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OTTAWA, Ontario, April 29, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, the National Police Federation (NPF) is on Parliament Hill meeting with Members of Parliament, Senators, and key stakeholders to advance our 2026 pre-budget priorities on behalf of approximately 20,000 RCMP Members, with an urgent call to fix Canada’s broken RCMP procurement system.
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The federal government has launched a new Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) to better manage military procurement with clear priorities, dedicated oversight, and faster delivery of critical equipment. Budget 2026 presents an opportunity to apply that same strategic, safety-first approach to RCMP procurement through a dedicated Public Safety Procurement Strategy and Secretariat, so Members are never again left relying on expired equipment while taxpayers overpay for basic tools.
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“Right now, our Members are being asked to do one of the most demanding jobs in this country with equipment that, in many cases, should have been replaced years ago,” said Brian Sauvé, President and CEO of the National Police Federation. “It’s time to bring that same focus and urgency to policing, because the status quo costs more and increases risk.”
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Federal procurement processes, largely designed for administrative and infrastructure projects, are not built for the realities of frontline policing. For example, the RCMP’s service pistol replacement took more than a decade from the end of its lifecycle to awarding a contract. Comparable police services outside of the federal process completed similar upgrades in under two years. The national body-worn camera rollout has faced similar setbacks, with repeated tendering processes and a delay of four years, all while municipalities face higher, unplanned costs as time-limited federal funding expired before deployment was completed.
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Those delays have real consequences for both safety and public finances. The NPF estimates that in just these two procurement processes, service pistols and body-worn cameras, procurement inefficiencies have cost taxpayers at least $6 million in avoidable inflation, duplicated work, and transition costs, while leaving Members using outdated, expensive to maintain equipment longer than recommended.
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“This isn’t just about dollars, it’s about safety,” added Sauvé. “When procurement drags on, the risk doesn’t disappear. It shifts to the frontline, to our Members, and to the public they serve.”
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To address these challenges, the NPF is calling on the federal government to take the following concrete, waste-reducing steps ahead of Budget 2026:
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- Establish a Public Safety Procurement Strategy and a Secretariat to coordinate RCMP equipment and technology procurement end-to-end, with clear accountability, firm timelines, and public reporting, similar to the Defence Industrial Strategy.
- Create an expedited procurement stream for safety-critical equipment, including firearms, body armour and digital policing tools.
- Move to lifecycle-managed, standing offer models so core equipment is replaced before expiry through national contracts that ensure interoperability and lower unit costs, rather than starting from scratch in emergencies.
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“If a provincial police service can replace its pistols in under two years, why is the RCMP still waiting more than a decade later, and why are taxpayers paying millions more for the privilege?” said Sauvé. “If our soldiers deserve a dedicated industrial strategy to get equipment on time, surely our federal police officers do too. Fixing procurement is low-hanging fruit in the push to cut waste, reduce the deficit, and keep Canadians safer.”
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