IQALUIT CRACK BUST SPARKS QUESTIONS FOR RCMP

"When we get the numbers, what does that mean to us?"

When Deputy Mayor Glenn Williams found out that a man was busted with
crack cocaine in Iqaluit a few weeks ago, he realized that rumours of
growing drug use in the community were true.

"I've never heard of anyone being busted for crack until now," he
said. He has also heard talk in the community of a rise in violent
crime and property crime that he thinks is likely linked to drug use.

"In the last few months there is more talk of rising drug use in the
community among people we deal with on a regular basis," said Cst.
Peter Lambros, a drug enforcement officer.

He says that drug use in Iqaluit is high and he is seeing more crack
and cocaine, which has an impact on other crimes, such as increasing
property theft.

As a city councillor, Williams wonders whether the current system that
the RCMP uses to report to council needs to be changed to better
reflect what is actually going on in the community.

He brought the issue up with Corporal Todd Walsh, who reported to city
council at a meeting on July 18.

"When we get the numbers, what does that mean to us?" Williams asked
at the meeting. "How can we apply that to something that is going to
affect our community?"

Once a month, an RCMP officer attends a city council meeting to
represent the department and present statistics, such as the number of
distress calls they receive and the number of male and female
prisoners in custody. They also provide comparisons with other months
and years to help give a perspective on whether crime is rising or
falling.

"All it can do is show you trends," Williams said in an interview.
"There is no mechanism for dialogue or further consultation with the
police department."

He adds that is no fault of the RCMP, but that there is no forum
currently set up for that to happen. He suggests the possibility of a
public safety committee in the future to deal with issues such as
drugs and crime.

"I'm hoping we can engage with the RCMP and see if there are any
alternatives to the current system," said Williams. "We need a better
way to assess the policing in our community."

According to Jennifer Hayward, the communications strategist for the
RCMP, surveys are currently the primary way that the performance of
the police is reviewed by the public and by the municipalities it serves.

"It's one way of measuring how effective we are policing the
communities," she said.

In 2006 a survey was sent to 13 of the communities and hamlets that
the RCMP serves and they received 10 back.

In that survey, 90 per cent of respondents said they find the regular
policing reports to be valuable.

In the same survey, 56 per cent of respondents said the RCMP provides
their clients with useful information about their work and 50 per cent
think that information is comprehensive.

Fifty-six per cent of the respondents felt they had enough say into
the development of community plans with the RCMP, and 60 per cent felt
they had sufficient involvement in setting the policing priorities of
their communities.

The RCMP also conducts a public survey over the phone. "We strive for
500 respondents because that gives us a good idea of how we are
doing," said Hayward.

In 2006, 500 people answered the survey in Nunavut and 67 per cent of
respondents said the RCMP provides adequate information about their
work. Eighty-eight per cent of people surveyed said they are satisfied
with the RCMP's work in ensuring their community is safe.

Hayward was unaware, at the time of the interview, of Williams'
suggestions for changes to the RCMP reporting system.