Craig Sauvé, leader of Transition Montréal and a candidate for mayor, revealed his party’s vision for enhancing public safety during a press conference on Thursday morning.
Sauvé emphasized the importance of creating a safer and healthier Montreal by addressing the root causes of criminality and upholding human rights. He criticized the current Plante administration for focusing too much on reactive policing rather than proactive prevention.
Transition Montréal highlighted a concerning trend of increased spending on police overtime, with an additional $40 million allocated annually between 2019 and 2023. If elected, the party aims to tightly regulate overtime expenditures to redirect funds towards proactive prevention initiatives.
Sauvé stressed the economic benefits of investing in crime prevention, citing potential savings in judicial and policing costs in the long run. He urged Montreal to prioritize expanding and funding prevention programs for a safer community.
In addition to advocating for increased prevention efforts, Transition Montréal’s public safety strategy includes a pledge to allocate $25 million per year to community programs. The party also proposed the establishment of a 24/7 civil crisis response team to handle non-criminal emergencies, which currently make up a significant portion of 911 calls.
Furthermore, Sauvé expressed a commitment to ending arbitrary police stops, particularly highlighting the disproportionate targeting of Black and Indigenous individuals. Transition Montréal aligns with the call from 104 organizations to abolish these discriminatory practices and promises to address this issue promptly upon assuming power.
