Click below to find out why!
1. Community services are losing funding
Despite the evidence of the harms of policing, VicPD’s budget has grown from $54 million in 2018 to $83.2 million in 2025 (an increase of 53%).
VicPD’s budget grew from $74.5 million to $83.2 million , an increase of 12%, or $8.7 million in one year.
Meanwhile, community and social services in Victoria are losing out on essential, life-sustaining funding. Community grants, including those funding essential poverty-reduction programs, were cut by 21%, or $1.5 million. This includes funding cuts to:
- Affordable housing
- Reconciliation and Indigenous relations
- Prosperity and economic inclusion
- Climate leadership and environmental stewardship
- Sustainable transportation
- Social policy, equity & accessibility
- Art, music and culture
We want our city to invest in its people and in community supports and resources, not policing and surveillance.
2. The police do not prevent or resolve violence
The vast majority of events VicPD responds to are property damage, theft, or traffic incidents. Two-thirds of alleged crimes are not even reported to the police in Canada, and only 6% of sexual assaults are formally reported. Only a fraction of these cases will be prosecuted and result in a conviction. (Statistics Canada).
“Violent offences” make up less than 15% of reports to police in BC, where as “property offences” make up over 50% of reports. (BC crime, police, and police resource statistics)
Check out our Resources page for more resources and information about how the police do not stop violence.
3. Police cause violence
VicPD’s response to incidents includes violence or the threat of violence.
From 2018-2021, VicPD filed 3,338 use of force reports, including 1,055 reports where they said the person was in crisis, and 570 reports where they said they injured someone including 214 where they said the person was in crisis.
Read more about about VicPD’s use of force reports at needsmorespikes.com.
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4. Criminal punishment is not justice
Prisons are sites of punishment that subject people to violent, unsafe, and abusive conditions. Prisons cannot “fix” the social and economic issues and racism that lead to people being criminalized. Instead, incarceration worsens mental health and substance use issues, separates people from their families and community supports, and destroys employment and housing opportunities. Because prisons do not create healthier and safer communities, people released from prison are most likely return to prison.
We need to prevent people from going to prison in the first place by making sure their needs are met through funding community services.