Ontario’s Inspector General and the Inspectorate of Policing

In Ontario, now Chief Justice of Ontario’s the Honourable Michael H. Tulloch’s 2017 review of the provincial police oversight system provided recommendations on improving transparency, accountability and effectiveness in police service delivery and its oversight system. These recommendations, along with input from various sources including independent reviews, policing and police governance stakeholders, social services, and diverse Ontario communities, emphasized the need to modernize the laws that govern police service delivery in the province. This led to the establishment of the CSPA and its regulations, which came into effect April 1st, 2024. 

 

The CSPA replaced the PSA– which was over 30 years old – and aims to ensure that policing practices remain responsive to contemporary challenges and community needs. One of the more significant elements of the CSPA is the new role of the IG, who is responsible for ensuring that adequate and effective policing and police governance is provided to all Ontario communities. The IG is supported by the IoP, an arm’s-length division of the Ministry of the Solicitor General, created to provide the operational support necessary to fulfill the IG’s mandate under the CSPA.

 

The IG’s duties, powers and responsibilities are described in Part VII of the CSPA. The IG, supported by the IoP, serves the public interest by promoting improved performance and accountability in the policing sector, while ensuring compliance with the CSPA and its regulations. Under Ontario’s CSPA, the IG is empowered to:

 

  • Independently assess and monitor legislated policing entities;
  • Provide advice and support to legislated policing entities on governance and operational matters by sharing evidence-based research and data related to performance;
  • Monitor and conduct inspections of policing services, develop, maintain and manage records and conduct research to ensure compliance with the CSPA and its regulations;
  • Investigate complaints concerning the delivery of policing services and the conduct of police service board members;
  • Issue directions to ensure compliance with the CSPA and its regulations, and if necessary, impose measures if there is a failure to comply; and,
  • Publicly report on the activities of the IG, including publishing inspection results and an annual report.

 

The IG is responsible for overseeing the following Ontario policing entities:

  • Municipal police services and police service boards;
  • Chiefs of Police;
  • The Ontario Provincial Police and OPP detachment boards;
  • First Nations OPP boards and First Nations police service boards that opt-in to the CSPA;
  • Any entity providing policing by an agreement authorized by the CSPA;
  • Any public sector body that may be prescribed to provide policing; and 

  • Organizations that employ special constables.

     

The IoP remains committed to engaging all these entities to consider the diverse needs of the public as we work to improve policing performance that makes everyone in Ontario safer.

 

The CSPA marks a pivotal step towards enhancing policing and police governance delivery in Ontario. By establishing the IG and the IoP, the CSPA ensures a modernized framework for oversight, accountability, and support of excellence in policing across the province. The IG and the professionals in the IoP are responsible for upholding the public interest, working to ensure that every person in Ontario feels safe in their community and has confidence in the policing and police governance they receive, regardless of who they are or where they live.