Procedure and House Affairs Committee on March 7th, 2017

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, all, for joining us here today.

Going over your report, I see that in the contingency fund there is the amount of $2.1 million to be used for operational requirements that were not anticipated earlier in the year, including security for Canada's 150th celebrations. I'm assuming, obviously, this has been planned for years and that you've been looking at all kinds of scenarios. I recognize that you can't go into too much detail, but have other challenges come up that have resulted in these additional funds being put aside?

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Well, every year is different. Things come up that you may not know in advance of that year but that you have to prepare for. Obviously last year, for example, we had the visit of President Obama, which led to additional expense.

As for what other kinds of events will happen during the course of this year, but that we don't know about yet, is a good question. But I think it's important that we prepare for that.

Is there anything else we need to add to that?

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Do the funds being set aside for the baggage screening machine include staff as well or is that just for the machine requirements?

[Supt Mike O'Beirne]

It does include the staff as well, sir.

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Just out of curiosity more than anything else, with the 150th anniversary coming up and a whole bunch of things, will overtime be used more regularly given that we're expecting, I would assume, more visitors around Parliament Hill, in the area? Will overtime be used? Obviously you can't hire more officers just for a short period—or maybe you can.

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Well, it's not a plan to temporarily increase the size of the force, for instance, for the time around July 1 or during the course of the summer. However, for large events we co-operate with other police forces like the Ottawa Police Service or the RCMP who can supplement us.

I'll let Mike add to that.

[Supt Mike O'Beirne]

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

That's correct. We have a good understanding of the events that will be taking place in our area of operation in and around Parliament Hill. However, we're always in constant discussions with the partners on this, internally and externally, to really get a good understanding of the scope and magnitude of them. This will inform our personnel requirements. As Mr. Speaker mentioned, we do call upon some partners to assist us when and as required.

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Obviously, when a bunch of tourists are walking around, they're not always in the right spot when wandering and what have you, and that's going to have to be dealt with as people converge.

Something else that has come up in previous meetings is access to the building for MPs, for senators, and for staff. Is that still something you have made a priority, with regard to ensuring that access is there and privileges are met?

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Absolutely.

Part of the ongoing training of members is understanding, for instance, the privileges of members of Parliament and the importance of letting them get to where they need to be, along with their staff who need to work on the Hill and within the precinct.

Do you have anything to add to that?

[Supt Mike O'Beirne]

There's just one final point.

That is certainly our main effort on a daily basis. We ensure that we emphasize that as part of any of our operational plans. We include contingency plans in the event that there are many visitors or there is a blockage of the lower drive so that we can try to deal with those.

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

A key point that is made is to understand how important it is for members of Parliament to be able to do the things they must do in order to act on behalf of their constituents. That's what it's all about.

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Building on that, has PPS encountered any challenges in its planning? Are there issues that you may not have been able to find a solution for? Is there anything at all? Is everything moving smoothly?

[Supt Mike O'Beirne]

If I can speak in general terms, I think as far as challenges go, one of our ongoing challenges is to ensure the seamless integration of all the previously separate entities so that we're able to provide a world-class security service.

That includes ensuring the cultural integration of all our folks. We've had some great initiatives in the last while to deal with those challenges. Since the commissioning of the 180 Wellington building, our folks are beginning to co-locate there, which has led to combined and integrated briefings and the rapid exchange of information, which is critical for entities such as ours or for any organization really.

I think another challenge is, perhaps, external pressures, or external points that we are constantly trying to be nimble in our response to. They include, as Mr. Speaker mentioned, the Canada 150 events that are coming. There are also the requirements to position ourselves to respond to LTVP pressures and to the very real global threat environment.

These are challenges that we keep at the forefront of our attention everyday.

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Did the events of this past weekend prove to be a kind of training or observation opportunity for you with Crashed Ice going on just off Parliament Hill?

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Were you in it?

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

I was not participating in that. I would like to think that I'm smarter than that.

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

You're sticking to running, right?

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Exactly.

Did that provide an opportunity to see what it would look like when people are in mass numbers around Parliament Hill, trying to get various views, and what you could be facing as we get into the summer months?

[Supt Mike O'Beirne]

Certainly it gave us another glimpse into what we can expect moving forward as the summer months come and as we move towards Canada Day, which is promising to be a grand event.

Specifically to the Red Bull Crashed Ice event, it unfolded without any incident. That's largely due to the great co-operation between the PPS, Ottawa city police, and the RCMP. These three entities were all involved in the pre-planning phase. Certainly in the execution phase of the event, there was kind of a multi-jurisdictional effort. That's a model we continue to build on. We learn from every event. We take best practices and incorporate them into future events.

That certainly has positioned us for future successes.

[The Chair, Liberal, Larry Bagnell]

Thank you, Jamie.

Mr. Christopherson.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Thank you very much, Chair.

Mr. Speaker, it's good to see you, sir, and your delegation.

If I may, I would like to touch on the new screening process. I assume it has been covered in some of this. As you know, there have been some serious concerns raised about this whole new issue.

I want to draw attention to your remarks, Speaker, in the last paragraph of page 1 at the bottom, where you refer to supporting an autonomous security service.

In camera, you and I have had discussions about just how autonomous this is, and if I get time I'll come back to that, because it's anything but. However, I would like to ask you just what the current status of the suggested new screening process is, sir.

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Well, there are two kinds of screening. There's the screening of people who will arrive in buildings like this one, and there is the screening of personnel who are here on an ongoing basis. Of course, both are important and both have a role. At the same time, it's important that we respect certain institutions, such as the media, and work out arrangements that make sense from all perspectives.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

If I may, sir, of the two areas that have jumped out so far, one, of course, is the media itself, through the press gallery, their organized representative body, and also people who work for members here, or may in the future. They're raising serious concerns that tie into the notion of being autonomous.

Once we start getting into anything to do with the RCMP, we see that it is not autonomous at all. Nobody suggests that the RCMP is autonomous, and yet they're responsible for security in this building.

We still have this facade of an independent security service, but at the end of the day, in a crisis, when the rubber hits the road, the Prime Minister will dictate to the RCMP commissioner, who will then issue orders that will be followed. If they have time, I'm sure they'll loop in the Speaker, but if it's a big enough emergency, sir...and we've had some of these discussions in camera, which I can't divulge.

The reason I'm raising that, sir, is that once we start bringing in the press gallery, the free press—and we see the issue of defending the right of the press in a free democracy roiling away south of us—who decides what the threshold is going to be as to who gets accredited?

Now we have linked the ability of the press to be in the building to do their job with the ultimate control of the security service that's going to decide whether or not they are entitled to a badge to work here.

Help me and others to understand why this shouldn't be a concern when it certainly seems like it is.

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Well, I've certainly had discussions on this topic. I must say, though, there are....

You referred to some of the conversations we've had during in camera meetings, and some aspects of this, of course, would have to be in camera.

I think Superintendent O'Beirne is probably better placed to make the assessment of which comments might fit into each category in that sense, so I'm going to let him respond to your questions, if I may.

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

It rolls downhill you know.