March 7, 2024
Ottawa, ON – The following statement from NPF President and CEO, Brian Sauvé, is in response to the Government of Canada’s response to the Public Order Emergency Commission’s (POEC) recommendations following the Public Order Emergency Commission of Inquiry.
“The January/February 2022 protests represented a profound failure to maintain public order in our nation’s capital. The grounds of Parliament Hill are the physical and symbolic heart of our country and are frequent targets for protests and potential terrorist threats. The safety and security of Parliamentarians, public service staff, visitors, and Ottawa’s residents is critically important. Yet, time and again, despite repeated calls for change, there has been no movement toward improving policing and security in the Parliamentary Precinct.
Yesterday’s response by the Government of Canada to the POEC’s recommendations is another status quo statement. It does nothing to further an important conversation about security on Parliament Hill.
As participants in the POEC, we brought forward recommendations to strategically re-evaluate jurisdictional boundaries to reinstate the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) as the police of jurisdiction in and around Parliament Hill, driven by the need for a swift and efficient deployment of policing resources during crises that would leverage the RCMP’s extensive training, experience, and surge capacity. The NPF firmly believes, as evident through the POEC hearings, that had the RCMP been policing the Parliamentary Precinct, there would have been a different outcome to the 2022 Ottawa Convoy protests.
We know that Parliamentarians of all stripes are calling for increased security measures, both on Parliament Hill and in their constituencies in response to ever-increasing threats to their safety. Yet, to date, nothing has changed to effectively answer these calls.
We are again voicing our recommendation to re-evaluate the jurisdictional boundaries in and around Parliament Hill and reinstate the RCMP as the police of jurisdiction to bolster policing and security. We are calling on all parliamentarians and government officials, who are the most impacted by this lack of action, to stand together and demand change.”
About the National Police Federation:
The National Police Federation (NPF) represents ~20,000 RCMP Members serving across Canada and internationally. We are the largest police union in Canada. The NPF is focused on improving public safety for all Canadians, including our Members by advocating for much-needed investment in the public safety continuum. This includes investments in police resourcing and modern equipment, as well as social programs including health, addiction, and housing supports to enhance safety and livability in the many communities we serve, large and small, across Canada.
For more information: https://npf-fpn.com/
NPF: LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
Media Contact
Sarah Kavanagh
Coordinator, Media Relations
[email protected]
(604) 842-6864
