By any objective standard, it’s kind of strange that a mayor would replace a Public Safety Committee with an Interim Police Transition Advisory Committee, with the latter then not having a single meeting in the seven months since its controversial inception.

Whatever the motive for this puzzling exercise of out with the useful, in with the dubious, one thing is abundantly clear: If a committee doesn’t meet even once in more than half a year, it’s not really accomplishing anything as is and therefore putting it to rest should generate no cause for concern whatsoever.

The Public Safety Committee that was dissolved to make way for this peculiar non-entity of an IPTAC committee, on the other hand, indeed served a useful purpose.

Not only were actual meetings actually held, but it brought together people in the know about important public safety matters with people who make decisions on behalf of all of Surrey’s residents, about important safety matters.

READ ALSO: Committee that replaced Surrey’s Public Safety Committee seven months ago has never met

Police, firefighters, bylaws staff and medical experts, for example, reporting to all of council – not five of nine members, but nine of nine – and acting in the best interests of all of us living in this city of well over half a million people.

A meeting of minds that has to be superior in all ways compared to relying on some memos being fired back and forth, yes?

The revival of Surrey’s Public Safety Committee, then, is a no-brainer.

It’s surely a concept our mayor can readily get behind, and make happen with haste.

The civic slate he leads is called Safe Surrey Coalition, after all.

– Now-Leader

Surrey Now Leader