Province passes legislation to end Surrey policing saga

B.C. Police Act amendment passes Bill 36 passed third reading in the legislature Wednesday, giving B.C. the power to impose the Surrey Police Service.

The provincial government passed the Police Amendment Act Wednesday, aiming to help address the ongoing challenges of the Surrey policing transition from the RCMP to a municipal force.

"It's saying the province is responsible for the provision of police services, the oversight of police services, in British Columbia. Full stop," said Dr. Rob Gordon, Professor Emeritus Criminology at SFU.

The legislation comes just weeks after the City of Surrey announced plans to take legal action against the province in order to halt the transition and keep the RCMP as the city's police of jurisdiction.

CTV News asked the City of Surrey's legal advisor if the passing of the legislation means that plan has changed.

"Well it's certainly not the end," said Peter German.

"Surrey will be speaking with its legal counsel in terms of the petition and whether it should be expanded or amended in some way to deal with the legislation but at this point, we're seeking legal advice on that."

Mayor Brenda Locke – who was elected after promising to keep the RCMP in Surrey – has said the transition to the Surrey Police Service police will be too costly for taxpayers.

"If this transition were to continue, the estimation from the City of Surrey is that the gap over 10 years is close to half a billion dollars, $464 million," said German.

Premier David Eby said earlier this week he's never been made aware of that figure.

"There is $150 million dollars on the table, Surrey hasn’t taken us up on. They have a surplus in their policing budget, they have a surplus overall. There is no more money. And having a shadow-boxing discussion about money on line items we don’t have awareness of, we don’t know what the mayor’s talking about when she says there’s more cost, like, it’s just impossible,” said Eby on Monday.

The Surrey Police Board held a meeting Wednesday. While politics weren't discussed, SPS chief Norm Lipinski spoke about some of the challenges in navigating these uncertain times.

"We do not have a budget," said Lipinski in the virtual meeting. "So we are in effect almost one hundred police officers below where we should be."

Locke, who also serves as the board chair did not attend the meeting. CTV News reached out to the mayor for an interview but she wasn't available.