Rustad rejects notion that B.C. Conservatives would reopen Surrey police debate

If elected, B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad says he has no intention of re-opening the debate between Surrey having a municipal police force or sticking with the RCMP.

Former Surrey-Panorama candidate Dupinder Saran — who dropped out of the party last month — took to social media Friday, detailing why she left, including her frustration with the party’s supposed intention to consider “bringing back the RCMP” to Surrey.

After many years of back-and-forth debate, negotiation, and courtroom battles, the provincial government and the City of Surrey announced reaching an agreement on the future of policing the city in July.

The on-again-off-again transition has been a major issue in civic politics in Surrey since former mayor Doug McCallum promised to move the city to a civic force way back in 2018.

The Surrey Police Service is set to take over on Nov. 29, but it says the RCMP will continue operating in Surrey and offering temporary transition support to the fledging police force.

In her incendiary post to X (formerly Twitter) Friday, Saran said she felt that the B.C. Conservatives brought her on to use her as a “brown token” for the purpose of attracting Sikh voters. Another reason she said the party “didn’t represent” her, was her claim that party members intended to reopen the debate. 

“I do not think the people of Surrey want to bring back this old debate that has gone on for far too long. For years, I have worked hard to establish strong relationships in my community, and my supporters encouraged me to continue representing them as an independent – but we cannot run the risk of John Rustad’s candidate being elected in this riding,” Saran wrote.

But John Rustad says Saran’s suggestion is completely false. When asked at a press event Friday, he said the debate on this issue is resolved and Surrey’s mayor and council have moved on too.

“We will do what we can to be able to support that transition and make sure that we have the safety that we need in Surrey. And I can tell you that is the number one goal of a government is to make sure that there is safety within Surrey,” said Rustad.

Rustad says crime in Surrey has “skyrocketed” and people don’t feel safe in their city. Stats from Surrey RCMP show most types of crime are actually down in the city since last year, including violent crime — although residential break and enters and shoplifting did go up by about 5 per cent each.

In the same post, Saran announced her withdrawal from the ballot and endorsed BC NDP candidate Jinny Sims.