‘Business as usual,’ Surrey Police Union says amid de-transition talk

The Surrey Police Union says its officers are carrying on as normal, after city council voted on a motion to stop the transition from RCMP to the Surrey Police Service.

Union spokesperson Ryan Buhrig tells CityNews the Surrey Police Service is still attending calls in the city, “they’re serving the community; it’s business as usual.”

He says Monday night’s vote by the council is “in essence” to request the provincial government to stop funding the transition, but adds the union has not had any indication that there are any changes in funding as yet.

Surrey city council voted to endorse an option presented in a corporate report that the RCMP remain as the police of jurisdiction for the city.

As a result of the vote, city staff will be directed to prepare a plan that will be sent to the province on keeping the Mounties in the city. Staff will also be directed to send a letter to the Surrey Police Board requesting it pause all new hires and expenditures.

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Keeping the RCMP in Surrey was a key election promise for new Mayor Brenda Locke and fellow councillors during their campaigns against former Mayor Doug McCallum.

In the hours leading up to Monday’s meeting, the Surrey Police Service sent out a statement citing “misinformation” in the corporate report to council.

Buhrig says there was a massive hole in the plan that was put forward to council this week, with the union, which represents 293 sworn members, not being consulted appropriately.

“Over the next couple of weeks, as the city prepares the comprehensive report, we expect that we will be consulted, and issues such as severance, layoffs, and whatnot, would be part of that report, as the minister requested,” he said. “So, right now, we’re not considering any type of legal action, we’re trying to inform this report and work with mayor and council.”

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Some officers who joined the SPS moved across the country, or left previous jobs or seniority, Buhrig says. He notes if the transition does not continue, the union expects those members to be “compensated appropriately.”

“We do have several legal agreements in place. So, the most prominent one is our Letter of Understanding and the collective agreement on for instance, notice. So, we would be ensuring that our members receive compensation for any damages they’ve suffered.”

While Locke wants to see SPS officers join, or in some cases, come back to the Surrey RCMP, Buhrig says that might not be easy for some members.

“Our members signed a pledge, essentially pledging not to apply for or join the RCMP, or any RCMP detachment across the country,” he explained. “[I] can’t speculate on where members would go, but definitely municipal policing would be something they would consider.”

Last month, Surrey Police Chief Norm Lipinksi said it would be difficult to dissolve the growing municipal force, estimating it could cost as much as $188 million to end the transition.

–With files from Hana Mae Nassar