Public Safety committee  I don't have any stats specific to handguns and/or long guns. Most of the violence that we deal with, because of the areas we police, involve long guns.

Public Safety committee  I could start off on that one. I don't know specifically about Alberta, but we're here representing contract policing, and those budgets are decided by the provinces and territories. In terms of a 50% cut, I'm not sure what you're referring to in this particular—

Public Safety committee  That would not have affected contract policing. That maybe would have affected us corporately and at the federal level, but not in the contract itself. Those budgets are specifically controlled by the provinces and territories. I can say that this particular government most rec

Public Safety committee  I can comment on the funding model. The contracts are between the Government of Canada and each province, territory and, in some cases, municipality. That funding agreement is broken down as a seventy-thirty split, with 70% for the province and 30% for the federal government, as

Public Safety committee  The challenges for us above that would be just the distance in responding. The population is quite dispersed, and our ability to get there quickly is not the same, obviously, as it is a big city.

Public Safety committee  Go ahead, John.

Public Safety committee  The basic training remains the same, but there are cultural awareness courses available to members going in. Sometimes they differ among provinces, depending on the communities they might be going to police in. When you spoke about specialized services, what comes to mind immedi

Public Safety committee  There is tactical training in the sense that some of those members may be trained to do things such as act in containment teams. Otherwise, yes, there is cultural training, but the general training for members is the same across the board.

Public Safety committee  I could start by responding to that. Assistant Commissioner Ferguson might want to add something from an Alberta perspective. When we sign on with the RCMP, we agree to go anywhere. Many of our new police officers who go to these remote communities are very junior in service. Th

Public Safety committee  Yes, I will. Thank you. Good afternoon, Mr. Chair and honourable members of the committee. Thank you for inviting the RCMP to speak to you today about motion 167 regarding rural crime in Canada. In the RCMP, my particular responsibility is here in Ottawa as the assistant commi