Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum says the city is “holding the line” on property taxes with a proposed increase of 2.9 per cent but a city councillor warns says just the “tip of the iceberg,” warning some taxpayers might be hit with a 15 per cent tax hike.
TheCity of Surreyis simply wrong to hike taxes by roughly 8% per household while continuing to spend untold millions on an expensive and unpopular newSurreyPolice Service, says the union representing RCMP Members inSurreyand acrossCanada.
The City of Surrey’s police force transition costs could nearly double if an assumption – that the new municipal department can use the RCMP’s information technology (IT) network – fails, according to estimates provided by a top expert at Canada’s digital services agency.
The B.C. Liberals say they'll hold a referendum on Surrey's decision to cancel the RCMP contract. Can a provincial government tell a municipality how to police its city? The Vancouver Sun asked several experts to weigh in and most appear to side with Andrew Wilkinson on this standoff.
For Surrey residents who want to keep the RCMP, no need to wait for the civic election in 2022, writes Vancouver Sun's Vaughn Palmer. The Liberals have given them a chance to cast a protest vote against the McCallum plan later this month.
Surrey city councillor and former BC Liberal MLA Brenda Locke isn’t taking sides in the provincial election, but she wants whatever party that comes to power to take action against her own city council’s formation of a new police board.
SURREY, British Columbia, Aug. 28, 2020 — In a letter released today, National Police Federation (NPF) President Brian Sauvé is calling on the Surrey Police Board to halt the rushed search for a Chief Constable, citing the woefully inadequate process that is underway. Sauvé says that when compared with the recruitment efforts of major cities around Canada, Surrey’s process is seriously lacking.
SURREY, British Columbia, Aug. 21, 2020 — The National Police Federation (NPF) today released results of an exclusive RCMP survey of Members currently serving in Surrey which confirms a major problem for the proposed Surrey Police Service (SPS) and police detachments throughout Metro Vancouver municipalities – less than 14% of current RCMP Members would apply to work with the SPS.
Following is a statement from Brian Sauvé, President, National Police Federation:
After months of uncertainty perpetuated by Mayor McCallum’s evasive tactics, we expect the new Surrey Police Board to provide information on real and hidden financial and social costs of this expensive and secretive plan. As the public body accountable to residents of Surrey on matters of policing, these issues are critical to residents of Surrey, and our 850 Members serving in Surrey.