Ontario Hansard - Native Land Dispute

Mr. Garfield Dunlop (Simcoe North): My question today is for the Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services. We are now approaching the 240th day of the crisis at Caledonia. In this fiscal year, we are approaching a full seven months of impact on the OPP budget. It's my understanding that there are always 124 OPP officers at Caledonia on a daily basis. Minister, can you inform this House how much the Caledonia crisis is costing the OPP budget to date? I don't want some phony answer; I'd like the actual cost, if you could. Thank you very much.

Hon. Monte Kwinter (Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services): I thank the member for the question. I just want to say before I respond to the specifics that I really want to commend the OPP for the job that their men and women are doing. They're in a very difficult situation, and they're performing in an exemplary manner. I want to commend them, as I said; not only them but their command officers and the commissioner.

Having said that, the OPP has a global budget. In that global budget, the commissioner has a responsibility to allocate it as the commissioner sees the requirements demand. I have said, the Premier has said, and we have said from day one, that if there are any extraordinary costs attributed to that, we will certainly address them. You have to understand that it isn't a simple matter of just checking the time clock, because officers are there on an annual basis, and we're looking at the incremental costs. When we have that information, we will --

The Speaker (Hon. Michael A. Brown): Thank you. Supplementary?

Mr. Dunlop: Minister, I only asked you a question that a responsible minister of the crown should be able to answer and provide to the citizens of Ontario. How much money is it costing the OPP? I don't think that's a hard question.

Perhaps you can answer this other question. I understand that the Management Board of Cabinet is considering a request from the OPP to establish a permanent 72-officer detachment in Caledonia. Can you explain the details of this and how much that detachment will cost the citizens of Ontario as well?

Hon. Mr. Kwinter: The member is really saying things that he has no knowledge of. There has been no request to me for a new detachment at Caledonia. As a result, there was no presentation made to Management Board. You're just dreaming this up. So I can't respond to it because there has not been a request for that at this time.