NDP calls for G20 inquiry

The G20 Summit — a $1 billion security event that led to the largest mass arrest in the country’s history — deserves more than a “hodgepodge” of reviews, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath.

Horwath introduced a private member’s bill Tuesday that, if passed, would launch a public inquiry into the international summit which created chaos in Toronto streets for one weekend in late June.

There are already a number of inquires and reviews in place, but Horwath said she’s concerned they won’t answer all questions related to government and law enforcement decision making.

“It’s a mishmash, hodgepodge but the major piece of the puzzle is missing and that is a full inquiry that’s all encompassing, that allows us to subpoena witnesses and forces documents to be tabled... really gets at what happened,” she said.

Community Safety Minister Jim Bradley said he’s aware of at least four inquiries already underway, including those reviews initiated by the Toronto Police Services Board, the provincial ombudsman and by the provincial government.

Former Chief Justice Roy McMurtry was appointed by the Dalton McGuinty government to review the so-called secret provincial law, the Public Works Protection Act, that police used to create an arrest zone around the summit’s security perimeter fence.

Any public inquiry would have to be called by the Stephen Harper government, he said.

“I think that no doubt there will be some interesting information which will be forthcoming and I leave it to the federal government to make its decision on a federal inquiry in the light of the fact that this was a federal operation,” Bradley said.