WESTLOCK - At least publicly, the majority of Westlock County councillors have yet to decide whether they support the formation of a provincial police force, or keeping status quo with the RCMP, saying they want more information.
At their Jan. 18 governance and priorities meeting, councillors discussed the KeepAlbertaRCMP Community Engagement Tour, which stopped at the Westlock Legion Jan. 10. There National Police Federation (NPF) northern and prairie region directors Kevin Halwa and Jeff McGowan, as well as vice-president Michelle Boutin, presented the “The RCMP: Alberta’s Provincial Police Service” report to about 20 residents, which included county Coun. Sherri Provencal and Athabasca-Barrhead-Westlock MLA Glenn van Dijken.
Calling it a “big conversation” Provencal said there are a lot of questions that haven’t been answered by the provincial government, ranging from the loss of the RCMP buildings, to who would handle and pay for policing of reservations. Provencal said she has some personal “concerns” with a provincial police force, but also has some “reservations” about the RCMP.
“I’ve said this in an e-mail before, you’ve been presented with one side of a position. The provincial government has not yet put any data out yet,” said Coun. Stuart Fox-Robinson. “There’s a lot of political rhetoric here and the comment that I would make right now is that we need to remember how we’re funded.
“The provincial government is looking into it. I have real concerns that we are about to be asked to take a position on this … we need to be careful we don’t bite a hand off here as well and we have to be careful with what we do with this information.”
In October 2020 the Government of Alberta hired PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC) to put together a $2 million report that was released in November 2021 titled APPS Transition Study, which explored the feasibility of a provincial police force to replace the RCMP.
Currently, the RCMP costs the province $595 million annually, of which $188 million is provided via the federal government. The two proposed models outlined in the study would cost Albertans $734 million and $759 million without any federal funding, while hiring fewer officers.
Using Surrey B.C., which is transitioning to its own police force as an example, Halwa highlighted concerns regarding the switch going over budget. In Surrey, the transition cost was tagged at $19 million, but ballooned to $80 million, a 400 per cent increase. The Alberta study anticipates transition costs of over $300 million which Halwa claims could top $1 billion if it goes over budget.
Westlock will be given an opportunity to hear the province’s side during an APPS engagement session Feb. 17 at the Westlock Inn which will focus on “key concepts presented in the transition study.”
“We have to have all the data to make decisions so I would be cautious with this. Whatever stance council wants to make I think we need to be clear and have all the data,” said Coun. Jared Stitsen. “Let’s make an educated decision.”
Added reeve Christine Wiese: “To just jump on board without the information won’t be good for our municipality or residents. We need information from both sides so we’re able to make a clear decision for what’s best for our municipality.”
