Trudeau pushes for RCMP reform during final days in office
During his final days in office, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is pushing for long-promised reform to the RCMP.
OTTAWA â During his final days in office, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is pushing for long-promised reform to the RCMP.
A government report released Monday, which highlights concerns about Canadaâs capacity to meet âthe new threat environment,â says itâs time to modernize the police service to focus on âthe most serious forms of criminality.â
It says the governmentâs vision should be to establish the RCMP as a âworld class, intelligence-led, federal policing organization.â
In an interview, Trudeau told CBC News that the RCMP is âstrainedâ and that he has been âtrying to do this since the very beginning.â
The report, published on the Public Safety Canada website, made four key recommendations including asking the RCMP to focus on the most serious crimes affecting Canada, like those that transcend a specific provincial or territorial jurisdiction or relate to national security.
It also said the RCMP should prioritize the recruitment of specialized skills and prepare people to become âfederal investigatorsâ and that investments are needed in the RCMPâs federal policing capacity, with other levels of government needing to consider âsimilar increases.â
It said the government should separate contract and federal policing budgets and work closely with provinces to support âa transition away from contract policing.â
The report said the expiration of current police services agreements in 2032 presents the âfirst opportunity for implementing this next phase of policing in Canadaâ and that work to define provincial needs and solutions should start now.
There have been calls to reform the RCMP for years.
In 2018, the Trudeau government directed former RCMP commissioner Brenda Lucki to modernize and reform the RCMPâs culture, protect employees from harassment and workplace violence and foster reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples.
The Liberalsâ 2021 platform promised RCMP reform, stating the importance of ensuring âstronger external oversight and bringing about cultural change to eliminate harassment within its own ranks.â
Following a 2020 mass shooting in Nova Scotia that claimed 22 lives, a public inquiry formally known as the Mass Casualty Commission found widespread failures in how the RCMP responded. It issued 130 non-binding recommendations to improve public safety, a majority of which apply in some form to the Mounties.
In 2023, a review from the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians said that federal policing was not as âeffective, efficient, flexible or accountable as it needs to be to protect Canada and Canadians from the most significant national security and criminal threats.â
The governmentâs March 10 report said Canada should work with territorial leaders and Indigenous partners to âdefine a new policing model.â
âUltimately bridging the gap between threats facing Canada and criminalsâ capability will require not just federal government leadership and investment, but achieving genuine collective responsibility with all levels of government and their law enforcement agencies,â the report said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 10, 2025.
Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press