Close X
Tuesday, November 5, 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 mayor Doug McCallum hit by a vehicle on Saturday

Surrey mayor Doug McCallum hit by a vehicle on Saturday
The mayor of Surrey says he was “verbally assaulted” and hit by a car on Saturday. Doug McCallum says the incident happened when he was out grocery shopping.

Surrey mayor Doug McCallum hit by a vehicle on Saturday

Dilpreet Sandhu in police custody after killing two 20 year old men from Surrey

Dilpreet Sandhu in police custody after killing two 20 year old men from Surrey
West Vancouver Police have taken one man into custody and laid charges against 20 year old Dilpreet Sandhu on 2 counts  of Criminal Negligence, in the operation of a motor vehicle, causing death. 

Dilpreet Sandhu in police custody after killing two 20 year old men from Surrey

Poll: most Canadians favour vaccine passport

Poll: most Canadians favour vaccine passport
The poll also suggests Canadians were largely split on whether the reopening of in-person learning at elementary and secondary schools changed any concerns they had about the Delta variant.

Poll: most Canadians favour vaccine passport

Trend shows 15K daily COVID-19 cases by October

Trend shows 15K daily COVID-19 cases by October
The number of cases in Canada each day grew from about 700 in early August, to almost 3,500 now. The vast majority of cases are among unvaccinated individuals, with Tam saying unvaccinated people are 12 times more likely to be infected and 36 times more likely to be hospitalized if they get infected.

Trend shows 15K daily COVID-19 cases by October

Alberta offers $100 to get fully vaccinated

Alberta offers $100 to get fully vaccinated
Premier Jason Kenney, two months after declaring victory over COVID-19, is now offering $100 to Albertans who aren't fully vaccinated to curb nation-leading cases of the illness that have again pushed the province's hospitals to the brink.

Alberta offers $100 to get fully vaccinated

Destructive B.C. wildfire being held

Destructive B.C. wildfire being held
The emergency operations centre for the central Okanagan has said at least 78 properties west of Okanagan Lake sustained significant damage, in addition to properties destroyed in Monte Lake and Westwold on the fire's opposite flank.

Destructive B.C. wildfire being held