
Feds to boost G7 security by flying in 3,000 officers, German shepherds
OTTAWA — The federal government plans to spend more than $2.2 million to fly roughly 3,000 police officers and dozens of German shepherds from all over the country to Quebec City to help secure the sites for next month’s G7 leaders’ summit.
The G7 leaders, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Theresa May, will meet June 8-9 inside a highly secured zone behind metal fences that wind through the now-fortified vacation town of La Malbaie.
The event is widely expected to attract protesters to La Malbaie and, in particular, to Quebec City, where the majority of international media will be stationed for the duration of the summit. Quebec City, however, is about a two hour drive away from La Malbaie and the public won’t be able to get anywhere near the key sites.
Civil society groups planning to gather peacefully during the summit warn the imposing battalion of police and the webs of metal barriers will unduly constrain their democratic right to be heard.