Originally posted in the Western Standard

By Josh Andus

Like the Canadian Armed Forces, the RCMP has a problem with recruitment. Writer Andrus argues that this makes it all the more urgent for Alberta to organize its own force

A recent report from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police’s independent Management Advisory Board had findings that are nothing short of alarming:

“Federal policing has now arrived at a critical juncture of its sustainability, which present risks for the national security and safety of Canada, its people, and its interests,” says the report.

After over a year of diligent study, the Board has been tirelessly firing off flares, signalling to all who will listen: the very foundation of our national public safety apparatus may be at risk of faltering. This is doubly problematic because, as you well know, the RCMP is also responsible for boots-on-the-ground policing in large parts of the country, including many rural and remote areas — including in Alberta.

Rural crime has been a longstanding issue in Alberta, and social disorder continues to make headlines nightly. Alberta Minister of Public Safety, Mike Ellis, took to social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter) to express his opinion:

“The independent report finds the RCMP has struggled in recent years to recruit and retain regular members, a problem that’s particularly acute in federal policing. This is not about the hard-working men and women on the frontline: they are doing everything they can. The reality is the RCMP do not have enough officers to police communities in Canada effectively.”

Ellis has been ahead of this story for months now.

In March, Ellis stated that: “… on average, Alberta has an RCMP officer vacancy rate of 20 per cent. This means that Alberta is only being served by 1,522 of the 1,911 RCMP officers that the federal government has authorized for Alberta.”

“Make no mistake, we are paying for these services that we aren’t receiving. Alberta’s taxpayers are paying tens of millions of dollars for nearly 400 vacant RCMP officer positions — for boots that are not on the ground.”

The consequences of this capacity crisis are far-reaching. Not only does it jeopardize the safety of Albertans, but it also undermines the credibility of Canada’s federal police force on the international stage.

With limited resources and personnel, the RCMP’s ability to address pressing national and global security concerns is severely compromised. The Management Advisory Board, created in 2019 by the federal government to provide external advice to the RCMP commissioner, set up a task force in the fall of 2022 to study the federal policing program.

Overall, the report says budget and personnel shortfalls have left the RCMP “operationally limited,” restricting the number of cases it can take on annually.

Here are some more highlights from the report:

• “Canada and its people have already begun to see the repercussions of the federal policing program being stretched thin.”
• “Federal policing’s overall eroding capacity may have implications for the credibility of Canada’s federal police force and its investigations on the international stage.”
• “Ultimately, this may influence Canada’s overall approach and standing in international politics, including its ability to advance global priorities.”

Clearly, we cannot afford to wait any longer. Municipalities can ease the burden on our national security services by establishing municipal policing.

Several cities in Alberta already have their own police authorities, and the provincial government is providing funding for others interested in exploring this option. Grande Prairie is already in the process of establishing their own municipal police service.

No word on how many other municipalities have taken the government up on their offer.

Unfortunately, President of Alberta Municipalities Tyler Gandam (also Mayor of Wetaskiwin) is featured prominently on the National Police Federation’s “Keep Alberta RCMP” website. Interestingly, the Keep Alberta RCMP website doesn’t mention the fact that the advisory board even exists.

It doesn’t mention the report. The notion that our federal policing infrastructure teeters on the brink of instability while Gandam appears to be asleep at the wheel, is deeply disconcerting.

The safety and security of Albertans must remain our top priority.

We cannot afford to wait any longer. The time has come for the province to take swift and decisive measures to bolster policing capabilities in Alberta.

It’s time for Alberta to seriously consider the establishment of an Alberta Provincial Police Service.