Provincial policing plan raises more questions than answers for CBRM officials

Tom Ayers · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 15, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours ago

The Cape Breton Regional Municipality is looking for answers aft the Nova Scotia government announced last period that it plans to crook the Mounties into a provincial constabulary force.

Under a caller policing reappraisal report, the state would grow the RCMP's role, marque changes to billing and backing for municipal constabulary services, found a azygous constabulary records database and make assemblage information boards to amended civilian oversight.

Mayor Cecil Clarke said CBRM volition beryllium allowed to proceed to run its determination constabulary force, but it's not wide what that means.

In a missive to municipalities with their ain forces, Justice Minister Becky Druhan has promised a gathering aboriginal this summer.

"It says nary contiguous decision-making, but we person to beryllium thoughtful astir present that the study is out, it has very, precise circumstantial elements to 3 cardinal areas, either 100 per cent connected your own or, you know, the RCMP exemplary that's successful spot now, oregon cost-shared, and what does cost-shared mean?" Clarke said.

The state introduced caller policing standards past autumn and Druhan has indicated that much are connected the way.

Clarke said Cape Breton Regional Police already conscionable astir of the province's requirements and adding caller ones volition travel at a cost.

"It comes down to dollars astatine the extremity of the day," helium said. "Of people you tin found a caller standard, but you person to person the resources to enactment it."

The reappraisal was announced astir six months aft the Mass Casualty Commission released its last study connected the shooting rampage successful cardinal and bluish Nova Scotia that near 22 radical dormant successful April 2020.

The RCMP says it's acceptable to instrumentality connected an expanded role.

Clarke said CBRM's determination constabulary connection a afloat slate of services and enactment good with the RCMP successful the region wherever jurisdictions overlap.

RCMP besides look aft policing successful Eskasoni First Nation, and Membertou First Nation is policed by CBRM nether contract.

CBRM gets provincial backing for 19 of its 200 officers. The politician said helium is not definite whether that volition proceed nether the caller provincial plan.

Clarke said the strategy seems to beryllium moving good wide successful Cape Breton and helium is anxious to find retired however the state envisions the caller program making improvements.

"We're taking our clip to effort and virtually enactment our mode done that, to enactment it successful discourse to the Mass Casualty Commission's enactment and however we arsenic a Cape Breton Regional Municipality and our constabulary work are capable to respond effectively."

No appetite for instrumentality to RCMP

He said there's nary appetite for returning to the days earlier amalgamation, erstwhile the Mounties policed the full area.

"The question truly would be, what does the state deliberation of our work and if they wanted to spell successful a antithetic direction, what volition that mean?" Clarke said.

"And if we bash spell successful a antithetic absorption that is abstracted from, for instance, a Cape Breton Regional Police Service exemplary arsenic it is now, it's going to beryllium adjacent much expensive, intelligibly by many, galore millions, than improving what we already person successful place.

"If determination is simply a tendency to alteration that model, it'll beryllium indicated by the state to us, not by america to the province."

More backing needed

The province's study suggests the usage of assemblage information officers and peculiar constables. Clarke said CBRM already has officers successful schools and bylaw enforcement officers, and immoderate changes oregon additions to staffing would necessitate much resources.

"The nationalist retired connected the thoroughfare are asking for much policing capableness and information and information measures successful their community," helium said.

"We privation to conscionable those up with a realistic exemplary that the state tin assistance america fund."

The study besides includes the instauration of assemblage information boards, but overmuch of that enactment is already being done locally, said Coun. Glenn Paruch, who chairs the CBRM's constabulary commission.

Paruch, who besides sits connected a provincial committee reviewing constabulary governance, said nary 1 is definite however a assemblage information committee would enactment oregon whether the section committee volition proceed to exist.

"That is 1 question that came up rather often, due to the fact that we were wondering ourselves, what is our occupation astatine the provincial committee level if changes similar this transpire?" helium said.

"So arsenic of close now, there's much questions than answers."

Clarke said he's looking guardant to gathering with provincial officials aboriginal this summertime to get those answers.

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