How muddy the waters are!!

The muddy waters of the local policing debate have just got murkier and very confusing. Firstly the County of Northumberland established a process to examine a County-wide policing initiative, then the Police Services Board of Cobourg decided not to bid on the RFP that would give them the County-wide option whilst the Town of Cobourg decided to ask the OPP for a costing option, then Port Hope decided to do the same thing (decline to bid on the RFP) and in a bizarre move decided to build a new building for 2.7 million. Meanwhile most poeple who are watching the situation agree that the OPP is puffing themselves up and lowballing the price to get the RFP. It is also acknowledged that the OPP have the inside track because of the backgrounds of the consultants. At the same time the seven municipalities are agreed that the policing issue will not move forward one inch if it is going to cost them more money!

So here is a suggestion: because the problem of the high cost of urban policing as compared to rural policing is the lack of grants (the rurals get them and the urbans don't) and will be ameliorated by a County-wide system where the rural population will dominate and thus the urbans can get grants, establish a County-wide system policed by a succesful bidder; probably the OPP. However because the OPP will not have the manpower or the inclination to police urban West Northumberland create a West Northumberland subcontract that will allow the status quo in West Northumberland.