McFee welcomes Police Act overhaul, Sohi hopes changes bring proportional funding

Edmonton's top cop welcomed provincial changes to police commissions and officer misconduct oversight, saying more appointees made by the province will add greater depth to representation at the commission level.

On Thursday, the province introduced a bill overhauling how police misconduct complaints are investigated and expanding the public safety minister and justice ministers' role in local policing, including appointing members to local police commissions.

Police commissions are arms-length organizations charged with overseeing how police services are run.

When asked Saturday, Edmonton police Chief Dale McFee said the changes were "nothing we should be fearing" and won't politicize the work commissioners do.

"It's the opposite, it puts balance," McFee said. "Most provinces have that already."

If passed, Bill 6 would permit the province to appoint from one to three police commission members based on the current size of the oversight body.

"It basically puts balance into the equation," McFee added. "If you look at it, just all of council doing all the appointments, that's one-dimensional.

"If you look at council with a combination of province," he said, "this just makes sense.

"It puts balance on a governance body that's responsibly for community, and community is not just local, community is provincial."

He also praised the creation of a new provincial civilian watchdog for overseeing complaints and reviewing police conduct. For McFee, that was something police chiefs, law enforcement associations and community members have been asking for many years.

"This is really good to have," he said. "This is a progressive step about bringing transparency and accountability."

"It's what everybody's been asking for."

At city hall on Friday, Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said he most looked forward to the creation of an independent police review body and mandating diversity plans for police services.

While he appreciated the opportunity to consult on the proposed changes, consultation with the province happened 10 days ago at the "11th hour."

"I was very clear with them that we welcome the provincial presence on the commission, but it has to be proportional to the funding that the province provides to run the Edmonton Police Service."

Bill 6 still requires two more readings in the legislature.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Jessica Robb and Jeremy Thompson