Will the policing debate in Surrey impact how voters choose the next mayor?

There have been plenty of news conferences and plenty of promises during the run-up to the October 15 municipal elections in Surrey.

Incumbent Doug McCallum has promised everything from a 60,000-seat stadium to a new pool in North Surrey.

“We are going to build an indoor, full pool right on this particular location at Jack Bailey,” McCallum recently announced.

But the main issue that has loomed large and bitterly divided council over the last four years has not been civic infrastructure.

Replacing the RCMP with a municipal police force was one of McCallum and his Safe Surrey Coalition's key promises in 2018. Halting the transition is one of the planks in at least on of his opponent's platforms this time around.

“We must keep the RCMP in Surrey,” said Coun. Brenda Locke, the mayoral candidate for Surrey Connect.

“The city can not afford to go down this road. The cost is too great. $520 million more it will cost us to keep on moving forward with the SPS (Surrey Police Service).”

Locke and McCallum are among eight candidates running for the mayor’s chair. 

In an interview with CTV News, Locke said she is running to "put ethical government back into city hall. I want the citizens of Surrey to feel proud of their city once again and I can tell you, right now, they’re embarrassed.”

Locke has also vowed to make McCallum, who is facing a criminal charge of public mischief, repay the legal fees that the city is now footing the bill for.

When asked for his response to that demand during a news conference, McCallum said Locke is out of line.

“We have a very strong bylaw that indemnifies all of council from their legal fees and its’ been that way for my 16 years on council,” he said.

CTV News had additional questions for McCallum, but he refused repeated requests for a one-on-one interview, ultimately saying he was too busy.

During a recent news conference, however, he said he was proud of his work over the past term.

“There’s no other council, anywhere in Canada or I would say North America that has achieved what we have in the last four years,” he said.

“We’re building SkyTrain, a four-billion-dollar project. We’re changing a whole police force. We’re doing 21 projects. Our council has worked extremely well in the last four years.”

Both candidates have been part of what critics have described as a dysfunctional council.

Locke says if she wins that will change

“People know me. This is my home. I am a collaborative person. That’s what I do,” she said.

When asked at a news conference about a lack of cooperation on council, McCallum said "council’s worked very, very well because we’ve had majority.”

Meanwhile, Locke said Surrey needs a good public safety plan that goes beyond just policing.

“We have one of the worst ratios of firefighters anywhere in Canada. We need to change that. We need better resources for our bylaw people,” she said.