The City of Surrey has launched court proceedings in a bid to stop the police transition in Surrey.

On Friday (Oct. 13) city hall announced the filing of a petition with the Supreme Court of British Columbia for a judicial review of the provincial order of July 19, 2023, to continue with the move from the RCMP to Surrey Police Service.

鈥淭he City of Surrey is opposed to the proposed transition that would result in a significant additional tax burden at a time when Surrey residents are facing existing affordability challenges,鈥� a news release says.

Lawyer Peter German, advisor to Surrey on policing, spoke to news media Friday morning at city hall.

鈥淭he issue is the jurisdiction of the minister (Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General) to make the decision that he did (on July 19),鈥� German said. 鈥淭he City of Surrey obviously opposes that decision and believes that he did not have that jurisdiction. That鈥檚 for the court to decide.

鈥淲e hope the matter will be dealt with (by the courts) as fast as possible, but that鈥檚 out of our hands,鈥� German added during his 13-minute news conference.

Also Friday, Farnworth said he鈥檒l introduce legislation Monday (Oct. 16) 鈥渢hat will provide clarity to the people of Surrey, and will provide a clear process for any municipality that wants to change its police of jurisdiction.鈥�

At city hall, German said the cost of Surrey鈥檚 court petition will pale in comparison to the cost of the policing transition if it were to continue, but couldn鈥檛 elaborate on the court costs.

鈥漈he city estimates that the current cost of having two police forces is somewhere in the area of $53 million per year. If the transition were to continue, those costs actually escalate and if you take a look at the (court) petition, page nine, these figures are there for you. The estimate is somewhere in the area of $460 million over 10 years.鈥�

The lawyer said Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke wasn鈥檛 able to speak about an issue before the courts.

However, in a statement Locke says her political team was elected to stop the police transition.

鈥淪urrey simply cannot accept the extraordinary burden that our taxpayers will face as a result of a provincial order that will not deliver any public safety benefit,鈥� Locke is quoted in a news release.

German said he believes city council put forward 鈥渁 sensible plan to keep the RCMP, which is in the best interest of taxpayers and public safety. The warnings about higher costs and inability to recruit frontline officers for the Surrey Police Service have all come true, and the City has an obligation to act in the public interest.鈥�

鈥� RELATED: .

Posted below are the city鈥檚 court document and letter from Locke to Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General.

Farnworth said the provincial legislation to be revealed Monday 鈥渨on鈥檛 be a surprise to the City of Surrey, we鈥檝e discussed our intentions publicly over the past few months and city staff have been thoroughly briefed on its contents,鈥� he said in a news release.

In a lengthy statement, Farnworth added: 鈥淚t鈥檚 extremely disappointing that the municipal government of Surrey has decided to spend significant taxpayer dollars on lawyers, trying to further delay the transition to the Surrey Police Service (SPS), by taking legal action against the Province.鈥�

Farnworth said people in Surrey want an end to the uncertainty over who will police the city.

鈥淭hey want this debate to be over,鈥� he stated. 鈥淭hey want government money spent on protecting their communities instead of on legal fees to continue old fights that have dragged on too long. The decision has been made, and it鈥檚 time for the city to accept the decision and move forward with the police transition.

鈥淎s solicitor general, the decision to direct Surrey to continue the transition to the SPS was made within my responsibility to ensure community safety for people in Surrey and all of British Columbia. It was made after careful consideration of all the information provided by the RCMP, the city, and the SPS, and it was not made lightly.

鈥淭he RCMP, SPS, and the federal and provincial governments have demonstrated their commitment on multiple occasions to move forward with this transition. The only party refusing to engage in this process is the City of Surrey.鈥�

Farnworth added that the financial assistance of $150 million has not been accepted by city council.

鈥淭his money is intended to help offset the costs of moving forward with the Surrey Police Service, so that costs are not passed on to residents and businesses in the form of high tax increases.

鈥淧eople鈥檚 safety in Surrey and across the province is non-negotiable. We cannot allow people in Surrey or in other communities to be put at risk. British Columbians need to know that when they call the police, help will come.鈥�

Meantime, Surrey First Coun. Linda Annis called Locke鈥檚 move to take the provincial government to court 鈥渁 costly stalling tactic, with Surrey residents forced to pick up the bill.

鈥淭his whole thing isn鈥檛 about what鈥檚 good for our city, it is clearly about political ego,鈥� Annis charged in a news release.

鈥淭he province has made the final decision, and the vast majority of our residents simply want to get the transition completed so city council can focus on other important issues such as transit, hospitals, infrastructure, and schools,鈥� Annis continued.

鈥淚nstead, Mayor Locke has sidelined these other important issues by continuing her personal fight with the provincial government. This is really a case of political ego running wild, with taxpayers forced to pay the bill.鈥�

Annis also said hiring German, former RCMP Deputy Commissioner, as an advisor and spokesperson is an additional cost to taxpayers.

鈥淚 know Peter German well and respect him, but taxpayers want to hear from their mayor,鈥� Annis added. 鈥淚nstead, we have a very costly consultant who is stepping into her shoes.鈥�

The National Police Federation (NPF) also weighed in Friday.

鈥淲e support today鈥檚 announcement by the City of Surrey to challenge the provincial government鈥檚 imposition of a police service on the City,鈥� stated Brian Sauv茅, president and CEO of the NPF, which reps 20,000 RCMP members in Canada and abroad.

鈥淭he NPF agrees municipalities should have the sole decision-making authority to select their police service, as set out in the BC Police Act. Since its inception, the decision to transition to a municipal police service in Surrey has been entirely political and not about public safety or the excellent policing services our members provide to Surrey residents.鈥�