The Liberal Party today called on Public Security Minister Vic Toews to be the first witness to appear at the Parliamentary Public Safety Committee to personally answer the questions that he has so far ignored regarding the G8 and G20 summits.
“Last week, we sent a letter to the Minister with a specific list of questions that many Canadians have in the aftermath of the disastrous G20 summit in downtown Toronto,” said Liberal Government Ethics and Democratic Reform Critic Marlene Jennings.
“Mr. Toews has still not answered, so the Liberal Party will be pushing to hear from him first as the Committee convenes for special meetings. He may have to disrupt his summer vacation plans, but Canadians need answers.”
In a letter last week, Liberal Public Safety Critic Mark Holland demanded to know:
• What security advice the government considered before moving the summit to Toronto?
• Why they ignored advice to hold it at the Canadian National Exhibition grounds?
• Who designed and approved the G20 security plan and its astronomical price tag?
• Who was ultimately giving security commands?
• Whether anyone on the political side got involved – directly or through PCO – in operational decisions during the summit?
“Prime Minister Stephen Harper made the decision to hold the G20 in downtown Toronto – a decision that led to exorbitant costs and a nearly impossible security situation for police,” said Ms. Jennings. “And it was Minister Toews who oversaw the $1 billion in spending for security. This makes them ultimately accountable for the disaster that ensued.”
The Prime Minister’s decision to hold the G20 in Toronto put the police in an impossible situation, resulted in massive property damage for which business owners have yet to be compensated, led to the largest mass arrest in Canadian history, and has civil rights groups are calling for an independent inquiry.
“Ontario’s premier said yesterday that Torontonians are ‘psychologically scarred’ by the summit protests, and vowed that another G20 summit will never be held there again,” said Ms. Jennings. “Canadians, who are left shaking their heads at this mess, deserve accountability for why Minister Toews and Prime Minister Harper mismanaged the G20 so badly.”
