NEWS RELEASE
TIMMINS POLICE ASSOCIATION
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Councillor and Mayoral hopeful Todd Lever has announced his desire to explore an Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) costing for the City of Timmins which has raised alarm bells within the Timmins Police Association (TPA).
TPA represents 81 sworn police officers and 55 civilian members who work diligently to provide top quality municipal policing within the City of Timmins.
A costing could mean the transfer of municipal policing, citizens of this city have relied on, to a more provincial based delivery of services should the OPP take over the responsibility.
TPA personnel provide a range of essential services to the community that no one else is providing 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Police and civilian staff provide immeasurable value to Timmins and are accountable to the community.
“Our members are proud employees of the Timmins Police Service and take pride in what they do” stated Mike Fortin, TPA President. “Our members are contributors to the community and are equally concerned with the high tax rates in Timmins however transferring policing responsibilities to the OPP is not free and much is yet to be learned regarding their new proposed costing model” added Fortin.
Although there are some inaccuracies in Lever’s released statement regarding the costing issue, the TPA respects all views of prospective Mayoral and Councillor candidates and is confident accurate information will be forthcoming.
One major point of concern not addressed in Lever’s release is the fact that more often than not, civilian staff of a municipal police service lose their jobs when the OPP take over a municipality.
“We have great civilian staff who risk to lose their livelihood should a takeover occur, attempting to save money and stimulate an economy by putting people out of work has never been an effective strategy at any level of government” stated Fortin.
TPA will be following this issue closely during the 2014 municipal election however assure all citizens that the level of professionalism they have come accustomed to when dealing with members of the police service will not be affected by this lingering issue.
TPA members will continue to serve and protect citizens of Timmins with pride and integrity throughout this time and thank citizens for their ongoing support.
For more information please contact Mike Fortin, President of the Timmins Police Association by email at [email protected] or by telephone at (705) 363-5537.
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