Surrey policing report outlines steps to keep RCMP

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke’s plan to stop the city’s police transition and keep the RCMP has been outlined in a report.

The report, dated Nov. 24 and shared publicly Nov. 25, proposes a framework to maintain the Surrey RCMP as the city’s police of jurisdiction, which would be voted on by council on Dec. 12.

Should it pass, the recommendations are set to “guide the development of a final plan” to stop the police transition and keep Mounties in Surrey.

The report notes that despite the ongoing switch to the Surrey Police Service, the RCMP remains the POJ in the city.

“The Plan, if endorsed, will provide a comprehensive update on the status of the transition to date and highlights the significant amount of work still required,” the report reads.

“It is important to note that the RCMP Contract to provide policing services in Surrey and several key requirements to maintain the RCMP as the POJ remain in place.”

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It says “the majority of the work to plan and deliver” the next phase of the police transition still needs to commence, adding certain steps have not yet been taken.

“Some preliminary discussions regarding the legal agreements have been held, however, substantive details have not been worked out, nor have agreements been drafted,” the report explains. “Such agreements may require approval of all parties, and likely Cabinet endorsement at both the Federal and Provincial levels. Based on the experience of prior negotiations, it is reasonable to assume the negotiations of these legal agreements will take 6 – 9 months. It is highly unlikely a fully endorsed and signed Transition Agreement would be in place before the expiry of the current MOU in May 2023.”

On Nov. 14, Surrey city council endorsed an option presented in another corporate report to keep the RCMP as the police of jurisdiction. The vote directed staff to prepare a plan, which is expected to be sent to the provincial government. Staff have also been directed to send a letter to the Surrey Police Board requesting it pause all new hires and expenditures.

Surrey’s new mayor has been vocal about her intention to stop the police transition, which was initiated by Doug McCallum.

However, the plan has seen its share of controversy.

Councillor Linda Annis previously proposed a motion to hold a referendum to allow the public to decide on which policing body should preside over the city. While both councillors Mandeep Nagra and Mike Bose supported the motion, others, including Locke, voted against it.

Meanwhile, the Surrey Police Union has also pushed back, with the SPU announcing earlier this month that 94 per cent of its members had indicated they will not “join any RCMP detachment” if the SPS ceases to exist.

The union has taken issue with Locke’s plan to halt the transition, saying its members have not been appropriately consulted. It has also cited legal concerns that could be raised if the SPS was dissolved.

“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,” union spokesperson Ryan Buhrig told CityNews on Nov. 16.

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