(Ottawa) The federal government is lifting every stone to improve the police services granted by contract to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police by the provinces and territories, except Quebec and Ontario.
The Liberal government is, for example, examining “more responsive” policing models, which could involve closer integration of the RCMP and community social services, according to internal notes from Public Safety Canada. There is also talk of re-examining cost sharing between Ottawa and the provinces and municipalities served.
The notes, obtained through the Access to Information Act, provide a discussion guide for broad consultations on options to strengthen RCMP contract policing.
The RCMP provides front-line policing services under contracts with all provinces and territories except Ontario and Quebec, which have their own provincial police, as well as some 150 municipalities. Current service contracts do not expire until March 31, 2032.
The provinces and territories served pay 70% of the RCMP’s costs and the federal government covers the rest. Municipal agreements vary, sometimes depending on population size.
The Department of Public Safety said that, in collaboration with the RCMP, it held in-person meetings from spring to fall 2023 with officials from the provinces and territories it serves.
In addition, virtual sessions were held with municipal partners and other stakeholders, such as the RCMP Management Advisory Council, the Canadian Police Governance Association, the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Federation of the National Police, which represents front-line RCMP officers.
Virtual meetings were also held with First Nations on a regional basis, and two national sharing circles took place last October.
A future report will summarize the partners’ views on the program, as well as “areas that can be improved,” the Ministry of Public Safety says.
Municipalities abandon the RCMP
In recent years, some administrations have considered an alternative to the RCMP: Surrey, British Columbia, and Grande Prairie, Alberta, have chosen to create their own municipal police services.
Changes have occurred within a broader context of fundamental questions about the overall role of the RCMP and how this federal police force can balance services to small communities with the demands of a national police force in a context of cyber threats, financial crime and national security vulnerabilities.
“Despite its exclusive responsibility for federal policing, the majority of the RCMP’s resources are allocated to contract policing,” highlights a May 2023 memo addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
A commission of inquiry into the 2020 shooting in Nova Scotia notably recommended last year that the federal Minister of Public Safety establish priorities for the RCMP, retaining tasks that are appropriate for a federal police service.
For now, the review of the contract policing system suggests that the government is seeking measured improvements – not radical changes – to the contract policing system.
Uncertainty about federal intentions prompted the president of the National Police Federation, Brian Sauvé, to write to Mr. Trudeau last July for clarification.
“Our members put their lives on the line every day and they deserve certainty of the federal government’s long-term commitment to the important role of the RCMP in Canada’s provinces, territories and communities,” he said. he writes.
RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme recently called the consultation a way to “touch base” in the lead-up to contract renewals.
“I think in any type of business, when you renew a contract, you want to make sure you’ve fixed some of the loopholes and try to incorporate what people want into the contract,” Mr. Duheme.