PERTH-WELLINGTON – On Dec. 11, Perth-Wellington MPP Matthew Rae announced the province will spend over $700,000 to fund local police service programs.
“It is great to see our provincial government supporting local police services to protect our rural communities,” Rae stated in a press release.
“This funding will help local police services and healthcare workers offer specialized mental health supports to community members experiencing a mental health or addiction crisis.”
For 2025-26 and 2026-27, funding includes:
- $187,329 towards fraud prevention and response for Wellington County OPP;
- $267,356 for Perth OPP’s mobile crisis response team enhancement program;
- $240,000 for a mobile crisis response team for the Stratford Police Service;
- $60,893 to enhance the Perth OPP’s mobile crisis response team from the Ministry of the Solicitor General, through the Community Safety and Policing Grant Program (CSPG), and thanks to a joint application by the North Perth and West Perth municipalities; and
- $177,995 through the CSPG to support “purpose driven responses” for the Stratford police.
“Our government is taking decisive action to protect Ontario by ensuring police have the tools, resources, and partnerships they need to keep our communities safe,” said Solicitor General Michael Kerzner.
“Through this grant, we are equipping police services with the means to strengthen mobile crisis response teams, made up of police and crisis workers, who are uniquely positioned to respond to people experiencing a mental health or addictions crisis, de-escalating situations that could threaten public safety while connecting vulnerable individuals with the support they need.”
For 2025-26 and 2026-27, 36 police services and OPP detachments will receive approximately $9 million through the mobile crisis response team enhancement grant, which offers funding to police for crisis workers.
“This grant supports the ongoing need for additional mental health assistance on calls involving individuals experiencing a mental health and/or addiction crisis, as well as to better leverage local mental health expertise,” officials stated in the release.
“This initiative reflects the strong collaboration between the Perth County OPP Detachment and our community partners,” said Perth County inspector Tyler Stewart.
The CSPG is part of the government’s $91-million in spending on policing initiatives that focus on local or provincial priorities and provides funding to deploy front-line officers.
