Why Ottawa’s decisions about the RCMP’s future could affect BC’s own decision in Surrey

In theory, the BC government’s press conference on Monday was about health care professionals cooperating with police officers during mental health calls.

In reality, it became the latest example of Public Security Secretary Mike Farnworth dodging and interweaving multiple questions about what the county plans to do about Surrey policing.

“I know this is an important decision,” said Farnworth, after confirming he would make an announcement on the matter on Wednesday, now in its fifth year of uncertainty.

And I also know this: police stations with either municipalities or the RCMP are professional organizations, and that however the decision comes Wednesday, I know [they] will continue to do great work.”

On the face of it, Farnworth’s answers cast doubt on whether the county will override Surrey and force her to stick with the transition to the Surrey Police Service or allow her to go back to the RCMP.

But reading between the lines, there were hints that the county’s decision is being guided by the concerns of politicians, not in Surrey, but in Ottawa.

BC heavily dependent on RCMP

Hours before Farnworth’s press conference, the Toronto Star reported that the federal government is considering his own big change for the RCMPone that would turn it away from on-the-ground policing and toward an FBI-esque model focusing on issues of national security and cybercrime.

And while that would have national implications, there would be one province that would have more of an impact than any other: British Columbia.

“We have been the largest user of RCMP resources in Canada for some time,” said former Attorney General Wally Oppal.

The RCMP has about 6,000 contract police officers from coast to coast, but nearly half of them are in British Columbia, based on 2019 figures.

In addition, the province is the only province in Canada where more than 60 percent of officers are under federal supervision.

Every other province has a county police force or local police forces in all of its major cities, but in BC, many larger communities still rely on RCMP contacts.

It means the county needs to be highly aligned with what the federal government is considering — something Farnworth acknowledged at the press conference.

“I know on a national level, my federal counterpart … it’s in his mandate letter to review and review contract policing,” he said.

“All the discussions that are happening around the evolution of policing, the reform of policing … it’s got to recognize that we’re facing some major challenges when it comes to job openings.”

Potential lawsuit looming

If you think these are the words of a public safety minister looking at Surrey’s decision through a federal lens, you are not alone.

“It will be a factor,” said Oppal, who chaired the original Surrey Police Transition Task Force four years ago.

Stewart Perst, a political science lecturer at Simon Fraser University, said the county will likely force Surrey to get rid of the RCMP, continuing the transition that began years ago under previous mayor Doug McCallum and risking a possible lawsuit from the current mayor, Brenda Locke.

“I expect the city will have to make tough decisions about laying down its arms and continuing to move forward or continuing to fight,” he said.

Municipalities battling provincial governments usually don’t work out in the municipality’s favor – the most recent high-profile example being Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s decision to reduce the number of councilors in Toronto – but Locke has made RCMP the signature element of its leadership.

It can become a battle between city and province. But it could well be the first domino of a federal debate.

“What we are seeing in Surrey now can play out on a bigger stage… with the support of the federal government,” said Prest.

“Is the RCMP the strength of Canada’s future? Can it accommodate local concerns?”