Ste. Anne Mayor Bernie Vermette(above) says the province is doing the right thing by requiring communities with municipal police departments to set up a police board. He explains this will help police departments to do their jobs even better. "It's like another watchful eye that really helps the police department do their jobs in the best, professional way they possibly can. What I'm glad about is the province has come down with some guidelines to follow which is great. It's a win-win situation. It's a positive move ahead."

Justice Minister Andrew Swan says the purpose of the police boards will be to oversee police services, establish priorities and objectives, hire police chiefs and administer budgets.

Vermette says he has been pushing for the establishment of police boards since 2006. As for who will be on the board in Ste. Anne, he says, "On our council in town here, we have two councillors that are in charge of Protective Services, the committee. Those two people would be on that board plus another person from the community at large. All we need is some fine tuning as to what the guidelines require. I'm happy that this is happening."

Vermette hopes to have the board in place within the next few months.