Risky but ambitious petition to keep RCMP in Surrey officially launched
The first person to sign a petition against a new police service in Surrey was met with a round of applause Tuesday afternoon.
The small celebration was short lived, because canvassers know they have a lot of work to do, in a limited amount of time, and ultimately the law is against them.
Yet the team from The Surrey Police Vote seems undeterred. Members hope to collect enough signatures to force a referendum on the notion of abandoning the RCMP in favour of a city police force.
Under the Recall and Initiative Act, canvassers would need to collect signatures from 10 per cent of registered voters from each of B.C.’s 87 provincial election ridings.
Well aware most people living outside of Surrey probably don’t care much about the issue, and wouldn’t sign the document, the team is opting for a different strategy: Get as many signatures as possible in Surrey, and show the provincial government residents want a local binding referendum.
“I think it’s very realistic,” said Surrey Police Vote spokesperson Bill Tieleman. “I think any government, of any stripes, would have to listen if 10 per cent of the population of the second largest city in the province said, 'We want to do something differently.'”
Tieleman, who was a key player in the successful 2011 HST referendum, admitted this is a tougher sell, and will likely fall far short of what the law currently requires. But he believes this is an excellent tool for the team.
“I don’t think smart governments ignore their constituents,” said Tieleman.
The group will be holding signing opportunities in Holland Park on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and again at the same time on Sunday at Goldstone Park.
Signature sheets must be in the hands of Elections BC by Monday, Nov. 15, 2021.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Fewer medical students going into family medicine contributing to doctor shortage
As some family doctors are retiring and others are moving away from family medicine, there are fewer medical students to take their place.
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Competition bureau finds 'substantial' anti-competitive effects with proposed Bunge-Viterra merger
The proposed merger of agricultural giants Viterra and Bunge is raising competition concerns from the federal government.
Douglas DC-4 plane with 2 people on board crashes into river outside Fairbanks, Alaska
A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday, Alaska State Troopers said.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.