Public Safety Committee on Nov. 3rd, 2010

[Chief William Blair]

The hotels are located in the downtown core of Toronto. There are no hotels by the CNE grounds. There are some buildings there where meetings could have taken place. The Direct Energy Centre is where about 4,000 or 4,500 accredited media were located. There are other buildings on the CNE grounds where meetings could have taken place.

We would have faced the logistical challenges of moving the internationally protected persons and some of the participants from the hotels where they were staying to that site and back. It would have given a much larger exposure of an area that we would have had to protect over the course of the summit event.

Having the event in the Metro convention centre, in relatively close proximity to the hotels where most of the participants were staying, allowed us to have a smaller footprint where very, very strong security was required.

In any event, the demonstrations that took place in Toronto would have taken place in proximity to our central business district.

[Dave MacKenzie, Conservative, Oxford, ON]

So if folks were housed in the hotels, where they logically would be, creating a secure corridor to the CNE grounds would have taken more people and more resources.

[Chief William Blair]

We believe it might have. We would have had to protect the hotels in any event, because that's where some of the participants were staying. Plus, we would have had to protect the place and the space where the summit events were taking place. Because it was in the Metro convention centre, it was in relatively close proximity to the hotels.

If it had been located in the CNE--and it could have been--we would have had to maintain a larger corridor from the hotel sites all the way to the CNE. In any event, we would have had to protect the summit site and it likely would not have made a significant impact on where the demonstrations took place.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

You have about 20 seconds. Please summarize quickly.

[Dave MacKenzie, Conservative, Oxford, ON]

My colleagues wanted to explore the political interference from the federal government. Did you experience any of that?

[Chief William Blair]

None whatsoever, sir. I had no contact or communication with anyone from the federal government throughout the planning process, save and except the conversation I had with Mr. Elcock. I'm not aware of any direction or instruction, or any comment, that was made by anyone in the federal government as we planned and executed our plans for the safety of the summit.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Thank you very much, Mr. Blair.

We'll go to Mr. Kania.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Chief Blair, just on that very last point, you're saying that as the head of the Toronto Police Service, you had no contact with anybody--any politician, minister, or government official--in terms of the planning of the G-20 summit in Toronto.

[Chief William Blair]

No. There was a visit, well after the event was planned, by our public safety minister. He came to Toronto a few days before the summit. Actually, I don't know the precise date, but it was the day on which the earthquake struck up here near Ottawa, on the other side of the river. The public safety minister came. I showed him our major incident command centre, which we had constructed at police headquarters, and gave him a tour. I had a brief conversation with him on that day.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

Thank you.

Can you advise us as to what date that was in due course?

[Chief William Blair]

Yes.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

Thank you.

How long did that meeting last?

[Chief William Blair]

The public safety minister saw the room. We met. We had a brief discussion for perhaps 20 minutes and then we both went off to our jobs.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

So for the entire period of time, and for all of the planning, and for all of the $1.3 billion that was spent, you're saying that the only direct involvement of the Minister of Public Safety or anybody on behalf of the federal government was a 20- minute tour that you provided.

[Chief William Blair]

No, I'm saying with me; first of all, I was not on the--

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

That's what I meant. I'm just talking about you.

[Chief William Blair]

I'm not a member of the integrated security unit planning team or the executive team. I'm the chief of police in Toronto. That was my only conversation with the minister about this event.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

That's fine. I understand that you're the chief of police in Toronto, where the summit was being held, and you remained in control of the police force in Toronto for the summit, right?

[Chief William Blair]

That's right.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

So the only contact that you, as the chief of police of Toronto, had with anybody from the federal government was you providing a 20-minute tour to the Minister of Public Safety.

[Chief William Blair]

Yes.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

Thank you.

Chief Blair, you handled the G-20 in Toronto. Would you also have been able to handle the security parameters of the G-8 if the government had chosen to also hold the G-8 in Toronto?

[Chief William Blair]

I think it might have created some interesting challenges, but not dissimilar challenges. Provided I had the same level of support that I received throughout the G-20 from my policing partners, that's a possibility.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

So it would have been a possibility. If you had had enough and adequate warning, you could have handled both. Is that fair to say?

[Chief William Blair]

I think it's fair to say. We weren't asked to do that. We had enough to do, quite frankly, with the G-20, but I think it's possible.