WINNIPEG — A re-elected PC government will invest $1 million annually to expand the Winnipeg Police Service property crime unit and increase their capacity to respond to property crime reports, Obby Khan, PC candidate for Fort Whyte, announced today.

“Increasing crime, driven by the policies of the NDP-Trudeau coalition, is negatively impacting businesses, property, and Manitobans’ sense of security,” said Khan. “While the NDP wants to give out free drugs just like the NDP in B.C., our PC Team is focused on recovery for our most vulnerable, and supporting law enforcement to help with reducing property crime.”

The new funding will help by creating 50 to 60 extra shifts for WPS personnel. This will allow officers to directly deal with reports of property crime.

“We’re the only party defending—not defunding—the police,” said Andrew Micklefield, PC candidate for Rossmere. “We can’t have the same soft-on-crime NDP making disastrous policies in Manitoba.”

Last year, Progressive Conservatives announced funding for police in Eastern Manitoba to combat property crime in the region, and passed the Scrap Metal Act to disrupt resale opportunities for illegally-obtained scrap metal across Manitoba.

More broadly, PCs have put forward multiple other initiatives to tackle crime in recent years, including funding for a new warrants unit and a new gangs unit to target violent offenders, as well as providing $52 million for the Manitoba Violent Crime Strategy and $56-million to support increasing municipal policing costs in Budget 2023. Wab Kinew and the NDP voted against every single initiative.

Yesterday, PCs committed to expanding the highly-successful Downtown Community Safety Partnership program to improve public safety and non-emergency response in downtown Brandon.

The provincial election will be held October 3rd, 2023.

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