OTTAWA -- Opposition politicians attacked the federal government yesterday, saying it had issued "an invitation to terrorists" by posting arrangements for the G8 summit on the Internet, but the government insisted there was no security breach.
In the House of Commons, Public Works Minister Don Boudria said the information on the summit, to be held on June 26 and 27, could be made publicly available without risk. But he acknowledged that the government had removed the material from the Internet, will not put it back and no longer will make it available to the public.
Mr. Boudria said the deadline for potential contractors to visit the site passed in mid-March, so there is "no purpose" in making the information public again.
Opposition MPs scoffed at the explanation.
"Only under this government would we give dangerous protesters, thugs and terrorists detailed information on how to breach security successfully," Canadian Alliance MP Myron Thompson said.
Mr. Boudria said the RCMP has determined there was no security breach.
He added that much of the information is available on the Web site run by the Kananaskis Lodge, where the summit will be held. But he conceded outside the Commons that the resort's Web site would not include specifics on the rooms to be used by world leaders.
"The information that we gave is essentially the same as what we gave for the Quebec City summit. In the Quebec City summit . . . the RCMP have said it was fine," Mr. Boudria said.
"After this issue was raised by The Globe and Mail, we removed it from the site as a precautionary measure, had the RCMP look at it again and they still said it was of no security concern."
Mr. Boudria added that despite the RCMP's response, the information will not be reposted, because bidders no longer can use it. Asked whether the government would be willing to make the information available to the public again, he said, "I don't know what purpose that would serve."
Progressive Conservative Leader Joe Clark noted that Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and his summit organizer, Robert Fowler, are in Africa to prepare for the summit.
At the same time, he said, the government has published information that "could be perceived as an invitation to terrorists to hit the G8 summit. It raises the question: Who is responsible here for the summit?"
The government of Alberta played down the incident. "It will be up to the federal officials to deal with the matter, and their security team to respond accordingly," said Gordon Turtle, a spokesman for Premier Ralph Klein.
In Washington, the U.S. Secret Service would not comment on whether the RCMP should revise its $100-million arrangements to protect the world's most powerful leaders while they are on Canadian soil.
"We have a long-standing relationship with the RCMP, and have every reason to believe that security for the G8 summit will be outstanding," U.S. Secret Service spokesman Mark Connolly said.
Mr. Connolly added that while "the Secret Service is aware of [the issue], the RCMP is in the best position to make a determination on the matter."
A U.S. expert, however, said security should be revamped. William Waugh, former chairman of the emergency and crisis management section of the American Society for Public Administration, compared the situation with a security breach at the 2000 Republican National Convention in Philadelphia, where the emergency-response plan was widely circulated before the event.
"The RCMP should probably reevaluate their plans," he said.
Activists planning to protest at the summit said the information would be of little use to them because they will be kept far from the leaders.
"If I was a terrorist, for example, that information might be useful. But it's not useful to protestors, really," said Alan Keane of Co-Motion Collective, a group helping to co-ordinate logistics for protesters from around the world who plan demonstrations during the Kananaskis meetings.
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