Saskatchewan continues to lead the nation in crime and it’s not even close with a crime severity index twice that of Canada as a whole.
Last week, federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre blamed the policies of the Liberal-NDP government for “one of the worst crime waves in Canadian history.”
Poilievre was responding to the release of last year’s Statistics Canada crime numbers that showed a national increase. But he neglected to further analyze the statistics that also clearly show huge differences in where crime is focused.
If federal policies are the chief driver of crime, you would expect a fairly even distribution of crime severity throughout the nation. But that’s not the case.
Saskatchewan, a province with which Poilievre should be familiar since Conservative MPs represent every single riding, leads the way among provinces in crime again. And it’s not close.
Saskatchewan’s 2023 crime rate, which measures crimes per 100,000 people, rose over the previous year to 12,909 — which also leads all provinces — more than twice the national rate of 5,843.
Alberta’s 2023 crime rate (7,948) declined five per cent from the previous year and Manitoba’s (10,599) dropped one per cent. Saskatchewan’s crime rate, meanwhile, jumped four per cent.
But how can that be, in a province that has been led by a conservative government for 17 years and is now the most right-wing in Canada? Conservatives are supposed to be tough on crime.
If you believe the claim that conservative governments reduce crime, Saskatchewan’s continued presence leading the nation in crime severity and crime rates ranks among the most abject failures of the government now led by Premier Scott Moe.
Saskatchewan’s crime severity index reached its highest point in a decade in 2023. Saskatoon, by comparison, still posted a slightly lower index than in 2019, prior to the pandemic.
Blackmore said the RCMP intends to fill 1,047 RCMP positions, but acknowledged aggressive recruiting is needed. One-fifth of positions currently sit vacant.
The marshals service, which is scheduled to debut in the fall of 2026, is supposed to recruit 70 officers and another 30 to 40 support staff and somehow only cost an extra $20 million a year.
Little wonder that the National Police Federation, the union that represents RCMP employees, is engaged in a campaign urging the province to halt further investment in the marshals scheme until a comprehensive plan is released and existing police forces are consulted.
But the Saskatchewan Party government has thus far failed to explain how a 70-marshal service hopes to do that effectively in a province the size of Saskatchewan.
Even if you somehow believe the marshals service rates as a good idea, you might well wonder why a conservative, supposedly tough-on-crime government took 17 years to come up with it.
Blackmore cautioned that law enforcement provides only one component for addressing crime, but her words seem unlikely to resonate with this government.
Phil Tank is the digital opinion editor at the Saskatoon StarPhoenix.
Our websites are your destination for up-to-the-minute Saskatchewan news, so make sure to bookmark thestarphoenix.com and leaderpost.com. For Regina Leader-Post newsletters click here; for Saskatoon StarPhoenix newsletters click here