Future Ontario Police Officers Will No Longer Need Post-Secondary Education

In an effort to boost police recruitment in Ontario, the provincial government said it will be changing certain policies such as attempting to remove the requirement of having completed post-secondary education and covering recruits’ tuition fees.

Premier Doug Ford claimed that crime is on the rise and that Ontarians felt scared in their hometowns and that adding more officers was paramount to their safety.

“We’re seeing increases in auto thefts, assaults, break-and-enters, and random acts of violence on public transit and on our streets,” Ford said in a press conference. “Here in Toronto, major crimes are up over 20 per cent compared to the same time last year. People don’t feel safe. Some are scared to take the subway or to go for a walk once it gets dark and that’s wrong.”

Ford added that Ontario needs “reinforcements” and to do so, the provincial government will cover the entirety of tuition costs retroactive to January 2023 to entice people to join. The three-month training program costs $15,450.

The government is also looking to pass legislation that would no longer require potential recruits to have completed post-secondary education to sign up for their police academy.

Ontario will also increase the number of spaces for new recruits in hopes of having four groups of 550 officers graduating each year.

Following Ford’s announcements, several Ontarians were critical of the new policies.

One user noted Ford’s action plan was announced just as reports trickled in detailing his defunding of colleges and universities in Ontario.

Others said that paramedics should prepare themselves for more “police-involved shootings.”

Someone uploaded a screenshot of a study that claimed educated police used force less frequently.