Recommendation 12

The Ministry of the Solicitor General should formalize and enhance the Ontario Public Order Hub model by making it a permanent and sustainable fixture of public order policing in the province

With a view to strengthen Ontario’s public order policing system so it can meet evolving challenges and deployment needs, the IG recommends:

1. That the Ministry of the Solicitor General formalize the current Ontario Public Order Hub model to ensure its long-term sustainability, effectiveness and clarity in operations. This formalization should occur through amendments to the relevant Regulations in the CSPA that address the following:
   • A clear operational framework, with the OPP serving as Chair of the Hub and with representation from all Ontario police services that maintain a POU;   
   • A single pathway for police services to request POU assistance through the Hub;
   • A coordinated approach among Hub member police services with a POU that includes the discretion for each individual police service to decide whether to provide assistance based on their own ability to continue to deliver adequate and effective public order policing locally in their ‘home’ jurisdiction; and 

   • Mechanisms for effective planning, intelligence-gathering and resource analysis on public order policing matters, including through an organized PLT network within the mandate of the Hub.

      

2. That the operation structure of the Ontario Public Order Hub provides appropriate notifications to the IG, given the IG’s statutory responsibility in section 20 of the CSPA to oversee and act to ensure the delivery of adequate and effective policing in the province. 

Formalizing the Hub will enhance the effectiveness of Ontario’s Public Order policing system, improve the coordination of resource deployments, and facilitate information-sharing that improves outcomes. This formalization will also ensure that the Hub becomes a permanent fixture of Ontario’s policing system.