FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, October 15, 2026

SURREY, BC — Two days before Surrey votes, the public record shows that Surrey First council candidate Bilal Cheema was a registered consultant lobbyist for a vaping wholesaler, hired to push the Province of British Columbia toward larger vape cartridges and looser provincial rules.

According to the BC Lobbyists Registry, Cheema registered on December 8, 2023 to lobby on behalf of Pacific Smoke International Inc., a Markham, Ontario wholesaler that sells vaping products to retailers across BC. The registration lists two goals: to “educate provincial decision makers on the benefits of higher volume vaping cartridges” and to align BC’s vaping rules with weaker federal regulation. The targets included the Ministry of Health, Fraser Health Authority, Vancouver Coastal Health, the Office of the Premier, and members of the Legislative Assembly. Cheema filed three lobbying activity reports, each for a meeting with a Parliamentary Secretary, between December 2023 and June 2024.

BC caps nicotine vape cartridges at 2 mL. The Province put that limit in place as part of its plan to stop the rise in youth vaping. The registry shows a Surrey First candidate was paid to argue the other side.

The registration stayed active until November 15, 2025. For most of that time, from January 31, 2025 onward, Cheema sat on the Surrey Police Board, the civilian body that oversees Surrey Police Service. Two months after the registration lapsed, Linda Annis announced him as a Surrey First candidate.

“Surrey parents are fighting to keep vapes out of their kids’ hands. The Province brought in the 2 mL limit for exactly that reason. And a Surrey First candidate took money to go to Victoria and argue for bigger cartridges,” said Mike Starchuk, Imagine Surrey candidate for mayor. “Surrey First says its priority is prevention and public safety. Its candidate’s registry file says something else.”

“I’ve sat with teenagers who can’t get through a school day without vaping. The 2 mL limit exists because of what nicotine does to a developing brain,” said Dr. Margaret Mubanda, Imagine Surrey council candidate. “Surrey voters deserve to know whose interests a candidate was paid to represent before they hand him a vote at City Hall.”

Imagine Surrey is calling on Linda Annis to answer two questions before Saturday: Did she know her candidate had been a registered lobbyist for the vaping industry when she recruited him? And will Surrey First remove Cheema as a candidate?

The registration is public at https://www.lobbyistsregistrar.bc.ca/app/secure/orl/lrs/do/vwRg?cno=5358&regId=56571643

“The legacy parties have run City Hall for decades, and this is how they do it: quiet records, paid access, and nobody asking who the client was,” said Starchuk. “Each of Brenda Locke, Doug McCallum, and Linda Annis have shown contempt for voters in this election by not showing up and not coming clean. This Saturday, put out the fire at City Hall and elect a team whose only client is you.”

Imagine Surrey is committed to safe streets for Surrey families. Imagine Surrey’s full platform, the Contract for a Better Surrey, is at imaginesurrey.ca/vision

-30-

About Imagine Surrey

Imagine Surrey is a civic party running a full slate of candidates in the October 17, 2026 municipal election. Led by mayoral candidate Mike Starchuk – a former firefighter and Chief Fire Prevention Officer, former City Councillor, and former MLA for Surrey-Cloverdale – Imagine Surrey is committed to making Surrey the City of Champions by delivering: safe streets, fast commutes, smart investments, lower costs, and strong services.

Council candidates: Yousef Aldabainah-Barakat, Chandan Chahal, Perminder Chohan, Narima Dela Cruz, Ashiyana Hanif, William Li, Dr. Margaret Mubanda, and Kevin Wilkie.

Contact

Trevor Loke, Campaign Manager
604-838-5178
[email protected] / [email protected]