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London, Ont. police services board looks for answers on provincial appointments

London Police Services Board Chair Susan Toth speaks to CTV News in London, Ont. on Thursday, April 21, 2022. (Bryan Bicknell/CTV London) London Police Services Board Chair Susan Toth speaks to CTV News in London, Ont. on Thursday, April 21, 2022. (Bryan Bicknell/CTV London)
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The London Police Services board is looking for clarity from the province on how it makes board appointments.

It comes as board members continue to push for more diversity on the police governance body.

At its meeting Thursday, the board approved a letter to Ontario Solicitor General Sylvia Jones, asking for a meeting to talk about the province’s selection process when it comes to police services board appointments.

In London, the province is responsible for choosing three of the seven board members.

Prior to the last appointment, the London Police Services Board specifically requested that the next provincial appointee be a Black or Indigenous person, to better reflect the diversity in the community.

Instead, former city Councillor Nancy Branscombe, who is neither was handed the position.

“There’s no dispute that Ms. Branscombe is incredibly qualified, Ms. Walker, Mr. Chabar, all incredible appointments,” said board chair Susan Toth, referring to the most recent provincial appointments- Branscombe, Megan Walker, and Ali Chahbar. “But, I argue that that’s a red herring in the letter that I drafted on behalf of the board, because the issue isn’t the current appointment, but rather the process to ensure that Black and Indigenous people are being appointed to boards.”

Toth said she hopes for a meeting sooner rather than later, concerned the request could get shuffled aside because of the upcoming provincial election campaign.

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