B.C. dials up pressure on Surrey city council to choose future police service

The government of British Columbia is ramping up pressure on Surrey city council to choose a police force and end the uncertainty over the future of law enforcement in B.C.'s second-largest city.

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke wants to retain the Surrey RCMP, but the provincial government wants the city to stick to previous plans to transition to the Surrey Police Service.

In a June 1 letter obtained by CBC News, Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth called on Locke and her councillors to set a date to vote on the matter and sign non-disclosure agreements to view an unredacted version of the province's report on the matter before they do.

"At this time, it is the view of the Province that Council should move forward with a vote that fully acknowledges the implications — financial and otherwise — of the decision to retain the RCMP or to move forward with the transition to the Surrey Police Service," wrote Farnworth. 

More than half of councillors had signed the agreements as of Thursday, according to the letter, meaning at least one of Locke's slate has agreed to hear further information on the matter.

On Friday afternoon, Farnworth told CBC's On The Coast the mayor and remaining councillors had signed as well. CBC News has contacted the mayor's office for comment.

The province has raised concerns RCMP won't be able to hire enough staff to adequately police fast-growing Surrey, and some residents have said a local force would be more accountable to the community than RCMP.

Farnworth also confirmed the province will provide the city with $150 million to ease the transition to SPS, effectively offsetting the cost between the two options.

Locke promised a vote on the matter soon but said Farnworth's letter was inappropriate.

City lawyers have been taking time to ensure the confidentiality agreements don't interfere with transparency and accountability to Surrey residents, Locke told CBC News on Thursday.

"Our staff have to take a look at all the information in front of them. We have to see that report, and we will do it right," she said.

Locke said it was up to each councillor to decide whether to sign and that she expected to have the information she needs to schedule a vote in the next two weeks.

"We will not do it rushed, we will not do it because the minister's timetable says so, and I will not be intimidated or bullied by this minister, and that's exactly what this letter is," she said. 

'Turning of the screws'

Confidentiality agreements are common and enable governments to share sensitive information. 

In this case, Farnworth says the materials are important for council to review but contain sensitive information from RCMP that could put safety at risk.

Coun. Lisa Annis says she signed the agreement and her colleagues should "absolutely" read the document before a vote on the matter.

"I can tell you that there's things in there that are very informative and will help me form my decision," Annis told CBC News Thursday. "We need to make a decision quickly, but we need to make a decision with the facts."

Stewart Prest, a political science lecturer at Simon Fraser University, says the letter isn't bullying but is a "turning of the screw" to pressure Surrey to decide.

"This is an issue that has dragged on for a considerable amount of time, and I think the province, and I think many folks in Surrey would really like to see a definitive resolution of this point," Prest told CBC News.

The province is ultimately responsible for public safety, Prest added, but Farnworth appears to want to avoid bulldozing the city's decision or igniting a lengthy court battle.