Madam Speaker, let me assure you that the RCMP takes the security of all Canadians seriously. Over the past few years, we have all been faced with a rapidly changing environment which has been marked by the forces of globalization, technological change and the growing threat of terrorism and organized crime.
Public organizations have an obligation to manage their resources as effectively as possible. The unprecedented pace of change and the emergence of new pressures facing our society means that the RCMP must define what is required of policing in the 21st century and determine how to build and deliver it.
As a leading law enforcement organization, the RCMP performs regular reviews of its programs from coast to coast to ensure the most effective use of its resources.
With this in mind, the RCMP conducted an extensive study in consultation with RCMP employees in Quebec as well as municipal, provincial, national and international law enforcement partners.
This consultation, launched in 2002, is in keeping with the commitment made by the RCMP and the Government of Canada to provide exceptional federal policing services across Quebec.
As part of this wide-ranging consultative process, the RCMP has taken into account a number of considerations specific to Quebec, including geographic circumstances, border protection, coastal watch and the impact of criminal organizations in Quebec.
I would like to remind you that the mandate of the RCMP in Quebec is to enforce federal statutes, to investigate matters of national and international scope, and to fight organized crime and terrorism.
Since 2002, the face of policing in Quebec has undergone considerable transformation, with 174 municipal police forces amalgamating to create 44.
The Sûreté du Québec has also undergone a similar alignment exercise.
It has been important for the RCMP to also ensure its resources are adequately distributed across the province of Quebec, allowing the organization to focus on its priorities of organized crime and terrorism.
There will be no reduction of RCMP personnel in Quebec; resources are being redeployed to achieve greater operational efficiency and to meet strategic federal policing objectives in that province: fighting organized crime and terrorism.
As I indicated previously, a similar exercise conducted in Ontario in 1995, where resources were strategically redeployed, has enhanced the RCMP's operational capability to meet divisional and national priorities.
This decision serves a strategic purpose to provide enhanced policing services to our communities in Quebec.