Alberta promises 275 more rural front-line officers with provincial police strategy

The Alberta government continues to make its case for a provincial police force to replace RCMP, saying it would add hundreds of front-line officers to small detachments.

The United Conservative government outlined its blueprint for more police in rural Alberta today. It says 275 front-line police officers would be added to Alberta's 42 smallest detachments.

Justice Minister Tyler Shandro said that as it stands, there is no minimum number of officers at RCMP detachments and a made-in-Alberta police force would provide better policing for all regions and improve response times.

"This report reveals that the current deployment model is bureaucratic and heavily centralized," he said in a news release.

"We can also make access to mental health, addictions, family crisis services and other specialized police services more accessible to all communities across Alberta."

Shandro said the proposed model would have 65 to 85 community detachments that would have a minimum of 10 and a maximum of 80 officers working in them.

The plan also includes service-hub detachments with between 48 and 192 officers, as well as three urban detachments to serve larger communities and function as regional headquarters.

The report outlines how an Alberta Police Service would extend dedicated support to self-administered First Nations police services through its service-hub detachments, making it easier for them to establish and maintain their own forces.

The government is deciding next steps following the release of a third-party analysis last fall of the proposal for an Alberta-run provincial police force instead of using the RCMP in rural areas and some smaller cities.

The PricewaterhouseCoopers report said it costs Alberta about $500 million a year for the RCMP.

Ottawa chips in $170 million under a cost-sharing agreement.

That report said if Alberta decides to go it alone, it would cost about $735 million each year, on top of $366 million in startup costs.

But it said there is potential for more cost-effective law enforcement by using existing human resources and the government's financial services to save money, and by drafting agreements with municipal forces to share specialized police services, including canine units, air support and tactical squads.

Alberta has not yet made a decision on whether to proceed but wants to have a transition plan in place if Ottawa decides to end financial support for contract policing.