It is not often that the feds come to the rescue of St. Albert taxpayers. But that is exactly what happened last week when RCMP Insp. Kevin Murray came to council and advised that there simply were no police officers available to St. Albert.
The costs of policing were justifiably of concern to several members of council in the current budget sittings. They are also of concern to ratepayers.
We all have great respect for our RCMP detachment and the great job they do in maintaining law and order in our community. There is no question that the police have a tough job but do it well. The costs of policing however, like all municipal costs, need to be weighed very carefully and balanced along with other priorities.
St. Albert has and has had for many years one of the lowest crime rates in the province. We want to keep it that way.
Nevertheless it is important to look at the numbers. In the last 12 years our population has grown by only 20 per cent yet the total staff complement for law enforcement has grown by nearly 70 per cent. The increase in the number of uniformed officers has increased by 40 per cent and the number of municipal enforcement staff has increased by 130 per cent.
Now certainly it can be argued that the roles of bylaw enforcement officers may have increased and the RCMP have extended their services into the school system and other areas. But really has the potential crime rate increased by 70 per cent? Has law enforcement increased by 70 per cent?
Another factor that may also add to the equation is the number of contract services we employ for such things as photo radar, and other outside entities. Are these part of the statistics? I note that we now employ a photo enforcement administrator and a photo enforcement clerk but do we also employ those guys that sit in their vehicles nabbing speeders?
In examining the statistics it appears that the largest additions to the uniformed staff complement is in the areas of watch constables and crime prevention constables. Somewhat surprisingly, there have been no additions to the drug section since it was formed in 2003.
The RCMP always seem to use the worn out excuse that they need to budget for more officers than they need because of the delays in getting replacements for members on sick leave, transfers etc. But this has been an argument for as long as I can remember and it is all relative to the previous year’s budget in any case. What organization can justify having a “buffer” of 10 per cent of their staff complement in case someone goes on sick leave or moves on to another job?
Certainly we have less uniformed officers per thousand population than other municipalities but our crime rate is much lower and continues to be much lower. That is a credit to the excellent job that our law enforcement team provides but is not a reason to justify the large staff increases year in and year out. Council needs to take control of the situation and set some limits on the rate of growth.
Another issue is the alleged need for more space for law enforcement. The present RCMP building on Boudreau and Bellerose was completed in 2002, which is just 10 years ago. Surely, in planning that building the then council planned for it to accommodate the detachment for more than 10 years. After all, the previous RCMP barracks lasted for about 30 years. The current RCMP headquarters is more than double the size of the former Hemingway building yet the police have outgrown their space requirements. Perhaps a reduction in law enforcement staff would solve the problem.
Once again, thanks to the feds for saving city council from making the tough decisions.
Ken Allred is a former St. Albert alderman and MLA.
