Public Safety Committee on Feb. 12th, 2026

[Jacques Ramsay, Liberal, La Prairie—Atateken, QC]

Okay.

Let's say I'm an RCMP officer and I suffer from depression. I would normally see my doctor, who would recommend I take time off work. At what point is health services consulted? Is it handled by the doctor? Then, after two or three years, I imagine there would be a disability claim.

I would just like you to help me understand who is involved in the information chain on the illness and when.

[Brian Sauvé]

I will respond in English, because it is easier for me.

Yes, if a member is facing depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder or symptoms of those, they can seek treatment through a psychologist for diagnosis and help. That is under the supplemental benefits regime that already exists for our members, providing up to six sessions with a psychologist. Then a report is submitted to the RCMP about the progress that's happened in those six sessions, and it asks for an additional six sessions for a member to then go back to see a psychologist.

All of that plays to the diagnosis. If there's a diagnosis, it would be used to seek further psychological care in the Veterans Affairs process, not necessarily with the RCMP. Should that member be on sick leave, then reporting to the RCMP health services on a regular basis is required, usually every 30 days, with a prognosis for a return-to-work date.

[Jacques Ramsay, Liberal, La Prairie—Atateken, QC]

You can answer this in English.

Let's say I become disabled.

Is the employer entitled to know this information at some point? You are saying you do not think it should.

Can we think the employer should be told, that it is justified? There is nonetheless a risk to the employee and other employees since the RCMP deals with some extreme situations.

[Brian Sauvé]

It depends.

For example, the RCMP has what's called a salary continuance sick leave model, because we have no short-term disability insurance plan. We have a long-term disability insurance plan that you can access only by discharging from your job. We have a salary continuance model, which means the responsibility is shared between the member—the employee—and the employer.

If I'm suffering from brain cancer, for example, the RCMP keeps the salary taps turned on while I seek treatment. They help me with treatment, and then I get back into my work. If I'm suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety or alcoholism, the RCMP keeps the salary taps turned on while I seek treatment in order to get back to work. Sometimes that might mean a six- to eight-week in-patient treatment.

Those are things the RCMP is definitely made aware of to assess fitness for duty. However, the information that I provide through my psychologist that would perhaps be shared with Veterans Affairs to make a disability assessment is a little more in depth than what's provided to my employer for fitness for duty. That's the worry—the sharing between the disability pension provider's assessment and the employer.

[The Chair, Liberal, Jean-Yves Duclos]

Thank you.

I left you a little more time because I thought everyone was quite interested in your compact and content-intense answers.

That brings me to you, MP Mantle. Welcome to the committee. You have five minutes, please.

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm happy to be here.

Thank you, Mr. Sauvé, for attending and providing your valuable testimony, including on proper resourcing for the RCMP.

I want to ask you about resourcing at the border. That was a topic of much discussion several months ago. It's perhaps died down a little bit.

At the time, the government spent, I think, about $5 million to lease two American Black Hawk helicopters. Do you think that was a wise use of funds for securing the border?

[Brian Sauvé]

I think it accomplished the goal at the time. From my perspective, we have written to the commissioner that we think those pilots and those assets of the RCMP should obviously be within our bargaining unit. They should have the same training as our members. They're flying them around. What is the plan to internalize that if it continues to be the way forward?

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

You said you thought it achieved the objective. What do you think the objective was?

[Brian Sauvé]

Well, at the time, obviously, it was an immediate response to ensure safety of the border, and leasing those particular helicopters gave a fairly quick ability and a quick chance to work around procurement, which is another topic entirely.

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

Did it make the border safer, in your opinion?

[Brian Sauvé]

I think I've seen them flying around my place. I'm in the Swanton sector. I know that some folks in Manitoba have expressed satisfaction at seeing them. I know folks from the Lower Mainland of British Columbia through to Alberta have expressed satisfaction.

Has it made the border safer? It is becoming another tool. More tools are always better. Whether it's a drone or whether it's a helicopter that can relay information to the units on the ground, those tools are always welcome.

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

Has the government indicated that it will make those tools part of the RCMP, or are you still waiting to know whether these will be contracted out and not come from within the RCMP?

[Brian Sauvé]

If I read between the lines, I'm hopeful that they will become some form of fixed assets for the RCMP in due time. The procurement challenges still exist.

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

Thank you for that.

In some of your submissions to the government, you requested that the Privacy Commissioner be consulted. Did the government accept that request? Did the government consult the Privacy Commissioner on your concerns?

[Brian Sauvé]

We just went straight to the Privacy Commissioner ourselves. I hope that the Privacy Commissioner and the government have those discussions because we just started discussions with the Privacy Commissioner on our own.

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

You have not heard from the government about whether it will engage on your concern on that issue?

[Brian Sauvé]

No, we have not.

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

I assume you would reiterate your request to the government to work with the Privacy Commissioner on these concerns.

[Brian Sauvé]

I would.

[Jacob Mantle, Conservative, York—Durham, ON]

Okay, thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Jean-Yves Duclos]

Thank you, MP Mantle.

We'll finish with MP MacDonald.

[Kent MacDonald, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you to Mr. Sauvé for being a witness here today.

I'd just like to offer my thoughts and prayers to the community of Tumbler Ridge as well, and to the first responders who were in a very difficult situation.

I come from Atlantic Canada and remember the devastating day at Portapique. I know the response time was amazing. I was truly impressed by that and those RCMP officers who put their lives on the line without question.

I want to comment on the budget 2025 release. I know there was some confusion about whether the adjudication of the RCMP officers was going to continue under VAC. I'm pleased to see that's been clarified. Some of your membership reached out to my office trying to get clarification, so I'm glad that component has been clarified.

I guess I would just further add, in regard to consumer price indexing, that in your previous comments you would like to maintain the options of salary growth and CPI, whichever is higher. Do you not feel that the CPI is more closely aligned with the cost of living expenses as they go up?

[Brian Sauvé]

I think it depends. Yes, CPI is aligned with the cost of living expenses, but the way the formula is used right now is that it's the greater of the two, so even if the CPI is aligned with the cost of living expenses and the federal wage growth formula is half a per cent higher, then the federal wage growth formula is the one that is used, which would exceed the cost of living expenses in that year.

[Kent MacDonald, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

The disability benefits we are referring to are disability benefits for officers who obviously are on disability. They're not serving.

[Brian Sauvé]

They are.