OTTAWA, July 20, 2018 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada is committed to addressing radicalization to violence by working with community partners to keep Canadians safe.

Today the Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change, on behalf of the Honourable Ralph Goodale, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, announced nearly $1 million over four years from the Community Resilience Fund to the Ottawa Police Service to expand a countering radicalization to violence prevention and intervention program.

Ottawa MERIT (Multiagency Early Risk Intervention Tables) is a collaborative intervention program involving multiple local agencies, whose goal is to improve access to social services for at-risk individuals, including those at risk of radicalizing to violence, and broaden prevention work in Ottawa. Funding will be used to assess local needs, train frontline practitioners and law enforcement representatives, and build awareness in the community about preventing and countering radicalization to violence.

The Community Resilience Fund supports efforts of the Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence to deliver on Public Safety Canada's commitment to prevent radicalization to violence.

Quotes

"The Government of Canada is proud to support the work of the Ottawa Police Service in addressing radicalization to violence. Effective prevention is possible through collaboration and providing the necessary services to redirect vulnerable populations away from dangerous paths. Ottawa MERIT will allow police to work with the community at large to build resiliency against radicalization and make our city safer."

- Catherine McKenna, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change

"The funding provided to our Service through the Community Resilience Fund will support the collaborative risk approach of Ottawa MERIT to support prevention work targeted to those at risk of radicalization to violent extremism with our community partners. This funding will support the development of a city-wide strategy for preventing and countering radicalization, and speak to the needs expressed in many of our communities to create effective tools that will support partner agencies to triage, assess, support and refer individuals at risk."

- Joan McKenna, Acting Deputy Chief, Ottawa Police Service

Quick Facts

• The Community Resilience Fund had $2.4 million in funds for existing and new projects in 2017-2018 and $4.4 million in 2018-19. For 2019-20 and beyond, this fund will have $7 million available each year for existing and new projects.
• An "intervention table," also known as a "situation table," is a regular meeting between law enforcement and practitioners who work together to review cases of at-risk individuals and coordinate interventions.

Associated Links

• Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence  
• Community Resilience Fund
• Ottawa MERIT

SOURCE Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada

View original content: http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/July2018/20/c1976.html