Close X
Monday, November 25, 2024
ADVT 
National

Group calls for vote on Surrey, B.C., police force

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 15 Nov, 2021 05:22 PM
  • Group calls for vote on Surrey, B.C., police force

SURREY, B.C. - A group opposing the planned transition from the RCMP to a municipal police force in Surrey, B.C., says it has collected close to 43,000 signatures from residents calling for a referendum on policing in the city.

Darlene Bennett launched the campaign with the group Surrey Police Vote over concerns about rising costs associated with starting a new municipal police force, which was a key pledge in Mayor Doug McCallum's election campaign in 2018.

The city council voted in favour of the transition in 2018, the public safety minister approved the creation of the Surrey Police Board last year, and Surrey's budget for 2021 showed the transition was $18.5 million more than the original $45-million cost estimate.

Amber Stowe, media relations lead with McCallum's office, says the mayor would not comment on the petition before Elections BC delivers the final result.

A statement from the Surrey Police Union says the 42,942 signatures collected by the Surrey Police Vote initiative falls far below the legislative requirement of 10 per cent of voters from all 87 electoral districts in B.C. in order to trigger a referendum.

Bennett said upon launching the petition that the initiative would not campaign across the province, rather it would focus on the nine electoral districts in Surrey in hopes of demonstrating the need for a regional referendum to the provincial government.

B.C.'s Referendum Act gives provincial cabinet the power to order a referendum in a particular region, campaign strategist Bill Tieleman said in a statement on Monday.

The petition's signatures represent about 13.5 per cent of about 318,000 registered voters in Surrey's nine districts, according to a 2017 tally from Elections BC.

 

MORE National ARTICLES

Surrey RCMP arrest prohibited driver with help from Air 1

Surrey RCMP arrest prohibited driver with help from Air 1
The officers recognized the person behind the wheel, and confirmed via police checks that he was prohibited from driving. Although the police were in an unmarked vehicle, and had not yet engaged their emergency equipment, the driver reacted and fled the area at a high rate of speed.    

Surrey RCMP arrest prohibited driver with help from Air 1

Result in 4 federal B.C. ridings still undecided

Result in 4 federal B.C. ridings still undecided
Noormohamed was incorrectly projected as winner Wednesday night after the Elections Canada website showed 100 per cent of the polls in the riding had reported.

Result in 4 federal B.C. ridings still undecided

COVID-19 infections close B.C. school

COVID-19 infections close B.C. school
Online learning will be offered until the school's expected reopening on Oct. 4. The Ministry of Health reported 759 new cases of COVID-19 in B.C. on Wednesday, with 5,458 active cases provincewide.

COVID-19 infections close B.C. school

Man charged in Vernon, B.C., homicide

Man charged in Vernon, B.C., homicide
RCMP say they responded to reports of shooting near Vernon and discovered a man's body at the scene. They say a man was arrested later the same day near Armstrong, B.C.

Man charged in Vernon, B.C., homicide

759 COVID19 cases for Wednesday

759 COVID19 cases for Wednesday
There are 5,458 active cases of COVID-19 in the province and 173,215 people who tested positive have recovered. Of the active cases, 324 individuals are in hospital and 157 are in intensive care. The remaining people are recovering at home in self-isolation.

759 COVID19 cases for Wednesday

Vaccine deliveries paused because of oversupply

Vaccine deliveries paused because of oversupply
Canada was to get 95 million doses of vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna by the end of September, but is about 20 million doses shy of that as of Wednesday.

Vaccine deliveries paused because of oversupply