Survey conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs on behalf of GardaWorld on the use of security firms to support police forces to ensure the safety of Canadians following the legalization of cannabis

MONTREAL, Jan. 22, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - GardaWorld mandated the leading firm in Canada, Ipsos Public Affairs1, to conduct a scientific survey on the use of security firms to support police forces to ensure the safety of Canadians regarding the legalization of cannabis. GardaWorld is releasing the second part of the originally-conducted survey to the public today.

For the past few years, GardaWorld and the private security industry have clearly expressed that they are ready to play a greater role in supporting police forces. The private security industry can fulfill the duties for which its guards have been duly trained and regulated.

Elected municipal officials across the country express concern about the costs of implementing cannabis legalization. However, the security industry offers safer, less expensive solutions that are supported by the public.

Very strong support for several proposals

The results of the Ipsos survey show that Canadians strongly support a secure environment regarding the legalization of cannabis. In this respect, Ipsos asked 1,007 respondents for their level of comfort relating to the involvement of private firms in support of police officers for:

• Surveillance of areas surrounding cannabis production sites: 70% are comfortable compared to 21% who are not.
• Monitoring of warehousing and distribution centres for cannabis products: 69% are comfortable compared to 21% who are not.
• Surveillance of cannabis production sites: 69% are comfortable compared to 21% who are not.
• Secure transport of cannabis products from production sites to warehousing and distribution centres: 66% comfortable compared to 24% who are not.

"These results demonstrate that Canadians want to have a secure environment in the wake of the legalization of cannabis, and that in this regard, they are very comfortable with the prospect of having serious security companies play a greater role in supporting police officers," stated Christian Paradis, Senior Vice President of GardaWorld.

Security throughout the value chain

The results also show that Canadians want to have surveillance across the entire value chain: from cannabis production to consumption by product users. 

"One example that quickly comes to mind is a truck full of cannabis which leaves the production site and has to travel a few hundred kilometres to the storage facility—or from the warehouse to the point of sale to the consumer. This truck can be a target for criminals; a much larger target than a truck loaded with food, toys, or alcohol. The police will not be able to escort these trucks, however, we can offer a secure transportation service, as we already do, for money," explained Mr. Paradis.

In support of provinces, municipalities and private businesses

The same reasoning applies to security at the point of sale, storage, or production of cannabis. Professional security companies are willing to help ensure the safety of workers and the public.

"By enforcing laws and regulations related to the legalization of cannabis, such as monitoring public areas where consumption will be prohibited, transportation, storage and points of sale, we are able to provide high quality, sophisticated services all while ensuring the safety of the population," said GardaWorld's Senior Vice President.

The industry is also calling on the various levels of government to apply the necessary legislative changes to make outsourcing possible or easier across Canada.

Putting the right people in the right places

Police forces are responding to increasingly complex crimes and criminals. In an ideal world, for example, police officers would focus all their work on tracking down criminals for investigations and patrolling as opposed to having to conduct traffic due to a faulty traffic light or issue parking tickets. The rationale behind this notion becomes quite evident, and the results from this survey show that Canadians are in agreeance.

With the legalization of cannabis, it is important to avoid placing an unnecessary burden on our police officers with tasks that are not exclusive to their line of work. "Instead, we should make sure that our police forces are assigned to as many tasks for which they alone are trained to undertake and let the private security industry offer support for auxiliary tasks at a much lower cost," concluded Christian Paradis.

About GardaWorld
GardaWorld is one of the largest privately-owned security services companies in the world. We provide cash transportation and processing services, protection services and pre-boarding control services in Canadian airports. Our over 62,000 dedicated and highly qualified professionals serve a diversified clientele throughout North America, the Middle East, Africa and Europe. We work across a broad range of sectors, including financial institutions, infrastructures, natural resources and retail, and on behalf of Fortune 500 companies, governments and humanitarian organizations. For more information, visit www.garda.com

SOURCE Groupe de sécurité GardaWorld Inc.