RCMP commissioner doesn’t think force will reach full gender equity

REGINA – The head of the RCMP says she doesn't think the force will get to 50 per cent gender equity.

Commissioner Brenda Lucki said the fact that Mounties mainly police rural areas makes it difficult for some women.

"The RCMP is primarily rural police so it's very difficult," Lucki said while being cross-examined at the national inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women in Regina on Tuesday. "It's difficult if you are mobile and you're leaving your family structure behind."

During 2016-2017, slightly more than one in five RCMP regular members were women, and the force hired 22 per cent women over that period.

Over the same time, the Toronto Police Service hired 48 per cent women.

Lucki said comparing Toronto to the RCMP isn't fair because Toronto is an urban environment

"You're dealing with an urban environment where you're primarily recruiting in an urban area where people aren't, there's no mobility concerns as far as people being able to stay their entire career in Toronto," Lucki said.

Lucki added, in a perfect world, the RCMP would be more ethnic and gender diverse in each of its detachments.

— Follow @RyanBMcKenna on Twitter