Prince Albert police are being pushed into a reactive role as rising violent crime collides with growing social pressures that extend beyond traditional law enforcement, according to Saskatchewan NDP MLA Hugh Gordon.
Gordon, the party’s associate shadow minister for community safety, was in Prince Albert on Wednesday to meet with members of the city police union and review recently released crime statistics showing sharp increases in several categories.
“We are seeing ongoing trends of rising crime here in the city,” Gordon said in an interview. “From a policing perspective, they are in a position of having to respond very reactively right now.”
Gordon said police statistics shared with the union show violent crime up about 10 percent year over year, with nearly 2,000 violent incidents reported. Arsons increased by 41 percent, motor vehicle thefts by nearly 30 percent, robberies by close to 40 percent, and thefts over $5,000 rose about 40 percent.
The figures Gordon referenced closely align with data presented to the Prince Albert Police Commission this year.
Gordon said staffing remains a persistent concern, particularly when multiple violent incidents occur at the same time.
“Sometimes you will get more than one violent crime incident happening on the same shift,” he said. “Ensuring there are enough officers available to safely attend scenes is always an ongoing issue.”
Gordon, a retired RCMP officer with 24 years of service, said staffing pressures are compounded by issues beyond traditional law enforcement.
Police officers are increasingly responding to mental health crises, addiction-related incidents, and the impacts of homelessness, he said, drawing them away from proactive policing.
“When those supports are not there, it has a direct impact on police resources,” Gordon said. “They get pulled away from their core mandate, which is law enforcement.”
Those staffing pressures have been raised publicly by Prince Albert police leadership as well. In a provincial funding announcement last fall, Chief Patrick Nogier said officers in the city continue to manage heavy call volumes tied to trauma, violence, and repeat offenders, while balancing investigative work and frontline response. He said additional provincially funded positions were intended to help maintian a more proactive police presence rather than having officers spend most of their time responding to priority calls.
Gordon said police union leaders in Prince Albert emphasized the difficulty of being proactive under current conditions.
“The word that was mentioned today was proactive,” Gordon said. “They are not in a position to be proactive in the community. That is where we want to get, so police are not always reacting after harm has already occurred.”
Gordon argued that addressing crime requires provincial investment beyond enforcement, including expanded mental health services, addiction treatment programs, housing supports, and community-based resources.
“No community in this province is immune from the homelessness crisis,” he said. “If we can address those root causes effectively, it helps police agencies do their jobs better and helps bring crime rates down overall.”
Concerns about security in hospitals were also raised during the visit. Gordon said recent incidents involving weapons underscore the need for stronger provincial involvement in safety planning.
“Security is a major issue,” he said. “Police are being asked to deal with those situations more and more where the province is not providing enough security in hospitals. The same concern applies to schools.”
Gordon placed responsibility on the provincial government, arguing that nearly two decades of current policy has failed to reverse crime trends.
“We have had 19 years of policy that has not had a beneficial impact on reducing crime,” he said. “We need to provide more supports to frontline officers, whether that is more people, more resources, or better community supports that address the causes of crime.”
He said improving housing stability, mental health care, and addiction treatment would allow police to shift toward prevention rather than constant response.
“If we can do that effectively,” Gordon said, “we can help police become more proactive in their communities and start to bring these crime rates down.”
arjun.pillai@paherald.sk.ca
