The London Police Association head says bill 175 spells troubled times ahead for police in keeping Ontarian’s safe.
Rick Robson is concerned with the new legislation redefining the privatization of certain policing duties, like many of his counterparts across Ontario.
“There have been a number of vocal minority groups who have managed to present arguments that aren’t based in fact to our government, which in turn has led to this legislation,” said Robson.
In an essay written by Robson, he outlined a 2015 Public Safety Canada report on police ‘Use of Force in Canada,” which found police use force in approximately 0.16% of their encounters with the public.
“And the greater irony behind all of this, is that the groups who are pushing for tougher oversight over our officers is supporting a bill that calls for more privatization, which will severely hamper the overseeing process,” said Robson.
“When organizations have the ability to hire out different units, when something goes wrong, there won’t be any accountability there,” he said.
Among many sweeping changes, the Liberal government’s legislation gives police boards the ability to outsource some policing duties such as crime prevention, crime scene analysis, forensic identification, breath analysis, bomb disposal, traffic collision investigation and canine handling responsibilities to private companies.
“You honestly just need to look at what’s happening in the United Kingdom right now to see the effects of this legislation,” said Robson.
According to British Police records, there has been a 14% year-on-year increase in offences recorded by forces across England and Wales after a similar legislation was put into place.
“It makes the job of protecting citizens much more difficult when the right people aren’t doing the job,” he said.
