison communities.
End the practice of partisan appointments at Council and make future appointments in a non-partisan fashion, with a goal of equally balancing appointments among all six elected councillors - regardless of their civic political affiliation.
Enough partisan politics. Let’s put residents first.
The NWP is running a team of 13 candidates for New Westminster city council and school board in the upcoming municipal election. The NWP’s platform is informed by ongoing conversations with residents through New West City Matters, the party’s community listening initiative.
Media contact:
Shawn Hall
604-619-7913
