After touring the site of next month's G-8 summit, one of Canada's foremost security experts said holding the event in Kananaskis is a major mistake.
And, Alan Bell said the federal government is in denial about the risks of terrorism, leaving Canadians vulnerable to a living nightmare.
"I doubt the conference will be disrupted -- but Calgary certainly will," Bell said yesterday, adding if anti-globalization protesters are unable to get into Kananaskis during the June summit, they'll simply turn to downtown Calgary as a place to hold their riots.
"The police resources which were normally directed at one location now have to deal with two locations adding twice the cost, twice the time and twice the resources."
Looking to the grim face of terrorism, Bell -- a retired 22-year veteran of Britain's elite Special Air Service -- criticized the feds, saying they've been hit with "deny and repress syndrome" since Sept. 11, dropping the ball on preparing for any attack on Canada.
"We will eventually get attacked," he said.
"It's not a case of if -- it's when."
The latest from Bell, who has long been an outspoken security critic, drew little more than shrugs from G-8 security chiefs yesterday.
"The armchair quarterbacks always come out," said Insp. Al Redford of the G-8 security team, who questioned how in-formed Bell's opinion is.
"Mr. Bell isn't working on planning security for the summit. We are," Redford said.
"We're doing everything in our power to make it secure, and we're quite pleased with our progress to date."
In his address to members of the Canadian Petroleum Institute in Calgary yesterday, Bell went on to say the oil and gas sector desperately needs to hammer out a plan to deal with kidnapping in foreign countries.
"They should have kidnap and ransom policy and procedures already drawn up to deal with all of these eventualities," he said.
In 1999, Alberta oilman Norbert Reinhart allowed himself to be taken hostage in exchange for Ed Leonard, his employee who had been held for months by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.
After three months in captivity, Reinhart, 49, was released after a ransom was paid.
Loved ones are still awaiting word of two Canadians and a Frenchman who were reportedly kidnapped by Colombian rebels.
-- with files from Michael Wood
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