Policing in HRM

[Waye Mason]

So... RCMP and HPD?

1 - why is the discussion behind closed doors?  I know they are saying "it is a personnel issue" but ultimately everything the city does involves employees, so this argument could mean every discussion was in secret.

2 - why now?  In April we will know if Harper is downloading costs to the municipalities, which may make getting the RCMP out the right solution money wise.

3 - does the public really think that the cops will be driving to Cole Harbour from downtown Halifax?  If the debate was in public, I assume we would learn that HRPD will take over the Cole Harbour and Sackville detachments, the RCMP officers will be offered jobs, so in many ways, we are talking about a uniform change.

Just want to hear your thoughts.

[Gravitas]

Maybe it's because I don't understand enough about the issue, but this is one of those questions that I just haven't been able to get interested in. As a citizen, all I really care about is two things:

- Will the quality of policing remain the same?
- Will a change result in more or less costs to the municipality?

If there is no cost differential (especially when HRM's budget situation is as disastrous as it is), and response times remain decent, I honestly couldn't care less.

[Waye Mason]

I think a single force for urban/suburban Halifax makes sense.  I suspect that it does not make sense to take over rural, up the eastern shore.  

I did this map in google maps, it says it all, I think, the only one I am on the fence about is Tantallon.

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=107162203978532359265.00045f33ab1e41bcb44eb&t=h&z=9

[mr mom]

Status quo, did you expect anything else from these guys

[Gravitas]

Status quo, did you expect anything else from these guys

I didn't. And the more I hear about it, the more I'm confused. According to the Herald's story, this will cost HRM $24M more than it would have cost to dump the RCMP. At a time when HRM is facing a $30M deficit, this seems rather confusing. It seems like they caved to political pressure from the suburbs ... and it sounds like that political pressure was simply on the basis of not wanting change. There's no real reason behind it. One of the letters published in the Herald today reads:

The long-term costs [of getting rid of the RCMP] would include reduced quality of policing, increased opportunities for organized crime, more opportunity for corruption, and fewer resources in crisis situations.

RCMP are better trained to remain objective, cool-headed, and impartial. Their professionalism is necessary to effective policing. Local police forces come with less training, which can result in inappropriate responses in crisis situations such as happened at two recent high schools incidents.

The RCMP have access to national resources, information and expertise, and can provide necessary resources in a crisis (SwissAir, for example). Organized crime requires a national effort. The RCMP report to a national leader and the federal government.

I'd love to know the facts, because this just seems untrue. Is it really true that the RCMP are better trained? I doubt it. And if it is true, why shouldn't we just have the RCMP police the whole of HRM? If it were true that the RCMP were necessary to deal with national and organized crime, why would Toronto (and Ontario, for that matter) have its own police force (especially when there is far more organized crime there than here)?

The more I read, the more it seems to me that HRM has made a short-sighted, politically-motivated decision to preserve the status quo, which will have no material benefit, and will cost HRM taxpayers more.

[Waye Mason]

I wish we were having structured public debate about it.  I think that if rural HRM had to carry the $24 million additional cost in their taxes, they would think twice.  I don't think the argument has been framed very well, and again, we made a decision before the budget details are known federally.  Seems Mayor Kelly and the gang have put the cart before the horse...