Stepping up efforts to ensure the integrity of the private security industry in Quebec
The Bureau de la sécurité privée (BSP) is stepping up its efforts to ensure the integrity and competence of companies and individuals working in the private security sector. The Bureau has added more resources to its inspection department to ensure that all players in the industry hold a proper licence and thus exercise their profession legally. The BSP is also launching a campaign to raise awareness about the importance of asking for a BSP permit to ensure that you are doing business with certified professionals.
“Since the establishment of the Bureau de la sécurité privée nearly two years ago, we have been concentrating our efforts on transmitting information and providing guidance to licence applicants,” explains Denis Levesque, Executive director of BSP. The industry has had sufficient time to comply and we are now further tightening our controls to ensure compliance with the law and above all, to ensure public protection.”
Since its inception, the BSP has issued more than 30,000 agent licences. Of the applications received, 1,000 were rejected due to applicants’ inadequate training or criminal background. The Bureau has also granted nearly 1,000 licences to agencies. BSP conducts control checks minimally every year and any licence can be revoked at any time.
Requiring a BSP licence!
The BSP is also launching a campaign under the theme "Do you really know who you're dealing with?" The campaign encourages the general public to ask for a BSP licence before dealing with any stakeholder in the security field. "People have a responsibility to make sure to do business with individuals holding a valid licence from the Bureau de la sécurité privée, whose integrity and level of training have been certified," says Denis Lévesque. "Asking for a BSP licence is an effective way for the public and businesses to ensure their own safety, making sure not to grant access to a wolf in sheep's clothing."
The BSP has also launched its new website—www.bureausecuriteprivee.qc.ca—that includes a complete register of licensed agencies and individuals. The site also contains a section where complaints can be filed to report individuals and agencies operating without a licence.