Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is using some of his final hours in office to call for a drastic and controversial shakeup to one of the country’s most emblematic institutions: the RCMP.
In an exclusive interview, Trudeau laid out why he believes the Mounties should get out of the boots-on-the ground policing they provide in provinces across the country and instead shift focus to challenges like national security, violent extremism and terrorism, money laundering, cybercrime and organized crime — including fentanyl rings.
“We know we have an extraordinary institution. But I know from having seen it that the RCMP is strained — we’ve all seen it — in dealing with the level of threats and the new reality of a much more dangerous world,” he told CBC News.
The prime minister is putting out a white paper later Monday that outlines a gutsy — and controversial — vision for the RCMP …