Personally, I think one important thing is that the proposed changes to the act are a godsend. There's no question this is helpful, and the committee, the government, and the RCMP are all to be commended on having brought this about—the idea of changes—so quickly.
One of the things we would want to have in mind is to look at what falls under the umbrella of code of conduct cases. We're not talking about things where the average person would say that it's a relatively minor kind of thing between an employer and employee. Probably one-third of them would fit into that category.
Of course, wherever it's possible to do things like restorative justice, mediation, deal with things generally and outside of police, in the least intrusive manner possible, that is wonderful. But I think when it comes to a police officer who has been found doing a criminal act, an integrity issue like turning information over to organized crime, I don't even want to hear that it's been dealt with on an informal basis.
Unfortunately, some of the things we're talking about here are in every sense of the word very, very serious acts. At the end of the day, historically these cases have been dealt with informally and in a very lenient manner. That needs to change. I think it needs to change for the benefit of all officers.
I think the changes will certainly have an impact on every single officer. I think every single officer out there at least ought to know, be on high alert, that some of the things that used to be tolerated in the past won't be tolerated in the future.
I know it doesn't sound very forgiving, but I think we have to say to every single police officer, inside and outside the RCMP, “Forget it. If you commit criminal acts, you lack integrity, you will be held accountable, and you will be dealt with in a very severe manner.”