Alberta
Province funding 50 more Edmonton Police Service Officers to tackle high crime areas
Safer streets for Edmonton
Alberta’s government is fighting rising crime in Edmonton with an $8.3-million investment to help hire 50 new police officers.
Edmontonians have a right to walk through their city streets or take public transit without fearing for their safety. Due to rising acts of violence, the government is taking direct action to keep Edmontonians safe.
By investing in the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) to support their efforts to recruit, train and deploy 50 new officers, high-crime areas like transit centres and the downtown core will see increased police presence.
“Our government will do whatever it takes to address the concerning escalating crime rates, particularly in vital areas like public transit and the downtown core where social disorder is prevalent. This funding will help strengthen the capabilities of law enforcement and make sure they have the necessary tools and personnel to improve public safety and fight criminals who continue to prey on vulnerable residents.”
The EPS is actively recruiting new members for this initiative. These additional officers will be strategically placed in high-crime areas with the flexibility to be redeployed to other parts of the city based on evolving needs. Provincial funding will help pay for police officer salaries and benefits and equipment needs like vehicles, uniforms, radios and body-worn cameras.
“These are much-needed resources, and though hiring and training will take time before officers hit city streets, we know their presence will accelerate our existing efforts. We have redeployed our front-line resources to places like transit and the downtown and have increased recruit class sizes to get ahead of service demands, and these additional officers are the next step in tackling Edmonton’s high-crime areas. We are grateful for the funding and support of the provincial government and look forward to the impact the officers will have on our streets.”
“Edmontonians have been loud and clear that safe public spaces are a priority. The funding and prioritization of transit centres and the core is an investment in our shared, long-term commitment to create a safe and vibrant city.”
“The Edmonton Police Commission has advocated for police funding necessary to address the myriad community safety issues facing our city, and we appreciate the provincial government making good on its commitment to fund 50 additional front-line officers. This investment will help support the police service’s long-term strategy of making our streets safer.”
“The DRC appreciates the collaborative effort the Edmonton Police Service and provincial government have put into addressing high-crime areas. We know from other cities that the presence of law enforcement and proactive policing increases the perception of safety and can even reduce incidents of crime and disorder. Through this funding, we look forward to seeing more police deployed throughout the core, working towards a safer, more vibrant and more connected downtown.”
The addition of new officers builds on several actions the government has already taken to improve public safety on Edmonton’s streets, including implementing a pilot project to team Alberta Sheriffs with EPS officers, adding more local positions to the Sheriffs’ Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods (SCAN) unit, and a $5-million grant to improve safety on the city’s transit network.
Quick facts
- Funding breakdown:
- $4.5 million for officer salaries and benefits
- $2.5 million for one-time costs like vehicles, uniforms, radios and workstations
- $850,000 for ongoing technology costs
- $500,000 for one-time recruitment expansion efforts
Related news
- Transit safety and violent crime: Enough is enough (Apr 4, 2023)
- More sheriffs in Calgary and Edmonton (Nov 24, 2023)
Alberta
Free Alberta Strategy petition demanding PM Trudeau fire Steven Guilbeault passes 13,000 signatures
News release from Free Alberta Strategy
Are you tired of watching elected officials flout the law and disregard public concerns with impunity?
Are you frustrated by a federal government that prioritizes arrogance over accountability?
If so, you’re not alone.
Over 13,000 people have signed our petition calling on Justin Trudeau to fire Steven Guilbeault.
Once one of Greenpeace’s most disruptive forces, Guilbeault has spent enough time in an orange jumpsuit to build up a reputation for deliberately ignoring both law enforcement and the courts.
Since then, his career has been marked by a troubling disregard for both legal boundaries and public sentiment.
In 2001, Guilbeault was found guilty of mischief for scaling the CN Tower in Toronto and displaying a banner.
He received a sentence of one year’s probation, was mandated to complete 100 hours of community service in Montreal, and was ordered to pay $1,000 in restitution.
The incident incurred approximately $50,000 in costs for the tower operators.
Shortly thereafter, Guilbeault orchestrated another audacious act, leading a Greenpeace team in a demonstration at the Calgary residence of then Alberta Premier Ralph Klein and his wife, Colleen.
They erected a banner, positioned ladders against the house, and ascended to the roof to install a solar panel.
The intrusion deeply unsettled Colleen Klein, who was alone at the time and feared a home invasion – she resorted to grabbing a broom for defense.
Despite his controversial background, Justin Trudeau’s decision to appoint Guilbeault as Minister of Environment and Climate Change raised eyebrows and elicited criticism.
Jason Kenney, then premier of Alberta, accurately predicted the consequences of Guilbeault assuming a significant role in Justin Trudeau’s cabinet.
“His own personal background and track record on these issues suggests someone who is more an absolutist than a pragmatist when it comes to finding solutions,” Kenney said.
It’s perhaps no surprise then that Guilbeault’s response to legal setbacks in his political career, such as the Supreme Court’s ruling on the unconstitutionality of his Impact Assessment Act, has been dismissive, indicating a stubborn adherence to his own agenda rather than a willingness to heed judicial guidance.
Instead of accepting that he was wrong and repealing the law, Guilbeault wants to pass minor amendments and pretend like the Supreme Court ruling never happened.
Worse, the amendments – buried 552 pages into a 686-page budget implementation bill – don’t fix the problem.
Guilbeault still has the power to control projects that fall under provincial jurisdiction.
Consequently, tensions between the federal and provincial governments have escalated, with Alberta poised to immediately challenge the amended legislation in court once again.
This charade is getting old.
This pattern of defiance and disregard for legal constraints has become wearisome, eroding public trust in the integrity of federal institutions.
The rotation of headlines proclaiming federal overreach and constitutional breaches underscores a troubling trend within the governing party, where arrogance appears to have supplanted prudent governance.
Guilbeault, with his checkered past and continued ignorance of the law since becoming Minister, are crippling public confidence.
A few months ago, we launched a petition calling on Justin Trudeau to see the light, and fire his most controversial Minister.
Since then, things have only gotten worse.
If you agree, and think Guilbeault should be fired, please sign our petition today:
Then, send this petition to your friends, family, and every Albertan so that they can sign too!
Regards,
The Free Alberta Strategy Team
Alberta
Fortis et Liber: Alberta’s Future in the Canadian Federation
From the C2C Journal
By Barry Cooper, professor of political science, University of Calgary
Canada’s western lands, wrote one prominent academic, became provinces “in the Roman sense” – acquired possessions that, once vanquished, were there to be exploited. Laurentian Canada regarded the hinterlands as existing primarily to serve the interests of the heartland. And the current holders of office in Ottawa often behave as if the Constitution’s federal-provincial distribution of powers is at best advisory, if it needs to be acknowledged at all. Reviewing this history, Barry Cooper places Alberta’s widely criticized Sovereignty Act in the context of the Prairie provinces’ long struggle for due constitutional recognition and the political equality of their citizens. Canada is a federation, notes Cooper. Provinces do have rights. Constitutions do mean something. And when they are no longer working, they can be changed.
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