Public Safety Canada budget cuts jeopardize the safety of all Canadians

Savings program will impact training and preparedness

MISSISSAUGA, ON, Sept. 29 /CNW/ - An item was posted on the budget announcement page of the Federal government indicating amongst other information that Public Safety Canada (PSC) will be making a budget cut of $35.8 million over the next three years. Less than six months after a scathing report from the auditor general on the lack of programs from Public Safety Canada and on how an amount of over $25 million went unspent by PSC, this cut is only going to jeopardize the safety of all Canadian citizens in a country already ill-prepared for emergencies.

The Ontario Association of Emergency Managers (OAEM) is launching an appeal to Canadians to request that the Federal government reverse the plan which calls for major reductions in funding from the Joint Emergency Preparedness Program (JEPP) and the possible closure of the Canadian Emergency Management College (CEMC). JEPP is the only emergency management funding in the country, without which municipalities will be dangerously restricted in developing emergency prevention and preparedness programs.

The CEMC is the only national institution providing training in emergency site management and emergency operations centre management to emergency response and emergency management officials. The CEMC is one of the targets of these cuts and slated to be closed eventually although federal officials are reluctant to provide much detail. Candidates for courses usually offered by CEMC have been added to a waiting list for almost six months now and early indications are that the courses will no longer be offered.

Emergency Managers and Primary Responders will be left to themselves to obtain training in these essential functions. Without standardized training, emergency response personnel will be ill-prepared for large-scale emergencies. In addition, the mutual aid often provided by people holding similar positions in other municipalities may be compromised because of differing methodologies and terminology.

These budget cuts were made without consulting emergency management professionals or municipalities. Minister of Public Safety Vic Toews and Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty did not take the time to advise the stakeholders of the cuts and OAEM is at a loss to find details of the amounts provided on the government web site (http://www.budget.gc.ca/2010/plan/anx2-eng.html). Many municipalities are dependent on JEPP funding to maintain any emergency management initiative at all and this cut can spell disaster, particularly for smaller communities.

It is appalling to realize how the Federal government recently announced that it would provide over $1.1 billion in aid to Haiti following the earthquake, but is not ready to ensure the safety of its own citizens and cuts back on domestic programs. OAEM is concerned that the federal government prefers to provide support after emergencies happen rather than help stop them by funding prevention and preparedness programs. One only has to look at recent events to realize how important emergency management is. With Hurricane Igor creating havoc in Newfoundland, flooding in B.C. stranding many communities, and an apartment fire in Toronto leaving 1,700 people homeless, domestic emergency management programs should be a priority for the Federal government.

(Copies provided to: MP Michael Ignatieff, MP Jack Layton, MP Gilles Duceppe)

The Ontario Association of Emergency Managers (OAEM) represents over 500 professionals in the field of emergency management working in the province. Although some of these professionals work at the federal and provincial level or in private industry, the majority of the members are municipal emergency managers. The role of the association is to promote, support and enhance the profession of emergency management in Ontario. A major goal of the association is to ensure that governmental programs allow emergency managers to play their role of ensuring the safety of the citizens of Ontario.

    
              To promote, support and enhance the profession of
                       emergency management in Ontario
    

For further information: Alain Normand, Chair, Education Committee, Ontario Association of Emergency Managers, Phone: [phone], e-mail: [email protected]; Michael Hand, President, Ontario Association of Emergency Managers, Phone: [phone], e-mail: [email protected]