Standing Committee on Public Accounts

Comité permanent des comptes publics

For immediate release

Ottawa, November 22, 2017 -

OTTAWA – The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) was one of the first federal government organizations to introduce a mental health strategy. However, it did not adequately meet its members’ mental health needs, according to a report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts tabled today in the House of Commons by the Hon. Kevin Sorenson, Chair of the Committee.

In the spring of 2017, the Office of the Auditor General of Canada (OAG) released a performance audit whose objective was to determine whether RCMP members had access to mental health support that met their needs. The audit focused on two areas of the RCMP’s mental health strategy: early detection and intervention; and continuous improvement of the strategy. The audit found that the RCMP did not develop a business plan or provide sufficient funding and human resources to support the new programs.

Specifically, the OAG found that staff members assigned to the implementation of programs did so in addition to their regular duties, which limited their ability to support these new mental health initiatives; consequently, its implementation was delayed. Additionally, the RCMP did not effectively support its members on off-duty sick leave or adequately accommodate their return to work. As such, one in five RCMP members who sought support for a mental health condition through health services offices did not return to work. In this report, the Committee made eight recommendations that seek to ensure that the RCMP implements each of its proposed corrective measures in order to properly address the deficiencies identified in the OAG’s audit.