Statistics Canada data shows that every province except Manitoba and Quebec saw a decline in the number of police officers.
According to the organization’s Police personnel and expenditures in Canada, 2022 data police strength across Canada declined in comparison to last year.
“As of May 15, 2022 there were 70,566 police officers in Canada, 406 more than in 2021. This represents a rate of police strength of 181 officers per 100,000 population, a decrease from 2021.”
Broken down even further, every province saw their police forces decline by up to 3%.
British Columbia, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island had the largest decline, reporting a 3% drop in the number of police officers since 2021.
Ontario and New Brunswick followed with a 2% decline, while Alberta, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland had their police forces decline by 1%.
Quebec and Manitoba did not see a decline in police.
Following the Black Lives Movement protests in 2020, major cities like Toronto and Vancouver saw calls to defund the police.
Since then, metropolitan areas have seen a spike in random violence with recent fatal stabbings making headlines across the country.
