Ontario Hansard
- 12-June2006
NATIVE LAND DISPUTE |
Mr.
Garfield Dunlop (Simcoe North): My question
today is for the Premier. Premier, your absence
has been widely noticed at Caledonia, and so has
the absence of the Minister of Community Safety
and Correctional Services as well as the minister
responsible for aboriginal affairs. On the other
hand, however, our leader has been there a number
of times. In spite of the fact that just last
week in the House your Minister of Community Safety
said that the Leader of the Opposition hasn't
spoken to any police officers, nothing could be
further from the truth. Premier, when can the
good folks at Caledonia expect you to visit the
community?
Hon. Dalton McGuinty (Premier, Minister
of Research and Innovation): Again,
I'm very confident that we have a number of
channels of communication open with the community.
I'm confident that we are doing everything we
can, to this point in time, to bring about a
peaceful resolution, and we will keep those
channels open.
1540
Mr. Dunlop: I guess you're
not going to the community.
The supplementary is for the Premier as well.
The OPP have been present for over 100 days
at Caledonia, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
As one officer told me just yesterday, they
are strung out and they are very tired. They
tell me that they feel like meat in a sandwich.
The OPP is using up very valuable resources
at Caledonia -- millions of dollars per month.
That's after the cuts of $31.3 million to the
field and traffic division this year.
As you say, you're not going to visit Caledonia
and you don't plan to. Can you tell me, Premier,
what are you doing to support the Ontario Provincial
Police at Caledonia?
Hon. Mr. McGuinty: First of
all, let me take this opportunity to thank the
Ontario Provincial Police for all the work they've
been doing at Caledonia. This is obviously a
very challenging circumstance which they've
been called upon to address. I think they've
shown a remarkable aptitude in managing this.
If there are additional resources required,
if there are additional efforts that we as the
government can make, then of course we are very
much open to representations made by the Ontario
Provincial Police.
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