Policing is the highest cost budget for the City of Kamloops. The sad part of this situation is that the City of Kamloops is helpless to do anything about it.

Kamloops contracts policing to the federal police force, the RCMP, and the federal government alone determines how much we pay for this service.

If Kamloops had its own police force like all major cities in Canada our City council could really look at policing costs and try to find savings or efficiencies. The RCMP is a very expensive police service.

The pay to constables is determined by the federal government and it is very high with perks such as full pension after a short career in the area of  20 years of service, and other benefits such as assistance purchasing or selling a home when transferred.

As well our costs likely help pay for the very costly  year-long training program in Regina  and the provincial headquarters of the RCMP in Surrey.

The federal force determines who will be the chief of police for Kamloops and how much City of Kamloops should pay him.

I know the federal RCMP state that they subsidize Kamloops policing at about 10 per cent.

I wonder if the City of Kamloops has attempted to determine if this is actually correct or just a strategy to make us feel good and to help the RCMP  get the contract.

The main issue is, it is our police force? We pay for it and we should be responsible for everything involved in hiring, promoting, paying and size of the force.

With the federal RCMP policing contract we have none of this power. As a concerned taxpayer, I ask City council to consider developing our own police force that would cost us less and give us the needed full accountability.

JOHN HART

Kamloops