Canada Minister of Public Safety Gary Anandasangaree on Wednesday at Toronto’s BMO Field Stadium announced that the Canadian government is putting up C$145M to support the costs of “enhanced security” for FIFA World Cup matches in both Toronto and Vancouver, according to Isaac Callan GLOBALNEWS.ca. Of the funding, C$45M has been set aside for Toronto and C$100M will go to Vancouver. The money is “expected to flow from the federal government to the provinces and then on to the cities.” Vancouver will host seven World Cup matches; Toronto will have six. The new money will be “used for ‘specific operational needs’ for the games, which will also receive funds from local municipal taxpayers and provincial governments.” The federal government indicated that the funding was “‘primarily’ for security -- mainly policing” -- and “would not be eligible to cover costs like transit” (GLOBALNEWS.ca, 4/29).
MORE TO COME: In Toronto, Mahdis Habibinia reported it is unclear whether the money is directly going to the municipalities or the provinces. While the B.C. government was the “bidder to get Vancouver chosen as a host city,” in Toronto it was “the municipality that was the bidder.” Toronto World Cup Exec Dir Sharon Bollenbach indicated that it is “‘too early’ to know whether the money will help the city to bridge some gaps” (TORONTO STAR, 4/29). Also in Toronto, Spiro Papuckoski noted Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers will “handle national security and VIP protection” while Toronto and Vancouver police will “take care of local enforcement” (TORONTO SUN, 4/29).
