Municipal police chiefs say Nova Scotia RCMP expansion counters national trend

Haley Ryan · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 16, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours ago

Municipal constabulary chiefs successful Nova Scotia accidental the province's determination to grow the RCMP moves successful a absorption other the remainder of Canada and could pb to little effectual services for residents.

A Deloitte reappraisal into the operation of policing successful Nova Scotia released past period suggested that Nova Scotia should make a provincial constabulary unit offering some peculiar services and section policing to amended service the public.

In response, the PC authorities is expanding the RCMP to run arsenic the provincial service, alternatively than make an autarkic unit similar the Ontario Provincial Police oregon Quebec's Sûreté.

The reappraisal said determination is country successful specified a exemplary for municipal forces that tin conscionable provincial standards.

But the state said municipal forces that request entree to peculiar services — similar exigency effect oregon dive teams — to conscionable those standards must wage for the RCMP to proviso them successful caller contracts.

Chief Ryan Leil of New Glasgow Regional Police, speaking connected behalf of the municipal chiefs' caucus successful the Nova Scotia Chiefs of Police Association, said they are acrophobic this caller requirement could travel with a large terms tag, forcing towns with their ain departments to power to the RCMP.

"Why is the state taking that autonomy distant from the municipal constabulary agencies to beryllium capable to collaborate and enactment 1 another?" Leil said Monday.

He said municipal agencies supply high-quality policing successful municipality areas wherever residents are utilized to seeing effect times of conscionable a fewer minutes, portion the Deloitte reappraisal noted radical successful agrarian areas — which the RCMP usually constabulary — complained of dilatory effect times.

"We deliberation that we are good represented successful our communities, and we privation to put successful what is moving … the models that we person presently successful our municipalities are working," Leil said.

He said it makes consciousness to person aggregate forces with peculiar services to connection crossed the state arsenic contingencies, truthful determination are different options if an RCMP work is tied up.

The reappraisal recommended starting with the RCMP arsenic the provincial constabulary service, due to the fact that this would mean "fewer costs and risks" owed to existent RCMP agreements with the national government. The existent RCMP declaration policing agreements with provinces, territories and municipalities expire successful 2032.

But the reappraisal besides said the state could yet determination to an autarkic provincial constabulary work that would let for much oversight and control.

The policing reappraisal was recommended by the Mass Casualty Commission, which was highly captious of the RCMP effect to the 2020 Nova Scotia wide shooting that claimed 22 lives, and called for organizational change.

Leil said helium understands that an autarkic provincial unit would not beryllium a "light lift," and would beryllium precise costly to acceptable up with the request for caller grooming facilities and infrastructure, but it has go the inclination crossed Canada.

Besides established models successful Ontario and Quebec, Alberta announced successful April it was moving to make a provincial constabulary entity. Just earlier leaving the premier minister's bureau earlier this year, Justin Trudeau said provinces should modulation distant from the RCMP arsenic declaration policing.

Within the Atlantic region, the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary precocious took implicit territories from the RCMP following concerns the Mounties were not providing capable resources.

"Our province, our state has been done immoderate precise unfortunate experiences, and we've seen sedate impacts to nationalist information implicit the past fig of years," Leil said.

"We shouldn't shy distant from doing the close thing, adjacent if it is the astir magnitude of work and the top magnitude of concern we person to make."

Scott Feener, constabulary main for the Town of Bridgewater, said they created their ain constabulary canine portion and different services years ago, due to the fact that it would instrumentality days for the Nova Scotia RCMP to nonstop requested resources.

Feener said he's acrophobic the Mounties volition instrumentality years to standard up to the staffing levels needed to decently constabulary their existent areas and guarantee they person the peculiar services that tin enactment an full state successful a timely manner.

"My imaginativeness would beryllium our municipal servicing the mode it is, oregon services increasing successful size," Feener said. "If they determination distant from it, determination volition beryllium a alteration successful work … our nationalist information wrong municipality volition deplete."

Justice Minister Becky Druhan said successful an interrogation Tuesday that she has assurance successful the Nova Scotia RCMP's "ability to measurement up and deliver what we're asking them to do."

She said the Deloitte review's recommendations, similar bringing successful 1 grounds strategy for police, and expanding the fig of peculiar constables alternatively than sworn constabulary members, volition amended the prime of policing successful Nova Scotia.

When asked astir the nationalist inclination toward autarkic provincial forces, Druhan said that "would instrumentality important extended resources" and Nova Scotia would person to archetypal grow the RCMP exemplary into a provincial force, adjacent if it wanted to spell successful that direction.

"Our absorption is truly connected Nova Scotians and our provincial scenery successful Nova Scotia astir policing is precise antithetic than the different provinces," Druhan said.

"Nova Scotia is unsocial successful a assortment of ways — both the mode successful which policing has unfolded historically, besides our geography and our population."

When asked astir the province's request to person municipal forces declaration caller peculiar services from the RCMP, Druhan said it is simply a "reflection" of the review's constituent that a provincial work is the champion mode to supply consistency.

Audits connected each municipal forces and the RCMP connected those provincial policing standards statesman this fall, and Druhan said the state volition enactment with municipalities "to find adjacent steps pursuing that."

Druhan had a gathering with the Town of Bridgewater connected Tuesday that included the mayor, main administrative serviceman and seat of the town's constabulary board, but not the constabulary chief.

The curate said she volition conscionable with the remainder of the municipalities served by their ain constabulary departments successful the adjacent fewer weeks astir their policing needs, and what a caller backing look volition look like.

A connection from Druhan said her bureau appreciates the Nova Scotia chiefs' perspectives, and portion her existent absorption is connected gathering with municipalities, she plans to scope retired to chiefs successful the "near future."