Vancouver police department spent $55K on ceremony for incoming chief

CTV News has learned how much taxpayers spent on a ceremony to swear in the Vancouver Police Department's new chief.

The Vancouver Police Department spent nearly $56,000 on its October change of command ceremony for Chief Const. Steve Rai, CTV News has learned.

The cost to taxpayers was revealed in a freedom of information request submitted by a member of the public, and shared with CTV News.

The FOI revealed the VPD spent $55,941 on the event which was held at the Seaforth Armoury on Oct. 6, 2025.

A breakdown of costs includes $ 34,564 in events expenses, and $9,879 for overtime which includes both sworn and civilian employees.

CTV News asked the department for an interview and for clarification on how the money was spent, but was told they would not be able to meet our deadline.

The program for the event included a ceremony with a reception afterward and was attended by Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim, police board members, and Lt.-Gov. Wendy Cocchia.

Carson Binda, with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, questioned the spending.

“I think asking taxpayers to spend $55,000 on a change of command ceremony when the city is pinky promising that it’s looking for savings is a really tough ask,” he said.

Last year, two other police departments held change of command ceremonies for new chiefs.

In August, an FOI revealed the Victoria Police Department spent over $22,000 for its change of command ceremony ushering in Chief Const. Fiona Wilson, a former deputy chief with the VPD>

The Surrey Police Service held a change of command ceremony in April, when it took over from the RCMP.

In a statement to CTV News, the SPS said there were 106 non-SPS invitees, which included local, provincial and federal politicians as well as RCMP members.

The SPS could not provide a cost before deadline but said the only expenditures for the event were the audio-visual live streaming support, some sandwiches, light snacks, and beverages.

“There were no overtime or staff expenditures, as everyone was either there voluntarily or attended during work hours,” a spokesperson for the department added.