The Massey Tunnel Receipt Eby’s Budget Didn’t Show

The Massey tunnel file now has a disclosure problem. On February 17, Budget 2026 presented a $4.3-billion line for the Highway 99 Tunnel Program, including the new eight-lane immersed-tube Fraser River Tunnel. The same budget said the tunnel project was still in design and that its estimated cost was being updated and reviewed as design and contract negotiations progressed.

But a document released by Conservative BC on October 14 tells a sharper story. The attached PDF, described as a Premier’s Office memo dated December 11, 2025 and titled “Federal Partnership on the Fraser River Tunnel Project,” says the 2021 approved budget was $4.15 billion and that “BC now anticipates a project budget of $8.5 billion.” It also says completion would move from 2030 to 2031.

That is not a rounding error. It is a public-accountability gap measured in billions.

The memo also says B.C. planned to proceed with up to $700 million in preparatory works in 2026 and was seeking a federal contribution of $4.25 billion to fund half the target price of the tunnel project, plus any price premium connected to Canadian steel. In other words, the memo was not merely flagging a vague risk. It described a working budget expectation and a federal ask.

The government’s public confirmation came much later. On July 6, the Province announced that Canada would contribute up to $3 billion in capital costs and said the updated total project budget was $8.5 billion, reflecting market conditions, scope, inflation and schedule. The same release said major construction was anticipated to begin in 2027 and that the estimated completion timeline had shifted to September 2031.

The legally cautious point is simple: Conservative BC’s release makes a serious allegation about what the Premier’s Office knew and when. The primary documents now available show the public budget used a $4.3-billion program line while the December memo, if accurately described and authentic, already put the anticipated project budget at $8.5 billion.

Voters do not need spin. They need the full paper trail: who received the December memo, whether Treasury Board had the $8.5-billion expectation before Budget Day, why Budget 2026 did not state that figure plainly, and when ministers decided the public would be told.

Infrastructure costs can rise. Mega-projects can face inflation, procurement risk and environmental review delays. But when a government has an internal number that is roughly double the public-facing budget line, the burden is on that government to disclose clearly, early and completely.

David Eby should release the full decision chronology for the Fraser River Tunnel Project. If the December memo was incomplete, superseded or misunderstood, say so and show the documents. If it was accurate, then British Columbians deserve to know why the $8.5-billion receipt stayed out of Budget 2026’s headline tunnel number until July.