The Future of Contract Policing in Alberta—Why we need to keep the RCMP

For most Albertans, community policing feels like a settled question. After all, it is the federal Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) K Division that has been contracted as the provincial police service of jurisdiction in Alberta since 1932. This is ratified in a contract known as the Police Service Agreement (PSA) involving Public Safety Canada and the Government of Alberta (including its municipalities) for a period of twenty years. The PSA is based on the provisions of the Constitution Act, 1867. In the Constitution Act, the federal government has jurisdiction over both criminal law and penitentiaries under Section 91(27) and (28), while the provinces are responsible for prisons, administration of justice, and imposing punishments under Section 92(6), (14), and (15). That said, many provinces, territories, and municipalities across Canada contract with the RCMP for a variety of reasons, one of which is the cost-sharing nature of the PSA. Alberta is no exception, and it has benefited from the RCMP’s large presence in rural communities and mid-sized towns, whereas larger municipalities have their own police services.

Since the start of the 21st century, the RCMP's role as a provincial police service in Alberta has been questioned. It was recommended that Alberta pursue its own provincial police service in the Alberta Agenda of 2001 and in the Fair Deal Panel of 2019. However, it was Premier Danielle Smith’s 2025 announcement of the Alberta Sheriffs Police Service (ASPS) that realized this objective. The existing Alberta Sheriffs Branch will be amalgamated into the new ASPS, with a staff of 650 sheriffs who have police-like training. Premier Smith stated that the ASPS would focus on local needs, increase autonomy, and address RCMP staffing shortages. Furthermore, it was announced that the ASPS would not replace the RCMP but would augment it; however, Recommendation #5 of the Alberta Next Panel suggests otherwise.

The provincial government further cited the white paper introduced under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in March 2025, titled “A New Policing Vision for Canada: Modernizing the RCMP”, as a reason to create the ASPS. In this white paper, it is proposed that the RCMP should end Contract and Indigenous Policing to tilt towards Federal Policing. This would mean shifting resources to focus on Canada’s national security, which includes serious issues such as combating cybersecurity, financial crime, and transnational crime. Therefore, Alberta perceives that Ottawa may not renew the PSA in 2032.

While we cannot underestimate national issues, keeping the RCMP is still more feasible in Alberta for several reasons. The RCMP is well integrated with law enforcement partners, such as the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Team, and is generally better resourced as a federal police service. Due to the large RCMP presence in Alberta, numbering about 115 detachments (excluding divisional headquarters), it will undoubtedly take several years to transition away. Plus, the associated costs of doing so may rise due to inflation and lengthy timelines, which would strain the provincial government and municipalities. Transitioning would also involve other complexities, such as relocating RCMP personnel elsewhere, ending detachments' leases, and training new police officers, all of which would take time and resources.

When discussing autonomy, it is already listed in Articles 6 and 7 of the PSA that Alberta’s Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services “will set the objectives, priorities and goals” of the RCMP in their capacity as the provincial police service. Alberta covers up to 70% of the PSA, which allows it to have a greater say over what the RCMP needs to focus on in the province. Any perception otherwise holds no weight, and creating a new provincial police service means we lose those federal subsidies with no alternative plan to offset them.

More importantly, in 2023, the Rural Municipalities of Alberta and the University of Lethbridge commissioned a survey where only 23% of rural Albertans supported an independent provincial police service, whereas 67% had a high trust in the RCMP. This demonstrates that public opinion is not inclined to start up a provincial police service, primarily because it could lead to increased deficit spending and borrowing if revenues do not match operating expenditures on policing (without federal subsidies). Alberta’s economy is still heavily dependent on revenues from non-renewable energy resources, which fluctuate with global prices and royalties. Therefore, creating a new entity would not only lead to duplication in police services but also be cost-prohibitive for Alberta. 

The federal government itself has also demonstrated a level of commitment. They announced the hiring of 1,150 RCMP personnel over four years and raised cadet allowances under Budget 2025. These are clear indications that the RCMP is not going anywhere, and the federal government is addressing vacancies. While staffing remains an issue in the RCMP, it affects municipal law enforcement agencies such as the Calgary Police Service and the Toronto Police Service, which shows that creating a provincial police service does not magically solve this issue. Furthermore, the federal Minister of Public Safety has stated that any party interested in renewing their PSA can enter negotiations, which rebuts the March 2025 white paper proposal entirely.

That is to say, creating a new ASPS does have valid points. Historically, we had the Alberta Provincial Police (APP) for a while. The APP was formed because the Royal North-West Mounted Police (the predecessor to the RCMP) ended its contract in 1916 due to issues with the First World War. Furthermore, defenders of the ASPS would argue that other provinces like Ontario, Québec, and Newfoundland and Labrador have maintained their own provincial police services, hence why Alberta should have its own. While that is true, it is because both Ontario and Québec are larger provinces in terms of revenue and population and have been able to sustain operations without interruption. Alberta, on the other hand, had to disband its provincial police service in 1932, arguably due to the implications of the Great Depression. When looking at the case of Newfoundland and Labrador, the RCMP is contracted to support the provincial Royal Newfoundland Constabulary in rural areas.

Defenders of the ASPS would argue that consensus on contract policing in other parts of Canada is changing. For instance, Saskatchewan operationalized its own Saskatchewan Marshals Service (SMS) in 2025. The cities of Surrey in British Columbia and Grande Prairie in Alberta are transitioning away from the RCMP. Likewise, Indigenous communities such as the Siksika First Nation in Alberta revived their own police service in 2022. There is no doubt that municipalities in Alberta can establish their own police services under sections 4(5) and 27(1) of the Police Act, 2000. However, it is not feasible for all, which is why many municipalities continue to utilize the RCMP instead, based on their fiscal needs and population size. Additionally, establishing a provincial police service is different than establishing a municipal one because the large scalability affects more communities. The SMS’s case is that it has led to duplications for Saskatchewan’s municipalities, as they will foot the bill for both the SMS and the RCMP F Division. This is problematic since the Government of Saskatchewan has been hiring more RCMP and SMS personnel in municipalities, which is not a proper use of resources.

While the RCMP should strengthen Federal Policing in this uncertain world of ours, their presence in rural communities and mid-sized towns in Alberta is still necessary. Replacing them as a provincial police service can place an undue burden on the Alberta budget for years to come. Therefore, based on unprecedented global trade disruptions and the state of Alberta’s economy, it would be wise to strengthen the RCMP K Division and commit to re-negotiating on a post-2032 PSA.

Author: Talha Hasnat is a current Master of Public Policy student at the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy.

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