Madam Chair, through you to Ms. Blaney, I think that is a very pertinent question. As this study undertakes its work in exploring potential enlargement of the parliamentary precinct, there may very well be cost implications, as you allude to. I do think that is a consideration to take into account, if this committee makes that recommendation.
I would simply encourage you, Ms. Blaney, and others on the committee to carefully consider how the different mandates work. This is what we mean when we say “interoperability”. For the PPS the primary mandate, as we all know, is protection, not enforcement of the law. In other words, not charging and arresting, but rather keeping all of us who work on the Hill safe.
It is when you have an emergency like last winter where there needs to be co-operation between the PPS and the police of jurisdiction so that there can be enforcement. Even as you look at the perimeter and a potential expansion of that, I do think again, as you are implying in your question, that we should carefully plot out resources so that there can be that high degree of communication and co-operation to prevent another kind of public order emergency of the magnitude that we saw last winter from occurring again.