RCMP Training Academy (Depot)

Remarks by
The Honourable Stockwell Day
Minister of Public Safety

August 22, 2007
Regina, Saskatchewan
As Delivered

Thank you so much for the introduction. I just asked our emcee how long the speakers usually take at these events. He wisely said, "as long as you would like sir." I have sat and listened to long speeches and I know that there's an occupational hazard to that. So I'm going to try and have you folks out of here by about 2:00 because I know you've got other things that you need to do.

Anytime I'm with a group of individuals like you who made the decision, a career decision, a life decision to maintain what's right, to protect our citizens, there's a well-founded sense of pride and inspiration that permeates the atmosphere. That's why I like to stop in at RCMP detachments when I travel across the country. I like to visit with groups of officers when they're out there doing their jobs. I like to actually stop at the roadside activities that take place from time to time with equipment being used to see how everybody's doing, not because I'm being pulled over of course, but just to have a chat.

It was great to be out here early this morning to check out the gym. It's a great facility. There were guys working out in there, so I tried to stay away from them. And then to go for a run just as the sun was coming up and around the facility here.

It was an inspiration too because I ran by the flag that was being lowered early in the morning. Three members were out there lowering the flag, putting up the one for today. The flag yesterday, as you may or may not know, was a very personal flag that had been requested because it had flown at the top of the Parliament building. It had been requested by one of the families of four officers who lost their lives in Mayerthorpe. That flag was flying here yesterday at the event and it's being dedicated to this establishment.

The environment that you're about to go into is something that I know you've been thinking about and that you need to think about. We recently saw statistics from Statistics Canada that said crime rates were going down. We did an analysis of those, and if you talk about the mass amount of reported crime over a period of five years, there is some reduction in some areas. Technology has a lot to do with that. There's not as much post office mail fraud going on these days because more people are on the Internet. Also certain types of crime aren't being reported as frequently.

I'm sure you've looked at the statistics and you know that you're going into a different environment, for instance, when it comes to aggravated assaults. Those crime stats are moving up. And attempted homicide, those crime stats are moving up. Last year, the rate of young people charged with homicide was the highest since that category was put in place in 1961. We also saw a report about increased number of organized crime groups. Now some of that is because of effective police work, which is causing large groups to disintegrate, but they are also multiplying.

We know that when it comes to national security – and some of the work that you will be doing will be on the national security front – the increased threat is related to terrorist activity. Organized crime is more technologically advanced than it ever has been.

That climate into which you are going, it's also a situation where there's been a sense for quite a while of a lack of the resources that you need to do your job. And there's been a sense that the focus has been on the rights of those who break the law as opposed to those who keep the law. Let me make it very clear, we support very strongly the rights of all individuals, including those who have broken the law, including those who are incarcerated and we protect those rights.

But when there's this sense in society in general, and it largely falls to government, then that's an issue of concern. You're going into a climate in which somebody can be arrested and could have a series of charges. There is some necessary plea bargaining that has to happen to keep things moving through the court system. When there's a series of charges, and one of those charges happens to be assault against an officer or assault against a corrections officer, that is usually the first one that gets traded away.

This is the type of atmosphere into which you're going. I'm glad to see you're all still here, that nobody is leaving. The good news is that there are more resources going towards the RCMP in the last two years than have gone in a long time. I'm very pleased to see some of the results of those resources right here at Depot, some $37 million were committed here.

You're probably aware that the Government of Canada has made a commitment to start to hire 1,000 more RCMP personnel across the country and that venture is going to be fully federally funded.

We've also made a commitment to having 2,500 more municipal officers. That's going to be cost-shared with the provinces. And whether we're talking about the technology at the National Child Exploitation Coordination Centre, whether we're talking about the Integrated Border Enforcement Teams, whether we're talking about the resources that are going into the Integrated Market Enforcement Teams to go after identity fraud, there's more resources being applied across the board. That's some of the good news.

We are also looking at legislative changes, including more areas that are going to require mandatory jail time for certain offences, notably firearms offences and other violent offences. There is a shift that's going on, but the fact is that you are going into a very challenging area. You made a decision at some point, maybe early on in your lives, maybe recently, that in spite of all these challenges, this is where you want to be.

I heard yesterday that there's one person here in training, I don't know if it's within the groups that are here, but he is here on the campus and in training, and he is 51 years old. Apparently, he has wanted to be an RCMP officer all his life. That is inspirational and encouraging.

There are a lot of numbers that are flying around that you may be trying to assimilate as you are preparing to step onto the streets to protect us, to protect my kids and my grandkids. Fifty-five thousand people have gone through training to be an RCMP officer. I think we are hoping for 8,500 a year. Another sobering number was one we heard yesterday. Two hundred and eighteen is the number of people who didn't come home from a shift. Two-hundred and eighteen people who had thought about what they were going to do for their career. They went into it knowing the risks.

I would suggest to you that one of the most important numbers is the number one – I am not saying you should see yourself as number one. You've already made the decision to be here to protect others. I just want to leave the thought with you that one person can make a difference. Each person in an organization like this makes it the type of organization we have today that is renowned worldwide for its professionalism, its integrity, and its ability to get the job done.

I want to tell you that I meet with my counterparts on security issues from around the world weekly, sometimes daily. And they always want to salute when they speak of the RCMP. That's because individuals like you have made the decision to do this job in such a way that will allow this force to continue to do what it has done down through the decades.

I hear stories constantly about people who have been, if I can use the word, intercepted at the right time and the right place by an officer who was trained and knew how to handle a situation. And that difference was made. Perhaps an accident was prevented or maybe a life was saved. As you go into this very challenging environment, you need to know that you individually are going to make a difference in people's lives. We talk about the long arm of the law being the enforcement side, and the open arms of the community being the prevention side and I know you train in both of those.

I'd like you to keep in mind the words that I heard at a woman's funeral a little over a year ago. It was her request that as we left the graveside we remember a few words. The family said she wanted us all to know that when you walk away from here, we were not to look back. She didn't want us looking back at the grave. She wanted us looking ahead. It was not easy to do. But a woman no longer with us asked us to remember this – don't look back.

After you leave here, you may be in the force for many years. You may retire after 25, 30, 35 years. You may go into some other area of endeavour or career. With whatever challenges you face, I want to assure you that you made the right decision to be here today. Never look back on that decision. Whatever happens or wherever it takes you. Don't look back. You made a fine decision. You made the right decision.

The woman whose graveside we were at was a former colleague of yours. You may remember Robin Cameron. Her life made a difference. She responded to a call and paid the ultimate price in that response. Her young life was cut down.

We have no way of measuring what would have happened had she not responded. What was the intent of the individual? We have no way of determining the events that would have followed. And she said don't look back. That's what she would want for each cadet here, for each person who's going to be wearing the uniform. You've made a great decision. You've said you want to maintain what is right. Some people treat law and order issues frivolously, but they go to the very core of our constitution. The Canadian Constitution talks about peace, order and good government. And people who break the law, in minor or major ways, actually threaten that whole aspect of how we live.

I want to thank each one of you again. I know this has not been an easy course. We know there are challenges. But the vast majority of you are going to finish the course, you're going to finish that race and you're going to move on. You're going to be out there for my kids, you're going to be out there for my grandkids. I want you to know in every way that I can be, I will be with you. I'm there for you, as is the Commissioner and these people who have worked and taken part in your training. You are the reason that our country is going to be safe and secure and that people will experience peace and order in their lives in a very great way.

Thank you so much and God bless you as you move into your chosen career.