1. Congratulations on your recent appointment as B.C.’s Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General. What are your top priorities as you step into this important role?
It’s a tremendous honor to be appointed, and I’m committed to taking action that makes a real difference in people’s lives. My top priorities include providing police with the tools they need to curb street disorder, vandalism, and theft, cracking down on organized crime with unexplained wealth orders and other tools, supporting police in tackling repeat violent offenders and street-level crime, helping individuals break the cycle of crime, and ensuring victims have the support they need.
These are all interconnected challenges, which is why we are approaching this in the comprehensive way that we are. I look forward to working with the MoS for Community Safety and Integrated Services to strengthen public safety in our Province.
2. Public safety has become a pressing concern in Surrey, with incidents of shootings and extortion. How is your ministry planning to address these threats head-on?
These extortion attempts targeting members of the South Asian community are deeply concerning, and I’m very sorry that families and neighbors are being threatened. Our government is doing everything possible to support the police in investigating these crimes.
We partnered with BC Crime Stoppers on a 60-day awareness campaign, reaching over 3.6 million people, significantly boosting public awareness and engagement. We’re working with local police, BC RCMP, and Federal RCMP to coordinate enforcement efforts. Over $100 million is invested annually in specialized enforcement programs targeting organized crime. In the meantime, victims can access counselling and protective support through the Province’s Crime Victim Assistance Program.
3. What specific steps are being taken to restore public confidence among Surrey residents and business owners?
We continue to urge anyone who receives a threat to report it to the police so they can investigate and help keep you safe. This is a national issue, requiring a national response. We have led the call for a national task force, which has now been established. Premier David Eby has asked the Prime Minister to designate the Lawrence Bishnoi Gang as a terrorist organization in Canada, with Alberta and Ontario supporting this call.
4. Do you believe law enforcement currently has the resources and tools it needs to respond effectively to organized crime and gang-related violence?
While there is no single solution to eliminate organized crime, we continue to prioritize strong prevention, intervention, intelligence, and enforcement initiatives to keep communities safe. We’ve expanded the civil forfeiture program to seize criminal assets and have developed the Integrated Gang Homicide Team under B.C.’s gun and gang strategy. The B.C. Provincial Forensic Firearms Laboratory is boosting police capacity to analyze firearms. We passed the Firearm Violence Prevention Act to close legislative gaps, and we continue to utilize the federal government’s Guns and Gang Violence Action fund to support a multi-prong investment strategy in policing, prosecutions, corrections, and support for victims.
5. How will your ministry work with local governments and police departments to ensure a consistent approach to public safety across the province?
Building safer communities requires collaboration with all levels of government, partners, and community members to ensure effective prevention strategies, timely responses to emerging issues, and long-term support that addresses the root causes of crime and social disorder. That’s why the role of MoS of Community Safety and Integrated Services was created—to align our efforts and ensure provincial programs support those who need them most.
Through community safety tours, Minister Terry Yung is engaging with police, business associations, downtown resident associations, and public safety advocates on initiatives to strengthen safety in the province’s downtown areas. We know there’s more to do, and we remain committed to building safe, thriving communities for all.
6. Beyond policing, what role do you see community organizations and preventive programs playing in reducing crime and keeping young people away from gang involvement?
Every day, youth face pressures that lead them down dangerous paths, including getting involved in gangs and drugs. My ministry also supports the Situation Table model, which brings together front-line workers from the public-safety, health, and social-service sectors to support vulnerable people, including youth. I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate Surrey on the upcoming 10-year anniversary of its Situation Table.
In Surrey, we’ve partnered with local schools and police on the Wraparound program, identifying at-risk youth as young as one year old and connecting them with support. We also support the Erase program, an initiative under the Ministry of Education and Childcare, which empowers students, families, and educators to build safe, inclusive schools and prevent crime through early intervention.
7. The B.C. NDP government has called for India’s Lawrence Bishnoi gang to be declared a terrorist entity. What is the latest update on this, and how would such a move impact safety here at home?
Premier Eby wrote to the PM, requesting that the gang be designated a terrorist organization. Doing so will give police more tools needed to investigate and bring this activity to an end, not only in B.C., but across Canada. It would also ensure coordination between the RCMP and the federal government to identify any other groups involved. We continue to await a response from the federal government.
8. In the wake of rising safety concerns, what message do you have for Surrey’s business community?
I want the Surrey business community to know that our government values their economic and social contribution to the community of Surrey. We’re working with local police, BC RCMP, our provincial neighbors, and the RCMP to coordinate efforts. I encourage victims to access support through the Crime Victim Assistance Program, which includes counselling. People must speak up when they or someone they know receives a threat of this kind—or any kind, for that matter.
9. As someone new to the cabinet table, what fresh perspective or approach do you hope to bring to the ministry of public safety?
Public safety is one of the central issues of our time, and British Columbians are looking to us to create safe and healthy communities. My years leading the Vancouver Holocaust Education Centre taught me to meet people with empathy, dignity, and resolve, lessons I carry into public service to stand with those facing injustice today.
I have been getting up to speed on all matters impacting my ministry, and I am eager to continue the important work that’s happening on a number of fronts. This includes working with law enforcement to ensure that they have the tools and resources that they need to keep people safe, working with businesses and the business community in downtowns throughout the province to combat petty crime and vandalism, to ensure that we are combating hate, and to really ensure that all people across BC, all groups are protected.
10. Looking ahead, what would success in your role look like one year from now, both for Surrey specifically and for B.C. as a whole?
The safety of people and businesses in Surrey and throughout the province is a top priority for our government, and we are working hard with our partners to deliver solutions that are making a real difference in people’s lives.
We know there is so much more work to do on the public safety front, and I’m really looking forward to working in partnership with municipal and First Nations leadership groups, businesses and with community organizations on the ground to hear their concerns and proposed solutions, to ensure that people on our streets feel safe by delivering strategies that affect change that people can rely on.
