Surrey Police Service takes over Surrey RCMP
The full transition is underway and expected to be complete within two years
The Surrey Police Service became the police of jurisdiction for the City of Surrey on Nov. 29. (Claudia Culley)
The Surrey Police Service (SPS) has taken over for the RCMP in the city after a years-long public political battle between Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke and the province over what has been the largest police transition in Canada’s history.
On Nov. 29, the SPS assumed jurisdiction over law enforcement in the city. The Surrey RCMP has been rebranded to the BC RCMP Surrey Provincial Operations Support Unit and will still be involved as part of the full transition, which is expected to take up to two years.
Workloads between the two will be split by city districts, with the SPS overseeing Whalley, City Centre, and Newton. RCMP officers will look after Guildford, Fleetwood, Cloverdale, and South Surrey.
Across the city, the SPS will oversee traffic enforcement, emergency planning, and community programs, while RCMP officers will continue their work with serious crimes as well as investigations regarding criminal collisions and drug and gang enforcement.
The RCMP will remain in the city to ensure a smooth transition until the SPS is fully staffed and able to take over all policing operations.
SPS Chief Constable Norm Lipinski has said the public should not notice any large changes to policing, and all policing emergency and non-emergency phone numbers will remain the same.
After a two-year battle to make good on a campaign promise to keep the RCMP in Surrey, Locke was forced to back down when the province stepped in to mandate the policing transition, which started under the previous municipal government, to continue.
“I do want to speak to the people of the Surrey Police Service and our collective future. You have been given very large shoes to fill. The City of Surrey is counting on each and every one of you to keep us safe,” Locke said in last week’s press conference. “There are no more sides, we must be united in our efforts and we wish you well and will have your back every step of the way.”
Previous Surrey mayor Doug McCallum ran on a promise in 2018 to get rid of the RCMP in Surrey in favour of a community policing service amid growing public discontent with crime. The transition away from the RCMP is in line with other Canadian cities like Vancouver, which has its own municipal police force.
Locke was a member of McCallum’s council before leaving in 2019, citing dysfunction and conflict over the policing transition. In 2022, she ran against McCallum, who was embroiled in a public mischief controversy, and won on an opposing platform to keep the RCMP in Surrey, citing mounting costs to taxpayers.
Following the B.C. government’s order for the city to move forward with the policing transition, it struck a deal to alleviate the costs with the province contributing $30 million per year to assist with the transition until 2029. The province will also provide up to $20 million per year to supplement if there are increases to salary costs over a specified period.
“I felt it was necessary to stand up for taxpayers because my predecessor didn’t develop a plan or account for the cost of this transition, which left us in a very difficult spot,” Locke said in a press conference.
“While it may not have been the path that I felt was best, the deal that we negotiated with the province to support the transition was the best possible outcome for the city.”
