The Ontario government is working to ease recruitment efforts for police forces across the province.
Premier Doug Ford announced Tuesday morning tuition fees will be eliminated for the Basic Constable Training program at the Ontario Police College, retroactive to January 1, 2023.
“To push back the growing tide of crime in our communities, we’re urgently getting more boots on the ground,” Premier Doug Ford said in a news release. “That’s why our government is making the path to becoming a police officer as open as possible.”
The government plans to increase the number of recruits that can be trained each year from 480 to 550. Starting in 2024, the Basic Constable Training program will be expanded to four cohorts per year instead of three.
As well, legislation is in the works to eliminate the post-secondary education requirement for new recruits.
It’s an issue that has been top of mind for Chatham-Kent Police Chief Gary Conn, who says the cost of getting into policing can be prohibitive.
“Most of the applicants that we are receiving or accepting have completed some form of post-secondary education, so there’s the cost associated with that now coupled with the cost of going to the Ontario Police College,” Conn said.
Conn said the basic constable training course is a 13 week program with a cost of roughly $15,500.
If passed, the proposed legislation would amend the Community Safety and Policing Act to provide that a secondary school diploma or equivalent is sufficient education for the purposes of being appointed as a police officer.
