‘There’s obviously concern’: RMA says details lacking on provincial police service

Rural Municipalities of Alberta President Kara Westerlund speaks with Alberta Primetime host Michael Higgins about a provincial police service.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Michael Higgins: What do you make of the introduction of this independent agency police service and how do you see it fitting into the rural law enforcement landscape?

Kara Westerlund: The announcement did catch us off guard, but that is pretty much the norm these days when it comes to anything to do with policing. We were unaware of the changes that were going to be announced and that are happening, and we still think if we’re going to be making changes municipalities need to have a seat at the table and make sure that we are part of every step and a part of the process as this moves along.

MH: We’ve heard repeatedly from the Rural Municipalities of Alberta in our conversations over the past number of years that your members do not want provincial police.

How has the Smith government addressed that in the build up to this announcement?

KW: At this point, we haven’t heard or seen anything different in the announcements that have been made. There has been little to no communication between the minister’s office and our association and our members for that matter.

In the opening comments you heard the minister talk about RCMP or policing services not being used in the municipalities. Or those calls going unanswered. It’s interesting because we have seen no plans, no concrete information or data about how they’re going to recruit officers, how they’re going to deploy the officers.

It’s interesting to see that the announcement that was just made with the new chief, that they’re going to be based out of Calgary. If you’re trying to service and help rural Alberta, don’t you think that those type of positions and people should be out in the rural area? But here we are.

MH: The government references the future of policing. With that in mind, how worried are your members about the police services agreement with the RCMP ending in 2032?

KW: There’s obviously concern. We say 2032 but it’s going to come sooner rather than later. Right now, we just have a lot more questions and concerns and very valid concerns. The province seems to be pushing ahead and moving forward with their plans but there’s no details.

Where’s the feasibility studies? Where’s the data to prove what they’re proposing is going to be better than what we’ve got? Absolutely we all want to increase service levels in our municipalities, but who’s going to pay for it? What’s it going to look like? What does it mean?

It’s great to make these announcements, but there’s no meat behind what’s being talked about, and we have a real concern. You heard the minister talk about shortages of officers but that’s not unique to the RCMP. Calgary Police Service, Edmonton Police Service any police service in Alberta, municipal or provincial, are having struggles, and right across the country. Actually, it’s a North America issue of having this recruitment issue.

We haven’t seen or heard what they’re going to do different on how they’re going to attract more people into the profession. We’re willing to work on some of those issues and some of those gaps, but don’t throw the baby out with the bath water.

We’ve got a judicial problem. I think that’s probably the root of what we’re facing, not only in the rural areas but in our province and in our country, is when you’ve got a revolving door and bail issues, and it’s the same handful of criminals creating all the issues. Creating a new police force isn’t going to solve those issues.

MH: To what degree do you see the government working with any of the municipalities that do express interest in the sheriffs? Could there be financial incentives from the province?

KW: That’s the other piece. That’s a good question. We don’t know what that’s going to look like. We don’t know what the cost is. We don’t know who’s paying. We all know who’s paying, that’s the taxpayers. There’s only one taxpayer, and when it comes down to the municipal government, is it going to come out of our coffers, or is it coming out of the provincial coffers?

There’s talk of some grants out there about studies and starting up these types of police force, but who’s going to be there to pay the bills? When you build something, that’s the cheap part. The expensive part comes with the operations and the ongoing operating costs of this type of organization, and there’s no clear path on who’s paying and where it’s coming from.

MH: On that financial front, how does the sheriff’s announcement play into discussions around the current police funding model? There is a review underway in that regard, is there not?

KW: There is and there was a series of engagements that were supposed to take place that were very poorly advertised. A lot of our members had reached out to us, or we had residents in the area reach out to us as elected officials to let us know they were going on. They’ve since been either paused or made virtual. We weren’t even contacted or reached out to directly to actually be a part of those engagements.

We hear rumors that municipalities are facing a 57 per cent increase in the police funding model. So what is that for? Where is it coming from? Where’s the detailed data sheets that prove that’s needed? Where is it going? Does it mean more officers and boots on the ground officers?

Does it mean we’re getting more data analysts who analyze the behind-the-scenes part of the judicial system? Does it mean we’re getting more crown prosecutors? We’re not sure.

The other piece to it is, if you’re going to see an increase like that, we expect change. We expect service level changes in our communities. We started paying several years ago and we’re not even seeing the service level promises that were being made back then come to fruition either. So we are looking and we have a lot more questions right now than answers.