Mr. Speaker, that is a very good question. What we would not want to see is the RCMP poaching from some of the very good police forces that are in place. That is not the objective of this.
The RCMP has extensive experience in rural and remote communities throughout the country. In many parts of the country the RCMP is the only police force. What It would bring to places like Northern Ontario is an understanding of what it is like to serve in rural and remote communities.
I think most of us, if we have not been lucky enough to visit some of these communities, have no understanding of what it is like to live in them, where fly-in is the only access. Some communities are accessible by ice roads, but with climate change, access times are diminished.
First, the officers bring training and experience that helps them work in these communities. For example, they are often on call 24/7. We know that has been a problem in some of the communities because they have been unable to retain or recruit officers. Also, they are very visible. In the rural and remote communities the officers are on the streets every day. They are very visible and the community is small enough so everybody recognizes them. They also play an important part, and I addressed this earlier, in the overall health and well-being of the community. They would bring a very broad perspective to some of the northern communities in Ontario.