WHEREAS the municipal policing agreement for BC expires March 31, 2012 and preliminary discussions between the Province and the federal government have already started; AND WHEREAS the RCMP is the primary provider of police services in BC, with detachments in all but 12 BC municipalities; AND WHEREAS municipalities are uniquely positioned to understand the impacts of policing in their communities, are held accountable for safety in their communities and are responsible for the costs of policing now or soon will be through legislative changes to the Police Act requiring all municipalities, regardless of size, to pay a portion of policing costs; AND WHEREAS municipalities in other provinces have the ability to negotiate directly with the federal government for renewal of their policing agreements: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Union of British Columbia Municipalities request that the provincial and federal governments develop and implement a process for negotiating the new policing agreement that includes full municipal participation.
Ministry of Public Safety Solicitor General The Province of British Columbia Province and the other provinces, territories and federal government, are taking a proactive approach to RCMP contract renewal in order to bring certainty to all parties well before the expiry date in 2012. The renewal process will provide an opportunity to craft new agreements that will be more effective and more supportive of the Provinces and communities vision for police services. The Province will be engaging municipalities in discussions prior to and throughout the negotiation process.
MINISTRY OF PUBLIC SAFETY EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS Municipal Police Service Agreements MPSAs for RCMP-provided service form an essential part of contract policing. In addition, the federal government has also entered into agreements for provincial, territorial, Aboriginal and airport RCMP services. It is recognized that municipal officials have a unique and valuable understanding of policing issues in their communities. Given provincial jurisdiction for the administration of justice, including provincial and municipal policing, the federal government has agreed with the provinces that they will have the lead on discussions with their respective municipalities. I understand that British Columbia is open to consultations on working out the necessary arrangements for municipal participation. As you may be aware, traditionally, municipal interests were represented by their respective Contract Advisory Committee CAC provincial representatives. At a recent CAC meeting, contracting partners at the federal or provincial levels unanimously recognized that municipalities need to be represented during the renegotiation of new policing agreements. Consequently, I am pleased to inform you that the CAC has agreed that each provincial and territorial representative will be allowed to invite one municipal representative who will have observer status during the renegotiation process.