The right to protect personal property is debatable at the best of times, thus giving criminals the perception; they won’t be challenged by their victims.

The public is asking, where is the line drawn in the right to protect personal property?

Minister of Justice, Cliff Cullen.

This issue is spilling over into rural areas, where criminals know they won’t face much resistance – thus increasing crime.

Minister of Justice, Cliff Cullen, says that has been part of the challenge to combat crime in rural areas.  He shares that the public perception is that there aren’t enough ‘boots on the ground’ as far as law enforcement.

“So, I went back and had a look at our numbers,” explains Cullen, “and over the last ten years, we’ve increased our RCMP staff complement by 11 %. So, we do have more people on the front lines.”

“We’ve also increased, year over year, the provincial policing budget,” he adds, “which is primarily RCMP and I know they’re increasing their complement.”

What has also been introduced to the western and eastern regions of the province, are the ‘Crime Reduction Teams.’

Cullen says the province is looking at the existing legislation surrounding the right to protect personal property, as well as changes that have been made in neighbouring areas, such as Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario.

At the end of the day, he says, whichever police force is in any given area, it’s about how do we work together to combat crime.