Burnaby will continue to be policed by the RCMP after the B.C. government announced Wednesday that it has reached a tentative cost-sharing agreement that will keep Mounties working in the province for another 20 years.
Solicitor-General Shirley Bond told the Vancouver Sun Wednesday that an agreement in principle had been reached between the federal government, and six provincial and three territorial governments to extend the policing contract.
The deal, which will now go to the Union of B.C. Municipalities for approval, offers "significant gains in accountability" and a greater ability for municipalities to control policing costs, Bond said.
The federal government had given the provinces until the end of the day Wednesday to negotiate the 20-year contract extensions.
B.C. had threatened to pull out of its contract when it expires in 2014 and establish a provincial police force if Ottawa didn't allow more local control over costs.
The deal includes a contract management committee, which will see the provincial and federal governments jointly overseeing how the RCMP delivers policing services and how costs are managed. Municipalities will be represented on the committee, Bond said, as well as a new local government advisory committee.
For Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan, the Nov. 30 deadline was an artificial one and he expected a deal to be done.
"This is just another phony dispute between the federal and provincial government with the municipalities on the sidelines," said Corrigan. "They're kissing and making up after a bit of saber rattling."
Corrigan said Burnaby didn't spend any time looking at alternatives to the RCMP in the city. Instead, Corrigan was trying to lobby the province for the municipalities to have a greater say during negotiations.
"With municipalities, the role we had was to be consulted, not to be a partner," said Corrigan. "When you're paying the majority of the bill, that's not acceptable. We should be at the table during the discussion. We're the people paying the bill and we should have a say ... Instead, we're told (by the province) 'We'll make the decision.'"
In 2009-10, the RCMP policing contract in B.C. cost $992 million. Of that, the federal government paid $184 million. The province contributed $315 million and municipalities paid $493 million.
The tentative contract also includes a two-year opt-out clause and five-year review, which will allow the contract to be reopened at any time.
"We have the ability to sign the contract, talk to British Columbians and have the information shape what happens in two years or five years or the life of the contract," Bond said.
Bond plans to share the contract with the Union of B.C. Municipalities before offering the details to the public "when it's appropriate." She said while the province didn't get everything it wanted, she is optimistic the UBCM will share the view that the contract is good for B.C.
"We gained enough ground in our relationships and management tools to make a good deal for B.C., especially for the municipalities who have to pay for this contract," she said.
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- with files from the Vancouver Sun
