Peel Regional Police set to receive multi-million dollar investment

 

After being asked for more support to tackle mounting gun violence, the Ontario government has pledged to invest millions in Peel Regional Police—the police service that serves Brampton and Mississauga.

The province says it is providing $20.5 million to Peel police to better provide officers with tools and resources to increase community policing, combat gun and gang violence, and enhance public safety.

“Our government is doing everything in its power to fight gun and gang violence and build safer communities,” Premier Doug Ford said in a news release. 

“Today we are giving our men and women in uniform even more resources to target violent criminals and put them behind bars - where they belong.”

Part of the funding will go towards Peel police’s Community Mobilization Program, an initiative that assigns police officers to small teams that work directly with members of the community on projects to improve public safety. Such projects include neighbourhood watches, town hall meetings, and cultural community outreach. 

This initiative is part of the $195 million total investment the province is making over the next three years through Ontario's new Community Safety and Policing (CSP) Grant program.

The province says the funding will help support Peel police's fight against gun and gang violence as part of Ontario’s Guns, Gangs and Violence Reduction Strategy. 

The province says both initiatives build on the investment Ontario has already committed to creating an Intensive Firearm Bail Team in Peel Region to focus on prosecuting those involved in firearms offences in the Greater Toronto Area starting this year.

“Public safety is the number one priority of Peel Regional Police,” said Peel Regional Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah. 

“This provincial funding will support our comprehensive approach to mitigating and ending gun and gang violence. We look forward to enhancing our response to this serious risk in our community.”