This is a page from the 2021 Canadian federal election.
Looking for a different election? Click here.
Public Safety & Policing

Police Accountability & Reform platforms

Here's what the 2021 Canadian election parties are promising.

Liberal

  • Give the RCMP's Management Advisory Board full oversight over the RCMP.
  • Set clear timelines for RCMP compliance with the Civilian Review & Complaints Commission recommendations.
  • Support an external review of the RCMP's sanctions & disciplinary regime.
  • Make the Independent Centre for Harassment Resolution fully external to the RCMP.
  • Work with governments to connect RCMP with social support workers.

Read more

Enhance the current Management Advisory Board to be in line with other Canadian police services to have full oversight over the RCMP.

Bring forward clear timelines for compliance with the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission recommendations.

Support an external review of the RCMP’s sanctions and disciplinary regime to review the adequacy of existing sanctions and whether sanctions are being properly applied.

Prohibit RCMP against using neck restraints and prohibit the use of tear gas or rubber bullets for crowd control.

Make the new Independent Centre for Harassment

Resolution fully external to the RCMP to ensure there can be no conflicts of interest while reviewing complaints.

Commit to a full external review of current deescalation training to ensure this training results in the safest possible outcomes for both officers and Canadians.

Work with the provinces, territories, and municipalities that contract RCMP services to make the service better connected to community social support workers.

Forward. For Everyone., retrieved 2021-09-02

Read less

We don't have any Conservative policies on Police Accountability & Reform.
We don't have any Bloc policies on Police Accountability & Reform.

NDP

  • Put in place robust & independent civilian oversight of the RCMP.
  • Launch a review of the RCMP's budget & the RCMP act in order to ensure accountability to the public.
  • Release all use-of-force incidents by the RCMP.
  • Launch a full review into RCMP use-of-force.

Read more

Police accountability is an important way to make our communities safer. It’s past time to put in place robust and independent civilian oversight of the RCMP. We’ll launch a review of the RCMP’s budget and the RCMP Act in order to ensure accountability of the RCMP to the public. A New Democrat government will release all use-of-force incidents by the RCMP and launch a full review of these practices.

Ready for Better, retrieved 2021-08-27

Read less

Green

  • Conduct an immediate review of the RCMP's duties, & identify areas for detasking police & reducing spending.
  • Reallocate funding to social & community services.
  • Design & implement a more effective, transparent, accountable, & independent police oversight system.
  • Review the Civilian Review & Complaints Commission.
  • Create a national standard for independent & accountable oversight of policing.

Read more

1. Reduce - Limit the RCMP, and its funding, to its core role

Conduct an immediate and comprehensive review of the RCMP role in policing municipalities and reserves and the RCMP’s other duties and identify areas for detasking police and reducing police spending

● Work with provinces and municipalities to reduce police spending in those jurisdictions. Urge divestment from services for which the police are not suited, and alternative models and agencies are better able to support individuals and communities. In the majority of cases, this means removing officers from services such as first responders to mental health calls, school resource officers, by-law enforcement, construction traffic policing, and the policing and criminalization of poverty.

● Advocate for an end to police street checks, carding, and arbitrary stops and detentions. These practices have been shown to disproportionately target Black and Indigenous Peoples in Canada.

2. Reallocate - Invest in community and social services

● Invest funds that are divested from police services in social and community services, which are more effective in preventing and reducing crime, strengthening individuals and communities, and creating a more just society. These will include alternative responses to mental health calls, investment in afterschool programs for young persons, mental health support for youth and adults, and increased employment opportunities.

3. Review - Design and implement a more effective, transparent, accountable, and independent police oversight system

● Review the operations and decision-making process of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission and make changes to ensure that the CRCC is more accountable, effective, responsive, and transparent in its review of RCMP conduct. End the practice of allowing the RCMP to review and handle complaints made against it.

● Create a national standard for independent and accountable oversight of policing, in cooperation with the provinces. Urge provincial and municipal bodies to implement those standards to ensure fairness and accountability in policing across the country.

● Develop a national standard for police use-of-force, and work with other jurisdictions to ban certain kinds of force, such as chokeholds and neck restraints.

4. Record - National database to record police use-of-force and other incidents

● Create a mandatory national database on the collection of police use of force data, disaggregated by race, ethnic background, national origin, age, and other identities to track victims of incidents of use-of-force by police and better understand the extent of systemic racism in Canadian policing.

Be Daring., retrieved 2021-09-11

Read less

Looking for the parties' positions on other topics?

See our full 2021 Canadian election platform comparison