Alberta to create independent police force

The Alberta government is introducing new legislation that it says would create a new, independent police force.

The Public Safety Statutes Amendment Act, 2024, was introduced into the legislature on March 13.

If the act is passed, the province said it would enable the creation of a new organization that would work alongside police services across the province.

Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services Mike Ellis said the new force would not replace the RCMP, but will improve the government’s ability to respond to communities’ requests for additional law enforcement support.

“I think it is very important to state immediately that in the clearest terms possible that this legislation does not create a provincial police service in replacement of the RCMP,” he said. “Our aim here is to bring the police-like functions that the Alberta Sheriffs have taken on over time under the same kind of legislative framework and civilian oversight as Alberta’s police services.”

The new legislation would change current law to create a new organization the government says would work alongside police services across the province like the RCMP, municipal police forces, and First Nations police services.  Officers in the new force would also perform police-like functions that are currently carried out by the Alberta Sheriffs.