The years-long saga over who will police the city of Surrey finally ended. At 12:00 a.m. on November 29, 2024, Surrey Police Service (SPS) assumed responsibility for policing and law enforcement as the City of Surrey’s new police of jurisdiction.
The change in Surrey’s police of jurisdiction is part of the ongoing police model transition process that began when the City of Surrey resolved to move to a municipal police service in 2018. Since that time, the City of Surrey, RCMP, SPS, and provincial and federal governments have been working together to implement a phased approach to the transition period.
This is the next phase in the City’s ongoing transition to a municipal police service. “November 29, 2024, marks the beginning of a new era of policing in Surrey, as Surrey Police Service officially becomes the City’s new police service. It’s an exciting time and a historic moment, both in policing and in the development of Surrey, as residents will have their own municipal police service for the first time since 1951,” Chief Constable Norm Lipinski of SPS said. “SPS would like to express its gratitude to the past and current members of the Surrey RCMP who have served in Surrey since 1951. Their legacy of an unwavering commitment to public safety in the City of Surrey is deeply appreciated. SPS looks forward to the continued public safety contributions of the BC RCMP Provincial Operations Support Unit’s temporary assistance until the transition period is completed.”
The primary ways that residents and business owners access policing services in Surrey will not change as result of this change to the police of jurisdiction. Police office locations and the main police phone numbers are staying the same, including 9-1-1 and non-emergency (604-599-0502).
Although SPS will assume overarching responsibility for policing on November 29, the BC RCMP Provincial Police Service will provide temporary policing supports in Surrey until SPS is fully established as a standalone policing service. The continuation of this plan for a phased transition means residents will continue to see both SPS and RCMP officers and vehicles in Surrey until the transition is completed.
Initially, there will be a higher concentration of Frontline SPS officers in Whalley/City Centre and Newton, with more RCMP officers in Guildford/Fleetwood, Cloverdale, and South Surrey. However, officers from both agencies will perform various policing duties across the city: SPS officers will manage several city-wide services including traffic enforcement, emergency planning, and community programs, and RCMP officers will maintain conduct of most specialized policing services in Newton as well as the Criminal Crash Investigation Team, city-wide.
While officers from both police agencies will primarily provide policing services in “home” districts, the agencies will coordinate responses where and when required to address any emerging public safety needs.
Similarly, there will be no interruption to ongoing investigations during the transition. While not all files will be transferred to SPS at this time, both SPS and the RCMP are taking steps to ensure that every file transfer is done with the utmost consideration for security, confidentiality, and the victims of crimes. In addition, SPS is now joining several other municipal police agencies as a partner in the Lower Mainland Integrated Teams, which means that any Surrey-related files with those teams, such as homicides, will remain with those teams.
As SPS continues to increase its staffing, SPS officers will take over more of the frontline policing and investigative duties that SPS is not taking over on November 29th. The BC RCMP Provincial Police Service presence in Surrey will, over time, be reduced and RCMP members demobilized in alignment with SPS’s growth.
Garry Begg, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, called it a landmark achievement and significant milestone in Canadian policing, as it represents a key marker in the largest police transition of its kind in the country.
“As a former RCMP officer who served for 40 years, I am proud of the history of the RCMP in Surrey. No matter the uniform, I know that every officer puts their lives on the line day in and day out to keep people and businesses safe. Police officers serve with honour and dedication, and I thank both SPS and RCMP officers for their unwavering commitment to the people of Surrey. As we start a new era of policing in Surrey, I look forward to the SPS’s community-led, innovative approach to policing that brings together skilled officers with diverse backgrounds from across the country that meets the needs of our community. There is much work ahead as this transition moves into its final stages, and although the journey has not been without its challenges I want to extend my deepest gratitude to the City of Surrey, the federal government, RCMP, and Chief Lipinski and SPS administrator Mike Serr. Their dedication and collaborative efforts have brought us to this significant milestone, while staying focused on our number 1 job – keeping people and businesses in Surrey safe,” he said.
BOX
What changed on November 29, 2024 for Surrey policing:
- SPS assumed responsibility for policing in Surrey.
- The RCMP shifted to providing temporary transitional policing supports, under the RCMP Provincial Police Service.
- The primary ways to contact police in Surrey remain the same:
Non-emergency: 604-599-0502 | Emergency: 9-1-1 - All police office locations in Surrey remain the same with new SPS signage.
- The primary source for Surrey policing/public safety information is now www.surreypolice.ca.
- SPS now manages media relations for all operational policing in Surrey.
