Double the Amount of Officers on Street Patrol & Accelerate Hiring of 95 New RCMP to 2015

Rationale

On any given shift, there are only 36 uniformed general duty RCMP officers on patrol.

In reaction to the tragic murder of Julie Paskall, the Mayor’s Task Force Action Plan recommended that 95 officers be hired over the next 5 years.

In the 2007 City of Surrey Crime Reduction Strategy, it was recommended “that the City continue its commitment to allocate resources to police services in proportion to the City’s overall growth as a minimum of 1 officer to every 700 residents or better.”

The City of Surrey is estimated to have a population of 509,610 for 2014, deeming the amount of officers necessary to meet this minimum standard at 728.  Currently the RCMP sits at 673 (30 additional officers are scheduled to come online in 2014, though this has not happened yet).

By 2016, the populations estimate for the City of Surrey grows to 527,380, deeming the amount of officers necessary to meet the Reduction Strategy’s minimum standard at 753.

In 2013, the Surrey RCMP exceeded their allotted budget for overtime by over $2.7 million.

Proposal

Within the first 100 days of taking office, the number of uniformed general duty officers on patrol will be doubled to 72.

The hiring of 95 new RCMP officers will be accelerated to 2015.

The addition of these 95 new officers next year will make the officer to resident ratio 1 for every 661 residents by 2016.  This will mean that in 2015 and 2016, the target of 1 officer for every 700 residents will be exceeded for the first time since the introduction of the 2007 City of Surrey Crime Reduction Strategy.