A B.C. Supreme Court judge has reserved his decision on the City of Surrey乌鸦传媒檚 judicial review petition aimed at quashing Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth乌鸦传媒檚 July 19, 2023 order that the RCMP must be replaced by the Surrey Police Service.
Justice Kevin Loo did this after hearing final submissions May 3, concluding a five-day hearing that began April 29 in Vancouver.
乌鸦传媒淚 am aware of the urgency of the matter,乌鸦传媒� Loo said. 乌鸦传媒淚乌鸦传媒檒l make no specific promises except to say that I will do my best to get you a decision as quickly as reasonably possible. In conclusion I乌鸦传媒檒l just say that the excellence of counsel this week is not surprising, but I乌鸦传媒檓 grateful for it nonetheless, and I乌鸦传媒檓 thankful for your thoughtful, very considered and eloquent submissions.乌鸦传媒�
During final submissions, Craig Dennis, the lawyer representing the City of Surrey, said the 乌鸦传媒渆nd result乌鸦传媒� was that Farnworth imposed the SPS on Surrey 乌鸦传媒渨ith nobody, nobody乌鸦传媒� having done a comprehensive assessment of the impacts.
乌鸦传媒淚n my submission, this is too large an undertaking to impose without those impacts having been assessed,乌鸦传媒� Dennis told Loo.
Dennis said the provincial government乌鸦传媒檚 position involved a 乌鸦传媒渞ecasting乌鸦传媒� of the City乌鸦传媒檚 arguments. 乌鸦传媒淚t shifts the terms of reference away from what the City乌鸦传媒檚 actually argued. Again, respectfully, in doing so it hasn乌鸦传媒檛 grappled with the crux of the positions,乌鸦传媒� Dennis said.
Trevor Bant, representing the provincial government, argued that concerning any meeting between Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke and Premier David Eby regarding the policing transition, 乌鸦传媒渢here乌鸦传媒檚 no suggestion here in the evidence that there was any agreement about the substance of the decision the minister was going to make.乌鸦传媒� At any rate, he added, nothing discussed between the premier and mayor 乌鸦传媒渃ould fetter the minister乌鸦传媒檚 discretion.乌鸦传媒�
乌鸦传媒淭he statutory power of decision was the minister乌鸦传媒檚 and the administrative law required him to exercise, to make that decision independently. It would not be lawful for the minister to implement the decision that had been made by someone else in government and communicated to him.乌鸦传媒�
乌鸦传媒淚 say that the minister乌鸦传媒檚 decision is reasonable and the City has not shown that it is unreasonable,乌鸦传媒� Bant said. 乌鸦传媒淭he fact that all of the details weren乌鸦传媒檛 yet worked out for Phase 2, that doesn乌鸦传媒檛 make the decision unreasonable.乌鸦传媒�
Bant told Loo that while the minister is 乌鸦传媒渁ppropriately sensitive乌鸦传媒� to costs, ultimately his statutory responsibility is to ensure 乌鸦传媒渁n adequate and effective level of policing is maintained throughout British Columbia.
乌鸦传媒淗e乌鸦传媒檚 fundamentally focused on public safety, and after he reached the conclusion that the plan was not safe, that was really the end of the analysis, for him,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淚 don乌鸦传媒檛 understand the City to take the position that cost is a sufficient reason to set aside the decision. That is, I don乌鸦传媒檛 understand the City to be saying even if the minister was right, that the plan was dangerous, still he should have approved it because of cost. Rather I take the City to be saying that the additional cost is not justified by any public safety benefit.乌鸦传媒�
Bant argued that the $75-million difference per year between the cost of the SPS versus the RCMP is based on an 乌鸦传媒渁pples to oranges乌鸦传媒� comparison of 734 Mounties compared to 900 SPS officers.
乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 not a like-to-like comparison,乌鸦传媒� he said, nor does it take into account severance obligations at $113.3 million for SPS officers and management, according to the City乌鸦传媒檚 estimate.
Meantime, Dennis turned to Bant乌鸦传媒檚 argument that the statutory authority Farnworth possessed was the power 乌鸦传媒渕erely to approve, or not, the City乌鸦传媒檚 plan to keep the RCMP.
乌鸦传媒淓ven if that were so, that乌鸦传媒檚 not the decision the minister made, and it is not therefore the statutory authority the respondents have defined,乌鸦传媒� Dennis maintained. 乌鸦传媒淭he minister did not merely disapprove the City乌鸦传媒檚 plan, which would entail presumably sending the City back to the drawing board. Instead, the minister purported to order that the SPS be the method of policing in Surrey.乌鸦传媒�
乌鸦传媒淎nd as I listened to my friend,乌鸦传媒� Dennis said, referring to Bant, 乌鸦传媒淚 did not hear an attempt to argue the minister had that power.
乌鸦传媒淢y friend, however, in his submissions was at pains to describe a different, lesser power 乌鸦传媒� all the minister could consider was public safety and all he could do was approve the City乌鸦传媒檚 plan, or not,乌鸦传媒� Dennis continued. 乌鸦传媒淚f my friend is right about that, and even on my friend乌鸦传媒檚 terms, the minister exceeded his jurisdiction because he did much more than simply approve or not the City乌鸦传媒檚 plan.乌鸦传媒�
Dennis said Surrey has never claimed or implied that a policy is entitled to charter protection but rather sought for protection of the integrity of the civic election, 乌鸦传媒渋n which Surrey voters, having been given a choice over policing, exercised that choice through voting, saw their representatives seek to implement that choice, and then saw the Province nullify that choice through legislation.乌鸦传媒�
Dennis argued that Farnworth only has the powers 乌鸦传媒渃onferred to him by the statute; he cannot exercise powers beyond what the legislation conferred.乌鸦传媒�
Last week, Loo sealed information related to SPS operation plans and policies concerning covert and undercover operations, precise RCMP/SPS staffing levels and RCMP contingency plans, finding 乌鸦传媒渁n important public interest at stake.乌鸦传媒�
The judge heard about a deal reached between Locke and Eby, contained in an affidavit from a political advisor and note-taker for the mayor, before Farnworth 乌鸦传媒渞eneged乌鸦传媒� on it. Bant argued it乌鸦传媒檚乌鸦传媒渋rrelevant乌鸦传媒� whether they struck a deal on the city乌鸦传媒檚 policing transition before Farnworth issued his edict July 19, 2023.
Dennis argued Farnworth乌鸦传媒檚 order to press on with SPS is akin to replacing the 乌鸦传媒渨inner with the runner-up乌鸦传媒� by overriding Surrey council乌鸦传媒檚 desire under Locke to keep the RCMP and enforcing the previous council乌鸦传媒檚 desire, under former mayor Doug McCallum, to install the SPS as the city乌鸦传媒檚 police of jurisdiction.
Bant argued that Surrey council乌鸦传媒檚 mandate to keep the RCMP is not protected under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the City understood Farnworth had the power to make a decision on the future of policing in Surrey but only objected when it didn乌鸦传媒檛 get its way.
