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PC PARTY BLUEPRINT - 7/10
Strong on Crime
No one should live in fear - not a child, not a senior, not a woman, not a victim of crime and not a community. Yet, so many do. We must continue to build on our initiatives to protect one another as a society. Since 2003, we have invested heavily in additional policing resources, court resources, justice programs and violence prevention initiatives. But we have only just begun the work that must be done. We must also open up a broader dialogue among our people to ensure that we find new and more-effective ways of preventing and addressing violence and fear in our communities. We must ensure that all our actions work together to make people not only "feel" more secure, but also "be" more secure.
We will build on the many justice initiatives of our first term, including the hiring of many new police officers, the provision of new policing resources, the training of Royal Newfoundland Constabulary officers here in Newfoundland and Labrador, the expansion of court services and the expansion of family law services, among many other initiatives.
A Progressive Conservative government in its second term will:
- establish a formal province-wide AMBER Alert Protocol program to respond promptly to child abductions in coordination with other jurisdictions
- extend the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary recruitment program for another three years, providing ten additional officers a year, investing approximately $800,000 a year and $2.2 million on an annualized basis
- increase funding for Crime Stoppers, which offers rewards for information leading to arrests and convictions in cases of unsolved crimes
- enhance the anti-drug campaigns for schools and neighbourhoods in consultation with police, schools and parents
- double the number of Royal Newfoundland Constabulary police officers dedicated to drug enforcement with an investment of approximately $600,000
- provide an additional canine unit to enhance the drug enforcement program with an investment of approximately $200,000 for set-up and $100,000 for annual operations
- introduce provincial legislation to prevent criminals from benefitting from their crimes by seizing their proceeds, and directing the value of these seizures directly back into provincial law enforcement and crime prevention
- work with police to coordinate the development of a Newfoundland and Labrador e-crime unit; expand police resources dedicated to internet crimes such as stalking and cyber-bullying; establish a cyber-bullying coalition including law enforcement professionals, youth, parents and educators; provide literature to help parents understand and deal with cyber-bullying; and work with other jurisdictions in an effort to strengthen protections for consumers against web scams and e-theft
- continue to implement the Violence Prevention Initiative six-year plan [link], with its strategic priorities of increasing awareness and attitudinal change; increasing community participation; improving legislation, policy, programs, services, information and facilities; supporting aboriginal women and children and addressing elder abuse; enhancing research and development; and improving leadership, coordination and accountability
- expand and implement a province-wide violence prevention public awareness and education campaign
- continue to implement the recommendations of the Turner Inquiry Report [link 1/
2/
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3a], including measures to strengthen child protection
- establish a police unit dedicated to combating the sexual exploitation of children
- provide the resources and leadership to continue the effective implementation of the Safe and Caring Schools Policy in schools throughout Newfoundland and Labrador and encourage students to cultivate a harmonious code of conduct to govern their behaviour at school
- work with schools and other appropriate stakeholders to develop a zero-tolerance policy for bullying
- work proactively to further restore confidence in the province's justice system by continuing to implement the recommendations of the Lamer Inquiry [link] into wrongful convictions
- press the Government of Canada to restore funding for the federal Court Challenges Program, which has enabled minority groups such as Aboriginal and disabled communities to mount constitutional challenges of policies and actions that have compromised their rights
- maintain the provincial Inland Fisheries Enforcement Program that we successfully implemented - even though fishery protection is a federal responsibility - in order to protect our valuable salmon resources for future generations to enjoy, and continue to lobby for additional federal funding for the protection of inland fisheries
- press the federal government to develop an action plan to increase port security for both airports and seaports
- through the newly-created Fire and Emergency Services (FES-NL), implement the strategy for improved emergency preparedness, including organizational renewal, comprehensive planning, policy and program development, legislative and regulatory reform, and communications and public education
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