Provincial government makes new 'final offer' to cover Surrey policing transition

Despite making an offer of $150 million and “no more” to help cover the costs of transitioning away from the RCMP to a municipal police force, the provincial government has now made a new “final offer” to the City of Surrey.

On Wednesday, Solicitor General Mike Farnworth faced a barrage of questions from reporters on how much the offer had grown, and whether the $110 million top-up the BC Conservatives had floated in Monday’s question period in the legislature was true.

“We have been in discussions with the City of Surrey, there is an offer on the table,” he said. “We think it’s good for the City of Surrey and that’s all I can say at this point.”

The two sides have been at a stalemate for months over who should cover the costs. Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke had campaigned on reversing the moves to replace the RCMP with the Surrey Police Service, and after avoiding an ultimatum, the province ultimately decided the transition process was too far along to reverse course.

When asked where he got the $110 million additional figure, Abbotsford South MLA Bruce Banman wouldn’t say, instead insisting, “What I think's important is not necessarily where we got the figure from, what's important is this is David Eby's mess; he created it.”

Eby has been premier for 15 months and the conflict predates that considerably.

In October, the premier offered up $150 million towards transition costs, but emphasized that there would be “no more money.” At the time, Locke said the budget shortfall faced by the city was $314 million over 10 years. Days later, the NDP passed legislation clarifying the provincial government’s authority and oversight of police services in B.C., essentially empowering themselves to ensure the transition continues.

Mayor Brenda Locke, who campaigned and was elected in large part due to her promise to maintain the RCMP, did not agree to an interview, instead emailing a statement confirming that the city was in discussions with the province and would not be sharing any details.

“Otherwise, there has been no change in the legal action the City of Surrey is taking against the province,” she said, referencing a constitutionality argument filed in November. “A court date has been set for April 29 and our legal team continues to prepare the case.” 

Surrey Police are not commenting on the negotiations at all.  In January, the mayor and the SPS union publicly sparred over the force’s purported budget overruns, while the city withheld wages to 10 recruits.

CTV News asked Farnworth whether this new offer was an olive branch to the mayor and pressed him to confirm the $110-million increase, to which he replied “I have no comment on any of those things at this point.”

While Surrey police are responding to some calls in the community, the RCMP are as well, and Mounties continue to be the police of jurisdiction.