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| Prince Rupert's RCMP detachment at McBride and Sixth Avenue West |
The British Columbia government will be bringing together an All-Party Committee to engage with communities around the province as they look to explore an update to the provincial Police Act.
The announcement of the plans was made on Friday by Mike Farnworth, the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General for the province and comes amid a global call for police accountability following a number of high profile police incidents in the United States and Canada.
The Minister made note of some of the steps that the province has already taken to address some of the concerns that have been raised in recent weeks.
“Everyone deserves to be treated fairly by the police, and our government acknowledges that for many Black, Indigenous and other people of colour, that hasn’t always been the case. Ensuring the police are held accountable to the highest standards for fair and unbiased conduct is crucial to maintaining public trust.
To that end, our government passed legislation last year to strengthen the Independent Investigation Office’s capacity and improve the quality and timeliness of its investigations.
We have also introduced new binding standards on police stops – or ‘street checks’ – to promote unbiased policing. Under the new standards, police are not permitted to make arbitrary stops or ones based on race."
As well Mr. Farnworth noted that there is still work to be done and outlined how the province hopes to move forward towards reforms in British Columbia.
“But we know more work can and must be accomplished. Earlier this week, I met with Premier John Horgan to discuss B.C.’s outdated Police Act, which is out of step with our government’s approach and our work with police services on important issues including harm reduction and mental health.
He asked me to strike an all-party committee to engage with communities and experts on how the 45-year-old act can be modernized to reflect today’s challenges and opportunities for delivering police services with a specific focus on systemic racism.
We also recognize that police officers require a modern policing structure that provides greater clarity for their roles. Expectations on front-line police responders have grown and our policing and public safety model needs to reflect communities’ current and future needs. “When the legislature resumes later this month, I will be tabling a motion to strike this committee and I will look forward to receiving its recommendations.”
For his part, Premier John Horgan spoke to the current hot topic of defunding of police departments, observing that while promising changes for the Police Act, in his opinion the calls for defunding were a simplistic approach to the complex challenges and concerns.
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The Premier also relayed his thoughts through Social Media on Friday.
You can review Friday's full statement from the Province here.
The calls for a review of policing in British Columbia come as a pair of recent incidents in the Northwest, including one in Prince Rupert, are in the spotlight and under investigation by the Independent Investigations Office.
You can find more background on those case files, as well as other notes on the work of Emergency Responders in the Northwest from our archive page here.
Further notes on the BC Legislature and Government can be found from our archive here.
Cross posted from the North Coast Review.
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