McGuinty Government Announces New Crime Prevention Grant Program

3 November 2006

The McGuinty government is marking Crime Prevention Week 2006 with $792,000 in funding available for grants to community groups, Community Safety and Correctional Services Minister Monte Kwinter said today.

"This year's Crime Prevention Week theme, Working Together To Build Safer Communities, calls on all Ontarians to play a role in preventing crime," Kwinter said. "The McGuinty government is on the side of Ontario families concerned about crime and safety, and we will continue to support communities in their efforts to prevent crime locally in partnership with police."

Crime Prevention Week marks the 2006 launch of the $792,000 Safer and Vital Communities Grant program. Community groups and organizations, with the support of their police service, can now apply under the program to fund local crime prevention initiatives.

Information on the Safer and Vital Communities Grant program can be found on the ministry's website or through local police services.

Crime Prevention Week runs from November 5 to 11. Ontario police services and community organizations have planned events during the week to showcase local success stories in crime prevention. The ministry works closely with the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police to support local initiatives and promote Crime Prevention Week.

The McGuinty government's $37.1 million Safer Communities - 1,000 Officers Partnership program includes a strong crime prevention component. Five hundred of the new officers are assigned to community policing duties that involve crime prevention: street patrols, school and youth outreach and increased traffic enforcement. The remaining 500 are assigned duties in the fight against crime in six priority areas, including guns and gangs and youth crime.

"We have made possible the hiring of 1,000 new police officers across the province," said Kwinter. "These officers, working in partnership with community and business groups, will have a positive impact in reducing crime in the province. I invite Ontarians to take part in this week's activities and make crime prevention a part of their daily lives."

Since 2003, the McGuinty government has invested over $3.4 million in direct community-based crime prevention programs across Ontario. Grants have supported projects that combat youth crime and provide jobs for at-risk youth, offer counselling on drug and alcohol abuse and help prevent elder abuse.

The crime rate in Ontario decreased by 4.5 per cent in 2005, the third year in a row that Ontario had the lowest crime rate of all the provinces.

Disponible en français

www.mcscs.jus.gov.on.ca

Backgrounder

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CRIME PREVENTION IN ONTARIO

Collaboration among the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services, the Ontario Provincial Police and local police services has made Ontario a leader in policing excellence in Canada. Crime prevention programs and activities are part of police services' core responsibilities.

Crime Prevention Week

Since 1970, police services throughout Ontario have observed Crime Prevention Week during the first full week of November. In 2006, Crime Prevention Week runs from November 5 to 11. The week provides an important opportunity for the ministry, police services and community organizations to promote public awareness, collaborate on crime prevention and showcase successful local initiatives.

For more information on crime prevention in your area, contact your local police service.

The Safer and Vital Communities Grant Program

The Safer and Vital Communities Grant program supports the ministry's goal of working with partners to promote a safer Ontario. The program will provide up to a total of $792,000 in 2006-07 to fund local crime prevention initiatives. Grant funding will target crime prevention in priority areas such as youth crime, guns and gangs, and protecting young Ontarians from Internet luring and child pornography.

The grant program is available to community-based not-for-profit organizations or groups and First Nations band councils. For more information on the Safer and Vital Communities Grant program, visit the ministry's website or contact your local police service.

The Safer Communities - 1,000 Officers Partnership Program

The McGuinty government's $37.1 million program is a key part of the government's plan to foster safer and stronger communities in Ontario. Half of the 1,000 new police officers are assigned duties that include crime prevention components: street patrols, school and youth outreach programs and increased traffic enforcement.

The other 500 officers are assigned duties related to six priority areas identified in the fight against crime in Ontario:

- Guns and gangs

- Youth crime

- Organized crime, especially marijuana grow operations

- Dangerous offenders

- Domestic violence

- Protecting children from Internet luring and child pornography.

Other McGuinty government crime prevention initiatives

The McGuinty government recognizes that part of ensuring a prosperous future for Ontario is making sure that young Ontarians have a chance at a bright future. New initiatives launched in 2006 include:

- The Youth Challenge Fund that will provide $30 million for

community-led programs targeted to young people in the GTA

- The $28 million Youth Opportunities Strategy to help offer positive

alternatives to a life of crime to young Ontarians

- The $3 million Down With Guns initiative to offer kids positive

alternatives to guns and gangs.

Disponible en français

www.mcscs.jus.gov.on.ca

For further information: Annette Phillips, Minister's Office, (416) 326-8265, (647) 205-6598 (cellular); Anthony Brown, Communications Branch, (416) 314-7772

Source: newswire

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