25 more RCMP officers recommended for Moncton region to address public safety concerns

A leaked presentation reveals a recommendation to significantly increase the number of Codiac Regional RCMP officers policing the Moncton area.

The Codiac Regional Policing Authority has recommended adding 25 officers to the 147 it has now, as well an additional 18 civilian staff. The authority oversees the force that polices Moncton, Dieppe and Riverview.

The recommendation follows rising concern about public safety and a study looking at whether to switch to another police force for the Moncton area.

The proposal is expected to be presented publicly at the authority's Sept. 15 board meeting and would require approval by the three municipal councils during budget deliberations this fall. 

Don Moore, the policing authority board chair, declined to comment on the specifics before next week's meeting.

Moore said the policing authority is preparing different "budget options" for consideration by the communities.

Mayors of Moncton, Dieppe and Riverview wouldn't comment Wednesday.

The recommendation was made at an Aug. 10 tri-community council meeting. The secretive meetings bring together council and staff from the three communities for discussions of common issues, though the public is barred from attending.

The recommendation calls for 10 more members of a community policing unit, 10 officers to revive the area's disbanded traffic unit and to increase visibility, and five focused on drug and property crimes. 

The presentation says the civilians would include three court personnel, five investigation assistants, two analysts, three front desk/information processors, two communications positions, and three positions at the operational communications centre which takes calls from the public and talk to officers.

The total cost of adding 43 positions was not given. 

In July, Moncton council was told a single officer and their equipment costs $183,000, meaning 25 more officers would cost about $4.58 million.

The policing authority's 2022 budget was $39.2 million, with about 70.7 per cent covered by Moncton, 18.3 per cent by Dieppe and the remainder by Riverview.

In 2019, Statistics Canada reported that Codiac had one of the smallest contingents of officers per capita and one of the largest percentage of officers nearing retirement. 

Recently released crime statistics indicating the Moncton region has the third highest crime rate among metropolitan areas in the country fuelled calls for more officers, though the region's crime rate was higher in 2019.

The number of officers has routinely been raised as an issue by Moncton Deputy Mayor Bryan Butler. 

"We need more police officers," Butler said July 18. 

He made the comments during a meeting on a public safety plan hat recommended more RCMP officers in neighbourhoods following a series of community meetings in Moncton's west end.

The policing authority's recommendation to increase staffing stemmed from consultations that began last year with more than 80 individuals and organizations in the region as part of developing a new strategic plan.

Moncton-based marketing and communications firm Portfolio Solutions carried out the consultations and produced a report.

The report says common concerns include a lack of visibility of police officers, perceptions officers no longer respond to property crime, and lack of communication. There is also a concern about vigilante justice.

"In summary, the stakeholders engaged for this exercise believe strongly that the current police service in Greater Moncton lacks the visibility and community connectedness required to adequately deliver the policing services that residents and businesses are looking for," the report says.

Drugs, homelessness, mental health concerns

Organizations consulted indicated the rising safety and security issues are due to increased drug availability, a growing homeless population, and a growing challenge with mental health problems. 

"Others added that there is an impression that, even when RCMP come to a situation dealing with homeless or mental health challenged individuals, nothing happens and there is no followup," the report states.

The consultant's report says anecdotes were given about businesses and residents that have stopped reporting problems to RCMP because police seem "uninterested in dealing with the situation or they just don't care."

It's unclear how readily the RCMP will be able to fill the Mountie positions if the recommendation is approved. 

Early in the pandemic, RCMP temporarily halted training at its Depot centre in Saskatchewan. 

Manitoba's justice minister last month wrote a letter to the federal minister of public safety, who oversees the RCMP, expressing concern about vacant RCMP positions in that province.

"Recent information provided by the RCMP suggests that over the next two years it is unlikely that the number of new recruits will be sufficient to fill even retirement vacancies," the letter posted on Twitter states.

Moore, the Codiac authority board chair, said he believes the RCMP would be able to fill new positions if they are approved.

He said the New Brunswick RCMP commanding officer has told him and the three mayors that half the positions could be filled within three months, with the rest filled within a year as is contractually required.