Mr. Chair, members of the committee, thank you for the invitation to appear before you this afternoon as you continue your study into the Canadian response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and for the opportunity to provide a front-line policing perspective on this important ongoing issue.
Before I begin, however, I want to first take a brief moment to offer my most sincere condolences to the family of Constable Heidi Stevenson of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and all the victims of the horrific attack that took place in Nova Scotia this past weekend. I'd also like to offer my thanks to Prime Minister Trudeau, Minister Blair and all elected officials from all parties who have offered their kind words of support to our policing colleagues both in the RCMP and in other municipal services who have come together to help in this important ongoing investigation.
I particularly appreciate having the opportunity to appear virtually this week, as this was originally scheduled to be the week of our Canadian Police Association annual legislative conference, which gives our members the chance to come to Ottawa and meet with their federal elected officials. Obviously, COVID-19 has changed our plans. While we’ve already started planning for our 2021 conference, appearing before you gives me the chance to introduce our organization to the new members of the committee and reintroduce myself to some familiar faces.
The Canadian Police Association is the largest policing advocacy organization in the country, with over 55,000 civilian and sworn members who serve in police agencies from coast to coast to coast. Our members have been on the front lines of this pandemic from day one, working in close partnership with other first responders. While there has been a bit of a learning curve for all of us as we adapt to these new circumstances, I hope that this committee, and your eventual report, will help provide a framework to identify areas across multiple sectors that worked and where we need to improve in the future.
This pandemic again highlights the difficult circumstances that the members I represent typically face while attempting to perform their duties and keep the public safe. We often have no idea who we are interacting with in the community, and have little control over the environment where those interactions take place. Since the beginning of March, police officers continue to perform their duties despite public health orders directing most other citizens to stay at home and physically distance. It’s important to acknowledge this and the aggravating effect that this pandemic has had on a profession that is already struggling with mental health and wellness challenges, and the impact on individual police personnel and their families.
I’d now like to take a few minutes to briefly outline some of our key issues from a policing perspective, and then hopefully leave as much time as possible for questions.
First and foremost, one of the main challenges our members have faced is with respect to a general lack of consistency around messages from various levels of government as well as health officials regarding the parameters of general stay-at-home orders. That has led to some confusion and potentially uneven levels of enforcement across the country, which has been frustrating to the public as well as those tasked with enforcement. I believe it’s important to emphasize that while there certainly have been some well-documented cases of potentially overzealous enforcement of quarantine orders, statistics that have now been released show that so far, both police and bylaw enforcement agencies have been successfully using education and encouragement in the overwhelming number of cases.
That being said, I can certainly understand the frustration and even anger that has been expressed by members of the public who have found themselves potentially facing significant fines for infractions that can, in many cases, seem unclear. While I understand that this particular issue involves a number of different provincial as well as municipal orders, I believe there should be a role for the federal government to play in these circumstances, especially with respect to ensuring, as much as possible, consistent and clear messaging with respect to public health orders. Police understand that we have an enforcement role, but messaging regarding our role needs to be clear and consistent from the outset to avoid undermining police legitimacy and public confidence.
Another area where I believe the federal government could play an important role is around the utilization and supply of and the access to personal protective equipment, or PPE, for first responders across the country. Since the beginning of the pandemic, we’ve seen a patchwork of policies announced by police services regarding when PPE is to be worn by personnel, and even more variation with respect to overall access, particularly for small and medium-sized police services and those policing in rural or remote parts of our country. Again, there is a significant challenge involved, given that, outside of the RCMP, procurement for policing is usually a provincial or municipal issue. I believe these circumstances have highlighted the need for additional coordination, where possible, from the federal government to ensure that at least some minimum standards are achieved.
Further, from an occupational health and safety standpoint, as associations we have noticed a lack of consistency around managing exposure for front-line personnel with a view toward protecting police officers who have heightened risk of exposure as well as their families. Ideally, as a national organization, we believe it would be beneficial for those who are tasked with front-line responsibilities to know that if they are exposed to COVID-19, measures exist to ensure they have access to decontamination facilities, that they are tested as quickly as possible, and if positive, that steps have been taken in advance to make sure they can minimize the chance of further infections for their families and loved ones, including alternate physical accommodation arrangements, if necessary.
These steps should include establishing a presumption that a positive test is work-related to remove any uncertainty or anxiety regarding treatment or income disruption.
One final area of concern I'd like to highlight with regard to the pandemic response is Canada's correctional facilities. There have been calls to expedite certain offenders from the prison system given concerns regarding COVID-19 and the potential for outbreak within these facilities. Obviously, protecting the health of inmates in these facilities must be a key concern for the government and the agencies responsible for maintaining our correctional infrastructure and the health of their personnel.
Our association has significant concerns about the potential consequences of releasing these offenders, particularly given the current circumstances across Canada.
The response to COVID-19 has already placed a significant strain on law enforcement agencies across Canada. Given the current projections around transmission, I believe it is safe to assume that strain will only be aggravated as more front-line personnel are exposed to the virus and are subject to self-isolation measures. The release of a significant cohort of offenders from correctional facilities at a time when our resources are already stretched thin has the potential to add unnecessary stress to an already overburdened system, particularly given that many of the services offenders rely on for monitoring, rehabilitation and reintegration are themselves facing mandatory shutdowns.
To conclude, overall, despite these concerns, I believe the policing response to these pandemic circumstances has been positive. Our members, like all Canadians, recognize the uncertainty this almost unprecedented situation has forced, and despite that, our members will continue to display the professionalism and dedication our communities expect and deserve.
I look forward to your questions. Once again, thank you for giving me the opportunity to appear before your committee today.