VANCOUVER - Many Canadians still have faith in the RCMP, even though Mounties have been battered by several high-profile scandals, the force's latest annual opinion survey suggests.
The RCMP introduced two new questions in its latest annual public opinion survey, conducted last June: "I have trust and confidence in the RCMP?" and "The RCMP has strong, reliable leaders?"
Results show that 84 per cent of the 5,800 Canadians surveyed by Harris-Decima trust the department, while 69 per cent agree that the Mounties have strong and reliable leaders.
But the confidence levels of those surveyed in British Columbia, the Yukon and around Ottawa were well below the national average.
Only about half the people responded that they believed the force had strong, reliable leaders. Sixty-eight per cent of Yukoners reported they trusted the force while only slightly more in British Columbia said they did.
The polling results were released following an access to information request.
The RCMP has commissioned surveys of the public, its contract and policing partners, and "stakeholders" such as government departments and non-governmental organizations since 2003. The feedback helps shape management practices and business planning.
The large public opinion survey is believed to be accurate to within 1.3 per cent, 19 times out of 20.
Cpl. Annie Linteau, spokeswoman for the force in British Columbia, was asked about the poorer results in the province, where the RCMP's contract with the provincial government is up for renewal in 2012. She would only say that public trust is vital to public safety.
Around the time the survey was conducted early last summer, Thomas Braidwood, the head of B.C.'s inquiry into the 2007 death of Robert Dziekanski, had condemned the four Mounties who had shocked the Polish immigrant with a Taser at Vancouver's airport. Meanwhile the daughter of Raymond Silverfox, a Yukon man who died while in an RCMP drunk tank in 2008, launched a lawsuit against the force for negligence.
Criminologist and former Mountie Rob Gordon at Simon Fraser University said the low views in Western Canada and Ottawa are no surprise.
"There's been a series of events which I don't think the RCMP responded well to, which they can't compensate for by simply arranging for more musical rides," Gordon said.
"It clearly is reflecting a shift of some kind."
He suggested the force's poor reputation is due to problematic recruitment, retiring officers, and the high-profile incidents of misconduct like the Dziekanski case. More recent events including the enduring criticism of Commissioner William Elliott's management skills, the Kelowna, B.C., officer caught on videotape kicking a suspect in the face last January, and the 11-year-old boy who was stunned by an RCMP Taser last month haven't helped.
Many of these incidents involved fresh graduates from training in Regina and were thrust into situations they were ill-equipped for, Gordon said. The increasing number of retiring officers compounds the problem.
"A lot of early learning involves learning at the feet of older, more experienced officers who passed on a heck of a lot of street knowledge," he said. "None of that is available anymore."
Rick Parent, Gordon's colleague at Simon Fraser and a former municipal police officer, also questioned the RCMP's training practises because officers are taught at the depot in Regina, and not in the areas where they will eventually police.
"Your training is all done in a kind of generic test tube," Parent said. "When you roll out to specific areas of the country ... you have to meet (their) unique needs."
Other new questions surfaced in the 2010 survey on appropriate and transparent investigation of public complaints, open communication and accountability. These netted fair national results of between 64 and 76 per cent, with below-average figures in B.C., the Yukon and the capital.
Compared to the 2009 public survey, the RCMP remained about the same in professionalism and honesty -- 84 per cent and 79 per cent in 2010, respectively).
But while the force got a generally good response for the way officers prevent crime, the marks were poorer in 2010 than in 2009.
In terms of contributing to safer and healthier aboriginal communities, 74 per cent said the force did a good job in 2010, compared to 80 per cent the year before.
