Kevin Halwa, National Police Federation (NPF) Prairie Region Director, speaks with Alberta Primetime host Michael Higgins about Alberta potentially moving to a provincial police service.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Michael Higgins: Your federation has written an open letter to Minister Ellis with these latest provincial police service developments in mind, claiming he’s spreading falsehoods. How?
Kevin Halwa: The minister said several things in the legislature the other day that were just categorically not true, one of those being the suggestion that 911 calls are going unanswered. Completely false.
Operational data shows that 90 per cent of calls are answered within two minutes. 87 per cent of those are answered even in shorter time, in one minute, and every single call of those is responded to by a member.
You also have to keep in mind that rural policing and urban policing is vastly different when we’re talking about the number of police officers in a certain area. If I can compare Edmonton and Calgary, for example, and the RCMP, because they’re really the big three in the province, when we’re talking about those other two agencies, we’re talking of a ratio of one police officer in an area of about 385 metres. In the case of Edmonton Police Service, that’s basically shouting distance, as opposed to the RCMP where, with the numbers policing the rural area, we have a member to geographic area of about one member to 378 square kilometers. That’s a vastly different number.
But even under those circumstances, our members are going to every single 911 call and doing so and in good time.
MH: The minister says the NPF is out of touch with rural Albertans. He’s hearing horror story after horror story of 911 calls not being answered and authorized strength levels not being met. So what is it you think the minister is actually hearing?
KH: I don’t know, because if there are calls that are being unanswered - and that is a big if - that’s something for the municipality take up with the task commander, and those will be addressed.
When we travel around and we talk to municipalities, mayors and councils, and we attend functions such as Alberta Municipalities and Rural Municipality of Alberta conferences, we’re not hearing that. Matter of fact, we’re hearing the complete opposite.
We’re hearing that those communities are very satisfied with the policing that they’re receiving from the RCMP, and round after round after round of polling also confirms that.
MH: If it is that the minister’s comments are inaccurate, what’s the impact? How does that change the conversation around the Smith government developing a provincial police service?
KH: That’s a really good question, and I don’t really know what their end game is. I really don’t.
It wasn’t so long ago that we were talking about a full-scale removal of the RCMP and replacing with provincial police service to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. This certainly sounds like a different verse from the same song the government singing.
I don’t really know what the end point is here. The taxpayers have been clear that they’re happy with the RCMP, but want it resourced properly.
MH: If it is that the Smith government creates an independent police agency that would be available as a policing option for municipalities, and the RCMP is still in the mix, how do you see that changing the policing dynamic?
KH: That would be a very interesting situation. We see that south of the border, in a very small area, in some states, you could have three different levels of policing, and there’s a lot of overlap.
Often it causes confusion, and confusion is never good for public safety, so it causes me some concern.
I’m speaking as a lifetime Albertan, and a police officer with almost three decades of service. I understand rural policing in Alberta and it’s just not as simple as creating a new agency.
If there’s other areas where the minister wants additional detachments, for example, that’s also under his control using Article 8 of the provincial policing service agreement. If he wants a detachment in certain areas where the province feels they’re not getting police resources properly, that is well within his authority to create another detachment.
MH: The element of absorbing roughly half of the sheriff service to help create a new police service. How does that sit with your federation?
KH: That’s not really for us to comment. The sheriffs have made a statement saying that it would possibly cause some confusion and weaken the ranks.
I don’t disagree with that comment at all, I think they’re bang on the money there, but again, if they were to do that, my question would be, ‘What are their primary responsibilities?’
The reason they were created was for traffic and foreign enforcement on the highways, as well as courtroom and secure prisoner transport. Those are often things that that are not being met now because they’re getting torn in different directions, and that’s unfortunate. It’s not great for public safety.
