Submission for Panel 24: Governance and Management of State-Owned Enterprises, Corporate Forms and Agencies on Local, Regional and National Level
The Concept of Governance as Forward Oversight as Applied to Police Agencies in Canadian Municipalities
Andrew Graham
Continuing Adjunct Professor
School of Policy Studies
Queen’s University
Kingston, Canada
www.andrewbgraham.ca
andrew.graham@queensu.ca
613 583 0096
This paper explores the governance of a quasi-independent agency of government at the local level. It focuses on the nature of oversight and governance for Canadian municipalities over their police services. The forms of governance developed in several Canadian provinces is globally unique, representing an opportunity to learn from the multi-decade experience to date. Results are mixed, civilian governance of police and quasi-military entities of government and accountability to the public. [i]
Canadian municipal police services have a high degree of discretion, while exercising powers of restraint. The balance between the need for police to operate independently of political interference and the need for accountability in the exercise of their unique powers is fraught with debate. This paper draws a theoretical basis of the array of oversight mechanisms in place to address malfeasance and abuse of power and the need to provide what it characterizes as forward oversight through governance mechanisms to address the bridge between legitimate political concerns and protecting these police agencies from interference. It examines the experience in Canada with the creation, through provincial law, of boards and commissions in many municipalities to direct the police service, give it policy and strategic direction and hold it to account. The Canadian experience, has unique characteristics that can be instructive in assessing the capacity of governments to exert control over semi-autonomous element of the public sector. [ii]
The Canadian police governance experience is relevant to other forms of governance of arms-length or quasi-independent public entities. The creation of effective governance has proven elusive within the policy frameworks (generally provincial legislation) provided and the lack of determinants of success. Further, issues have arisen with respect to the composition of the governance bodies (short-term appointments, issues of expertise and capacity to understand the workings of a police service) and the degree that they can legitimately direct the workings of the service (policy versus operations). More pertinently and to a degree not well researched is the existence in this field of an array of oversight mechanisms which assess individual police actions through the criminal court and civil matters as well. This rather complex governance mix creates public confusion and leaves the governance board in a somewhat confused role conundrum. The author will attempt to address part of this by introducing the theoretical concept of forward oversight.
[i] Dr. Alok Mukherjee, “A Civilian Perspective on the Evolution of Policing and Police Governance” Ottawa, Jan. 2013, presented to the National Summit on the Economics of Policing
[ii] John Kiedrowski, Michael Petrunik, Todd Macdonald & Ron Melchjers, “Canadian Police Board Views on the Use of Police Performance Metrics”, Compliance Strategy Group, prepared for Public Safety Canada, 2013 ISBN no.: 978-1-100-21885-4
Governance and management of State-Owned Enterprises, corporate forms and agencies on loca
