Hill security tighter, and more to come
‘Comprehensive’ review will add to steps already taken, Speaker says
Five weeks after a gunman breached the security of Parliament Hill, the Speaker of the House of Commons assured MPs Thursday that steps have been taken to tighten security and that a “comprehensive” safety review is underway.
In that breach, a rifle-toting assailant ran onto Parliament Hill, commandeered an RCMP car, broke past guards inside the Centre Block, ran by two caucus rooms filled with MPs and senators, and was killed in a hail of gunfire outside the Library of Parliament.
MPs wanted to know from Speaker Andrew Scheer whether changes to security will affect future security costs, and whether the mental health of the Commons’ security guards is being taken care of.
As well, although Scheer has announced plans to unify the Commons and Senate security forces, at least one opposition MP said his review should also consider whether to create a much larger security force that guards the entire parliamentary precinct, even the outside grounds of the Hill now protected by the RCMP.
Scheer maintains that specific details about security practices and enhanced measures should generally not be made public.
But he did give some examples of changes that have occurred, such as:
There are now white tents, staffed by officials, leading to the two Centre Block entry points for tourists and visitors to the Hill. This adds a preliminary step before visitors enter the building, where they are screened inside by a metal detector.
There are no longer visitors’ tours on Wednesday mornings while the parties are holding their caucus meetings.
The size of visitors’ tours has been reduced, from a maximum of 50 people to 25.
The doors of all the buildings are locked after business hours.
Guards are now being trained to use firearms.
“There is a very comprehensive review going on right now,” Scheer said.
Earlier in the week, Scheer and Sen. Vern White announced plans to unify the security forces now separately protecting the Senate and Commons. The RCMP will continue to have jurisdiction for the grounds outside.
Scheer told MPs that the Com- mons now spends $22 million annually on its own security. (The Senate and RCMP also bear additional costs.) He said that while there might be some savings in reduced “backroom” administration once the unified force is created, those savings could be offset by future costs associated with extra security personnel and other “material” security measures.
New Democrat MP Craig Scott suggested that Scheer’s review should examine the security model used by the Capitol Hill police in Washington, D.C.
“My suggestion would be looking seriously at pushing our security perimeter out ( beyond parliamen- tary buildings to include the exterior grounds) with a professional force.”
Liberal MP Kevin Lamoureux said that after last month’s attack, MPs can’t afford to “mess up” as they consider increased security.
“We need to recognize that Parliament Hill is the centre of our democratic institutions across Canada. It is a high risk area that needs to be protected. So we have to make sure that we do it right.”
Conservative MP Tom Lukiwski said he was pleased that the House and Senate security forces will finally be unified.
“It’s unfortunate that the events of Oct. 22 had to, I guess, almost force the issue. But at least were getting to where I think we needed to get to a long time ago.”