Surrey Councillor Linda Annis says the cap is no surprise, but it’s not good news for public safety in Surrey which is getting murky and confusing. Annis said the cap on recruitment is just one more example of why Surrey residents deserve the final say on policing in their community with real cost of Surrey police transition expected to be north of $200 million.

By DESIBUZZCanada Staff

SURREY -  Surrey First Councillor Linda Annis says the provincial government’s cap on how many new officers the Surrey Police Service (SPS) can recruit makes good sense, but reinforces ongoing calls for Surrey residents to weigh in on who should police BC’s second largest city.

 “We knew all along that the SPS would have to poach officers from other police departments and the province has recognized the damage that can cause to police services across the region,” said Annis. “The entire SPS plan has been poorly thought out and this move by the province only reinforces that fact. Doug McCallum ignored Surrey residents from the very start, with no transparency, and no honest financial details. Frankly, when I look at where the SPS is today and how much more there is to do, I expect the real cost of the police transition to be north of $200 million. Surrey residents should have the final say about policing here, not Doug McCallum, surely the province has to understand that now.”

Annis said the cap on recruitment is just one more example of why Surrey residents deserve the final say on policing in their community.

 “Now the SPS can only recruit a fraction of the officers they want and need, the result is more and more uncertainty about policing and public safety in our city,” added Annis. ”While I agree with the provincial government’s cap and why it’s needed, it only makes public safety in our city more murky and confusing. This is definitely not good news if you’re living in Surrey.”