Conclusion
Special Report on the Federal Policing Mandate of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
211. Five years ago, the Committee decided to study the activities of core security and intelligence organizations that had not been previously subject to dedicated and independent review. In addition to building its own knowledge of these organizations, the Committee sought through its reports to strengthen the accountability of responsible ministers, improve the efficacy of individual organizations, and build greater transparency around activities that have been little-explored or conducted in secret. The Committee’s review of the RCMP Federal Policing mandate is a continuation of that work; while the RCMP has been subject to dedicated and independent review, there has not been an external review specifically of its Federal Policing mandate.
212. The mandate of Federal Policing is unique. It is the only national organization in Canada responsible for enforcing all federal laws and for investigating the most serious and complex criminal threats to Canadians and Canadian interests. Its mandate is also broad. Federal Policing fulfills its responsibilities across Canada and internationally, provides services to the federal government in a number of critical areas, and works with federal, provincial and territorial organizations to meet common objectives.
213. Federal Policing suffers from a number of important challenges that undermine its ability to fulfill its essential role in the security and intelligence community. We discussed these challenges in our assessment and summarize them here. The Federal Policing mandate is affected by the RCMP's long focus on Contract Policing, which has shaped the RCMP's organizational structure, governance, finances, and human resource and training models. Against this background, Federal Policing has struggled with challenges internal to its program. These include weak governance and prioritization of federal activities and investigations; inadequate data and data management; an intelligence function misaligned with federal requirements; and a recruitment and training model ill-suited to its mandate. Over the last several years, Federal Policing has initiated reforms to address deficiencies in most of these areas; however, most are still in their infancy and could easily be hollowed out by a tendency towards the status quo, an institutional bias common to most organizations.
214. The government should take a clear role in driving change. It should identify that Federal Policing, an exclusive federal responsibility, is a priority and that reform is essential. The Minister of Public Safety should provide clear and ongoing direction in each of the areas where Federal Policing faces challenges in fulfilling its mandate, and in doing so set objectives and reporting requirements on results. If the government believes that providing such direction requires greater clarity in the area of police independence, it should consider amendments to the RCMP Act. The government should also put in place measures to protect Federal Policing finances and ensure effective governance, and consider what further investments may be required to build a modern and fit-for-purpose organization. Finally, the government should determine to what extent Federal Policing benefits from administrative synergies of being embedded in a single organization and to what extent the Federal Policing mandate should be independent from the wider responsibilities of the RCMP.
215. The government has a responsibility to ensure that the various components of its security and intelligence community function effectively to protect Canadians and Canadian Interests. On the basis of its review, the Committee does not believe that Federal Policing is as effective, efficient, flexible or accountable as it needs to be to protect Canada and Canadians from the most significant national security and criminal threats. The government must act to ensure it is.