Latest news with #OperationDeterrence
CBC
25-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
RCMP changes operations, patrols border for 1st time after Trump pushes for heightened security
RCMP officers at the Windsor, Ont., detachment have been patrolling the Canada-U.S. border in ways they've never done before since U.S. President Donald Trump pushed for increased security between the neighbouring countries. Beginning in December, Const. Ian Smith and many of his more than 40 colleagues in the southwestern Ontario city have been spending their 12-hour shifts driving along roughly 800 kilometres of coastline between Tobermory, through Sarnia, up along the Detroit River and back around to Port Burwell, just southeast of London. "We're looking for anything suspicious in regards to people or contraband, drugs, commodities coming into Canada or leaving Canada illegally," said Smith. Canada announced its $1.3-billion border security plan in December following Trump's concerns over the flow of drugs and migrants. Ottawa asked the RCMP to "secure the border," Smith said. In the first four months of these patrols, he said, it hasn't really yielded much, in part because the waterways aren't very active in cold weather. But Smith said this type of work is hard to quantify. "We're out here every day doing this in order to deter, so if we're not catching them, hopefully it's because we're deterring it," said Smith. "There's 800 kilometres [of coastline], so how do we patrol that constantly, all the time? It's impossible," he added. In January, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) announced Operation Deterrence, which joined forces with the RCMP to enhance border security. Two hundred OPP officers are dedicated to the boundary between both countries. "A more co-ordinated, Team Canada approach that includes more boots on the ground is the only way to detect, deter and disrupt illegal activity, and ensure the safety and security of Canadian and American communities," said Ontario Premier Doug Ford in a January news release. RCMP helicopters now patrolling border To help with the vast amount of coastline being covered on the ground, the RCMP also recently put officers in helicopters. The last time RCMP officers saw illegal activity along waterways in southwestern Ontario involved human smuggling in September on the St. Clair River, Smith said. During Smith's nine years with the RCMP in Windsor, he spent the bulk of that time working behind the scenes on drug investigations. The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) would discover drugs at the border. Then, the RCMP would investigate where they came from and where they were going in order to make additional arrests and seizures. Now, RCMP officers are spending a lot of time patrolling the border while continuing to conduct those investigations. Officers inspect trucks heading to U.S. for 1st time Another new aspect for the RCMP at the border is its involvement with inspecting commercial trucks leaving Canada and heading to the U.S. at the Ambassador Bridge. Philie is a four-year-old German Shepherd that's trained to detect fentanyl. It's one of only a few dogs with that capability in Ontario and has been with the RCMP for about a year now. For the CBSA, it has had the authority to question outbound drivers and inspect their vehicles since 2019. However, a spokesperson didn't say how often that's been done and if these outbound searches have increased in recent months. "In general, outbound examinations are targeted and selective based on indicators," said CBSA senior spokesperson Rebecca Purdy. Purdy also pointed to Operation Blizzard, which launched last month and tries to intercept illegal goods coming into Canada or leaving the country. That initiative focuses on fentanyl and other narcotics, she said.
CBC
09-02-2025
- Business
- CBC
Ontario NDP promise grocery rebate while PC leader Ford touts border security measures
Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford touted his party's border security measures amid the threat of U.S. tariffs, as the NDP focused on pocketbook issues Saturday with the promise of a monthly grocery rebate for millions of people. Ford continued to hammer home his campaign message about protecting Ontario's economy, saying that even though U.S. President Donald Trump has put off his tariff threats until early March, "an unprecedented economic risk" still looms. "The simple truth is, as long as Donald Trump is president, the risk of tariffs will never go away," Ford said during a campaign stop at a regional airport in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Trump has been threatening to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods unless Canada improves security at the border. Ford said his government's Operation Deterrence, announced last month as part of Ontario's response to the tariff threats, has so far intercepted eight illegal border crossings and led to the seizure of 21 illegal firearms and 624 kilograms of cocaine. If re-elected, Ford promised to spend $50 million to expand the Ontario Provincial Police's Joint-Air Support Unit with two new H-135 helicopters to support the Niagara Regional Police and the Windsor Police Service with increased border patrols, security and enforcement. Opposition parties have slammed Ford's claim that he needs an even larger electoral mandate to deal with four years of Trump, and have said the election campaign must focus on provincial health-care and affordability issues. NDP promise to introduce grocery rebate NDP Leader Marit Stiles said the rising cost of living is top of mind for Ontarians and that's why an NDP government would introduce a monthly grocery rebate for lower and middle-income households. Stiles said up to four million households would benefit from the program and a family of four could get up to $122 per month to help offset the cost of groceries. "That's over $1,400 per year," Stiles said at a campaign stop in Toronto on Saturday. "What I hear from people as I'm criss-crossing Ontario is that everybody is fed up with paying too much for basics like bread, rice and vegetables," she said. The tax-free rebate amount would be based on how much the cost of grocery staples has increased over the last several years and tied to the recipients' annual income and household size. The NDP said families and individuals with a net income of up to $65,000 would get the full credit, and the rebate would decrease for households earning between $65,000 and $100,000. The party said the program would cost about $409 million per month. A report by researchers at several Canadian universities released in December concluded that a Canadian family of four can expect to spend more than $16,800 on food in 2025 — and increase of about $800 from last year. If her party forms government, Stiles said it would also introduce measures to prevent co-ordinated price hikes among Ontario grocers and install a consumer protection watchdog. Meanwhile, the Liberal party made a pledge Saturday to appoint a special investigator to look into various moves by the Ford government, including the closure of the Ontario Science Centre and the now-reversed plan to develop land in the protected Greenbelt. Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie had made a similar promise last June, long before Ford called the Feb. 27 snap election. Opening up the Greenbelt sparked a public outcry that hit a fever pitch in the summer of 2023 and led to an RCMP investigation that's still ongoing. Ford has denied any wrongdoing and said last week that he has not been interviewed by the RCMP in its Greenbelt probe, but he does not know if any of his staffers have been questioned.
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ontario NDP pledges grocery rebate as PC leader Ford touts border security measures
Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford touted his party's border security measures amid the threat of U.S. tariffs, as the NDP focused on pocketbook issues Saturday with the promise of a monthly grocery rebate for millions of people. Ford continued to hammer home his campaign message about protecting Ontario's economy, saying that even though U.S. President Donald Trump has put off his tariff threats until early March, "an unprecedented economic risk" still looms. "The simple truth is, as long as Donald Trump is president, the risk of tariffs will never go away," Ford said during a campaign stop at a regional airport in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont. Trump has been threatening to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods unless Canada improves security at the border. Ford said his government's Operation Deterrence, announced last month as part of Ontario's response to the tariff threats, has so far intercepted eight illegal border crossings and led to the seizure of 21 illegal firearms and 624 kilograms of cocaine. If re-elected, Ford promised to spend $50 million to expand the Ontario Provincial Police's Joint-Air Support Unit with two new H-135 helicopters to support the Niagara Regional Police and the Windsor Police Service with increased border patrols, security and enforcement. Opposition parties have slammed Ford's claim that he needs an even larger electoral mandate to deal with four years of Trump, and have said the election campaign must focus on provincial health-care and affordability issues. NDP Leader Marit Stiles said the rising cost of living is top of mind for Ontarians and that's why an NDP government would introduce a monthly grocery rebate for lower and middle-income households. Stiles said up to four million households would benefit from the program and a family of four could get up to $122 per month to help offset the cost of groceries. "That's over $1,400 per year," Stiles said at a campaign stop in Toronto on Saturday. "What I hear from people as I'm criss-crossing Ontario is that everybody is fed up with paying too much for basics like bread, rice and vegetables," she said. The tax-free rebate amount would be based on how much the cost of grocery staples has increased over the last several years and tied to the recipients' annual income and household size. The NDP said families and individuals with a net income of up to $65,000 would get the full credit, and the rebate would decrease for households earning between $65,000 and $100,000. The party said the program would cost about $409 million per month. A report by researchers at several Canadian universities released in December concluded that a Canadian family of four can expect to spend more than $16,800 on food in 2025 – and increase of about $800 from last year. If her party forms government, Stiles said it would also introduce measures to prevent co-ordinated price hikes among Ontario grocers and install a consumer protection watchdog. Meanwhile, the Liberal party made a pledge Saturday to appoint a special investigator to look into various moves by the Ford government, including the closure of the Ontario Science Centre and the now-reversed plan to develop land in the protected Greenbelt. Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie had made a similar promise last June, long before Ford called the Feb. 27 snap election. Opening up the Greenbelt sparked a public outcry that hit a fever pitch in the summer of 2023 and led to an RCMP investigation that's still ongoing. Ford has denied any wrongdoing and said last week that he has not been interviewed by the RCMP in its Greenbelt probe, but he does not know if any of his staffers have been questioned. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2025. Sonja Puzic, The Canadian Press Sign in to access your portfolio
