The provincial government has won its battle with Mayor Brenda Locke and the City of Surrey over the cop swap that never stops (full credit to punster Bob Mackin). The B.C. Supreme Court has nixed the petition aimed at ending Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth’s endorsement of transitioning from the RCMP to the Surrey Police Service. Locke has not said whether an appeal may be in the works but does say she accepts this ruling.

Could it be that London Drugs paid the ransom or at least agreed to negotiate with cyber attackers? LockBit, the group claiming to be behind an earlier attack on the retailer’s computer systems, has now removed its $25M ransom demand from a public website. There were earlier suggestions LockBit rejected an $8M ransom offer. London Drugs has not been commenting on its involvement in any negotiations with the cyber terrorists.

The B.C. NDP will likely focus on the B.C. Conservatives with yet another poll showing Kevin Falcon’s B.C. United falling to irrelevancy. A Research Co poll released Tuesday comes with the headline: NDP First, Conservatives Rise, United Plummets in British Columbia. The New Democrats still hold a ten point lead at 42 per cent but B.C. United is tied with the Greens at 12 per cent. Surprisingly, the 18-34-year-olds favour the Conservatives over the NDP by five points.

The Vancouver Canucks are out of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Oilers beat Vancouver 3-2 Monday evening, ending the second round series in seven games. The Canucks ended the regular season as the top team in the Pacific Division. The Canucks had not been in the playoffs since 2015.

Two men have been found dead inside a home in Newton. Homicide investigators were called to the home on 151 Street Wednesday evening after Surrey Mounties were asked to check on the occupants. It’s believed both men knew each other and police are not looking for suspects. There is no risk to the public.

BC Ferries is doing its level best to control the narrative ahead of what could be a very busy and challenging travel season. It’s projecting 8 million passengers and 3.2 million vehicles will use ferries between June and September. BC Ferries is now subject to possible fines for service delays after a couple seasons of delays and cancellations due to both mechanical problems and staffing issues. A BC Ferries spokesperson says they are in a better position now to bring customers the reliability they need.

There’s reason for optimism as crews on the front lines keep the Parker Lake wildfire away from Fort Nelson. Cooler weather, light rain and less wind has helped as the 84 square kilometre fire burns on the edge of town. So far, no homes have been lost but an evacuation order remains in place. The RCMP says there has been some minor looting in the area and people are encouraged to report any criminal activity to police.

Conditions remain volatile as crews continue to fight a growing wildfire that threatens Fort Nelson. The Parker Lake wildfire is about a kilometre away from the town where most people have already evacuated. The fire is approaching 60 square kilometres - Emergency Management Minister Bowin Ma says fire crews, aircraft and heavy equipment are in place to protect homes and the community.

An out-of-control forest fire continued to burn through the weekend, keeping people from their homes in Fort Nelson. The 2,000 hectare fire’s been growing in an area four kilometres west of the community and there are concerns about the wind pushing the flames toward town. Highway 97 has been closed north of Fort Nelson.

The B.C. government has announced a new gang homicide team as it deals with 356 unsolved murders. The Integrated Gang Homicide Team is expected to take organized crime related killings off the plate of overworked IHIT members. Gang related homicides now account for 46 per cent of killings in B.C. - more than double the per cent only two decades ago.