Get it done: Surrey councillor nears breaking point in policing transition saga

An independent Surrey city councillor is nearing her breaking point as delays continue in the city’s transition to a municipal police force.

Coun. Linda Annis tells CityNews she’s becoming more frustrated and is calling on the mayor to “move forward” and complete the transition to the Surrey Police Service.

“It’s just been going on for five long years now,” Annis said. “I know that the mayor ran on keeping the RCMP, and the decision that the province made on behalf of the residents of Surrey, and what was best for the overall public safety in the province, may not have been the decision that she had hoped for, but she needs to put that aside now.”

Annis’ comments come as the B.C. government accuses the City of Surrey of dragging its feet when it comes to talks surrounding its transition from the RCMP.

The accusations were made in a letter obtained by CityNews dated Oct. 4 sent to Mayor Brenda Locke and signed by Glen Lewis, B.C.’s Director of Police Services.

“I am writing to you today to express my concerns regarding what I observe to be a lack of engagement and action from the City of Surrey staff on its police model transition following Minister Farnworth’s July 19, 2023 decision,” the letter reads.

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Lewis writes that a “significant amount of work” has taken place since Farnworth’s decision, saying Surrey has not kept up its end of the deal.

“I am increasingly concerned about delays and the impact to progressing the transition, it is my observation that this lack of progress and delay is due in large part to a lack of leadership and engagement by City Council and City staff,” the letter says.

Annis says the delay in the transition is costing city taxpayers $8 million per month to have both the SPS and the RCMP working in the city.

She notes there are other things council could be directing their efforts towards, including things like housing.

“[There’s] no surprise from what I heard from the province, the city needs to step up, the leadership at the city needs to step up and get on with it.

“It’s our police service. And we need to be making sure that this gets done as quickly as possible,” Annis said.

However, Locke says any delays in the transition process are not just the city’s fault.

“It’s ironic that the province is asking for us to get this report done on the transition when they haven’t provided us with a budget, with a plan, with a path forward for us to work on,” she told CityNews on Thursday.

“It’s also interesting that the minister took just about eight months to make his decision and he wants us to do a report back in a week.”

‘Step up or step aside’: Surrey councillor

But Couns. Doug Elford and Mandeep Nagra are calling out Locke for what they say is “deliberate obstruction” by rejecting the province’s $150 million policing transition funding, and “misrepresentation in Surrey’s police transition process.”

In a statement Friday morning, the councillors say that recent developments “raise serious questions about Mayor Locke’s commitment to a seamless transition … following Minister Farnworth’s directive on July 19.”

“Mayor Locke’s leadership has been marred by inaction and a lack of clear direction. We can no longer accept excuses for the delays she has caused. It’s time for her to step up or step aside,” Elford wrote.

Eflord and Nagra allege that city staff say they have been instructed to “not engage meaningfully” in the transition process until council provides direction.

“We understand the complexities of the transition, but Mayor Locke’s shocking refusal to meet with Public Safety staff to discuss Minister Mike Farnworth’s offer of $150 million in provincial cash to help with the transition is inexcusable,” Nagra added.

–With files from Cole Schisler, Greg Bowman, and Hana Mae Nassar