‘There’s going to be movement’: VPD unsure how SPS decision will impact its staffing

A Vancouver Police Department spokesperson said he doesn’t know how many of its officers have joined the Surrey Police Service (SPS), but he expects “there’s going to be movement” in the weeks and months to come.

Sgt. Steve Addison said Thursday it’s “easier than ever” to move from one police force to another, particularly from one municipal agency to another municipal agency. He did not, however, express particular concern that a recent decision cementing the future of the SPS in Surrey could seriously impact the VPD’s complement of frontline officers.

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“We’re actively recruiting,” Addison told Global News. “We’re confident we’re still seeing a significant level of interest in people, whether they be new police officers or experienced police officers who want to work here.”

His comments come the day after Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth forced Surrey’s hand in its hotly-debated police transition, directing it to cast aside the local RCMP detachment and proceed with the SPS, full steam ahead.

Global News reported in November 2021 that more than 20 VPD officers had moved over to the SPS, which is when the fledgling municipal force first put boots on the ground.

At that time, Addison said the “immediate impact” of the SPS’s deployment was that the VPD was losing “experienced police officers” who would need replacing. He had added, however, that hiring new recruits has not been a major challenge.

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At a police board meeting on Thursday, Vancouver Police Deputy Chief Const. Howard Chow said he believes fewer than 40 VPD members have switched over to the SPS in total.

“But it’s something we’re keeping an eye on, something that’s a concern for all police agencies in the region,” he said.

Added Vancouver Police Union president Ralph Kaisers: “I do know that a number of members have been holding off with making a decision around going to Surrey because of the uncertainty of what was going to happen in Surrey.

“So I think we’re all, here at the VPD, sitting back wondering what’s going to happen, whether or not there is some form of exodus of members to the Surrey Police Service.”

Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim campaigned on a promise to hire 100 or more new VPD officers. At the same Thursday board meeting, he said the VPD is a “destination organization” and he thinks “we’re going to be fine.”

“We also wanted to let everyone know that we will look at policing as a regional issue and we will support Surrey,” Sim explained. “At the end of the day, they’re our partners as well and we want to make sure we have a safe region that works.”

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Farnworth said Wednesday that despite Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke’s steadfast commitment to keeping the RCMP, the municipality had failed to prove it could replenish that detachment without compromising safety in Surrey, or the policing resources of other jurisdictions.

The SPS was born of an election promise by her predecessor, Doug McCallum, and while Locke supported its creation at the time, she backtracked within two years, citing transparency concerns and the taxpayer burden of the project.

She and Farnworth are set to meet in-person over this week’s decision, and on Thursday, he said it’s the public’s expectation that the pair will work collaboratively from now on.

“Yesterday I said there needed to be changes to ensure this does not happen again,” Farnworth said of months of back-and-forth and uncertainty, particularly regarding the sharing of key confidential documents that required non-disclosure agreements.

“One way of doing that is to give the solicitor general the authority to be able to have access to all documents that are required to make that (policing) decision … and also have the ability to involve themselves earlier in the process.”

Farnworth said he’s already raised the possibility of such legislation with the president of the Union of BC Municipalities.

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Curt Griffiths, a criminology professor at Simon Fraser University, said one of the silver linings of the decision taken is that the impacted RCMP officers in Surrey can be redistributed to other areas in need.

As it stands, there are some 1,500 vacancies within the ranks of the B.C. Mounties.

“Nearly all the RCMP detachments are understaffed with implications for — as the minister used the term — effective and adequate policing,” Griffiths explained. “I think that gives them additional resources to deploy.

“In terms of the SPS, I think it’s interesting that SPS is one of the only police services in Canada that isn’t having troubling recruiting … it will be interesting to see how many Mounties bridge over now.”

The SPS will need to hire more than 100 officers in order to meet Surrey’s baseline needs, according to SPS Chief Const. Norm Lipinski. The force currently has 230 or so on the front line but requires around 350, minimum.

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Griffiths said it’s not uncommon for police officers to shuffle between Lower Mainland departments.

The West Vancouver Police Department has confirmed none of its officers have been lost to the SPS this year.

One Delta Police Department officer has switched to the SPS since January.

Metro Vancouver Transit Police said they’ve lost two officers to the SPS since the start of the year and 20 since the SPS started hiring two years ago.

The B.C. RCMP told Global News none of its members have left this year to join the SPS.

The Surrey Police Service says the numbers provided by various departments can be somewhat confusing as hiring was on pause for several months pending a firm decision from the province.