Ottawa, ON — The following is a statement from Brian Sauvé, President of the National Police Federation, regarding the Speech from the Throne that opened the second session of the 43rd Parliament:
The National Police Federation and its Members are committed to serving all Canadians from coast to coast to coast. Throughout the pandemic, RCMP Officers have been hard at work implementing emergency management and public safety orders from numerous governments while also actively working to safely police and serve their communities.
We agree that all Canadians need and deserve safe, healthy, and vibrant communities to call home: in fact, it is the essential reason why our Members choose to serve. We support the Government’s commitment to strengthen measures to control the flow of illegal guns in Canada. A dedicated increase in resources and funding is needed at the RCMP Training Academy (Depot) to train more Members for the front line to address cross-border firearms trafficking.
We also support improvements to civilian oversight of law enforcement with fair, transparent, timely and thorough investigations into complaints by Canadians regarding Member Conduct.
Finally, the NPF continues to support the implementation of Body Worn Cameras (BWC’s) across the RCMP. We asked the Government and all parties to include resources and funding for BWC’s and Depot training capacity in the upcoming federal 2021 Budget in a priority letter sent earlier this month.
Over the past few years, our Members have experienced new and unforeseen funding, recruitment, and resource challenges. At the same time, our Members continue to meet a significant increase in demand for services that go beyond crime prevention and law enforcement. The NPF looks forward to working with Government on policies and solutions to better resource our Members so they can continue to keep our communities safe for all Canadians.
About the National Police Federation:
The National Police Federation (NPF) was certified to represent ~20,000 RCMP members serving across Canada and internationally in the summer of 2019. The NPF is the largest police labour relations organization in Canada, the second largest in North America and is the first independent national association to represent RCMP members. The NPF will focus on improving public safety in Canada by negotiating the first-ever Collective Agreement for RCMP officers, and on increasing resources, equipment, training and supports for our members who have been under-funded for far too long. Better resourcing and support for the RCMP will enhance community safety and livability in the communities we serve, large and small, across Canada.
For more information: https://npf-fpn.com/.
Media contact:
Brian Sauvé
President
National Police Federation
[email protected]
T: 604-861-2684