THUNDER BAY - The Thunder Bay Police Service will not be receiving any money from $65 million in federal funding to the province to address the growing issue of guns and gangs in Ontario communities.
The announcement was made earlier this week and the province listed several initiatives in the Greater Toronto and Ottawa areas that would be receiving a portion of the funds.
Following the initial announcement, Thunder Bay Police Service deputy chief, Ryan Hughes, said the service was still waiting to learn if they would be receiving any money, though he expressed disappointment in the north not being listed as any of the potential projects.
“It’s disappointing that the north is not recognized,” said Hughes on Tuesday. “There are issues here. We see it, the OPP sees it, NAPS and APS see the issues.”
A spokesperson with Thunder Bay Police Service confirmed that they would not be receiving any of the $65 million but will continue to pursue other funding and grant opportunities.
The money from the federal government was transferred to the province to address the growing issue of guns and gangs and human trafficking in Ontario.
Some of the initiatives that will be receiving funds include the creation of an intensive firearm bail team in Peel, establishing a GTA Golden Horseshoe Gun and Gang Fund, and creating a new Eastern Ontario Gun and Gang Team to work with the Ottawa Police Service.
Thunder Bay-Superior North MP, Patty Hajdu, said the federal government recognizes that police forces across the province are struggling with these issues, including Thunder Bay, but ultimately it is the purview of the provincial government to decide where federal dollars are allocated.
“We stepped up, we provided additional resources and listened to the provinces concerns about needing more resources for guns and gangs, but ultimately, policing is a provincial jurisdiction,” she said. “Doug Ford makes decisions based on his own decision making process and clearly Northern Ontario has to stand up and fight for those resources as well.”
Hajdu encourages the people of Thunder Bay to reach out to their provincial representatives and ministers to ask why Northern Ontario continually gets left out of decisions by the Ford government.
“The government of Ontario has a responsibility to all of Ontario and it’s important they see the north and invest in the north and ensure the north has the resources that they need to protect their citizens,” she said.
The federal government will continue to look at other ways of helping the region, Hajdu added, including crime prevention grants and addressing issues like housing, partnerships with community organizations, and poverty reduction.
Opposition leader Andrea Horwath, who was in Thunder Bay this week for NDP caucus meetings, said the Ford Government’s decision to delay returning the Ontario legislature until after the upcoming federal election is just a way to avoid scrutiny on decisions that are unhelpful to communities and she said opposition MPPs will stand up loudly at Queen’s park in October and keep fighting for the people of Northwestern Ontario.
"This is something that is completely unacceptable," Horwath said. "We know that guns and gangs are a problem in many communities across the province. The fact that this investment is being put together in the south and only targeted to areas or communities in Southern Ontario is unnaccpetable."
Horwath added funding cuts to other programs and services by the Ford government are also hurting communities like Thunder Bay.
"To add insult to injury, the government is pulling back funding that prevents young people fromt getting tied up in guns and gangs," she said. "Whether that is community based programming, appropriate funding for schools to help kids find their gifts, or after school programs. These are the things that prevent kids from engaging in gang activity in the first place."
