$159 Million spent on law enforcement
Total municipal expenditures in the CRD were $878 Million in 2023, including $159 Million for law enforcement by 614 police officers, according to the most recent provincial data analyzed by Grumpy Taxpayer$.
The analysis illustrates clearly the varied costs and fractured nature of 13 municipalities employing five different police forces on the South Island.
Victoria continues to have the highest total policing costs in the region using almost 23% of their budget, closely followed by Esquimalt at 21%.
Only 5.7% of the Metchosin budget was dedicated to policing, but that percentage has escalated significantly since 2023 following a new costing agreement with the RCMP.
The analysis by Grumpy Taxpayers focuses on population, police strength, population per officer, Criminal Code offences, crime rate, case load and police costs from the most recent BC Police Resources Report (2023).
VicPD (including Esquimalt) continues to have the lowest citizen to officer ratio and the highest crime rate due to demands of policing the region’s downtown central business district with its concentration of entertainment centre. The effect of homelessness, people with mental health and illegal drug issues plus various other factors contribute to this higher crime rate.
Note, the ongoing Victoria-Saanich Citizens’ Assembly is examining the pros and cons of consolidating the police services in those two municipalities. That technical analysis by MNP may be viewed here on pages 86-95.
DIG DEEPER
2023 BC Police Resources Report, March, 2025.
Esquimalt says no to police budget increase for new hires, Times Colonist, Mar. 7, 2025.