After months of controversy and public insults between politicians, the future of policing in Surrey has been decided. On Wednesday, Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, said in a statement that the Surrey Police Force is here to stay.
In his statement, Farnworth says that for the second time, the city “has failed to demonstrate that moving back to the RCMP will be safe and not affect other communities throughout the province, thereby not meeting the requirements imposed on the process”.
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“People’s safety, in Surrey and across the province, is non-negotiable. The city has failed to meet the requirements I placed to prevent a situation where there are not enough police officers to keep people safe in Surrey,” said Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General.
“We cannot allow people in Surrey or in other communities to be put at risk. British Columbians need to know that when they call the police, help will come – and people in Surrey want this uncertainty over who will police their city to end, and to know that they will be safe in their community.”
For months, Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke and the Surrey Police Service have gone back-and-forth about what the future of policing should look like in Surrey.
The Surrey Police Service is now the second largest municipal police department in the Province after the Vancouver Police Department with 400 sworn officers and support staff.
The Ministry is providing the City of Surrey with $150 million to help offset the costs of moving forward with the Surrey Police Service.