Frankly Speaking

  In Surrey at least, the BC Liberals may have new life after announcing that the policing transition requires a referendum before going any farther. This, of course, will only happen should party leader Andrew Wilkinson gain enough seats to become premier. The policing transition in Surrey has become a major campaign issue in the provincial election, and it has the potential to give the  BC Liberals a big boost. Whether it will be enough for the party to regain power after more than three years in the political wilderness  is another question. The NDP are well ahead in the most recent public opinion polls. The BC Liberal party issued a statement on Sunday that a BC Liberal government would pause the transition process, and give Surrey residents a vote in a referendum on whether to switch to a new Surrey Police force or stick with the RCMP. Mike Farnworth, who as public safety minister gave the transition the green light and specifically said ...

The SkyTrain system in Surrey will finally expand past King George Station, if the new Surrey council has its way. It voted Monday to scrap plans for LRT and put the money committed to it towards a SkyTrain line along Fraser Highway. Surrey has had no rapid transit extensions since 1994, despite a huge influx in its population since that time. Surrey council’s inaugural meeting Monday night was a very different type of meeting. While the usual formality was still part of the meeting, the most important part of the meeting came after the formal swearing in of council members. Council held a “special regular meeting,” where two motions were passed – one to begin the process of changing from the RCMP to a local Surrey police force, and another to scrap LRT in favour of SkyTrain. Both of these motions are a direct result of Mayor Doug McCallum’s successful campaign with the Safe Surrey Coalition. A new police force and a push for SkyTrain instead of LRT were the coalition’s two ...

Surrey mayor-elect Doug McCallum has promised that one of the first acts of the new council will be starting the process of dropping the RCMP as Surrey’s police force.  Surrey's new council will be inaugurated on Monday evening at city hall, and the mayor-elect has promised a vote on leaving the RCMP. Let's see if that motion comes forward on Monday night. The national police force has provided local policing in Surrey since 1951. It is to be replaced by a municipal force, similar to police forces in Delta, Vancouver and Abbotsford. The idea is popular with citizens and is one of the reasons McCallum and seven Safe Surrey Coalition members were elected to council. Surrey residents are fed up with crime - in particular gang violence, which includes drive-by shootings and the murder of innocent people. Despite the formation of integrated units such as IHIT (Integrated Homicide investigative Team), which involve both RCMP and municipal police members, these crimes s...

Photo from the Surrey Archives Voters in Surrey (or those who want to vote) are more than confused as election day approaches. There are 83 candidates in total in Surrey – far more than any individual has time to check out. I’ve been following Surrey politics for more than 50 years, first taking interest in it as a youngster. I’ve seen many mayors, councillors and school trustees come and go, and known many of them personally. I worked as a poll clerk at many elections in the 1970s, and have covered Surrey politics as a reporter, editor, columnist and, more recently, blogger since the 1978 election (when Bob Bose first won election as a councillor). In my opinion, this current election is one of the most crucial ones in decades. Those who choose to vote will decide whether the city will be an open institution, one that takes public input and commentary seriously, or whether it continues the trend towards tight control of information and opinions. The debate over LRT an...