Halifax buying armoured rescue vehicle for police

Halifax will buy an armoured rescue vehicle for its municipal police force, which councillors say is an important move to keep officers safe.

On Friday, Halifax's budget committee discussed the armoured rescue vehicle. The majority of council voted to keep the $639,000 needed to fund it in this year's budget, with only councillors Shawn Cleary and Virginia Hinch voting against it.

Halifax Regional Police (HRP) have said the vehicle could pull civilians or officers from dangerous situations like shootings, but will be mostly used by the city's emergency response team for high-risk calls involving weapons.

Those cases could include approaching a person with a weapon barricaded in a home, carrying out arrest warrants for people accused of murder, or hostage situations.

"I care about the public's safety and I care about our serving members. In particular, I care about their safety and health, and well-being," said Coun. Becky Kent.

Multiple residents spoke passionately in opposition of the vehicle to the board of police commissioners and councillors at budget committee over the past weeks and months. They said they had lost trust in HRP and were concerned the vehicle could be used against civilians protesting, while also suggesting the money should be better spent elsewhere.

Coun. Tony Mancini said he understands that many people and their families have been traumatized by police. But Mancini said he also heard from people in his district who support the vehicle, and want police to have the proper equipment.

"In saying that, if police are doing something wrong they should be taken to task for that, and I'll be the first one to line up and say that's the case," Mancini said.

A staff report said policies around when and how the armoured rescue vehicle will be used will be created by both HRP and the police board. 

Halifax police currently use the provincial RCMP's tactical armoured vehicle for high-risk cases with the emergency response team, but last year it was unavailable 33 per cent of the time due to maintenance or being used on RCMP calls.

The report also said the armoured vehicle "would not be used for routine crowd control or demonstrations." Of the 197 demonstrations that Halifax police responded to in some form between January 2023 and February 2025, the RCMP's armoured vehicle was not used in any of them.

Lack of rescue vehicle prompts complaint 

The city is also facing an occupational health and safety complaint from the Halifax police union about not having an armoured rescue vehicle. The provincial Labour Department told CBC News earlier this month it has been involved in an advisory role, and would "continue monitoring the outcome to ensure compliance is achieved."

Municipal lawyer John Traves said Friday that the municipal council has a legal obligation "to adequately provide for the provisioning of the police force."

"It kind of almost doesn't matter what we decide today, because in my opinion we're going to get ordered to buy this anyway, possibly with a fine," said Austin.

HRP Chief Don MacLean told council that the force has needed this type of vehicle for years, but it's become especially pressing since the emergency response team became a full-time group in 2023.

Cities around Canada including Montreal, Calgary, Fredericton, Saint John, and Regina all have similar rescue vehicles.

Councillors will continue budget discussions next week.