Without an additional check to end the year, the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) will soon be unable to pay its bills and even buy office equipment for its investigators.
This is stated in a municipal document aimed at approving an additional payment of 2.6 million to the police department from the City of Montreal. The transfer, supported by the Plante administration, should be voted on by the city council at the start of the week.
If the elected officials refuse, “the various operational units are exposed to the risk of seeing their daily activities and their operations affected by an insufficient supply and service interruptions”, indicates the City in this document.
Among the needs that would be met by this influx of money, the City cites the purchase of “office supplies” for criminal investigations, the payment of travel expenses, as well as the purchase of uniforms for new employees. The Special Investigations Unit, Forensic Identification and Surveillance Unit also need more money to continue operating normally.
“Stay of proceedings”
In an email, the SPVM specified that a refusal to transfer the money could have catastrophic impacts, since the purchases that will be made touch the heart of the police mission. “The files presented to the Court would risk being incomplete since we would not have the necessary legal and official forms”, indicates the service of the communications of the police in an e-mail. “Also, we would potentially face situations of exclusion of evidence, stay of proceedings, challenges and legal remedies that could go as far as prosecution. »
The transfer of 2.6 million would be shared almost equally between the directorate of corporate services and the directorate of criminal investigations.
A marked increase in the budget
Montreal police have a $724 million budget for 2022, up 6% from 2021. It was the most generous increase of any city department.
In 2021, its budget was 679 million, but the organization will ultimately need 733 million to end the year, mainly due to overtime related to the pandemic, the outbreak of gun violence and in the hockey playoffs. The extent of any budget overrun for 2022 (including overtime) will only be known at the end of November, when the budget is tabled.
In its email, the SPVM’s communications department indicates that the organization is being hit hard by inflation.
“It should be noted, for example, that there have been price increases ranging from 13.5 to 38% compared to 2021 for goods and services at the Criminal Investigations Department,” said the SPVM.
For firearms and other related equipment, “procurement costs have, in some cases, tripled in price. These significant increases are mainly due to the rise in the consumer price index, the higher exchange rate (products from the United States) and the shortage of certain raw materials and components,” the City also indicates. in its presentation document.
“Poor planning”
The Plante administration declined to comment on the case.
PHOTO MARTIN CHAMBERLAND, ARCHIVES LA PRESSE
Official Opposition Spokesperson for Public Security and Vice-Chairman of the Public Security Commission, Mr. Abdelhaq Sari
“It is abnormal that the City of Montreal should be trying to grant 2.6 million at the end of the year to the SPVM for things as predictable as uniforms and bureaucratic tools,” lamented Abdelhaq Sari, of the official opposition to the city Hall. These expenses, which should normally have been provided for in the initial budget, are the result of poor financial planning on the part of Projet Montréal. »