Police budget balances fight against increasingly complex crime and calls for new funding model

The “new normal” of 2020 puts pressure on the Chief, who was brought in with a vision of reforming an organization plagued by misconduct, complaints of systemic discrimination and a budget approach that seemed devoid of any effective strategic planning. Year after year unsustainable budget increases were passed while citizens of Brampton and Mississauga questioned why violent crime and other problems spread through their communities.

The Peel police budget went up by about 70 percent in one decade, from $290 million in 2010 to $490 million in 2020. Many in the public have questioned if the extra $200 million in just one decade has created a safer community. A survey done by Forum Research commissioned by The Pointer in 2018 showed 90 percent of Brampton residents did not feel safer than they did a year earlier.

Ensuring Peel Regional Police can deal with the increasing complexity of modern crime and meeting demands to rethink how police are funded is the delicate balancing act that begins today as the Peel Police Services Board starts discussions on the 2021 budget.

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Published in The Pointer Brampton and The Pointer Mississauga on November 27, 2020