Ontario Increasing Investment in Video Surveillance Systems

Press Release

Funding will provide police forces with more tools to prevent and fight crime

November 27, 2020

COBOURG — The Ontario government is investing $1.6 million in Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) systems to help 18 police services across the province better detect, investigate and prevent criminal activity. Funding through the new Ontario CCTV Grant will help police services and their municipal partners install new or additional surveillance cameras in areas where gun and gang violence and other criminal activity are most prevalent.

“By strengthening CCTV surveillance systems across the province, Ontario’s police services will be better equipped to prevent criminal activity, identify and apprehend offenders,” said Solicitor General Sylvia Jones. “This expansion will support the local fight against guns and gangs while deterring other crimes such as drug and human trafficking, street racing and stunt driving. The use of CCTV cameras will also help hold criminals accountable by providing important visual evidence to support investigations and the prosecution process.”

The Ontario CCTV Grant, which was announced in August 2020, is providing police services with a total of $6 million over three years to expand CCTV systems in their communities and improve public safety.

The CCTV grant builds on the province’s approximate $106 million investment to combat gun and gang violence, with the support of the federal government, through Ontario’s Guns, Gangs and Violence Reduction Strategy.

“Improving the technology and information available to Ontario’s frontline police is critical to deterring unlawful activity and holding offenders accountable in our communities,” said Minister Jones. “Ontarians need to feel safe in their homes and their businesses without fear of crime as communities recover from the impacts of COVID-19.”

Quick Facts

• Funding from the CCTV grant program will cover 50 per cent of the total project costs including the purchase of CCTV cameras, associated supplies and software as well as installation costs.
• All municipal and First Nations police services, as well as the Ontario Provincial Police are eligible to apply for CCTV grant program over the next three years.
• The CCTV Grant program also complements the $14 million the province invested last December through the provincial priorities stream of the new Community Safety and Policing Grant, which addresses provincewide issues such as gun and gang violence, sexual violence and harassment, and human trafficking.

Additional Resources

• Ontario investing $410K in CCTV Cameras in Peel Region
• New Ontario CCTV Grant program
• Ontario investing $3 million in CCTV Cameras in Toronto
• Ontario’s Guns, Gangs and Violence Reduction Strategy

Related Topics

Law and Safety

Ontario’s laws and related information about our legal system, emergency services, the Ontario Provincial Police and victim services. Learn more

Media Contacts

Stephen Warner
Solicitor General’s Office
stephen.warner@ontario.ca

Brent Ross
Communications Branch
brent.ross@ontario.ca

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