B.C. sends Surrey police transition request back to city, SPS

There are still no clear answers on Surrey’s transition to a municipal police force.

B.C. public safety minister Mike Farnworth says staff have reviewed submissions from the Surrey Police Service (SPS), the Surrey RCMP, and the City, and saying in a statement “additional information is required to inform further consideration of the matter.”

“The policing transition in Surrey is unprecedented and complex and requires a full and in-depth analysis. I am grateful for the work all parties have undertaken to date. We will await their timely responses and look forward to continued collaboration,” the minister said.

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“My role as minister is to ensure that there is a proper and safe plan to do that, and that means ensuring safe and adequate and effective policing not just in Surrey, but in the region and the province.”

Farnworth says that he’ll continue working with the City, the RCMP and the SPS to develop a plan.

The police transition has been a controversial issue in the city ever since former Mayor Doug McCallum began the process of moving to a municipal force.

Brenda Locke has vowed ever since she was elected mayor in October to halt the transition and keep the RCMP.

Surrey Mayor says delay is ‘waste of time’

In response to Farnworth’s announcement, Brenda Locke says the delay of the policing decision is “unjustified.”

“The inability to make a timely decision is unfair to SPS and RCMP officers and their families. It also impacts the City’s ability to complete our budget for 2023. The longer two police agencies are operating with this uncertainty, the more taxpayer dollars are being unnecessarily spent,” the mayor said.

Locke says the city has “clearly and thoroughly” provided all details needed to prove the RCMP can be maintained as the police of jurisdiction.

“It is natural to want more information as we put our plans into effect,” she said. “It is a waste of time to continue to do that work prior to the province’s decision.”

Also responding to the province’s decision is the Surrey Board of Trade says the decision is “unacceptable.”

President and CEO Anita Huberman says the decision holds Surrey as an “economic hostage” as investment decisions are being delayed due to the murky future of policing in the city.

“The request for more information does not clarify what information was missing in the original submissions provided by the City of Surrey, the Surrey RCMP and the Surrey Police Service. This signals a further lack of transparency to the public and business community. Further, no timeline was given to the public on when a decision will be made,” she said.

In a statement Thursday night, the Surrey Police Board says it has been “fully transparent timely in its reporting to the provincial government.”

“It is unfortunate that a matter of such critical importance to the community is being delayed, but we appreciate the work of the province in trying to move this process forward as quickly as possible, recognizing a final decision will have implications not only for Surrey but also the entire province,” the board said.