RCMP or a new force? Moncton area set to debate future of policing services

The Moncton region is about to debate who should police it for the second time in just over a decade.

Moncton, Dieppe and Riverview, policed by the Codiac Regional RCMP, voted to carry out a review of policing services. A consultant report will be made public Thursday.

"Basically, do we keep the RCMP or do we find an alternative police service?" Moncton Coun. Daniel Bourgeois said Tuesday.

The report sets the stage for a series of meetings about that question. One of the first will be in Moncton city hall Thursday starting at 9 a.m., when the report and its findings will be made public.

"It will just be the beginning of a conversation on what that modern public safety police service should look like in our community," Moncton Mayor Dawn Arnold said in an interview. 

Each community is expected to debate the issue before a final decision. It's not yet clear when those final decisions will take place.

The report is expected to compare costs and benefits of switching from the Codiac RCMP to another force and the number of officers required to police the three communities. 

The report, prepared by Perivale + Taylor Consulting at a cost of $265,707, was triggered by a Moncton council vote in 2021.

A motion by councillors Bourgeois and Paul Richard cited "significant" salary increases resulting from the RCMP's first union contract and broader provincial and national discussions about the future of the RCMP.

The debate about whether to keep the RCMP has been unfolding in multiple communities across New Brunswick and Canada. 

Surrey, B.C., with the largest RCMP detachment in the country, opted to switch to a municipal force. It was a decision that became an election issue, with a new mayor vowing to stop the change. The provincial government ruled earlier this year that the transition would go ahead. 

Earlier this year, Grande Prairie, Alta., also voted to drop the RCMP. 

Grande Prairie, with 110 officers, expects the five-year transition to cost about $19 million. The Alberta government has pledged to cover up to $9.7 million of the cost. 

Codiac has a budget for 152 officers.

Arnold said Moncton has yet to talk to the province about whether it would provide funding for transition costs if the city opted to switch away from the RCMP.

Moncton had a municipal police force until the late 1990s, when the province intervened and disbanded it, forcing a switch to the RCMP. 

Moncton Coun. Bryan Butler was a member of the municipal force and then a Mountie until retirement in 2013.

He said there are three questions he'll be considering through the debate: The adequacy of the existing force, its affordability and its accountability. 

He said the region, one of the fastest-growing metro areas in the country, doesn't have a traffic enforcement unit. 

"You know, there's something wrong," Butler said.

"So, that's why we're here. That's why we want to see what is the best way to have a modern police force here. If somebody can tell me that it's the RCMP, I have no problem. All I want is the people to be safe."

Butler said he's been closely following what's unfolded in communities such as Grande Prairie, though he noted they are further ahead in the process than the Moncton area.

"We're not there yet," Butler said.  

"It's just that I think it's important for the citizens, citizens of Moncton, Riverview and Dieppe to know that there is a possibility that it could happen, that we have the ability to do it."

The last review of policing services in Moncton happened in 2010, when the cost of the transition was a factor in sticking with the RCMP. 

After that review, a 20-year contract between the Mounties and the Codiac Regional Policing Authority was signed. The contract ending in 2032 allows either party to withdraw from the agreement by providing two years notice.

Arnold said the debate that's about to unfold will be an important one.

"It's an enormous budgetary line item," Arnold said.

"It is an item that citizens are certainly very concerned about, not just here but across the country, and all over North America actually. Policing is a very hot topic, with a lot of very passionate views, so we need to dig in deeply and find out what is the very best service we can provide in our community."

Policing cost could rise next year

The cost of the Codiac RCMP is split between the three municipalities, with Moncton covering more than 70 per cent of the budget. 

The proposed budget for 2024 would see the cost rise to $47.8 million, up by $3.9 million from this year. That proposed budget has yet to be approved by the three councils.

Separately, Moncton is overseeing construction of a new police station. That $57.2 million building on Albert Street is expected to be complete in 2025. 

A report to Moncton council in 2021 suggested another police force could use the building, but it would likely be too small for a municipal force over the long run.

The RCMP rely on specialized units, such as forensics, located elsewhere in Moncton and support services at J Division headquarters in Fredericton. Those wouldn't be located in the new building, so space for them wasn't included in the design.