Ontario to expand police training and recruitment, this time for smaller forces

The province is expanding the Ontario Police College (OPC) to make room for 80 new cadets yearly in an effort to ease staffing shortages for smaller police departments, the solicitor general announced Wednesday.

Michael Kerzner was accompanied by Conservative MP Rob Flack, the leaders of both the Police Association of Ontario and the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, and local police officials on Wednesday at the OPC's Aylmer training facility.

The newly opened training spots, which are expected by 2025, will be reserved for small, medium and First Nation police services, according to Kerzner.

"To keep the communtiy safe, we need boots on the ground," said Kerzner. "We're working to build capacity block by block. We're laying the foundation for a safer Ontario, and we're doing this in concert with municipalities, First Nations and police services across Ontario."

In recent years, the province has made a number of changes to training and recruitment in an effort to bring more officers into the profession, including:

• The addition of new spots at the OPC in 2024.
• The removal of tuition costs for officers in training.
• The loosening of education requirements to allow people with high school diplomas to become police officers.

Police departments across the province have reported waning interest in open positions, signalled by lower numbers of applications. 

According to Kerzner, the change announced Wednesday and previous changes made since 2022 will bring the total number of potential training program graduates annually from 1,440 in 2022 to 2,080 in 2025.

It's unclear how much the expansion will cost and if it will require upgrades at the police college. Kerzner wasn't able to provide a cost estimate when asked, but said the investment will be well worth it. 

A spokesperson from Kerzner's office told CBC News a cost estimate will be shared soon.

"It's a serious investment that the government has made specifically because we realize when we put more boots on the ground, communities are safer," Kerzner said.

As for the spots being prioritized for small, medium and First Nation police services, Kerzner said the move will ensure the OPC is better able to provide spots for remote communities as well.

Mark Baxter, president of the Police Association of Ontario, said he supports the move. 

The Brantford police officer said communities like his have unique challenges that require adequate staffing for them to be met.

"Today's announcement ... is a clear recognition of the growing needs of police services across the province," Baxter said. "For services in smaller and medium-sized communities, as well as First Nations police services, this initiative is a game changer."

Staffing shortages 'foremost' operational issue

Other police officials who were at the announcement included Zvanko Horvat, Aylmer's police chief, and Kyle Johnstone, the town's deputy police chief.

Johnstone welcomed the news, saying his police service will have an easier time maintaining staffing levels once the spots open.

"As many police leaders will tell you, staffing shortages are one of the foremost operational issues at play today," Johnstone said. "These shortages in any police service are problematic, however, in smaller services, the vacancies are felt exponentially."

In London, a roughly 30-minute drive northwest of Aylmer, the impacts of the OPC expansion will be felt despite London's force being too large to qualify for the new spots, police Chief Thai Truong said.

"I think if the province and the government is supporting police services that are small, mid, and the Indigenous services, it impacts the province as a whole," Truong said. "Crime has no borders, so it impacts all of us."