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OTTAWA – Provinces and municipalities who contract with the RCMP as their local police force are frustrated by rising costs and vacancies, a new survey shows, although most still want the Mounties policing their streets.
A report commissioned by the federal government interviewed representatives from provinces and municipalities who use the RCMP as their local force. It found that many local and provincial governments believe the RCMP has a one-size-fits-all approach to local policing, which fails to adapt to local needs, and it isn’t working.
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“Partners are seeking greater local control and influence over the setting of priorities and policing approaches in order to tailor RCMP front-line services to the unique needs of individual communities,” the report said. “Many partners highlighted that they believe they have limited influence over the RCMP, indicating that internal RCMP approaches, guided by national policies and practices, can be barriers to addressing community priorities.”
Costs for the RCMP were also a major concern for municipalities, according to the report. After the Mounties unionized in 2015, the first contract negotiated with Ottawa included a 10.5-per-cent salary increase over six years. The most recent contract, this year, awards an additional eight-per-cent increase spread over two years. Even though the federal government negotiated the contracts, it only pays 30 per cent of RCMP costs, leaving municipalities and provinces shouldering most of the bill.
“Some jurisdictions, notably smaller municipalities, articulated that the RCMP contract policing costs would eventually become prohibitive. Municipalities, in particular, noted that they face challenges in managing in-year budgetary adjustments as they are unable to run deficits like governments at the federal, provincial and territorial level.”
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The survey comes after the federal government launched a consultation with provinces and municipalities last year to re-evaluate the RCMP’s contract-policing program, in which the force serves as local law enforcement, mostly in smaller communities, in every province outside of Quebec and Ontario.
The contracts are up in 2032. Several external reviews, including the Mass Casualty Commission that investigated a 2020 Nova Scotia murder rampage have pointed to problems with the RCMP operating as both a national police force and a local force, with divided resources and Mounties rotating in and out of communities with which they have little connection.
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The report said municipalities also raised concerns about vacancies as the RCMP has struggled to meet recruitment targets in recent years. Vacancy rates in some areas are over 20 per cent. They told the government that having too few officers was starting to make their communities feel unsafe.
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“Many partners articulated that they view high vacancy rates as having an impact on community safety. Some municipal partners noted a perceived lack of officer presence and increased police response times, as well as their belief that this may be linked with elevated stress and diminished officer wellness.”
Despite all those concerns, most of the municipalities surveyed said they would prefer to keep the RCMP as their local police, and said the service they get from officers serving in their communities is still top-notch.
“Jurisdictions wanted to ensure that any criticisms they had of the model and how it is implemented were not taken as being directed at front-line officers,” the report said.
“They also noted the importance of clarity from the federal government on its future role in policing and expressed concern that the federal government could seek to exit contract policing prior to, or when the current contracts expire.”
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc’s spokesperson, Jean-Sébastien Comeau, said the goal of the consultation is to bring all stakeholders into the discussion over the RCMP’s future.
“All partners — the federal government, provinces and territories, and the RCMP — have a role to play in keeping Canadians safe. This is a close partnership that will continue as we ensure the needs of all communities are being met, through to 2032 and beyond.”
National Post
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