A Canadian icon marked its 150th birthday this week even as its future in Alberta remains murky..On May 23, 1873, the federal government under Sir John A. Macdonald established the North-West Mounted Police to police the whiskey trade following the Cypress Hills massacre in southeastern Alberta. .Every school kid in Calgary knows the story of how Colonel Macleod rode out with a group of compatriots to meet the entire Sioux Nation who fled the US Cavalry Canada following the Battle of Little Big Horn. He deliberately wore a scarlet coat to differentiate himself from the American blue coats under Custer who were waging a war of genocide against the Cree people.. NWMPNorth-West Mounted Police officers circa 1878; Commissioner James Macleod sat centre. .It’s a story entrenched in the founding myth of this country, and indeed Alberta itself. The Red Serge and Stetson have become iconic symbols of Canada itself, recognized around the world..But that long and storied past has been at risk after the ruling UCP floated plans to replace the RCMP with a provincial police force. It's been surprisingly quiet on the issue during the campaign despite silent moves behind the scenes to set the process in motion..Although it seemingly backed off on the issue, the UCP government in its spring budget offered funds for municipalities to explore the idea of setting up their own municipal police forces. At this point a total of 13 undisclosed locales — including eight First Nations, one Métis and four towns and cities — have reportedly taken them up on the offer. .Then on March 6 the city of Grande Prairie voted 8-1 to replace the Mounties with its own municipal police over the next five years — the first in Alberta to do so since 1956. The transition is expected to cost the city $19 million, with the province kicking in $9.7 million over two years..At the time, Justice Minister Mike Ellis told reporters “this is about empowering municipalities.”. RCMPMaintiens le droit. .Grand Prairie, with a population of 68,000, joins Calgary and Edmonton, Camrose, Lacombe, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat and Taber as towns with their own forces. .Although the Alberta Provincial Police was formed in 1917 after the Mounties were called off to WWI, it was disbanded in 1932 as a cost cutting measure during the Great Depression. Cost estimates to reform it aren’t cheap; a 2021 Price Waterhouse Coopers study suggested it would cost about $366 million to switch, followed by an additional $742 million a year to fund it. .Under current models, the federal government kicks in about $170 million including 52% of the costs of policing 22 First Nations under a joint policing program. Albertans would be left to pick up that tab..Polls have consistently shown a substantial majority of Albertans oppose removing the RCMP, especially in the rural areas most affected by a switch. A Leger poll of 1,001 people conducted in April found that 58% were opposed to ditching the Mounties with only 21% support for a provincial force. That number was about 30% among UCP voters..The results were consistent with prior polls commissioned by the Alberta Municipalities association and the National Police Federation which found 79% approval rates for the Mounties province wide..The idea for a provincial police force came out of the so-called 2020 ‘Fair Deal’ report under former premier Jason Kenney which some saw as a thinly veiled support for separatism. The other recommendations stemming from that report included a provincial pension plan, the referendum on equalization and what eventually became the Sovereignty Act..The UCP government has since walked back that plank while actively encouraging municipalities with study dollars to explore the idea..Speaking at a media availability in Calgary Wednesday UCP leader Danielle Smith said her re-elected government would respect the choice of municipalities to examine the pros and cons and make the choice for themselves. .Meanwhile, she said the UCP would increase the role of the Alberta Sheriff’s Branch by adding units to investigate organized crime, gangs, guns and drug smuggling in addition to steps to increase overall public safety in both cities as part of her public safety agenda..“I think that’s what people want to see and we’re going to continue to do more of the same,” she said.
