Non-military
The Canadian Coast Guard is a civilian, non-paramilitary organisation. The enforcement of laws in Canada's territorial sea is the responsibility of Canada's federal police force, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) as all ocean waters in Canada are under federal (not provincial) jurisdiction. Saltwater fisheries enforcement is a specific responsibility of DFO's Fisheries Officers.
The CCG does not have a "reserve" element. There is a Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary (CCGA) which is a separate non-profit organization composed of some 5,000 civilian volunteers across Canada who support search and rescue activities.
CCG does not have a paramilitary rank structure; instead, its rank structure roughly approximates that of the civilian merchant marine.
In late October 2010 the Stephen Harper government tabled a report that recommended that arming Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers should be considered. Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Gail Shea presented the government's response to a December 2009 report from the Senate's Fisheries Committee, entitled “Controlling Canada’s Arctic Waters: Role of the Canadian Coast Guard.” The Senate Committee's report had also recommended arming Canadian Coast Guard vessels in the Arctic.
Randy Boswell, of the Canwest News Service quoted Michael Byers, an expert on the law of the sea, who used the phrase “quiet authority of a deck-mounted gun”.
Read more about this topic: Canadian Coast Guard, Organizational Structure