Alberta promises more officers for rural municipalities with provincial police plan

The United Conservative Party government has released its proposal for a provincial police service to replace the R-C-M-P in Alberta communities.

Justice Minister Tyler Shandro says the plan would add 275 front-line officers to small detachments.

It says 275 front-line police officers would be added to Alberta's 42 smallest detachments.

Justice Minister Tyler Shandro says the proposed model would have 65 to 85 community detachments that would have a minimum of 10 police officers and a maximum of 80 officers working in them.

The plan also includes service-hub detachments with between 48 and 192 officers, as well as three urban detachments to serve larger communities and function as regional headquarters.

Earlier this year, the Rural Municipalities of Alberta said it supports keeping the RCMP and opposes the idea of a provincial police force because it fails to demonstrate how it would increase service levels in rural areas.