Police ranks growing over past decade

Following a period of general decline throughout the 1990s, police strength has generally increased over the past decade, according to Statistics Canada.

As of May 15, 2008, Canada had just more than 65,000 police officers, or 196 officers per 100,000 Canadians. This is a one-per-cent increase from 2007 and an eight-per-cent increase from 10 years ago.

The number of female officers increased at a faster pace than their male counterparts, continuing a trend that began in the mid-1970s. There were just more than 12,200 female officers in 2008, up three per cent from the previous year. The number of male officers increased two per cent.

Women accounted for almost one in five officers in 2008, compared with about one in eight a decade earlier.

Over the past 10 years, all provinces recorded increases in their police strength, with the largest being in Newfoundland and Labrador (21-per-cent increase) and Nova Scotia (17-per-cent increase).

Saskatchewan and Manitoba reported the highest rate of police officer strength in 2008 while Alberta and Prince Edward Island had the lowest.

Since 1998, all 27 census metropolitan areas, except for Victoria, recorded increases in police strength. The largest gains were reported in Sherbrooke, Que., (26 per cent) and St. Catharines–Niagara in Ontario (23 per cent).

In 2008, Thunder Bay, Ont., had the most police per 100,000 population, followed by Saint John, N.B., and Regina.

Among the nine largest metropolitan areas, rates of police strength were highest in Montreal and Winnipeg.

In 2007, police solved 37 per cent of crimes reported to them, compared with 35 per cent a decade ago. After adjusting for inflation, police expenditures rose for the 11th consecutive year, reaching $10.5 billon in 2007, or $320 for every Canadian.